Dead River Kings

MEET THE GUYS

Loaded with doom laden, riff-based groove metal, coming straight out of Teesside, Dead river kings woke up the local metal scene with a bang,  playing to a full house at their first show. Fans are liking Dead River Kings to Sabbath, Soundgarden and StoneSour. With a world-wide distribution & promotion deal in place with Nil by Mouth Recordings the 4 piece are about to release the debut single and title track from the up and coming EP “Jaded n’ Blind” in April 2018.

Feb 2017, Drummer Marc Walsh, after hearing Fable’s 2011 Ruled Album, contacted singer / songwriter Mark O’Hare to form a new band. Rich Heward was asked to join due to his lead guitar style and proven writing chemistry alongside Mark in Fable. Already jamming with Jake Carr Smith on another potential project and it was clear to Rich that Jakes doom style suited the direction everyone was looking in. “This quickly became an addictive creative environment, leaving no question on anyone’s mind that this was the bands line up” says Mark.

“Jamming on riffs brought to the mix by Jake and Rich felt good, the groove and doom came to life” remarks Mark. “Yeah, it’s what I love, doom all the way” responded Jake. Creating a mix of early 90’s metal and old school guitar harmonies gave room for Marc’s creativity on the kit. “I need to keep it interesting” comments Marc. “I get drawn to odd timings and want to experiment with them”.

Band Members

Mark O’Hare - Lead Vocals & Dirty Guitar

Credited with over 150 songs spanning 20+ Years, main influences come from Guns n Roses, StoneSour, Metallica and Soundgarden.

Rich Heward - Lead Guitar & Vocals

Highly respected guitarist in North East scene due to his memorable live performances, Rich honed his unique sound being influenced by Slash, Iron Maiden, Black Stone Cherry and Sabbath.

Jake Carr Smith - Bass Guitar

Jake is the youngest member but brings the historic doom influence from Black Sabbath, Corrosion of Conformity, Metallica and Down. He has natural talent in his blood.

Marc Walsh - Drums

With metal in his bones and the biggest network of music lovers you could imagine, Marc spends most of his time on the front line watching bands. A natural behind the kit driving the kings with influence coming from Mike Portnoy, The Wildhearts, Machine Head and Mastodon.

Connor Turnbull - Lead Guitar & Vocals

May 18 DRK recruited Connor to fill in for Rich for gig at Trillians Newcastle. Immediately we decided to ask him to become a perm member. Influences coming from GnR, Iron Maiden and Sabbath, It all made sense.

With many years of writing, touring and promotion experience within the band, they knew the best approach is to develop the sound first, then create the image the band will be known for. Coming from 4 different towns along the river tees and the area known for dying industry, Dead River Kings were born.