PROUD MEMBER OF
Emerging in late 2001 from the depths of the Midwest, Indianapolis "Deathcore" band Amongst The
Swarm set out to conjure punishing and honest metal free from trend and "pop" metal overtones.
Influenced by early death metal, classic thrash, NYC hardcore, and a hint of southern sludge, ATS began its
campaign of live destruction in early ’02 playing over 40 shows throughout the Midwest in its first year of
existence with some of the best the underground has to offer. Early in ’02, ATS caught the attention of
Chris Morrison (Skeptic Productions, Harakiri) and arrangements were made to release the band’s début
recording. Recorded in the late summer of ‘02 after a few short delays, "Crowning the Defeated" (long
since out of print) was released to the masses in January ‘03.
Rave reviews were received from such well-respected metal zines as Unrestrained, Pit, Midwest Metal,
BWBK, and Terrorizer. Metal Maniacs not only gave “Crowning†a great review, but also featured ATS in
its “Fast Forward†section.
Continuing to play anywhere and everywhere possible, ATS played another 60+ shows supporting
"Crowning" in ’03 sharing the stage with the likes of Shadows Fall, Sworn Enemy, Mastodon, Soilent
Green, It Dies Today, Cephalic Carnage, Harakiri, Circle of Dead Children, and others. ATS also
embarked on a 14 date east cost tour with NY grind masters Kalibas. Shortly after, bassist Bryan Grimes
(current The Killing) announced that he would be relocating to Philly. Unfortunately, this triggered a
yearlong hiatus for ATS during which the band members involved themselves in other projects. Some of
these projects include: About the Fire, Harakiri, and Year of Desolation.
Unfinished business was soon to be settled in early ’05 with the addition of bassist John Zeps (former Burn
It Down, Ice Nine). ATS rapidly continued writing new material and mapped out recording time. After
performing two return shows that came and went with total success, ATS was quickly asked to support
Napalm Death and Obituary during September ‘05 in Indianapolis. The band also took part in the 3rd
annual Monsters of Metal Fest in Columbus, Ohio alongside Deceased and Cephalic Carnage over
Halloween weekend. With recording time for the new demo now set in stone, ATS entered Burning Bridge
Studios (Demiricous, Job for a Cowboy, etc.) with engineer Joel Lauver in mid-November ‘05. The result
is four brand new tracks of complete honesty and brutality.
With Amongst the Swarm ready to take the next step, they are in search of securing a new label home and
possible management. ATS is also currently completing the writing process for their début LP, while
continuing to play regional shows throughout the winter and into early ’06.
Quick Facts:
§ Fouts and Zeps were both members of sentimental metal/hardcore band Burn It Down
(Escape Artist/Trustkill Records). BID has toured with the likes of In Flames, Shadows Fall,
Nevermore, Zao, ISIS, Cave In, Earth Crisis, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Canderia, Skinlab, etc.
§ Shane from Napalm Death is spotted wearing an ATS shirt in the band’s Leaders Not
Followers 2 CD. Other well known shitheads sport our gear regularly, such as, In Flames, Jamey Jasta,
Sworn Enemy, and Mr. T.
§ ATS has put up every shithead band on your label that comes through the Midwest. We get
them drunk and then T-bag them for our own personal photo collection. Shit, if we don’t deserve
some kind of deal, who does?!
Also, untill ats.com is back up and running, we will be updating this myspace page pretty often so make sure to check here for upcomming shows, and other news.
