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WARFEAR were formed in late 1988 by then SORE THROAT vocalist RICH 'MILITIA' WALKER, and a guy called CHRIS GASCOYNE (who had recently begun moving in HC circles after crossing over from the local thrash metal scene a year or so earlier). RICH had met him at the Leeds ADAM & EVES weekly thrash night (a local club who every Wednesday were devoted to Thrash metal and hardcore punk from 1985-87). Quickly drafted in to round out the line up was another local metal kid called CABBAGE to sing, and DOOMs BRIAN TALBOT on Drums who was just about to move to the North of England from Birmingham. After one rehearsal, a rough two song demo was recorded featuring two tracks in the CRUDE SS / DISCHARGE vein. Pretty soon though, CABBAGE had left to concentrate on taking drugs, so a replacement was found in native Glaswegian lunatic JAMES 'GIBBY' GIBSON
Within a matter of months of rehearsals, their sound began to mutate. Gone were the atypical Scandinavian style vocals, and in came GIBBYs savage ear shredding bark, much in the vein of Japanese bands like CONFUSE and GAI. The music also took on a more chaotic feel, incorporating not only influences from the aforementioned bands but also CHAOS UK, LIP CREAM and GAUZE. WARFEAR entered the studio in the early summer of 1989 to record their first real demo, the 11 song 'DIG YOUR OWN GRAVE' tape. Never really sold, it was just given away and traded out to friends and contacts. They also began to play some local shows, and it was at one of these, opening for GAUZE and CHAOS UK that a friend of GIBBYs saw WARFEAR in action and offered to release a split 7 with Greek band INDUSTRIAL SUICIDE (A legendary gig for beer consumption that turned into a 24 hour session culminating in RICH and HIKO from GAUZE drinking 20 shots of Vodka at the end at the bequest of GABBA of CHAOS UK, which resulted in RICH passing out covered in vomit an hour later). So, taking up the challenge, WARFEAR once again entered the studio in September 1989 to record 6 songs for the 'INTELLIGENCE EXPLOSION' EP. But, it was not to be, after sending the master tape and artwork to GIBBY's friend, the band never heard from him again. however a few choice cuts made it out onto sampler LP's.1990 - By now, the whole scene was beginning to change; everyone was busy experimenting with Hip hop, Brass sections, or just pretending to be 10 pence Henry Rollins clones. Either way, it was a shit state of affairs; gigs were virtually impossible to come by unless you were a part of the 'Network of friends' and had a university degree in talking utter dogshit. Undeterred, WARFEAR began to hang out with local friends DISASTER and organise shows with them, even going as far as RICH teaching DISASTERs drummer how to play the D-Beat properly. With other like minded individuals sick of the influx of middle class posers, and CHAOS UK and EXTREME NOISE TERROR, WARFEAR represented one of the last bastions of uncompromising aural savagery in a time of boring wannabe US HC idiots and pretentious politically correct morons. They were a political band, but most of the members didnt like being dictated to by condescending authoritarians telling them how to think.
In early 1990, A Belgian label offered to put two songs on a sampler LP, so WARFEAR again entered the studio to record its latest two tunes, both showing even more harshness than before (at the very same session DISASTER recorded their first two song demo as well, sharing the studio time with WARFEAR). This was to be the last studio recording the band made, after several months it become apparent the sampler LP was not going to happen, and tired of all the shitty luck, GIBBY quit to travel the UK in a knackered coach with some Hippies. With some shows in Holland and Belgium booked, WARFEAR quickly drafted in a replacement singer called BRIDGET STARK, aiming to utilise a BRAIN DEATH / THE COMES style barrage of noise, they also added a cover of CRUDE SSs Chaos into the set. After a couple more UK shows with DISASTER and HARMONY AS ONE (who Rich would later join as guitarist in 1992) they headed abroad for the gigs with NO WAY OUT (UK- also featuring ex-SORE THROAT drummer NICK ROYLES) and MUSHROOM ATTACK (Holland). Although the gigs went pretty well, internal frictions caused a split in the bands ranks, and upon returning to merry England, it was all over finally for WARFEAR. However by 1991, RICH had formed the even more brutal WARTORN once again with band mate CHRIS, and the human windmill, LENNAERT ROOMER. But that, dear readers, is another story
WARFEAR's 'Dead, Unburied, Forgotten' LP will be issued shortly on CRUST WAR Records of Japan. 28 tracks of fucking thrash fucking terror you fucker. The CD version will be issued at some point in 2007 when I can be bothered finishing laying out the booklet..
STOP PRESS!! - WARFEAR "Dead, Unburied, Forgotten" LP is released finally on February 21st 2007 on CRUST WAR Records, JAPAN - BUY IT!!!
