Formed in late 1998, Shatterhand exploded onto the UK Punk scene with a passion for fast, melodic tunes, big choruses, political confrontation and an alarming amount of craft beer. Early tours with Turtlehead and Beauty School Dropout initiated the band to the UK punk scene, and they followed this up with their first album “Wreckage”, which was received positively across the UK.
The second album “Planting Seeds” followed shortly after and was accompanied by extensive gigging throughout the UK and Ireland with bands such as Diesel Boy, UK Subs, Real McKenzies, 999, Even In Blackouts, and too many more to name, all of which saw the band develop a strong following, with fan bases reaching to the USA and Singapore.
“Bone Palace Ballet” was the next release, yet more touring followed and the band continued to cement their reputation for raucous and intense live shows.
Yet another full-length followed, “Random Acts Of Defiance”, a bold statement of intent from these four fiercely independent melodic punks. You guessed it, more touring, a pile of benefit gigs and compilations followed the release and things kept on growing.
At this point, long-time fan and friend John from Unsane Asylum Records in Chattanooga, USA came on board and offered to release the 22 track compilation “Complacency Is Not An Option” - Shatterhand jumped at the chance and so the first collusion between the band’s own Mythical Records and Unsane Asylum was born.
Split 7”s with Cigarette Crossfire and Nosecone Prophets followed on the back of the union and Complacency managed to sell out in Japan in a little over a week. Gigs with the likes of A Wilhelm Scream, Face To Face, Nothington, Midway Still etc. followed suit and Shatterhand loved every minute of it!
August 2012 saw the band return to the studio, this time opting for Cava Sound in Glasgow, to record the mighty “Chaos and the Art of Dissent”. Released once more through Mythical and Unsane Asylum, Chaos marked a defining point for the band. A bigger production and the most crafted set of songs yet. The track “Brewdog Nights” made it onto a number of playlists and caught the ear of Channel 4 and all this positive activity was backed up with another UK tour.
2 successful European tours followed in 2014 and 2015, with the band building a fearsome reputation across the continent for their energetic and uplifting live shows with bands such as Red City Radio and Bodyjar. The band got a taste for the Festival circuit in Czech Republic and Scotland to reach an even wider audience as they rose to the occasion.
Nov 2015 now sees the release of the “Solitude Of Prime Numbers” EP on 12” vinyl and digital download, 4 tracks of “from the heart”, melodic punk rock and quite possibly their most assured release to date. The band formed an instant rapport with producer Graeme Young (Idlewild, Snow Patrol, Biffy Clyro) and this shone through across the 4 slices of guitar soaked Leatherface style UK punk.
Retaining a powerfully strong DIY Punk ethic, even after so many releases, this is more than just a band who play music, they are passionate about their causes, collectively and individually and this integrity has won them friends wherever their have rolled into town.
Stay punk, stay drunk and stay free! Cheers and Beers from Mike, Brian, Dave and Stuart.
NO PASARAN!
