SANCTITY Sign With ROADRUNNER RECORDS

Roadrunner Records has announced the signing of Asheville, NC classic metal quartet SANCTITY. The group formed in 2000 and is comprised of Jared MacEachern (vocals, rhythm guitar),Zeff Childress (lead guitar),Billy Moody (bass) and Jeremy London (drums).

SANCTITY was signed by longtime Roadrunner A&R man and purveyor of seminal metal bands like SEPULTURA, SLIPKNOT, and — most recently — TRIVIUM, Monte Conner. Says Conner: "SANCTITY is straight-up, guitar-based, melodic heavy metal. I received a video of the band's song 'Zeppo', and besides showcasing the blazing fretwork of lead shredder Zeff, the main thing I got from the video was a sense of how of much a star the vocalist (Jared) really is. He knows how to command a stage and has an overwhelming presence. The minute I saw Jared in action, I knew I had to sign the band. Of equal importance, he's got an amazing vocal range and a fresh style compared to what's out there today."

Conner's interest was piqued after hearing two sets of demos the band recorded recently with producer Jason Suecof at Audiohammer Studios in Sanford, Florida (TRIVIUM, GOD FORBID). But the band took the bull by the horns and sealed the deal by delivering a self-financed, homemade video for their fans’ favorite track, "Zeppo".

Regarding the video, Jared says, "Our director Ramon Boutviseth knew of this abandoned prison that was built in the 1930s. It was really dusty in there, not to mention the fact that everything had been originally painted with lead paint, which was now hanging off the ceilings and walls like dead skin after a sunburn. One of the best things about the shoot was the fact that it was an experiment for us and Ramon — none of us having ever shot a video before. We all think it turned out great, but what wasn't so great was the fact that we were all sick for a couple weeks afterward…"

"'Zeppo' is a song that we wrote a number of years ago," continues Jared, "and even after our last session in the studio, we still felt it was one of our strongest songs. The title 'Zeppo' is a little obscure, but we feel it fits. It comes from a TV show we were watching, where one of the characters says he feels like a Zeppo, meaning Zeppo Marx, the only Marx brother who never did anything. In the show, this character ends up saving the day. In a way, I guess it's one of those songs about being the underdog. Both the song and the video are indicative of what it's like for us to completely immerse ourselves in SANCTITY and our efforts to be heard."

"We're all really excited about joining the Roadrunner family, and look forward to jumping right into the thick of it," enthuses Jared. “It was a long road getting here but we couldn't ask for better people to work with. We look forward to making a record that will explode some heads out there!"

SANCTITY is managed by Justin Arcangel and Brian Heafy of Dark Angel Management and will record their Roadrunner debut this summer with Jason Suecof for a fall 2006 release. In the meantime, the demo version and video of "Zeppo" can be found at this location.