POWERRAGE, the band founded by former EXCITER guitarist John Ricci, are without a singer. Jacques Bélanger — the voice of their debut album — is out, and the remaining trio put out an open call for a replacement on September 26.
The announcement came as a photo of Ricci with bassist Todd Pilon (ex-WITCHKILLER) and drummer Lucas Dery, captioned simply "POWERRAGE LOOKING FOR NEW SINGER!" along with an email address for submissions. The band gave no reason for the split.
The timing stings a little. POWERRAGE only released their first full-length, Beast, on April 24 through High Roller Records. Dan Swanö mixed and mastered it at Unisound, and Mario Lopez painted the cover. Bélanger's presence was a big part of the pitch: he sang on three EXCITER studio albums between 1997 and 2004, so the pairing with Ricci felt like a reunion of a particular era of the Canadian speed metal institution.
Ricci left EXCITER in 2018, and it was Pilon who pushed him to start something new. Bélanger came on board next, and Dery won the drum stool after a string of auditions, largely on attitude and adaptability, according to Ricci. Describing Beast, the guitarist said the record was split roughly down the middle — half slow, doomy material, half fast, thrashy, high-energy songs — with lead single "Dark Wings" as the reference point.
No timeline has been given for naming a new vocalist, and nothing has been said about live plans in the meantime. Singers who think they can handle the job can reach the band through the contact in their announcement.
Order & Stream "Beast": High Roller Records
Follow POWERRAGE: Facebook