CHRIS POLAND And GAR SAMUELSON's Pre-MEGADETH Band THE NEW YORKERS To Release Collection Of Never-Before-Heard Demos And Live Tracks

Guitarist Chris Poland and drummer Gar Samuelson helped lay the foundation for 1980s thrash metal with their virtuosic playing on MEGADETH's "Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!" and "Peace Sells… But Who's Buying?" and As jazz musicians drafted into the emerging speed metal genre, they introduced a blistering precision to Dave Mustaine's frenzied metal riffs, culminating in a sound unlike anything heard before or since.

Fans have long heard rumors about Poland and Samuelson's pre-MEGADETH jazz fusion band THE NEW YORKERS. Now — for the first time ever — they'll get a chance to hear the music.

New York City's Psychic Reader Records has announced "Low-Temperature Delay", a 12-inch vinyl of never-before-heard studio demos and live tracks from THE NEW YORKERS, set to be released at the end of the year. The release comes packed with a fold-out poster as well as an inner booklet featuring photos and extensive liner notes.

THE NEW YORKERS formed in 1978, shortly after Poland and brothers Gar and Stew Samuelson migrated from their hometown of Dunkirk, New York to Los Angeles. There they linked up with bassist Robertino "Pag" Pagliari and saxophone player Don Roper. The band drew from fusion mainstays like MAHAVISHNU ORCHESTRA, WEATHER REPORT and RETURN TO FOREVER, but forged a leaner, more distinctive sound, eschewing keyboards in favor of Poland and Stew Samuelson's twin guitars.

Despite studio sessions, a strong local fanbase, and a promising meeting with a major-label A&R, THE NEW YORKERS never released a record. But almost five decades later, Psychic Reader's Cotter Phinney set out to change that.

"This is an opportunity to uncover the origins of one of metal's most unlikely and influential lineups," he explains, "and fans deserve to hear it."

In a 2022 press release announcing the availability of a 12-song collection of demo material from Samuelson's post-MEGADETH band FATAL OPERA, Poland said: "Back in the day, long before MEGADETH, Gar and his brother Stew were the heart and soul of a heavy instrumental jazz/rock project called THE NEW YORKERS. I played guitar with them and Robbie 'Pag' Pagliari played fretless bass. It was everything we could do just to keep up. Stew's right hand was a machine. Flawless. And Gar was right there with him always pushing things to the next level.

"Gar was a true artist," Chris added. "Be it his amazing drumming, his painting or his wood sculpture pipe (he made by hand). Gar was one of a kind."

Former MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson commented: "Gar was always such a free spirit with his music; no click tracks or digital reinvention for him. And he seldom played the same thing twice; quite unusual for heavy metal. He just went for it with real gusto and that became the hallmark of his sound."

Five years ago, Mustaine stated about Samuelson's departure from MEGADETH: "Gar was a lovable person and he was a fantastic drummer, but he was clearly unhappy. He was unhappy with his job at B.C. Rich, he was unhappy drumming for us, and I think that he was a very creative person, and he wanted to have his own band, have his own studio, and that's why after we parted ways he went down to Florida and developed a second approach to having a career in the metal business, which I was really happy for him."

Poland was a member of MEGADETH from 1984 to 1987, during which time he performed on the band's classic albums "Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!" and "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?" He is also a featured soloist on the group's 2004 album, "The System Has Failed".

THE NEW YORKERS lineup:

Chris Poland - Guitar
Gar Samuelson - Drums
Stew Samuelson - Guitar
Robertino "Pag" Pagliari - Bass
Don Roper - Horns

Samuelson died in 1999, reportedly from liver failure, at age 41.

Photo courtesy of Cotter Phinney / Psychic Reader