Year : 1993 (Century Media Remastered Edition 2000)
Style : Heavy Metal , Power Metal
Country : United States
Audio : 320 kbps + scans
Size : 253 mb
Bio:
Heavy/Power metal band from Akron, Ohio formed in 1990.They have gone through extensive line-up changes throughout their history with only guitarist and sometime-vocalist Lou St. Paul featuring as an ever-present.Their first demo featured B.C. Richards on vocals. In their first incarnation with Tim "Ripper" Owens (who would later join Judas Priest and Iced Earth), they released the Heart of a Killer album in 1993, a concept piece based on the murderous exploits of a character called Judge Cohagen. This album was re-released in 2000 by Century Media Records as a two-CD set, featuring a bootlegged live gig as a bonus disc.After the departure of Owens, St. Paul took over the vocal duties for both the unreleased Season of Brutality and Girth, arguably Winters Bane's heaviest work to date.Following the release of Girth, Winters Bane went into a period of semi-activity while searching for a full-time vocalist. By 2003, German Alexander Koch (ex-Spiral Tower, Powergod) was recruited and a demo was made. Two years later, St. Paul, Koch and veteran drummer Mark Cross entered the studio to record Redivivus, a full-length album released in 2006.After the release of the album, Koch and Cross were replaced by locally based Jeff Zaigen and former touring drummer Jeff Curenton and there are plans for a sequel to Heart of a Killer to be released in 2007.Former members Tim Owens and Dennis Hayes would later form their own band, Beyond Fear, and they released their debut album in 2006. The next year, Hayes would also join Owens in Iced Earth as their new bassist.As early as December 2007, it was rumored that due to Matt Barlow's reunion with Iced Earth (thus the booting of Tim Owens), Tim Owens would return to Winters Bane as its vocalist. These rumors were confirmed, as it was announced that talks of said reunion are under way. "If the right conditions are met," said guitarist Lou St. Paul, "we would put forth our best effort, making of course a 'killer' album, and do a major tour." The rumors also state this follow-up would be a direct sequel to Heart of a Killer.Lou St. Paul and Jeff Welch also perform with Mike Roberts on drums as Kill Procedure. Songs from Season of Brutality and Girth are performed and both albums are now considered Kill Procedure releases (Girth has now been re-released with the Kill Procedure logo on the cover). Kill Procedure is seen as a parallel project to Winters Bane used to perform heavier music.
Album:
Debut full-length album in special edition on 2CD with live + demo tracks.Before Judas Priest and the Judas Priest tribute band, Tim Owens was just another man in a band; that group being Akron’s Winters Bane. Although they’re mainly known for shoving their old singer into the limelight, Winters Bane has openly morphed with each and every effort, typically showing various colors of groove on “Girth” and full-blown power metal on “Redivivus,” which cannot be done by any normal group. However, “Heart of a Killer” is commonly hailed as their finest effort, and doing so isn’t any outrageous statement simply because of its presented lineup; everything that represented the band, and still does, is firmly rolled up into a stellar ball of in-your-face speed metal that shreds like a rabid wolverine. Who loves hearing it? This guy!Primitively, Winters Bane was bloodthirsty beyond bloodthirstiness; truly, this record is them in heaviest form. The production, for one, strips Lou St. Paul’s riffs down to the bone, making his chops weigh more than a goddamn whale while Terry Salem pounds the juice out of his drum kit, equating total neck-snapping ambience. Paul’s contributions, however, are stunning supplements of wretched speed metal influence made from honest homage and his technical strife. Ten out of ten experts seem to agree his riffs and soloing are years ahead of similar squads providing identical services, yet those great numbers are lasting, memorable, and impeccably played; not just crushing, but principal as well. If your spine doesn’t snap at least once, I suggest killing yourself, poser.Major hitters have also swiped this rocker because it holds Tim Owens’ virgin attempt at holding the vocalizing instrument, but “Heart of a Killer” has much more than a future idol bellowing; in fact, his showmanship is fundamentally better than most of his Priest-era material. You know, the man has might in that voice of his, so the whole record shows him flying from high registers to haunting chants rather impeccably, especially for the zesty approach Winters Bane took. Plus, how he entwines himself into “Heart of a Killer” is quite amazing, because Owens has so much unity in the surroundings, that it could be his real modus operandi, but let’s not argue about that; instead, just understand the microphone was held by the proper user. Ripper’s vocals are saintly forceful, shaping several anthems into phantasmal pieces that probably wouldn’t trample so hard if Owens wasn’t there, thus proving his talent was primordial and not granted. Uncle Timmy leads the charge, from Alpha to Delta, baby!Although not perfect, “Heart of a Killer” still performs refreshing functions that every power/speed metal release must have to endure criticism, time, and change. The record’s constant durability leaves a treaty impression upon its victims right from “Wages of Sin” to the final ticks of “Cleansing Mother,” so calling “A Heart of a Killer” consistent would be a bulls-eye description. What about filler, because EVERY record has some, right? Well, you should give Opposite Land a call, but otherwise, your luck has gone dry. If either heavy-as-anvils metal makes you engorged or that old-school hunger just keeps coming back, look no further than this swell offering.
Line Up:
Tim Owens - Vocals (1991-1994) - See also: Charred Walls of the Damned, KK's Priest, Leviathan Project, Ripper, The Three Tremors, Tim Ripper Owens, ex-Brainicide, ex-Beyond Fear, A New Revenge, TRED, ex-Judas Priest, ex-Spirits of Fire, ex-Yngwie Malmsteen, ex-Carthagods (live), ex-Iced Earth, ex-Twist of Fate, ex-Killing Machine, ex-Arena, ex-British Steel, ex-Dio Disciples, ex-Hail!, ex-MegaPriest, ex-Seattle, ex-Soulbender, ex-Trinity
Lou St. Paul - Guitars (1990-?), Vocals (1994-2003), Bass (2003-2006) - See also: Kill Procedure, ex-Fires of Babylon, ex-Throttle O.H., ex-Autumns Ruin, ex-The Silhouette
Dennis Hayes - Bass (1990-1994) - See also: Book of Numbers, Night Terror, ex-Twist of Fate, ex-Seven Witches, I Don't Know, ex-Wretch, ex-Charred Walls of the Damned (live), ex-Iced Earth (live), ex-Beyond Fear, ex-Castle Black, ex-Raging Bulls
Terry Salem - Drums (1990-1994)
+ guest:
Gerhard Magin - Keyboards
Production:
Artwork [Cover Painting] – Andreas Marschall
Producer – Torsten Hartman
Written-By, Arranged By – Winters Bane
Recorded at Commusication Studios
Tracklist:
CD1:
01. Wages of Sin 06:28
02. Blink of an Eye 03:59
03. Heart of a Killer 04:24
04. Horror Glances 05:01
05. The Silhouette 03:34
06. Reflections Within 05:41
07. Haunted House 03:49
08. Night Shade 05:17
09. Winters Bane 04:33 instrumental
10. Cleansing Mother 05:28
CD2:
01. Wages of Sin (live) 08:41
02. Blink of an Eye (live) 04:41
03. Heart of a Killer (live) 04:15
04. Horror Glances (live) 05:55
05. The Silhouette (live) 05:05
06. Reflections Within (live) 06:07
07. Haunted House (live) 03:36
08. Fear of Death (live) 04:12
09. Cleansing Mother (live) 05:26
10. My Dagger's Revenge (demo) 04:31
11. Eyes of the Deceiver (demo) 04:09
12. Seven Nations (demo) 04:27 instrumental
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