SYMPHONY X Bassist MIKE LEPOND Joins DEATH DEALER

DEATH DEALER will release its third full-length album, "Conquered Lands", in the fall of 2020 via Steel Cartel. The band has also announced the addition of bassist Mike LePond (SYMPHONY X, ROSS THE BOSS, SILENT ASSASSINS).

"We had a great time with Mike Davis and he will always be a brother," says guitarist Ross The Boss about the bassist switch. "Due to both of our upcoming schedules, we mutually decided another guy might have to come in and handle what we had coming up. Mike Davis will be missed, but we are very excited about the addition of another bass superstar, Mike LePond."

Joining Ross and Mike LePond are Sean Peck (CAGE, THE THREE TREMORS, DENNER/SHERMANN) on vocals, Stu Marshall (NIGHT LEGION, DUNGEON) on guitar, and Steve Bolognese (ROSS THE BOSS, INTO ETERNITY) on drums.

"I have recorded the new album already and really dug the material," explains Mike. "I went back and listened to their first two albums and there is a lot of high-powered stuff there too. I already have a great chemistry with Ross and Steve so I can’t wait to get on stage with Sean and Stu and play some of this material live."

Adds Ross: "I have been super-busy touring and recording with my solo band. And everywhere I go, I am asked when is DEATH DEALER coming back, when will another album be out, etc. So the work we have done for five years, with the albums and touring, is really standing the test of time. I can see the impact that we made with our first two albums with the diehard metal fans. It is really great to see and now here we go again."

Sean says: "We had 'Conquered Lands' 80% done for the last thre years. And we finally had the chance to spend some time and get it finished up. We have been spending a lot of quality time online with each other lately and the fires are really burning hot to get DD back out crushing it again."

According to Sean, the material on "Conquered Lands" will please longtime fans.

"The new album has a great variety of metal flavors, but overall, it is fairly speedy. There are tons of killer heavy metal hooks as usual and some really great performances by all the musicians. There is a ballad too, which we did not have on the last record, but it is one of my favorites on the record, so it will be interesting to see how the fans react to that one."

As always, the album will be supported with live dates (in 2021),including a festival appearance in March in England, at Hard Rock Hell. Understandably, the band is eager to perform the new material on stage, as Sean adds that the material on "Conquered Lands" is "definitely 100% pure DEATH DEALER."

Photo credit: Paula Anderson