Stoner Kings

What's in a name? Perhaps that is the question that Stoner Kings face ad nauseam. Often called pretentious, often misunderstood, often misread Ð this group of retro rebels have proven to be a hard, bitter pill for many to swallow. Since the inception of Stoner Kings in the late summer of 2000, the band has endured many a tumult and turmoil. The brainchild of Canadian journeyman Pro Wrestler StarBuck, Stoner Kings humbly started out in Jyväskylä, Finland as a trio. StarBuck (vocals, songwriter) along with original members Shank (guitars) and Crash (drums) initially rehearsed as a three-piece before adding Gonzo (bass) and Wolfenstein (guitars) to the mix at the end of 2000. Stonehenge Ð one of the key songs off of Brimstone Blues Ð was the first track ever recorded by the band in the summer of 2000 at Jyväskylä's Studio Watercastle. A bassist dubbed Eagleheart served as a tryout musician in the early stages of the group, also playing on the Stonehenge session, before soon moving on to other pastures. It was then over the course of 2001 that the band would venture out to Studio Watercastle once again to record several additional demo tracks which would ultimately be shopped around to select labels. During the course of 2001, Stoner Kings were wooed by Germany's People Like You Records on two separate occasions. Both times the label and band couldn't come to satisfactory terms in regards to terms regarding a release, much to the chagrin of both parties, since PLY was the top Stoner Rock label in Europe at the time (a sister company of Century Media) and Stoner Kings had a fresh sound to offer in a time period when the genre was still hot. Stoner Kings would ultimately release the initial printing of Brimstone Blues through their own label, Rebel Breed Recordings. This printing was sent out in mass to the music medias worldwide and the response, simply put, was incredible. Whereas the Stoner Rock community met the release with a mixed reaction the Metal and Heavy Rock community took the band in with open arms and accolades en masse. Truth be told, the group's debut drew incredible media responses across the Globe in numerous top music medias, drawing comparisons incredibly to LA icons like Guns N' Roses in terms of energy, rawness and vibe and on the other hand to contemporaries like Spiritual Beggars and Monster Magnet in terms of sound. In retrospect, it seemed that the medias had an arduous task in labelling the band's music. Some heard elements of Skid Row and Mštley CrŸe, some heard elements of Black Label Society, some heard elements of Motšrhead, some heard elements of Black Sabbath. It was a convoluted brew, to be sure. Yet, in that respect, Stoner Kings proved to be very original. They were an amalgam of many different heavy music styles, yet with an underlying Stoner Rock foundation. Perhaps it was this diversity, in addition to the band's namesake, that drew such ferocious backlash from many a Stoner Rock purist. Whereas these purists saw Fu Manchu, Kyuss and Monster Magnet as the ÓgodsÓ of the genre, they conversely saw a band like Stoner Kings as a cancer sore. The Stoner Kings sound went beyond the realm of what was deemed as ÓpureÓ Stoner Rock and thus, the group's antagonists refused to stomach it. However, seeing the positive, strong media feedback that the band received with their own limited printing of Brimstone Blues, another German label named Massacre Records saw the potential for an official European release and took a risk with the group. During the summer of 2002 Massacre released a repackaged version of Brimstone Blues to a much wider audience in Europe, allowing the band an opportunity to tour in Central Europe that year as well in support of the album. It was especially one certain sold-out and well promoted gig in Stuttgart, Germany that cemented Stoner Kings in many peoples minds and convinced Massacre that the band was something special. Following their European jaunt, Stoner Kings returned to their native country of Finland to play alongside bands like Babylon Whores, The Black League, Bad Machine, Blake, Sinergy, among others. Yet, at the end of 2002, unbeknowest and unexpected at the time, the Stoner Rock boom period came to a haunting halt in terms of media attention and general interest. In this harrowing lull, Massacre dropped the band and lost faith in pursuing a follow-up album. Truly, looking back it may be argued that Stoner Kings arrived on the scene, as it were, right at the tail end of what may be considered the ÓStoner Rock boom periodÓ, circa. 1998 Ð 2002. After the fallout of media interest Ð which has shown to shift in fickle fashion Ð in regards to the genre, Stoner Kings found themselves stranded in unexpected limbo at the beginning of 2004, where no labels or organizers showed any interest in the band's product. The winds had changed in the music industry once again and a new breed of Rock was emerging, something coined Nu Metal, which seriously changed things for a lot of bands. In this time of duress, the inner chemistry and team spirit within Stoner Kings began to suffer adversely. For some it was a lack of motivation, for others disillusionment. Finding themselves at a point where there were no gigs to be had, no labels that were interested and no support within the scene, the group faced a grim reality. The band became inoperative for a spell as drummer Crash moved out to Germany for a time and the sheer mass number of closed doors put Stoner Kings on hiatus, placing the future of the band in severe jeopardy. It was during this hard stay of execution that StarBuck began to mull over options and routes to undertake in terms of the future of Stoner Kings. If there was to even be a future certain things would most definitely have to change. While still in Germany, Crash had not stayed in contact and the stresses of the band's pre-hiatus period set into question any plausible continuation with the original line-up. Talks were held between StarBuck and select talented musicians within the Helsinki heavy music scene to put together a different reincarnation of Stoner Kings. Diverse priorities with these various parties held back the materialization of Stoner Kings v.2 and so, after speaking with both Shank and Gonzo once again, StarBuck decided to set sail with his former bandmates and seek out a new drummer. Right around this time Crash suprizingly contacted StarBuck, writing from Germany, telling of his reborn interest in the band after viewing a documentary on Mštley CrŸe that their trials and tribulations - which in turn inspired him and rekindled his spark. Crash mentioned that he was willing to move back to Finland and wanted to see Stoner Kings come back to life, which in effect was the turning point that ended the group's hiatus in the summer of 2004. Stoner Kings forged on as a four-piece, opting to drop Wolfenstein, who had involved himself in numerous other projects. Throughout the rest of 2004 and into 2005 Stoner Kings set themselves to rehearse and recorded several tracks which they shopped around to numerous labels once again. Yet, the story remained bleakly the same as it had been in the past. One of Europe's top Metal band managers, Gerald Wilkes of Germany's Continental Concerts, told StarBuck that even though he liked the band's music, he couldn't shop it around because it wasn't *current* enough. Stoner Kings were too retro, their sound too *passe* for the commercial music market. Gigs were few and far between even at this time and the market didn't seem to be any more receptive than it had been a couple of years earlier. During this continued tribulation, bassist Gonzo lost heart and dropped out of the picture, once again placing the future of the band in question. Stoner Kings finally found the right man for the slot through Finnish monster rocker Lordi, who referred the talented bass player to StarBuck during a recording session for Lordi's third album The Arockalypse, on which the Stoner Kings frontman did a guest appearance. Blackie was a perfect fit for the Stoner Kings sound, fitting in instantly in terms of chemistry and vibe. It might be argued in retrospect that Blackie's arrival into the band signalled a mysterious turn-around in the group's fortunes. Certain doors began to slowly but surely open up, doors that had been long closed in the interim. Many of the musicians that StarBuck had helped and/or befriended within the Finnish Metal scene gave Stoner Kings a shot in the proverbial arm, helping where they could. Alexi Laiho from Children Of Bodom, Marco Hietala from Nightwish, Pasi Rantanen from Thundertone and several others gave Stoner Kings not only their nod of approval, but of their talents also. Through much arduous work and hard labour, Stoner Kings rocketed forward with a new supply of fuel to burn. Entering Helsinki's Sonic Pump Studios in the summer of 2005 the band pulled out their best set of songs to date, which would ultimately end up on the group's sophomore effort for 2006, the poetically titled opus known as Fuck The World. Once again, Stoner Kings saw that due to the closed-mindedness of the labels within the music industry they would opt to release Fuck the World through their own Rebel Breed imprint, just as it was with Brimstone Blues several years earlier. The band also managed to secure a nationwide distribution deal with Playground Music in Finland for domestic circulation, marking their spot for recogniton within their homeland to begin things with this new tour de force. Over the course of 2006 Stoner Kings toured their homeland of Finland relentlessly, once again making their mark with greater force in the modern age of metaldom. At the end of 2006 however, the line-up within the band began experiencing internal difficulities. Regardless of the seeming success and media exposure stemming from Fuck The World, the group lost steam and the members themselves were uninterested in forging ahead at a critical time in the group's evolution. With only StarBuck maintaining the helm and holding the torch once again, the group line-up from Fuck The World was laid to rest, disbanded in the face of necessity if the band was to survive to fight another day. Over the course of 2007, StarBuck's search for capable and driven players finally paid dividends. Taking the needed time to weed out the chaff from the wheat, StarBuck recruited Finnish guitar legend Petteri Hirvanen for the six-string position and also as an aide in song arrangements, in addition to bassist Rude and drummer Grandy. The combined experience of these new band members easily eclipses well over half a lifetime - a factor that gives Stoner Kings a new, professionally-enhanced gleam and explosive promise. Stoner Kings once again look to the future with a revived hope and staunch faith in their own product - regardless of their controversial nature - welcoming their audiences to a personal revolution where the rivers of Heavy Rock still flow pure and free. http://www.stonerkings.net/band.html