Blood Lightning Post Lyric Video for First Single “The Dying Starts”
New band, familiar faces. One will recognize Blood Lightning frontman Jim Healey — singing here, not playing guitar — from We’re All Gonna Die, his solo work, Black Thai and a host of others. He’s joined by Gozu‘s Doug Sherman on guitar, Worshipper bassist Bob Maloney and drummer J.R. Roach of Sam Black Church, The Men and a bunch more. Dudes from other bands playing together in a band, you say? Give me a second while I start my somebody-calling-them-a-supergroup countdown clock. I keep it around for just such an occasion.
No surprise, the formidable newcomer foursome arrive with a debut single that finds them well aware of who they are and what they want to do. Blood Lightning would seem to be one of those bands started around an idea; in this case, the idea of doing something more aggressive, more in-your-face than the heavy rock standard. More metal. Fucking a, gentlemen. Go to.
So here we have “The Dying Starts.” It is the first-unveiled of three initial songs recorded by the esteemed Benny Grotto at Mad Oak Studios in Allston — nice place; it’s not exactly in the guidebook, but if you can go, go — and if they’re looking to make a striking impression as Blood Lightning (pun way intended, live with it), then yeah, they got there. Healey‘s voice is immediately recognizable, and so is Sherman‘s riffing, and the later surge of energy from the band all around is a welcome reminder of that foundation in classic metal. Next time out, these guys might just go all-in on some thrash. Not saying it’s definitely going to happen — I haven’t heard the songs — just saying they’d be well within their rights to do so based on what I’m hearing in “The Dying Starts.”
Check it out for yourself in the lyric video or on the Bandcamp player below and see what you think. Blood Lightning have gigs coming up in Dec. (that’s a Grub, Sweat & Beers show, which I’m pretty sure means Sherman and Healey are involved in putting it on) and next March alongside Monolord and Firebreather. That’s a fun night.
Enjoy:
Blood Lightning, “The Dying Starts” lyric video
Blood Lightning was born during the later days of the pandemic in 2020 due to all of the other bands we were in not being active. We got together (with masks until we were all vaxed) to write some music that was in line with all of our shared metal roots.
We recorded 3 songs in August of 2021 at Mad Oak studios in Allston with Benny Grotto. The songs were mastered by Alan Douches (Mastodon, Converge) at West West Side Music.
We plan on entering the studio again in early 2022.
Here are our upcoming shows:
Grub, Sweat and Beers presents High Holidays
December 18th, 2021
O’Briens Pub
Day 2 –
Leather Lung
Blood Lightning
Lunar Ark
Wretched Inferno
Tuesday, March 15th, 2022
Sonia
Monolord
Firebreather
Blood Lightning
BLOOD LIGHTNING are:
Jim Healey – Vocals
Doug Sherman – Guitars
Bob Maloney – Bass
J.R. Roach – Drums
Photo Credit: Coleman Rogers
