Maroon Bio

Like a calculated, maniacal killer the German powerhouse MAROON moves in quick and goes straight for the jugular with their scathing dual guitar assault and devastating breakdowns. This band added a whole new dimension and depth to the watered down metalcore scene and quickly became one of Europe's most crushing live acts. It's ironic that their buzz never made its way over to the U.S. as they helped pioneer the genre that has been thriving in North American for the past few years. Now upon signing a new worldwide deal with Century Media Records for their blistering new album, When Worlds Collide, the group finally has the means to have their brutality heard by the masses. Prepare yourself for the punishment that is about to ensue.

Taking hardcore ethics to a whole new level, MAROON are quickly outplaying and outlasting their contemporaries around the globe. Formed in early 1998, the vegan, straightedge five-piece is clearly showing their dedication and no signs of slowing down. Their unique sound offers a heavyweight mix of brutal hardcore molded with metal riffs, which infuses strong and effective melodic elements. Their major influences are primarily drawn from straight edge bands like Earth Crisis and Morning Again, while still remaining true to their passion for old-school visionaries like At The Gates, The Haunted and Iron Maiden.

The group's major introduction to the music world was in 2002 with their first full-length album, Antagonist, which was released on Alveran Records in Europe and Catalyst Records in America. The band immediately embarked on a headlining European tour and even ventured over to South America and Japan in 2003 in support of the record. It's those initial years of hard work that have caused the band's reputation to spread all over the world, earning them slots at major European festivals, in addition to high-profile shows alongside acts such as Hatebreed, Agnostic Front, Earth Crisis, Heaven Shall Burn and Sepultura.

The band's 2004 sophomore release, Endorsed By Hate, was a stunning portrayal of passion and anger. After its release their sole mission was to play as much as humanly possible and they proceeded to tour relentlessly playing a slew of European festivals as well as touring with Cataract in late 2004 and Downset in early 2005 followed by strong performances at such major festivals as Pressure, Fury, With Full Force, Dour, Groezrock and Summerbreeze.

In late October 2005 they headed off to Denmark to record their highly anticipated new album, When Worlds Collide, with Jacob Hansen (Mercenary, Fear My Thoughts) in his Hansen Studios. During the recording process, their labelmates Mercenary popped in to add some back-up vocals and keyboards, while some of Roger Miret's (Agnostic Front) unique shouting was captured spontaneously during the Persistance Tour. Once When Worlds Collide was complete MAROON set out for a full European tour supporting death metal legends Obituary and Switzerland's dark visionaries Samael. While the band was busy on the road, Paul Romano (Mastodon, Trivium) added his unique touch to the record's visual aspects.

Without a doubt the album showcases some surprising moments when the melodic vocals of Mercenary's Mikkel Sandager kicks into the heavy, riff-driven "Annular Eclipse" that ultimately leads to the album's captivating closer, the ultra-brutal "Below Existence". No matter how much they gravitated towards some of the heaviest material of their still-young career, MAROON still remains true to their political awareness and involvement in an outspoken lifestyle.