| Freak Seed | |
|---|---|
| Origin | New Jersey, USA |
| Genres | Heavy metal |
| Years active | 1995–1999, 2008–present |
| Labels | Slow Death (1995-1996) Sun Serpent (1996-1999) |
| Associated acts | Aftershock Epitaph Gutchugger 40armboy Black Metal Box |
| Website | http://www.freakseed.com/ |
| Members | |
| Dave Couillou Jason Tremper Keith Pieper Joe Yutsus |
|
| Past members | |
| Steve Witschel | |
Freak Seed is an American heavy metal band, formed in 1995 in Parsippany, New Jersey. Freak Seed's sound consisted of "in your face" guitars with a heavy groove, and was considered "good, old-fashioned heavy metal".[1] The band was active between the years 1995-1999, releasing 2 studio albums, 2 EPs, a live DVD, and was featured on several compilations.
Contents |
In October 1995, Dave Couillou and Keith Pieper began the "Grout" recording sessions at Sweetwood Sound with producer Oktopus from the band Dälek. Jason Tremper, who had previously played with Dave and Keith in Epitaph, and had recently graduated from New York's Institute of Audio Research was present to add some production assistance. With the heavy, danceable groove of "Reactivate", the "cringing"[2] harmonies of "Drill", the speed and ferocity of "Madness Cycle", and the slow Sabbath-like march of "Skull Machine", Jason's interest quickly went from producing to performing as he laid down a couple of leads and played bass on "Reactivate". 1000 copies of the "Grout" ep were pressed by the now defunct Slow Death Records and critical response only strengthened the belief that this should be more than a side project.
With a growing list of material it was then time to go back to Sweetwood Sound Studios to record their first full-length CD called "Forward the Foundation". The CD included seven new tracks and three newly recorded songs from the "Grout" ep. "Quarantine", the opening track was also included on the Eclipse Records "Outer Limits" compilation CD. "Forward the Foundation" was a limited release in 1997, and was their first for Sun Serpent.
The first trip to the studio in 1998 was to record the song "Zero Reflection" for the Psykoziz Records' "Tentacles of Submission" compilation. A video would later be pieced together for this song with footage shot from various live performances taken from the Live DVD.
Their first widely distributed full-length, Ignition, was released on September 1, 1998 on Sun Serpent. This album showcased 12 songs taken from three separate recording sessions. It received critical praise in several heavy metal magazines, and they were often compared to more well-known metal acts like Overkill,[3] Death Angel and Exodus.[4]
The "Ignition" release show took place at Connections in Clifton, New Jersey in September 1998. Prior to this engagement, bassist Joe Yutsus announced he was leaving the band, so Steve Witschel was brought in to perform for this show. To date, this is the only time Freak Seed has performed "Killing Me" and "Sick & Wired" live.
As a "farewell thank you" to their fans, the band distributed their "Zero Reflection" ep free-of-charge to everyone on their mailing list. This limited edition release contained the title track, 3 previously un-released studio recordings ("What You Need", "Without All", and a cover of Pink Floyd's "The Narrow Way, Pt. II"), and two live tracks ("Madness Cycle" and a cover of Black Sabbath's "Symptom of the Universe").
Founding members Dave Couillou and Jason Tremper have been writing and recording new material as time allows. In October 2008 they debuted a new song "Lucified" exclusively through their MySpace page. This is the first new Freak Seed material since 1998's "Ignition" CD.
On February 7, 2009 the original line-up of Dave Couillou, Jason Tremper, Keith Pieper and Joe Yutsus played together for the first time in over ten years at Black Bird Studio in Parsippany, NJ in front of a small group of friends and fans. While no new material was played, the session was recorded on digital video for possible future release.