“We are driven by fate you say…”

Driven By Fate is not only the name of their 2004 album, it’s a state of mind for this Maryland-based band of progressive metallers. Starting in late 2001, front man/guitarist Matt Brookins (pictured at right) has had a vision which has the potential of taking the progressive metal world by storm. Taking the complex and progressive melodies of classic bands like Yes, Rush and Dream Theater, and weaving them into catchy, yet sledgehammer heavy riffs inspired by metal legends Metallica and Iron Maiden, Brookins has created a sound which will have both prog fans and classic metal heads drooling with delight. Add to that tasty potpourri a dash of groove and flow which many progressive bands lack, and you really have something special. You will not find any 15-minute “wank fests” on any of their records. As much of a fan of progressive metal and rock as the next person, the 29-year-old native of Panama Beach, Florida describes the band’s music perfectly in an interview with us back in March. “Our original drummer (Troy Ribail) was always like 'It’s got a groove, it’s got a groove', and I agree. That’s why I think our music is more flow and song-oriented and less like Spiral Architect, it’s not like showing off a bunch of disjointed parts. It’s more like a song,” Brookins says. Take one listen to any of the band’s material and you will heartily agree. Brookins and the rest of Odin’s Court are part of a new breed of progressive metal bands that prove the song structure is more important than showing off how many notes you can cram into a song. Helping to shape his musical vision are four very talented and driven (no pun intended) musicians: veteran drummer John Abella, accomplished Baltimore area axeman Rick Pierpont, 20-year-old keyboard prodigy Savino Palumbo, and another young master of his instrument, bassist Craig Jackson. When asked what is was like to work with this talented bunch, Matt said, “I have to work harder, because they’re all so much better than me. With this lineup, the stuff I write everyone can actually play. So it makes me work harder and I think it makes everyone work harder where we all end up better than we would on our own.” Rick Pierpont adds “If you are the best person in the band, you’re going to stagnate. This is a really unique mixture ‘cause everybody brings unique things to the table, different strong points and stuff like that. We all have to work harder to keep up with everybody else, which drives me.” Quotes like that are why Odin’s Court are the featured band of the first issue of Rising Forces USA. They embody the attitude and spirit we look for in the independent metal scene to a T. Talented, hard working, and always humble, the band never stands still, and they are a true class act in a business of liars, thieves, and broken promises.

Every story has to start somewhere though! Let’s go back to the year 2001, when Odin’s Court was just another cover band in Southern Maryland’s rock scene.

The Beginning: 2001-2002

In late 2001, Matt Brookins hired veteran bassist Scott Adley and drummer Troy Ribail to round out the very first lineup. The band played their first gig at Neptune’s in California, Maryland on March 8, 2002. After a short while, drummer Ribail decided to part company, and John Abella (pictured at left) came into the fold. A drummer who started out playing the clubs of Hollywood, California with several bands, John was out of the game for awhile when Brookins came calling. “Matt and Scott kind of tricked me into joining the band because they said it would be a jeans and t-shirt, drinking beer band,” Abella says. “He was living under a rock from about 1985 to about 2003,” Matt jokes. In Abella, Brookins had found the perfect drummer for the band’s style. Drawing inspiration from great progressive drummers like Neal Peart, Bill Bruford, Alan White and Mike Portnoy as well as jazz legend Dave Weckl, Abella provides the perfect backbone for the powerful and unique Odin’s Court sound. With this lineup, the band entered the studio to record their debut demo CD.

After a few months of hard work, the band emerged from the studio with their self-titled demo CD Odin’s Court in early 2003. An early document of the band’s original material, the demo is fairly well produced and the band’s melodic groove is amazingly evident even at this early stage. The fact that almost every song on this demo is still featured in their live set is a testament to the strength of the material. The vocal shortcomings of Brookins at this point are also well documented, as a tendency to over-sing leads to some very difficult listening moments. But the will to always improve is an ever-burning fire in the heart of Mr. Brookins, and with the help of veteran vocalist Steve Whiteman (Kix, Funny Money), those difficult moments would become less and less, and would eventually fade away. In 2003, the band would add keyboardist Craig Moran (pictured at right; photo courtesy of Odin's Court's website) to the lineup to fill out the sound. In Moran, the band finds a talented musician and songwriter. The band would head back into the studio to record their first full-length album, which would build on the base that the demo recording laid. During that time, an opportunity would come along that would put Odin’s Court on the fast track to regional success. Jaxx Nightclub in Springfield, Virginia had already seen Odin’s Court grace their stage twice in 2003, but on November 21^st the band had the opportunity to open for progressive metal powerhouse Symphony X and the mad genius Devin Townsend. Matt says, “As far as the feeling of 'Wow! Holy Cow!,' it was probably (when we opened for) Devin Townsend and Symphony X. It was a sold-out show, we were playing on a big stage…nationals for the first time. We really practiced a lot up to that, we were really on top of our game, and it was fun.” A sold-out crowd gave the band a great response as they powered through a blistering set of originals that would be featured on their upcoming album. The show itself is documented on the fine quality bootleg Live at Jaxx. The full-length album would finally hit the shelves a little bit later. Driven By Fate showcases that lineup of Odin’s Court at their absolute best. Featuring songs like the radio friendly “Homecoming", the swirling madness of “Shadow Dust", and the epic grandeur of “Paradise Lost: Chapters 1 & 3", the album is a brilliant effort. It looked like the road to respect and recognition would seem to be very smooth. The band would be regular guests at Jaxx for bands like Helloween and King’s X in the coming months. But then, the wheels seemed to grind to a halt…

In mid-2004, keyboardist Craig Moran abruptly quit Odin’s Court, leaving the band without a key element to their sound. Brookins, Adley and Abella would not be discouraged, however, and the band would fight it out for a while as a three-piece. They would not have to wait too long for new blood! Soon, the band added a curly haired, whirling ball of energy and virtuosity in the personage of veteran guitarist Rick Pierpont (pictured at left). A veteran of several Baltimore area bands like Archer and Critical Path (the latter with eventual Division bass ace Ron Kralik), I can describe Mr. Pierpont with the following words: Great guy, very friendly and outgoing, and completely out of his mind! Mixing the ability of Petrucci with the fretboard melting madness and stage presence of Malmsteen, Pierpont added a dynamic new element of precision and performance to the Odin’s Court live experience. Another injection in the proverbial arm of the Odin’s Court machine was in the guise of teenage keyboard phenom Savino Palumbo. Palumbo and Brookins met on the Dream Theater message board (of all places!), and Brookins agreed to give the keysman a look-see. It was a no-brainer. Palumbo added a strong classical piano and keyboard sound that helped Odin’s Court push the boundaries even further. With Pierpont and Palumbo added to the Brookins/Adley/Abella trio, Odin’s Court showed a fire and passion on stage that had not been seen before. With the intimidating, muscle-bound front man Brookins flailing away with hair in face on his Ibanez Universe, and Pierpont looking like a Texas tornado with a Jackson V, the two axemen formed a duo that would be a force to be reckoned with. Add Palumbo’s jaw dropping keyboard mastery, and the Adley/Abella rhythm section laying down a powerful foundation, and it was clear to anyone that saw Odin’s Court live in early 2005 that the only way they could go was up! Many new converts to their cause were surely made as they graced the stage with bands like Sonata Arctica and Seven Witches. But once again, fate would stick its unforgiving hand in their path. Being called to active military duty in Japan, Scott Adley (pictured at right; photo courtesy of Odin's Court's website) would regretfully leave the fold after a long-remembered performance at Captain George’s in Solomon’s Island, Maryland on July 16, 2005. I have read that there was not a dry eye in the house at the end of that night. Matt Brookins can surely tell you that saying goodbye to Scott was one of the hardest things he had to do, as the two were like brothers.

But this was a temporary roadblock for the band, as another young prodigy would soon ride into town to fill the void…

While the loss of founding member Adley would shake the band up, fate would soon swing the pendulum back in the band’s favor. Rick Pierpont suggested that a long-time friend of his fill the vacancy in the bass slot. The person in question would be yet another young lion, Craig Jackson (pictured at left). Drawing inspiration from virtuoso bassists like John Myung from Dream Theater and Stefan Lessard of the Dave Matthews Band, Jackson brought a beefy, yet elegant style of bass work to the Odin’s Court sound. He was immediately accepted and he made his debut performance with the band at Rick’s pool party at the Pierpont “compound” (read “residence“) in Stewartstown, Pennsylvania on August 13, 2005, and make his proper stage debut at a problem-filled opening slot for Kamelot at Jaxx on November 17, 2005. The band would hone their sound to a cutting sharpness on stage as they would cross the Mason-Dixon line for the first time to open for Funny Money at Fat Daddy’s in York, Pennsylvania on December 2^nd, and then eight days later at Champion’s in Leesburg, Virginia on December 10^th, also with Funny Money. As the new year beckoned, the band had big plans in the works!

During the recent months, Matt Brookins had set aside space in his house in Lexington Park, Maryland for his own recording facility. That studio would end up taking the name of D2C Studios, and that is where the band would labor on an album that would finally mark the dawning of the Odin’s Court sound as the “Pastor Of Muppets” had always wanted it. Taking the strongest songs from Driven By Fate, the band decided to add new melodies, new arrangements and re-done vocals to those already strong songs and mold them into a whole new animal. As a bonus, the band also added an acoustic EP which shows off the band’s softer, unplugged side. Finally released in March 2006 after almost a year of recording, ReDriven By Fate is the definitive recording for Odin’s Court to date. Bursting at the seams with dark and beautiful melodies, crunchy and catchy riffs, odd times, and mind-blowing song structures, the band has great reason to be proud! Gone are the over-sung vocals of the first EP. In their place is a much more confident and relaxed Matt Brookins delivering haunting and beautiful vocal melodies that have the ability to hypnotize the listener and transport them to the lush, surrealist landscapes the band paints with their music. He has crafted his voice into a one-of-a-kind instrument. No one sounds like him. Brookins and Pierpont deliver lightning riffs and slow melodies with equal ease. Palumbo (pictured at right) dazzles with his mastery of the ivories. Jackson and Abella are the perfect partners on bass and drums.

On March 24, 2006, the band had its crowning moment to date. At long last the headliner at the infamous Jaxx Nightclub, Odin’s Court documented their performance in front of a packed house for all posterity on DVD. The cameras captured the band powering though the performance of their lives as they showcased the songs from ReDriven By Fate as well as a few new numbers which will be on their next album: “Animaulic” and “Manifest Destiny". Any one in attendance that night left with little doubt in their minds that they had witnessed a new rising force in progressive metal coming of age. Jaxx said on their own website that “The club was packed for this show and put the audience for many National shows to shame.” It was truly a night the people in attendance will never forget! Matt Brookins gives his account of the night: “Yes, (it was) simply amazing to headline Jaxx. The energy with the band and crowd was very intense, and I could tell everyone was having a great time. It’s still kind of surreal that we headlined the infamous Jaxx, and the numbers of fans that showed.”

The Future?

The boys are not stopping! Matt Brookins has been working like hell to get the DVD finished in time for a fall release. On the studio front, the band will finally be saying farewell to the Driven By Fate era as they head into the studio to record a set of totally new material for a concept album. If the songs “Animaulic” and “Manifest Destiny” are any indication of what lies ahead, this next record will surely raise the bar even higher. Let us hope that this next record will be the one that puts Odin’s Court in the minds of metal fans all over the United States and around the world. After that, they will be the best kept secret in progressive metal no longer. But will it affect the guys? I can tell you myself by saying “NO WAY!”. The band will continue to remain humble and stay true to their roots, and continue to push the envelope. We would not have it any other way!

Driven By Fate is what Odin’s Court will always be!

Matthew Bankes, Rising Forces USA
July 2006