The Seattle based Demon Hunter have a lot on their plate.  Whether it’s rocking out crowds with their blend of faith-driven metal or running their design company Invisible Creature, owned and run by vocalist Ryan Clark and his brother Don, the boys in Demon Hunter have little time to rest, but do their best to find balance.

 

The band is in the middle pushing their fourth full-length record entitled Storm the Gates of Hell, which dropped in early November to much critical acclaim.  “Early on when we started posting songs,” says Ryan Clark, “The response was phenomenal.”  He also notes that they frequently check the music charts and even there the response has been positive. 

 

Topically, Storm the Gates of Hell is a record with which Demon Hunter seeks to emit a message of hope rather than despair, which is often the topic of many other metal bands.  “Thorns” is somewhat of an anti-suicide song while “Follow the Wolves” encourages listeners to stand apart from the world and seek truth.  Perhaps most interesting is the song “Carry Me Down,” which is a foreshadowing of Ryan’s funeral.  “It’s a hypothetical last note to family, friends and loved ones,” Ryan explains.  “If I were to go tomorrow, it’s an element of peace.” 

 

Musically, Demon Hunter holds nothing back on Storm.  Whether it’s Ethan Luck or Don Clark lighting up the frets on their guitars, Tim “Yogi” Watts raising the bar on the drums, bassist Jon Dunn plugging away or Ryan illustrating his vocal range, Demon Hunter are a positive force that cannot be ignored.

 

Perhaps one hurdle the band faces is getting people to listen to their music with an open mind.  The band is openly driven by their Christian faith, which can sometimes turn listeners off before they even turn the music on.  “Our mission statement is to share our faith in a way people can associate with whether they believe in what we believe or not,” says Ryan.  “We showcase that in a way where [people] wouldn’t feel preached at.”  The band has of course heard conservative Christians saying God cannot be glorified through “metal.”  “We get that a lot,” explains Ryan.  “There’s no way to prove that using instrumentation and your voice is an inherently evil thing.”  Ryan says really, the only way to get to know a band and what they’re about is to listen to their lyrics, take in the artwork and understand the content. 

 

Battling the secular vs. Christian musical worlds has gotten a little easier over the last eight years says Ryan in regard to Demon Hunter.  “Christian bands have made a step in the scene and it’s hard to ignore that there are good Christian bands,” he says.  “In the 90’s it was an uphill battle.”  He notes that people were a tad more skeptical and rather than reviewing records, they were reviewing the band’s faith.  Ryan says that even though a lot of Christian bands have a built-in fanbase, there’s also a limit to what can be achieved by a Christian band.  “P.O.D. is the closest to becoming Mega-stardom, but they’re the exception to the rule,” notes Ryan. 

 

Ultimately, Ryan just wants people to respect what Demon Hunter are trying to do.  “I want them to be able to take the music seriously and I want them to feel that we take our craft seriously,” explains Ryan.

 

By: Adam K. Zakroczymski III - Senior Editor / Founder