Lords of the Trident


Lords of the Trident is an American heavy metal/Power Metal band from Madison, Wisconsin. The five piece band is known for its mixture of classic, power, and modern progressive metal combining strong vocals, complex instrumentation, and an expansive fantasy backstory to create energetic live shows. The band appears on-stage in armor and costumes.
Lords of the Trident have played and toured with many high-profile acts, including Steel Panther, Psychostick, Helloween, Battle Beast, Thor, Marty Friedman, Cage, Unleash the Archers, 3 Inches of Blood, Skeletonwitch, Crimson Shadows, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Puddle of Mudd, Mushroomhead, Saliva, Fuel, A Sound of Thunder, BattleBeast and Of Montreal.

History

Formation, Full-length CD ''Death or Sandwich'' (2005 - 2009)

Lords of the Trident was formed by members Fang VonWrathenstein, Asian Metal, and Socrates of Shred in 2005. The band began as a recording project and grew into a live lineup in early 2008 as Ty Christian's previous musical project was disbanding. Bassist Captain Bluddbeard and Danalog were auditioned and joined the band. After the first few months of performing live, the band decided to replace Danalog with a new drummer - Korgoth. Shortly after, the band released their first full-length CD, Death or Sandwich, on February 13, 2009. The CD was self-released by the band's label, Junko Johnson Records.
A few months after the release of Death or Sandwich Socrates left the band and was replaced by new guitarist Killius Maximus .

''Chains on Fire'' (2010 - 2012)

Before the band returned to the studio to record what was to be their second full-length CD, Chains on Fire, Captain Bluddbeard left the band due to personal and musical differences and was replaced by bassist Pontifex Mortis. The band continued to tour regionally, and appeared at the in Ohio. On January 28, 2011, the band released Chains on Fire at a concert in Madison, Wisconsin which was filmed and became the accompanying DVD: Lords of the Trident - Chains on Fire Release Party 2011.
In October 2011, Korgoth left the band and was replaced by the new drummer Sledge Garrotte.
In May 2012, Lords of the Trident won a tri-state Battle of the Bands contest sponsored by Madison Media Institute, and was introduced to Martin Atkins and Doug Olson. The pair would become producers for the band's next release.

''Plan of Attack, A Very Lords of the Trident Christmas'' EPs (2013 - 2015)

Under the guidance of Doug Olson, the band quickly recorded and mixed their next release, 2013's Plan of Attack, at the Madison Media Institute studios. Additionally, the band launched a Kickstarter campaign for the album, which raised $2,508 - a little more than three times their goal of $700. Plan of Attack was released on January 6, 2013. The band toured to support the release in the summer of 2013.
In December 2013, the band released the EP A Very Lords of the Trident Christmas, which contained a collection of Christmas singles recorded for the of 2010 - 2012.
In October 2013, the band replaced drummer Sledge Garrotte with new drummer Dr. Dante Vitus. In the summer of 2014, the band embarked on their second US tour, playing the as one of the stops. This was also the first year the band appeared at Summerfest in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
In October 2014, the City of Madison Arts Commission chose Lords of the Trident to represent the city at the BandSwap festival in Fort Collins, Colorado.

''Frostburn'', ''re:Quests'' (2015 - 2016)

The band returned to producer Doug Olson for their third full-length album, Frostburn. Recording the majority of the album in late 2014, the band launched another Kickstarter campaign which raised $5,824 - almost double their goal of $3,000. In late 2014, the band was signed to the German record label Killer Metal Records. Frostburn was released on February 13, 2015, and became the band's best-reviewed release to date. In early 2015, Killius announced that he was leaving the band to enroll in medical school. Shortly thereafter, the lead guitar position was offered to Baron Taurean Helleshaar.
On Christmas Day 2015, the band released re:Quests, an EP of cover songs suggested by Kickstarter donors. In early 2016, the band announced their first international tour, scheduled for a string of Canadian shows in summer 2016. In late 2016, Dr. Dante Vitus announced his departure from the band due to enrolling in medical school. The band announced a new drummer had been found in December 2016.

Mad With Power Fest (2017)

Dr. Vitus left the band amicably in January 2017, and was replaced by Master Hercule “Herc” Schlagzeuger immediately thereafter. Around this time, Brian Koenig signed an agreement to produce a series of how-to , and released them throughout the year.
During 2017, the band continued work on their next album, balancing this with multiple tour dates. Foremost was the inaugural , a power metal festival in Madison, WI organized and run by the band. The first Mad With Power Fest was a solid success, with five bands performing and attendance breaking expectations. At the festival, the Lords of the Trident debuted their own branded Mad With Power Mead, created by , and other bands released their own branded beers.

Mad With Power Fest II, ''Shadows of the Past'' (2018)

The band announced in late 2017 that a Mad With Power Fest II was in the works, featuring several notable bands including the Lords of the Trident, and Green Death. In March 2018 they finished recording their fourth album, Shadows of the Past, that was released on August 25, 2018. Notable collaborations on the album include Brittney Slayes from Unleash the Archers, a professional chorus, full orchestra, and a small fan group recorded in Ty's basement studio. Tours for the year included North Carolina, Canada, and the upper Midwest. The band continued to produce a large amount of non-musical content, largely for paying fans via their website. Over the course of 2018, the band produced seven music videos for songs off of Shadows from the Past, as well as a playable music video game for the Sega CD video game system.

''Pull the Plug,'' Mad With Power Fest III, European Tour (2019)

On January 11, 2019 the band released their fifth full-length album, Pull The Plug. This album is composed of acoustic songs released solely to their Patreon backers as a monthly subscriber benefit. Shortly thereafter, the band announced the lineup for the third year of their annual Mad With Power Fest, featuring Theocracy as the headliner. 2019's Mad With Power Fest was the band's first independently-run sold out festival, and dates for next year were announced on-stage by singer Ty Christian.
Shortly after Mad With Power Fest, the band embarked on their first headlining tour of Europe, visiting Belgium, Germany, Austria, Italy, and the Czech Republic. The band announced via their that work had begun on the next full-length album, with a planned release date of late 2020.

Band members

Current members

Discography

Studio albums

The band as a whole is currently endorsed by: