Daysend
Band Members
- Current Line-Up
- Aaron Bilbija (guitar)
- Mark McKernan (vocals)
- Wayne Morris (drums)
- Meredith Webster (bass)
- Former Members
- Jason Turnbull (guitar) (2008 - 2009)
- Michael Kordek (guitar) (2002 - 2005, 2005 - 2007)
- Simon Calabrese (vocals) (2003 - 2006)
- Andrew Lilley (guitar) (2005)
- Dave Micallef (vocals) (2002)
- Matt Lamb (drums) (2002)
Website
Formed
Sydney, NSW, 2002
Band Information
Daysend was formed from the ashes of Sydney bands Psi.Kore and Deadspawn in August 2002. Psi.Kore bass player Webster and drummer Matt Lamb, along with ex-Psi.Kore and Deadspawn guitarist Bilbija, ex-Deadspawn singer Dave Micallef and former Automation bassist Michael Kordek (on guitars) began rehearsing with songs Bilbija had originally written for Psi.Kore but within weeks Lamb left the band. Morris, another ex-Deadspawn alumnus, replaced him. The band was geared up for a high-profile debut with Melbourne band Earth but just before the shows Micallef left; Daysend played the shows anyway, without a singer. Even at this early stage, the band had been mooted to appear at the 2002 Metal for the Brain show but that year’s event was cancelled. Nevertheless they were slated to support Pungent Stench but were unable to secure a vocalist in time. In January 2003, ex-Inequity and Redsands singer Simon Calabrese joined Daysend and they were immediately added to The Haunted’s Australian tour in March. In July, Daysend toured nationally with the reformed Damaged and then began work on their debut.
Severence was recorded in ten days and released to tremendous anticipation in October 2003; two weeks later they toured with Strapping Young Lad while the track "Countdown" was added to daytime play lists on youth radio network Triple J and the album itself scored a four star review in Rolling Stone. Listeners of the Triple J program Full Metal Racket voted Severance the best Australian Metal Album of the Year, tying for the honour with Astriaal's Renascent Misanthropy.
2004 saw the band’s tough touring schedule increase, with a national jaunt with Frankenbok in March followed by a tour with Entombed in April and shows with In Flames and Machine Head, then a joint headlining tour with Stronger Than Hate in October. Severance was released in the US by Metal Blade and in Europe by Locomotive in November 2004 and again won strong reviews.
2005 dawned with Daysend slated to appear at all three Metal for the Brain festivals in February; two days before the Canberra event, Kordek was replaced by former Psi.Kore, Infernal Method and Atomizer guitarist Andrew Lilley. Bilbija was voted Best Guitarist at the inaugural Australian Heavy Metal Music Awards in February 2005. In May 2005, Daysend embarked on a six week US tour, after which Kordek returned to the band when Lilley left. Daysend was to begin work on their second album in mid-2006, but Calabrese left the band in May and was replaced by McKernan shortly afterward.
Daysend signed to Faultline Records in early 2007. The Warning was released in May and the band played at Sydney's Come Together festival in June. After cancelling some shows when Morris injured an eye during a gig, Daysend played on the Festival of the Dead during October. In November, Michael Kordek announced he was leaving the band once again after a final show in December. He was replaced by Jason Turnbull. The Warning was voted the #2 metal release of 2007 by Full Metal Racket listeners the same month.
In mid-2008 the band played shows in New Zealand before touring with Dyscord along the east coast. Daysend was originally announced as the local support for Judas Priest's September tour but were later dropped without explanation, instead opening for Trivium in August. Early in 2009 the band did shows with Whitechapel. Bilbija played live with Ink during 2009 while Daysend began work on their third album and Turnbull was shed in the meantime.
Within the Eye of Chaos is due for release in February 2010 and the band will tour Australia with Dyscord.
Discography
Albums:
| 2003 | Severence | Chatterbox | |
| 2007 | The Warning | Faultline | |
| 2010 | Within the Eye of Chaos | Stomp |
Compilation tracks:
| Year | Track Title | Album Title | Label | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | "Beggars With Knives" | Metal for the Brain 2005 | Faultline |
