Hammerdrone Reaps a Dark Harvest

Hammerdrone: Releasing the Seeds of Destruction

by Christine Leonard
20 March 2017

 It’s the kind of thing you’d read about in a spy novel, or at least that’s how Hammerdrone’s lead vocalist Graham Harris (Reverend Kill, Genepool, Rotschreck) first stumbled upon the clandestine tendrils of Operation Dark Harvest. Spurred on by the enigmatic trail, Harris would uncover a grassroots rebellion that had some serious dirt under its fingernails.
“I read a fair amount of crime fiction and Scottish author Ian Rankin makes a passing reference to the Dark Harvest Commandos (a proto-SNLA faction) in one of his novels. And I thought, ’Who the hell are they?’ I looked them up and came across an obscure and interesting piece of history that I’d never heard of,” says Harris of inspiration behind the title track of the melodic death metal group’s forthcoming LP.

Sources reveal that in 1981, a group of microbiologists from Scottish universities visited the condemned isle and removed 300 pounds of soil contaminated with anthrax spores. Infected by the British Government during World War II, the deadly toxification wrought upon Gruinard proved that Churchill could decimate a German city in the same fashion. The radical scientists threatened to distribute their dark harvest “at appropriate points that will ensure the rapid loss of indifference of the government and the equally rapid education of the general public,” according to letters the group sent to local newspapers.

Drawing its defiant name from that little-known act of civil disobedience, Dark Harvest is but the latest in a litany of hackle-raising releases from the Calgary-based Hammerdrone.
“When the guys wrote the music for Dark Harvest, it just came together really nicely and tied together a lot of the political themes on the album. ‘Join the Resistance!’ That’s our tag line for playing-up on the idea of ecologically minded terrorists. We wanted to make a political statement. I’m quite in favour of holding the government to account for its promises and actions, so I think there’s something to be said for that!”

Originally forged back in 2010, the intimidatingly intense outfit’s exploratory EPs A Demon Rising (2012) and Wraiths On the Horizon (2013) laid the groundwork for the Promethean ambition of their first full-length release, Clone of Europa, which materialized in 2014. Unfortunately, that victory was clouded by hardship, as the disruptive forces of the mass Calgary flood of 2013 besieged the band. Stepping away from the musical canvas, Harris was left to wonder if Hammerdrone would survive the turbulence that had heaved their world upside-down.

“My wife got transferred to Brisbane, Australia with her work in 2014 and I went too,” explains Harris, who welcomed a baby daughter while living abroad.
“It was kind of a two-year period of globetrotting for me and so from a band perspective, we didn’t know if we were going to continue to be. But we pretty much had the second album all written and we were determined that we were going to record it.”

Proving that long-distance relationships can yield tangible results, Harris found new ways to collaborate on the calamitous Dark Harvest with Hammerdrone bandmates, lead guitarist/songwriter Rick Cardellini, drummer Vinnie Cardellini (Reverend Kill) and guitarist/vocalist Curtis Beardy (Krepitus), while living overseas. Although frequently compared to the likes of Amon Amarth and Behemoth, Harris and company believe in clearing their own footpath when it comes to defining Hammerdrone’s apocalyptic tone and temperament.

“That’s the beautiful side of introducing technology into your music; you’re able to cross 12,500 miles and continue to record together,” Harris confirms.
The most recent addition to Hammerdrone’s arsenal, bassist Teran Wyer (Krepitus, Numenorean) was recruited to the fold for his winning persona and aptitude for anchoring the most aggressive of combos. According to Harris, Wyer’s weighty presence on Dark Harvest heaps another layer of anthemic heaviness upon Hammerdrone’s soylent machinations.

“After we recorded Clones of Europa we really need to find someone solid. Vinnie and I used to play with Teran in Reverend Kill, we knew his style, and what a great guy he is. Once we realized how much he was enjoying playing bass it was an easy choice to slot our good friend in.”

He confirms, “We have a very permanent line-up now.”

Hammerdrone release Dark Harvest on March 24th at Vern’s in Calgary with Votov, Concrete Funeral, and Widow’s Peak.