1999 NEWS ARCHIVE

It's Official! Metal Blade Records Announces Signing of OCTOBER 31 (11/11/99)

Metal Blade Records have now made an official announcement on their web page about the signing of OCTOBER 31. Check it out here.

Band Parts Ways with Chuck Parsons (11/08/99)

The band has made an amicable split from live vocalist Chuck Parsons. The plan right now is to have King up-front and center on vocals with Dave Castillo (from local buds Hatred) pounding on the skins.

"Visions of the End" Re-issued! (09/07/99)

Old Metal Records has re-issued the "Visions of the End" EP with 5 bonus tracks (the "Voyage to Infinity" demo and a never-before-released cover of Jag Panzer's classic "Harder Than Steel"), new packaging and lyrics. They are available for $10(US)/$12(World). The preferred method of payment are international money orders payable to: K. Fowley. If you do decide to send cash, you MUST send it CERTIFIED mail or at your own risk, Old Metal Records will not be responsible for any lost cash in the mail.

Old Metal Records
5953 N.10th St.
Arlington, VA 22205 USA

Sound Samples from the New Album (08/30/99)

Check out the sound sample page for four new mp3s from the forthcoming CD "Meet Thy Maker"!!!

Preview of New Album Cover (06/15/99)

Check out the discography page for a preview of the cover for the new album "Meet Thy Maker"! Arthur Hamer (who also did the artwork for "The Fire...") did a hell of a job on it!!! We're also planning on putting up some preview mp3 files of the new album soon as well!

More Live Shows Announced! (06/06/99)

OCTOBER 31 will playing at Phantasmagoria in Wheaton, MD on June 26th with the legendary Cleveland powerthrashers Destructor, Florida's Premonition, and local deathrash monsters Hatred. We will also be playing at Phantasmagoria on August 2nd, opening for Holland's amazing The Gathering. For more info about the club, check out their website HERE. There are also possible shows for July in North Carolina, West Virginia, and New York City so stay tuned for more details!!!

New Photo of Live Line-Up (04/22/99)

(left to right): Jim Hunter (bass), King Fowley (drums/b.vocals), Kevin Lewis (guitar/b.vocals), Brian Williams (guitar), (front center): Chuck Parsons (lead vocals)
OCTOBER 31 to Play Debut Live Gigs!!! (04/19/99)

OCTOBER 31 will play their debut live gigs at the following towns and venues:

MAY 21 Garner NC Caboose

MAY 22 Spartanburg SC Ground Zero

MAY 28 Johnson City TN Crossroads Music Hall

These shows were booked courtesy of Chris Lee and Devil Saint Booking. You can check out their website HERE. Keep up the great work, Chris!!!
"The Fire Awaits You" Gold Vinyls are Sold Out! (02/12/99)

Almost as soon as they came in, all 100 of the limited gold vinyl copies of "The Fire Awaits You" were sold! There is a good chance of a second pressing (though it would black vinyl) in the near future. The next vinyl release for OCTOBER 31 will be the "Visions of the End" EP (also in a limited 100 copy run) with a bonus track.

First Edition of the OCTOBER 31 Newsletter Published (02/01/99)

Welcome to the very first OCTOBER 31 newsletter! A good amount of people have been writing in asking what's up with the band, so we've decided to put a newsletter together. Indeed OCTOBER 31 has been very busy of late!

The band is currently in negotiations with Metal Blade Records to become part of their roster. It seems Metal Blade (Europe) has been enjoying very much the band's now sold-out "Visions of the End" mini CD and contacted King about signing with the label. The band's current label, R.I.P Records, is totally behind the band on this deal and have been doing their best to make everything work smoothly. If this does happen, we'll let everyone know.

On January 25th, the band was in Oblivion Studios to record a few drum tracks for their new album "Meet Thy Maker". It seems everything went excellent and the album is off to a really good start. No date is set yet but June looks very good for the album's release! The full track listing for the record is as follows, "Meet Thy Maker", "Far from Danger Now", "Just an Illusion", "Behind the Castle Walls", "The Verdict", "Timeless Flight", "Forever There is War!", a new version of the "Voyage to Infinity" demo track "When Darkness Covers the Sun", and a cover of the classic Saxon song "Power and the Glory." The album naturally continues on in the OCTOBER 31 style with lots of traditional heavy metal arrangements and plenty of conviction, heaviness, and melody as well. Proudly, the band is very pleased with what they've come up with for the record.

In other important news, the band has found a singer to handle the vocals on the live front thus freeing King up for some more skillful live drumming. His name is Chuck Parsons and he has gone down a storm at rehearsals. His range is very much like King's, so the band's sound really doesn't change a bit! However, King will continue to handle the vocals on the records. As for live shows from the band, it looks like June will finally be the time for the band to start playing out. Although the band still insists there will be no shows until the time is right!

T-shirts of "The Fire Awaits You" album artwork are available for $15 (U.S) $18 (World) postage paid. In Mid-February "The Fire Awaits You" LP will be released in a limited 100 quantity of gold vinyl on Old Metal Records (King's label) for all the die-hard record collectors. Asking price with postage is $13 (U.S) $18 (World)! You can order both direct from the band address. The "Visions..." EP will also see a vinyl release in 1999 with a bonus track as well! The band is also featured on Dwell Records' "A Call to Irons 2" Iron Maiden tribute where they cover the very underrated Maiden track "Public Enema Number One". This CD is already available at any decent record store.

Wow! A lot of good things are happening for OCTOBER 31 and they want to take the time to thank every loyal headbanger everywhere for their friendship and support for the band. Everyone of you are important in the heavy metal fight so please stay in touch. We will do the same!

In the name of METAL,

OCTOBER 31

"A Call to Irons 2" Iron Maiden Tribute Released (01/28/99)

Dwell Records has released "A Call To Irons 2" featuring OCTOBER 31's rendition of "Public Enema Number One" from Maiden's "No Prayer for the Dying" album. The CD also contains a ripping version of "2 Minutes to Midnight" performed by King's other band Deceased. The cd should be availabe in most record stores in the "Iron Maiden" section.

OCTOBER 31 Interview On-line (01/11/99)

The latest issue (#6) of the Canadian on-line music zine Soundscape has a lengthy interview with OCTOBER 31 which you can read HERE.