Channeling the roots of hard rock and metal with a revitalized sound, Sonic Altar brings a unique musical experience to a stagnating metal scene. Sonic Altar is a band that worships heavy music and strives to give the audience something to remember at every live show. The band blends crunching riffs, thundering drums, solid bass and infectious melodies all with a modern sound. Sonic Altar is here to start a revolution in metal.
Formed in 2006, Sonic Altar began as a jam band amongst school friends. The same year the band played in Hong Kong as part of a competition and recorded a single that received national airplay in New Zealand. Sonic Altar played all over the country in 2009, blowing audiences away with their live performance. In New Zealand they have also supported some very big names - Ozzy Osbourne, KISS, Alice Cooper, Lordi and Whitesnake.
In late 2009 the band decided that they had the right material to make an album. They began recording in their management’s studio in December with producer Mike Exeter (Black Sabbath, Glenn Hughes, Cradle of Filth). Sonic Altar’s debut album 'No Sacrifice' was finished in May 2010. The album was released in Japan and New Zealand in early 2011. The band went on to play the national ‘No Sacrifice’ tour. This also saw the single ‘In the Night’ getting airplay on major radio stations and the music video breaking 150,000 views on YouTube.
2012 brought another change in the line up for the band in the form of ‘young blood’ Dave Hudson - taking over on guitar from Rowan Uhe. Hudson brought a different style of songwriting and helped reinvent the band’s direction. With the band pumping out song after song, plans were made to record the next album. While rehearsing the new songs, Sonic Altar also embarked on a national New Zealand tour with Australian metal heavyweights ‘Lord’. In July the band began recording their second album with vocalist Kane Bennett producing and engineering. When the tracks were recorded, Bennett took the album to Finnvox Studios in Finland to mix it with Mikko Karmila (Nightwish, Children of Bodom, Sonata Arctica) and master it with Mika Jussila (Nightwish, Children of Bodom).
These are exciting times for the band as they prepare their new live show and ready the artwork, music videos and promotional material for their second album.
Sonic Altar rises above the abundance of cliché metal groups. The band’s unique sound and live show is sure to grab the everyday concertgoer’s attention. Sonic Altar delivers the kind of metal that appeals across the board, receiving praise and gaining new fans of all ages at every show. Don't believe it? Then listen for yourself.
https://sonicaltar.bandcamp.com/
