Representative Albums: "Killing Peace", "Live Damnation", "In Search of Sanity
Biography
Onslaught was put together by Bristol, England, guitarist Nige Rockettand drummer Steve Grice in the early '80s. The two musicians were working to forge an ultra-aggressive, speedy metal sound that was becoming more and more popular in the days of early Slayer and Metallica. In 1985, the duo were joined by bass player Jase Stallard and vocalist Paul Mahoney. The quartet quickly worked up enough material for a record and later that year, the debut Power From Hell was recorded and released on U.K. independent record label Cor. A forceful, if not entirely professional sounding effort, 1985's Power From Hell along with Slayer's Hell Awaits are among the better speed metal offerings of the year. The 1986 follow-up The Force was an even stronger effort released originally on the much larger Music for Nations imprint Under One Flag. In a bit of an odd lineup change, Stallard switched instrumental duties by becoming the group's second guitarist, and new vocalist Sy Keeler replaced Mahoney who took over Stallard's vacated bass duties. A more competent recording, The Force sounded better than the group's debut and maintained many of the Slayer-like thrash sensibilities. New bassist James Hinder replaced Mahoney as the ex-singer who was finally demoted out of the ranks of Onslaught. As a serious following for the band began to emerge, they were eventually signed to Polydor imprint London Records. After recruiting former Grim Reaper vocalist Steve Grimmett and guitarist Rob Trotman (replacing Stallard) into the band, the first major-label effort for Onslaught, In Search of Sanity, was released on London in 1989. While their previous recordings sported an extremely hard edge and an almost death metal stance, In Search of Sanity moved the group's sound into some pretty standard metal territory. While a technically superior recording, Grimmett added little personality and the group's interesting hardcore roots substantially faded on this release. Perhaps due to the huge delay between releases, and the curious move toward a relatively mainstream musical approach, In Search of Sanity was a critical and commercial failure for the thrash veterans. Grimmett left the group in 1990 to form Lionsheart and the band was dropped by their record label. Tony O'Hara signed as vocalist for the band, but Onslaught never recorded anything after In Search of Sanity and they eventually disbanded in 1991. With only three releases over an eight-year career, and with several questionable lineup changes, Onslaught were an interesting early speed metal outfit that lost their direction. When compared to the musical singularity and relatively stable memberships of their early career musical contemporaries, it's easy to see why Onslaught never had anything near the impact of Slayer or Metallica. ~ Vincent Jeffries, All Music Guide
Sy Keeler
Nige Rockett
Andy Rosser-Davies
Jeff Williams
Steve Grice
Former members
Jase Pope
Paul Hill
Roge Davies
Paul Davies
Paul Mahoney
Jase Stallard Steve Grimmett
Rob Trotman
Tony O'Hora
James Hinder
Alan Jordan
Onslaught are an Englishthrash metal band from Bristol, England. Initially active from 1983 to 1991, they reformed in 2004. The band initially drew influence from the second wave punk rock bands such as Discharge and The Exploited, and then adopted a straight forward thrash metal sound.
Onslaught were formed in 1983 in Bristol, England by bassist Nige Rockett and guitarist Paul Hill. Joined by vocalist Jase Pope and drummer Steve Grice, a demo was recorded and released later that year by this line up.
Jase Pope and Paul Hill were soon to be replaced by Roge Davies and Paul Davies respectively. The subsequent line-up recorded an EP, What Lies Ahead, in 1983.
Power From Hell
In 1984, Paul Mahoney and Jase Stallard replaced Roge Davies and Paul Davies respectively. The band started to write more heavy metal-oriented songs than their original punk sound. This was mainly influenced by the early releases of thrash metal bands, albeit with a darker sound. The band signed to Children of the Revolution Records, and the band released their debut album, Power From Hell, in 1985 as a result. As with other metal bands of the time, the lyrics were often Satanic, and the cover showed a demon emerging from a pentagram.
The Force
A fines de 1985, Sy Keeler se unió a la banda, quien asumió el deber de vocales de Paul Mahoney. Mahoney conservó su lugar en la banda, pero Se hizo cargo de tocar el bajo de Jase Stallard, quien A su vez asumió el papel de guitarrista rítmico, dando a la banda un segundo guitarrista. Durante los primeros meses de 1986, la nueva línea se dispuso a grabar su segundo álbum , La Fuerza , En un estudio de grabación en Londres. El álbum Fue lanzado en la primavera de ese Año a Través de la que contiene una etiqueta de bandera. El álbum Fue mucho mas que Exitosa laPower From Hell, Y fue considerado un clásico por muchos fanzines y los críticos. ((Fact | fecha = Marzo 2008)) Paul Mahoney, citando razones personales, dejó la banda más tarde en 1986 Y fue reemplazado por James Hinder.
In Search Of Sanity
Onslaught's policy of the sacking of band members changed in 1987. Jase Stallard's guitar playing came into question, so the band dismissed him and replaced him with Rob Trotman. Using this line up, they set out to write material for a third studio album. Having drawn the attention of London Records, the label signed the band. In mid 1988, the band began to start recording In Search of Sanity, their third album. Upon hearing the album, the record label felt that a more versatile vocalist was needed to do the music more justice. Although the band felt that Sy Keeler's vocals on the demo recording had the right sound, the production had a more polished sound- hence the need for a more polished vocalist. Steve Grimmett, formerly of N.W.O.B.H.M. act Grim Reaper, was drafted in to replace the departing Sy Keeler. Owing to this development, the release of the album was delayed until the summer of 1989. Following the success of The Force, and with an accomplished new singer, there was much pre-release publicity. In Search of Sanity had a much different sound than previous Onslaught releases, and many hardcore thrash metal fans were disappointed, and this partially contributed to the band's demise.
Break-up
In early 1990, Steve Grimmett decided to leave the band due to personal reasons and was replaced by Tony O'Hora. The band then set out to write and then record a fourth album. London Records decided not to renew their contract with Onslaught, leaving the band without a record deal. Although the band tried to secure a deal, nothing came to light and they decided to disband in early 1991.
Reunion
In 2004, the band reformed with the line up of Sy Keeler, Nige Rockett, James Hinder and Steve Grice. They were joined by a Welsh second guitarist, Alan Jordan, formerly of Mirror Mirror. Amidst the touring, writing for the band's fourth album, Killing Peace, began in 2005, and it was released in early 2007.
James Hinder left the band later in 2007 and Alan Jordan left in 2008. They were replaced by Jeff Williams and Andy Rosser-Davies respectively.
