Igniter via Scorpion Metal Records

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In 1987, after being friends for fourteen years, and constantly discussing the prospect of forming a heavy metal band once they had successfully honed their skills, guitarist Robert McMullin and bassist Davis Slquist III started a heavy metal band. The duo’s next step was to begin hunting for a vocalist. McMullin met Christian Fairbank at Brook Lake Hall in Federal Way, Washington during a party. Fairbank mentioned that he was a singer looking to start a heavy metal band. In an effort to offer a quick show of his talent, Fairbank screamed and yelled, and then did a backflip. He also said he did work with pyrotechnics. McMullin immediately invited Fairbank to his band’s next practice.

At his very first practice with the band, Fairbank was able to put words and melody lines to every song the band played. It was on that same day that Slquist and McMullin decided that Fairbank was a perfect fit, and he became the band’s singer. As the group had no official moniker, Fairbank offered up the name “Igniter.”

McMullin, Slquist, and Fairbank - the new incarnation of Igniter - met 17-year-old drummer Devon Karakash about a year later from another band called Dawn of the Dead. Although he was quite young, the band instantly realized that Karakash was “one hell of a drummer.” After that, Igniter recorded at Lawson Studios (now known as Bad Animals) with Kurdt Vanderhoof of Metal Church as one of the producers.

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Igniter performed live for a few years, playing with such bands as Guardian, Gargoyle, Faster Pussycat, and Hammer Head, and while the band’s live material has appeared on Seale television show Live Meltdown, eventually, Igniter dissolved with only releasing a cassette tape version their 1990 demo, World Suicide.

Thirty years later in 2020, Scorpion Metal Records reached out to McMullin in an effort to bring this exceptional specimen of metal out of obscurity and offer its availability to the masses. Rising from the dusty ashes of 30 years, Igniter’s 2021 release, Phoenix, vehemently highlights the sound, energy, passion, and nostalgia of traditional 80s heavy metal, while showcasing the raw talent of a fledgeling heavy metal band.

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