Member Since: 1/7/2007
Band Members: WELCOME EVERYONE!
KRAKATOA AS THEY WERE IN 2007
If I ever die of a heart attack, I hope it will be because we thrashed so hard and shred so fast that we blew the walls down and I died hard doing what I love.
Maxel Black
vocalist
Krakatoa
MAXEL BLACK .....vocals
T.C. SMITH......lead/rhythm guitar
FERNANDO VILLALOBOS.....drums
DARRYL COWGILL.....bass guitar
DEVIN LEGGE.....lead/rhythm guitar
You can feel the chemistry and magic when these guys hit the stage.
Maxel Black, pro vocalist, songwriter, and lyricist is known for his powerful voice and captivating live presence. Formally front man for Penetrator, Maniacal & Mastery he was nominated by the H.M.D in 2005 as BEST FRONT MAN OF THE YEAR. After flirting between various cover and original bands Maxel's first demo breakthrough came with Mastery in 2002. He co-wrote the music and they invited music guests bassist John Mamone of Dragonfly and guitarist Andrew Roudny of Blackhour to play on all the tracks. They recorded THE TRIAD. In the summer of 2003, Maxel met members of the band Maniacal. Maxel decided to join forces with the band and wrote the lyrics and melodies for all the songs on the demo in two weeks. Maniacal had already begun recording their tracks at Eclipse Studios in Mississauga, Ontario. Fellow Canadian Studio producer and master guitar shredder Glen Drover of King Diamond-Eidolon-Megadeth produced the demo Sinkhole to Hell. Glen stepped in during the recording adding layered harmonic guitar riffs throughout the CD. Maxel attacked the songs with a vengeance under Glens coaching. During the making of Sinkhole, Maxel hooked up with Toronto guitarist Bess Ross whom he was introduced to at a Dio concert. They decided to get together to work on a new music project. Before they knew it Penetrator was born. The bands material was written with lightning speed and people were soon pounding on the door to get into the rehearsal space. In the spring of 2004, Penetrator recorded the demo Unleash the Fury which received rave reviews worldwide. Penetrator later inked a worldwide distribution deal with Greece's Sonic Age Records. Due to artistic differences during the making of Penetrator's second CD VooDoom and the lack of being able to find a bass player and drummer that could commit full time to Penetrator on a permanent basis, Maxel started jamming with friend's T.C. Smith, Fern, Darryl and later Frankie to form what is now KRAKATOA. During his career in Penetrator, Maxel shared the stage with such acts as Cryptopsy, Eidolon, Death By Stereo, Protest The Hero, Kamelot and Seven Witches just to name a few.
T.C. Smith has been playing guitar for over 20 years. Over the years he has played shows at just about all the major venues in Toronto, places like the Molson Amphitheater, Ontario Place, and the Masonic Temple (Concert Hall) and many clubs past and present. He has also done various radio and television shows including various TV shows on Omni 1, Much Music, MTV, TV Polonia and City TV. T.C.'s first radio experience was on a call-in radio show on CFRB radio when he was 15. His former band Shangrila, had material played on Edge 102.1; and also played live to air in their studio (3/4 of the line-up is in Krakatoa). His recording experience includes CD's with Shangrila (Balance the Darkside), Trechcoat Yuppies (Follow Along-*only guitar solos), Dementia, Fleshless, Choasmongers + a demo with Dragonslayer/Valkyries Cry(unreleased). He also played drums in a few bands too (Impaled Hitler, Valkyries Cry).
Devin Legge is the newest member of Krakatoa. He moved to Ontario from Stephenville Crossing, Newfoundland in 2004 after graduating high school to go to sound engineering school. During that time he became involved the Toronto metal scene, joined a band, and ended up putting schooling on hold for a while. After a year together the band he joined split and he and the singer went on to form Hammered in early 2006. In the next year and a half together, Hammered opened for some bigger acts including Testament and Fuck The Facts. Early in 2007 Hammered ran into some problems and everyone ultimately decided to go their own way. Having heard that Krakatoa was looking for a second guitarist, Devin came out to audition. It was apparent right from the start that he was the perfect fit for the band. Devin had the technical proficiency needed but more important, the right chemistry and style of playing that fit like a glove with the rest of the band. His knowledge and skills will be instrumental in catipulting Krakatoa to the next level.
Fernando “Inferno†Villalobos has been playing drums for 6 years. He played in a variety of bands including Toxic-Culture, Heavily Medicated, Shangrila, and Bete Noire. His recording experience includes a 14 song album with Toxic-Culture and a 6 song EP with Heavily Medicated. Inferno has played in a number of clubs and venues in Toronto including the Opera House, El Mocambo, Lee’s Palace and more. He also played at the Edge 102.1 studio with TC and Darryl of Krakatoa when they were in Shangrila together. After the demise of Shangrila TC, Darryl, and Maxel began jamming together and started creating their own material which led to the birth of Krakatoa. During this time Inferno was still playing shows with 2 other bands (Heavily Medicated and Bete Noire), and in the summer of 2006 he opened up for the legendary Strapping Young Lad at the Opera House during their Ozzfest tour. This was Heavily Medicated’s last show before breaking up, and at the end of November 2006 Inferno left Bete Noire to focus on Krakatoa.
Darryl Cowgil, is a rock-solid bassist, who plays consistently tight. In his early years Black Sabbath, Pantera, Iron Maiden and Rush were the bands that influenced him. One of the first songs he learned to play was Rush 2112.
Darryl gained experience over the past 10 years, jamming covers every weekend at various clubs that had free jam nights. He met T.C. Smith one night while participating in a free jam and T.C. invited him to play bass for ZAA, a Polish band. Eventually ZAA separated and went their different ways but Darryl and T.C. continued to play together in various other bands including Valkery’s Cry and Shangrila. T.C., Darryl and Inferno had all worked together in various projects and later hooked up with Maxel to form what is now Krakatoa.
Darryl’s first bass was a Yamaha jazz bass and his current favourites are his Ibenez Gio and his short scale Paul Turser. His amp is an old 1970's Fender Bassman Tube amp with matching cab which has 2 x 15" speakers, with the addition of a Trace Eliot 4 x10 cab.
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Influences: We keep our minds open by listening to all styles and types of music. You never know just what might influence you, or what you might miss if you close your mind to new sounds. Our list of influences may surprise you.....but it's just far too long to list.
Sounds Like: Krakatoa are a fusion of various styles of metal which include technical /melodic /progressive /classic/black/thrash/death/ metal combined with off time signatures.
Record Label: unsigned
Type of Label: None