Band Line Up 2019
“Most men are within a finger's breadth of being mad.”
- Diogenes of Sinope
Madness is often the outcome of losing oneself in a search for the soul, yet Manchester's Barbarian Hermit stride into the breech armed to the teeth with a huge array of sonic weaponry at their disposal. Their first strike was heard on the 2016 EP, One, which received glowing praise from the underground music press, but it's their 2018 debut album Solitude and Savagery that deliver the crushing blow. Recorded by doom metal royalty Chris Fielding at the legendary Skyhammer Studios (Conan, Boss Keloid) and released on APF Records (Mastiff, Desert Storm, Under) it displays a disorientating shift in gears as the band stamp the pedal to the floor but keep the tempo slow, for the most part.
The album hammers home the band's unique imprint, displaying their warped take on stoner/sludge and has been featured in many reviewers top releases of 2018. To quote The Sludgelord, "Barbarian Hermit have it; that intangible factor that makes this album like lightning in a bottle. Solitude and Savagery deserves serious attention and is undoubtedly one of the breakout releases of this year. These guys could really fly the flag for the UK underground." This sentiment was reinforced by Classic Rock Magazine, stating that ”Manchester Groove Monsters dredge the swamp and get gold”.
2019 will see Barbarian Hermit return to Bloodstock Open Air Festival to open the Sophie Stage having previously won the 2018 Metal to the Masses Manchester final to go on to deliver a dominating and victorious performance on the New Blood Stage. There are also extensive tours of both the UK and Europe in the pipeline.
The Barbarian Hermit live experience has its ritualistic trappings but without giving too much away we would say that it’s advisable to bring a gravy boat with you.
The two singles from Solitude and Savagery, the Sepultura-meets-Hanz-Zimmer odyssey that is ‘Reawaken’, and the tripped out Sabb-off, ‘Black Mass’ were greatly received, gaining radio play on TotalRock (with Black Mass coming second in their Hit or Miss feature), Mayhem Radio an Chorley FM to name a few.
Their lyrical themes are designed as a labyrinthine journey through singer Ed Campbell’s personal experiences in seeking the truth within and what may unexpectedly reach out of the darkness and pierce your heart when you least expect it. This storytelling tradition is woven in to Barbarian Hermit’s songs using allegory, allusion and foreshadowing to pull you in. They invite you to enter the hermitage and burn the fire with them and fall together in to the darkness. In the words of Riff Relevant “Yes, clearly T'Hermit have arrived to lay waste to all that which lies before them and Solitude and Savagery is the means by which they are guaranteed a successful crusade”.
As each year has passed in the life of Barbarian Hermit their rapidly growing and much loved fan-base have witnessed them evolve in to an ever stronger and more accomplished beast with an always intoxicating desire to open your third eye to The Riff. Oh and one more thing... WOO!
Barbarian Hermit is:
Ed Campbell - Vocals
Adam Robertshaw - Guitar
Mike Regan - Guitar
Gareth Manning - Drums
Robert ‘Spadge’ Sutcliffe - Bass
