Armoured Angel
| Armoured Angel | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Canberra, Australia |
| Genres |
Thrash metal Death metal |
| Years active | 1982–1996, 1998–1999 |
| Labels | Id/Polygram, Warhead |
| Associated acts | Psychrist, Kill for Satan |
| Past members | Lucy Joel Green Matt Green Yuri Ward Steve Luff Rick Wayy Dave Davis Tony Sheaffe Rowan Powell Russell Ruszinski |
Armoured Angel was a thrash/death metal band from Canberra, Australia. They pushed the musical boundaries of the thrash metal scene and were one of the earliest bands to play what later came to be known as death metal. The group was also responsible for the foundation of Australia's biggest metal festival, Metal For The Brain.
Armoured Angel was formed in 1982 as Metal Asylum by Lucy (bass) and Rowan Powell (Guitars). After renaming the band in Armoured Angel the first line up 1984 was completed with Dave Davis (drums) and Rik Wayy (vocals). After recording a demo in 1985 called Baptism in Blood, Powell was replaced by Tony Sheaffe & after the "Heavy Metal Holocaust" Concert Wayy was replaced with Russell Ruszinski. The band split shortly after and reformed as a trio with Lucy and Brothers Joel Green (drums, vocals) and Matt Green (guitar) in 1987. Armoured Angel recorded a second demo titled Wings of Death in 1988 that garnered a strong cult fanbase. A demo called Communion was then released in 1990. An east coast tour of Australia followed, plus a re-release of Wings of Death on English record label CCG in 1991. Both the Wings of Death and Communion demos featured Armoured Angel in a very early thrash metal sound, akin to the European thrash bands of the 1980s.
1991 also saw the inaugural Metal For The Brain festival. Joel Green had organised the festival as a benefit concert for his close friend Alec Hurley, who had been savagely beaten in an assault in 1990 and left severely brain-damaged and permanently disabled. The group continued to organise the festival until 1996.
Armoured Angel released the Stigmartyr EP in 1992, securing a distribution deal through Id records, a development arm of Polygram and supported Morbid Angel. Australian heavy metal magazine Hot Metal awarded a five out of five review for the EP.
The band's music style had slightly changed, incorporating more of a death metal influence, and less of the thrash metal sounds from their earlier demos. Matt Green described the labels for the scene morphing from "straight heavy metal", to "power metal", then "thrash metal", and finally "death metal".
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