BATTLECRY remastered and expanded coming June 7th
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RE: BATTLECRY
DATE: MAY 11, 2024
Roxx Records is once again very excited to be part of another killer new reissue we are about to share with the world. This artist and their music has long needed to be remastered and reissued, in fact it has never officially been on CD before, ever! But even more, the band has blessed us with many of their long lost tracks from their archives that have never before released! That band is Battlecry, with their sole release, Red, White and Blue. Now coming this Summer, Roxx Records will bring you ‘Red, White and Blue and Beyond’!
Battlecry was a GEM that was somehow not given the credit they so deserved in the Classic Christian Rock world. Hailing from Southern California, Battlecry play a classic 80's style AOR Hard Rock n' Roll in the vein of bands like Survivor, Foreigner, Fighter, Journey & Servant. Not long after Doug decided to form the band, he began looking for other musicians to fill the remaining positions. He soon brought on guitarist Robert Kirk Giverink, bassist Ronald Simmons, drummer Bret Keys, and keyboardist-Mariko Martinez to complete the line-up.
The idea behind the band name came from Isaiah 42:13 "The Lord will march out like a champion, like a warrior he will stir up his zeal; with a shout he will raise the battle cry and will triumph over his enemies." Not long after Battlecry was launched they would head into Songwriters Dream Studios in Los Angeles to begin working on material for their debut release.
In 1985 Battlecry would release their debut 6-track EP entitled 'Red White And Blue' via an indie label called Greenworld Records and was originally released only in a vinyl format. Almost a year later in early 1986 the cassette version was released after Doug Morris himself had left the band and was replaced by vocalist Dave Chumchal.
The track list for the vinyl mini-LP entitled 'Red, White and Blue' consisted of 6 tracks.
1. Red White And Blue
- When The Lord Comes Back
- Not Tough Enough
- Life With The Lord
- Power And Might
- You've Got To Know.
The later cassette only version of 'Red White And Blue' would be released and would include 4 additional tracks. Side A would consist of the original 6 tracks, will side B featured the addition of 4 bonus live tracks previously unreleased at that time featuring new vocalist Dave on vocals.
- Red White And Blue (Live)
- Battlecry (Live)
- Not tough Enough (Live)
- Back To The Rock(Live).
This radio friendly AOR release featured some amazing guitar work from Robert Giverink, timely keyboards by Mariko Giverink, on point Bass lines from Ronald P. Simmons and some killer drum work by Bret Keys. In addition, Frontman Doug Morris' delivers up a solid performance on this project with his vocal delivery drawing comparison to vocalist Sean Murphy (Fighter) and vocalist-Bob Hardy (Servant). Morris sings in the mid to upper vocal ranges and plays a big part in helping bring the EP recording to life.
After the release of 'Red White And Blue', the band garnered some notable recognition with their track "When the Lord Comes Back". The song went on to land in the "top 40" on orange county's largest Christian rock radio station KYMS.
Battlecry is for fans of Servant, Fighter, Survivor, Greg X Volz, and Journey. 'Red White And Blue' is one of those rare and hard to find gems that deserves an official remaster on CD for new and old fans alike to enjoy. And that's exactly what we did, Roxx Records is excited to work with the band to remaster and expand the bands catalog for all the world to hear once again. Remastered by Rob Colwell (Bombworks Sound), new layout and updated cover art courtesy of Scott Waters (NoLifeTilMetal) and a booklet with a brand new interview telling the history of the band compiled in to a full 16 page booklet. The remastered and expanded package includes previously unreleased tracks and photos directly from the bands personal archives that have never been seen before.
On June 7, 2024 this very limited edition CD will be released. We are kicking this off with our friends from Area 312 as they debut their latest addition Vodcast this Saturday May 11th and catch up with the members of Battlecry. As a tie in all pre orders will go live Saturday morning at 7am PST.