Satan's Satyrs

Herndon, Virginia natives Satan's Satyrs fuse psych-drenched doom metal with grindhouse punk and sleazy garage rock, evoking echoes of Blue Cheer, Venom, Electric Wizard, Black Flag, Hawkwind, and Black Sabbath. Clayton Burgess launched the project in 2009 as a high-school solo endeavor on vocals and multiple instruments; it expanded into a full band once the debut LP, Wild Beyond Belief, surfaced in 2012. Electric Wizard's endorsement helped secure a standout slot at the Netherlands' 2013 Roadburn Festival, after which the quartet issued Die Screaming in 2014 and cemented its standing within stoner and alternative metal circles.

Burgess, still based in his hometown, drew the band's name from the 1969 biker exploitation film Satan's Sadists while absorbing influences from Electric Wizard, Black Flag, and similar heavy acts alongside a steady stream of cult cinema. He recorded the first album entirely alone at home before Bad Omen Records, focused on doom and stoner rock, offered a release. For touring, he enlisted guitarist Jarrett Nettnin and drummer Stephen Fairfield while handling vocals and bass himself; that configuration entered the studio for the 2014 follow-up, Die Screaming, which followed their acclaimed Roadburn appearance at Electric Wizard's invitation.

The relationship deepened when Electric Wizard recruited Burgess as bassist, leading to shared 2015 tours where he balanced commitments to both outfits. Satan's Satyrs still managed to deliver their third album, Don't Deliver Us, that same year. In 2018 they teamed with fellow Virginia doom band and occasional road partners Windhand for a split EP on Relapse Records. October brought their fourth full-length, The Lucky Ones, now expanded to a quartet featuring guitarist Nate Towle, previously of Wicked Inquisition, and issued jointly by Bad Omen and Riding Easy Records.