Having sharpened his guitar prowess by playing technically demanding songs on numerous tours as a member of Nevermore and Annihilator, Curran Murphy has now stepped out of the shadows of these acclaimed acts to form his own band, SHATTER MESSIAH. Joining Curran on his never-ending quest to blow the face off the metal world are vocalist Micheal Duncan of POWND fame (), drummer Robert Falzano (ex-ANNIHILATOR), and BassistJason V Chamberlian.
SHATTER MESSIAH's sound is a viciously intense mixture combining hardcore, classic thrash, power metal, and progressive metal, resulting in compositions of over the top aggression and melodic skill, with a flair for dramatic song writing. These traits are prominently display on their soon to be classic debut album, "Never To Play The Servant"and brilliant follow up album "God Burns Like Flesh". On such songs as "Crucify Freedom," "Frailty," "Pathway"' and the blistering title track "God Burns Like Flesh", SHATTER MESSIAH throw down the gauntlet with an uncompromising ferocity and technical virtuosity that few bands can match. Praise from all corners of the globe has been streaming in since the release of "Never To Play The Servant" and"God Burns Like Flesh".
Here are some excerpts:
"The carrying forces of Shatter Messiah, are undoubtedly Curran Murphy and his brilliant, ass-kicking guitar work in the band, and the band's vocalist Greg Wagner whose true skills as one of the most powerful, wide-ranging metal vocalists are unquestionable. As for the band's skin pounder Robert Falzano, he has earned his most known spurs in Annihilator, and damn he's very good behind his drumkit, too. Every fill, beat, etc. finds its target perfectly and yet somehow so easily - just like assassin's bullet finds its victim's heart.
"Never To Play The Servant" truly serves its listeners by all the 14 metal songs on it that scream for all those quality elements that are meant to be stamped as "instant classic" tag right after first listen already. It's a safe bet we'll hear a lot of more from them in the future".
(METALRULES.COM)
"Vocalist Greg Wagner doesn't confine himself to the Dane/Halford school of shrieking bloody murder, going for the more brutal thrash vocals just as often ('Hatred Divine', 'Inflicted', 'Disillusion'). He doesn't shy away from clean vocals or vocal harmonies either ('Deny God', 'All Sainted Sinners', 'Drinking Joy'), making for an unexpectedly well-rounded listen for something this bloody heavy. Musically the album is a guitar-happy shredfest, much more thrash-oriented than Nevermore or Annihilator (Murphy's other pit stop along the way) and focusing as much on groove as on technical flash (and there's plenty of both). Murphy proves to be a monster both as a guitarist and songwriter on "Never To Play The Servant"".
(BRAVE WORDS & BLOODY KNUCKLES)
"But it's not only Curran Murphy's guitar work that makes this album outstanding, the vocals of Greg "Wags" Wagner are pure insanity. I never would have believed this guy being capable of such a wide vocal range. On one hand he shouts very aggressively ("Fear To Succeed") while on the other ("All Sainted Sinners"; just one song later) he resembles David Wayne (Metal Church, Reverend)".
(WWW.METAL-RULES.DE)
"Thick and dark moods take their forms under the skin of "Fear To Succeed" and "Drinking Joy", voted to slow down power goth. But the trip into the bends of conscious mental derangement has stops also into supersonic hardcore with "Inflicted" and in technologic delirium with "Bleed To Shadows". More proof of versatility are "Blasphemy Feeder" and "New Kleen Killing Machine", where they experiment to add something new to the awesome technique they have."
(METAL HAMMER ITALY)
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YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
Excerpt From Blabbermouth.net review
Akron, Ohio's SHATTER MESSIAH have just released their sophomore effort, "God Burns Like Flesh", on Germany's Dockyard 1. Unsurprisingly, the down-tuned, accomplished power-thrash style of riffing is heard all over the new long player, as well as last year's "Never to Play the Servant". And yes, the songs, including Greg Wagner's singing style, do owe a debt to the Seattle heavyweights, a fact that Murphy does not dispute. Now that we've gotten that out of the way, what is most important to convey is that SHATTER MESSIAH is a modern heavy metal machine and "God Burns Like Flesh" is a damn fine slab of molten metal.
The typical attributes that separate average albums from good albums — riffs and songwriting — are found in spades on "God Burns Like Flesh". The firepower of Murphy guitar work is impressive. Giant riff chunks, fat tones, and spine tingling solos are collectively the fuel that makes this vehicle run. Murphy's recording skills should be credited for beefing up the affair. Recorded at his very own Smiley Sound Studios, "God Burns Like Flesh" is "big" without being overly polished, while the crunch and low-end is terrific.
The religious themed titled track, which deals with a God that may not be as invincible as his blind followers think, is most representative of the band's love of combining near death metal heaviness with a very tuneful, yet sinister, chorus. Incidentally, the third track, which is unlisted on the disc, is actually the second (albeit changed up) part of the title song, split up only for shits and giggles by Murphy. Other highlights include "Pathway" with its lilting chorus and the powerful "Dirge of the Christ". The little things, such as the unexpected shift into a jazzy guitar interlude on "Buried in Black" and the meshing of bleak, light picking and blood-boiling crush on "Tomorrow Immortal", are no doubt products of Murphy's time spent with Jeff Loomis and Jeff Waters. Finally, Wagner is the third leg of the stool. His voice changes effortlessly from Halford-esque screams to baritone lows and his performance defines passion time after time.
I'd be surprised if most fans of bands that deftly combine metal's heavier moments with gripping melodies do not enjoy "God Burns Like Flesh".
