EPK – Utiltilty Provider – Challenger (2024) – Out Nov 26th
Publicist – Jon Asher – jon[@]ashermediarelations[.]com
“For me, the most important aspect of music is how it makes you feel when you listen. When we set out to record “CHALLENGER” we knew that we wanted to take our fans on a unique, powerful, and intense listening experience. The overarching theme of “CHALLENGER” is one of triumph over adversity and having the courage to throw off your “chains” (both physical and mental) and strike out on your own. We wanted our fans to be able to make a connection with the music and I think that this album will touch people on a very personal level. One cool element that we added to the album is the concept of a side “A” and a side “B”. Up until this album, all U.P. songs were written in drop C tuning. The first 6 songs of the album stay in that same drop C tuning, however side “B” is written in A# tuning – it’s literally a whole new sound for our fans! The transition from side “A” to side “B” is marked by a beautiful instrumental track written solely by Chris called “Northern Storm”. We hope the listeners will enjoy this nuance within the album. We sure had a ton of fun recording it!” – Tyler Mayfield – Vocals – Utility Provider
Mastodon, Pantera, Strapping Young Lads / Devin Townsend, Alice in Chains, Gojira
Band: Utility Provider
Album: “Challenger”
Release Date: November 26th, 2024
Label: Self-Release
Facebook.com/utilityproviderband | Instagram.com/utilityproviderband | Youtube | X.com/utilityboys
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“We’re back at it on a Monday morning & we’ve just added the punishing new track “Challenger” from UTILITY PROVIDER! “Challenger” is the title track from the forthcoming album set for a Nov.26th release. A heavy driving track that grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let up for 5 minutes. Varied tempos and outstanding musicianship make for a special cut.” – WJOE – Findlay’s Home for Rock & Roll
“I suspect that quirky progressive thrash metal may be a suitable general description of the landscapes explored on this album, and if that is a description that intrigues you then chances are good for you to find this album to be a rewarding experience” – Progressor
[Download Album Cover | Download Album Lyrics]
Band: Utility Provider
Album: “Challenger”
Release Date: November 26th, 2024
Label: Self-Release
Track Listing:
1. Broken Ghost Touches – 2:39
2. Humans – 4:23
3. Challenger – 5:08
4. Social Murder – 1:59
5. Killer Instinct – 3:36
6. Northern Storm – 1:13
7. You Know She’s Metal – 3:14
8. Loudest Voices – 4:47
9. Skin & Bones – 4:22
10. Independent Soul – 2:28
11. Scabs – 5:55
12. Controversy In Everything – 4:40
Album Length: 44:29
Album Credits:
Recording Engineer: Nick Bergeron, Starport Studios, Langley B.C
Mixing and Mastering: Michael Kraushaar, Little Red Studios, Vancouver B.C
All songs written, performed, and produced by UTILITY PROVIDER
Album Artwork: Shayne Gold
*All band members are members of SOCAN
*MAPL applies: All music / lyrics were written and performed by Canadian citizens and the album was recorded in Canada
Album Band Line Up:
Guitar / backing vocals: Chris Thomas
Drums: Vadim Cartovenco
Lead vocals: Tyler Mayfield
Bass / backing vocals: Tyler Parsons-Mathieu
Live Band Line Up:
Guitar / backing vocals: Chris Thomas
Drums: Vadim Cartovenco
Lead vocals: Tyler Mayfield
Bass / backing vocals: Shayne Gold
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About The Album Artwork
We wanted the artwork to reflect the overarching message of the album and I think Shayne did a great job capturing this. The lone figure with his arms raised atop the mountain signifies one’s triumph over adversity. The mountain itself acts as a symbol of whatever adversity looks like to each individual.
About the album as a whole (LYRICALLY & MUSICALLY)
Track by Track (LYRICALLY & MUSICALLY)
1. Broken Ghost Touches:
Tyler: An instrumental track that blends elements of thrash, prog, and rock. We really focused on getting great guitar and bass tone, with powerful drums that punch in to accent certain moments in the song. Chris’s solo on top of the rhythm guitar adds a nice technical element too. I think this song really shows off the skill and musical abilities of U.P!
2. Humans:
Tyler: The music is heavy, dark and punishing which is reinforced by the lyrical content. The lyrics for this song were actually written by John Murray, who spent a brief time in U.P years back. He wrote about the atrocities humans commit in the name of religion. One very powerful line is “you threw little children into unmarked graves”, which touches on the recent discovery in Canada of unmarked graves where Indigenous children were buried after being killed in the residential school system brought forth by the Catholic Church.
3. Challenger:
Tyler: This is the title track of the album so we spent a lot of time making sure the production was exactly what we wanted. The music, I think, sounds like a cool mix of thrash and power metal. The guitars are especially highlighted in this song to give it that power and distinct U.P tone that Chris is known for. The verses have quick guitar licks overtop of the main melody to add flavour. The vocals are mostly clean so listeners can hear the lyrics, which embody the theme of the album. This song in particular focuses on overcoming physical challenges with a fighting spirit. You will notice that the lyrics repeat in each verse – this was done on purpose to really drive home the point.
4. Social Murder
Tyler: This song is meant to be an anthem. Right off the bat, we have guitar, bass, and drums smack the listener square in the face to set the tone. From there it’s 2 minutes straight of pure, raw rage. Its short length makes it easy to listen to over and over again. The term ‘social murder’ was coined by Friedrich Engels in 1845 to describe the “unnatural death that occurs due to social, political, or economic oppression”. To embody that spirit I wrote the lyrics as a call to arms; throw off your chains, fuck the oppressors, and string them up.
5. Killer Instinct
Tyler: This song is a little off from the theme of the album as it’s more about the baser predatory instinct humans share with other animals, and how we use it along with our advanced minds to dominate all other species, and other humans, of the world. The music, specifically the guitar, utilizes palm muting for that loud-quiet-loud dynamic to highlight the vocals in the verses. The lyrics of each verse are meant to metaphorically tie in an aspect of human warfare with a feature of another predatory animal.
6. Northern Storm
Tyler: A quick instrumental track that marks the switch from side A (the drop C tuning) to side B (A# tuning). This was written/composed completely by Chris and features a simple guitar riff with background noises reminiscent of a coming storm. The crickets and cracking thunder remind me a lot of the powerful storms I’d hear in Texas when my family would visit my grandma. This track prepares listeners for the “storm” that is side B, which is noticeably ‘darker’ than side A.
7. You Know She’s Metal
Tyler: The most straight-up ‘metal’ sounding track of the album. Vadim does an incredible job on the drums with his massive snare hits and thundering double-kick work. In the chorus during the “metal” scream the vocals reach a pitch that Chris Cornell, Myles Kennedy, or even Steven Tyler would be proud of. Lyrics were again written by John Murry and embody the spirit of a metalhead.
8. Loudest Voices
Tyler: Similar to “Social Murder”, this song also focuses on rising against oppression and the lyrics reflect this throughout the song. Musically the song could make a strong case for being considered the most dynamic on the album; several riff changes, a bass solo part, and an absolutely chaotic ending. The same could be said for vocals. A mix of clean, rough, and screaming vocals at various parts intertwined with the ‘cookie monster’ backing vocals of Tyler Parsons-Mathieu.
9. Skin and Bones
Tyler: The chorus line says it all: “How would you feel if I stripped you down to your skin and bones?”, in other words, how would you feel if your true nature was exposed? How would you feel if we took away the facade – is it something you’d want the public to see? I find there is a distinct ‘grunge’ feel in this song reminiscent of early Nirvana. It features a simple repeating guitar riff through the verses to give more emphasis to the vocals and drums. However, the chorus guitar is chaotic and in your face. I also find the snare tone to be really great in this song. I think Chris and I do a killer job in this song with mixing vocals, especially during the chorus. This track is the only one on the album where Chris actually takes the role of primary vocalist (he is the only one singing during the verses) which pays homage to the many years where he was the primary singer in U.P.
10. Independent Soul
Tyler: This song sounds absolutely nothing like anything U.P. has put out before. Completely clean guitar, bass, and vocals, it feels more like a metal ballad. It features beautiful guitar and bass tones all throughout and I love that there’s nothing fancy, it’s just all raw, which I think encapsulates the feeling and power of this song. Vocals are reminiscent of Corey Taylor singing clean. Lyrics center on coming to terms with who you are and finding a way to accept yourself.
11. Scabs
Tyler: My personal favourite of the album, “Scabs” has perhaps the best sounding vocals, clean and raspy, and uniquely features an unexpected drums-only intro. It is also the longest song on the album at 5 minutes and 55 seconds. The first half of the song is more rock sounding and you can hear this primarily in the guitars and vocals, although that signature U.P metal/rock guitar tone is still present. Things heat up in the second half with a distinctly ‘metal’ riff, very powerful drums, and intense vocals. The ending is my favourite part; a single guitar riff with repeating harmonic notes and quiet drums which allow a beautiful falsetto harmony between Chris and myself to shine through. Listen closely and you’ll also hear a subtle but intricate bass riff in the background separate from the guitar. If you close your eyes you can hear the ghost of old-school Alice in Chains. Lyrics are about overcoming addiction and trauma, surviving, and shedding your mental ‘scabs’.
12. Controversy in Everything
Tyler: This track was actually featured on the U.P album “Lost in Humanity’s Grip” but had no vocals, so we decided to re-record it as a bonus track for our fans with the new U.P lineup. The production is miles ahead of the original recording. The music features a heavy prog element that’s really noticeable in the guitar tone and the drum structure. Vocals are mostly clean and rock-sounding, but Tyler Parsons-Mathieu’s ‘cookie monster’ vocals add a healthy dose of metal. If you listen closely you can also hear Chris do some Josh Homme-esque sexy deep vocals underneath the main vocal line around 3:12, and again at 3:55 in the song.
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Fun Facts – Story Angels
1. “Independent Soul” almost didn’t make the album. We had actually planned on scrapping it due to time constraints and the song not being where we wanted it. On the last night we had booked with Michael Kraushaar for mixing and mastering, we ended up finishing “Controversy” early and had, I think, an hour and a half left of the booked time. So we said, “Hey Michael, we have this one other song, would you be willing to take a look at it?”. Being the wizard that he is, Michael was able to take it and turn it into the beautiful song that you hear now.
2. “Independent Soul” was originally supposed to sound way different than it does. It was originally over 7 minutes in length and had a huge metal section with screaming vocals, and a third chorus. We just couldn’t get the sound to where we wanted it and, as I mentioned above, was almost scrapped completely. But we really liked the quiet sections and didn’t want to lose them completely. So we decided fuck it, let’s scrap all the parts after the quiet section and see what we get. Turns out it was a great decision because we ended up with this beautiful song that is completely unique on the album.
3. Back in 2016 our former drummer, Chris Lang, was awarded the Order of Canada for rescuing 2 people trapped in a burning vehicle. He and former bassist Dan Wakefield were driving back in the early am from a gig at the Wolf Bar when a car went flying past them on the highway and careened out of control, smashing into a pole and ending up in the culvert separating the two sides of traffic. Chris and Dan stopped to see if the people were ok and saw that the car was catching fire and the people were stunned and barely moving. Chris leaped into action and risked himself to rescue them from the burning wreck. You can read all about it here in this CBC article! https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/car-flames-surrey-utility-provider-rock-blues-metal-band-1.3798073
4. Back in April 2024 we were playing a gig at The Phoenix in Victoria. Now we all know Tyler loves to jump out into the crowd and mosh, headbang and interact with the fans as much as possible – and of course, this night was no exception. About halfway through the set, he jumped past the floor monitors to be with the audience. He was headbanging arm-in-arm with a couple of people and realized that he needed to get back to the mic to finish the song. Unfortunately, when jumping back he missed one of the monitors and rolled over on his ankle. He immediately fell over, but continued to sing and finish the song. Like a true rock star, he finished the set, hopping around on one foot. We didn’t realize until the next day just how bad he had hurt it, it was so purple and swollen and he could barely put any weight on it.
L-R – Vadim Cartovenco – Drums, Chris Thomas – Guitar/Backing Vocals, Tyler Mayfield – Lead Vocals, Shayne Gold – Bass/Backing Vocals
UTILITY PROVIDER BIO:
Utility Provider is a progressive metal band based in Vancouver B.C that was formed by Chris Thomas (formerly: RED ANT ARMY – FUSE BREAKER – DIELECTRIC – CTT PROJECT – WURM) in 2013 with Scott O’Hara (FREEBASE) on Drums and Dan Wakefield on Bass
After many shows throughout 2014, Scott and his family relocated to Alberta and Dan & Chris continued on in search of a new drummer. Enter the Chris Lang years. Lang’s addition not only helped Thomas and the writing get stronger – but it also changed the texture of the music. With Lang’s talents mixed in with Thomas and Wakefield’s already large sound, Utility Provider was now a real driving force in the local music scene.
After 3 long years of nonstop playing in the local scene and only demo songs to show for it, Utility Provider hit the studio to record its debut album “ALL IN TIME”. The album dropped on August 14th, 2019. With songs like “FRASER HEIGHTS” & “GREASE TRAP” making waves on indie radio stations worldwide, while also supporting the release with many local shows, there were changes starting to develop – and like most bands, changes were made. Wakefield eventually departed from U.P. leaving the band temporarily with no bass player. After many auditions, the right fit was found and U.P welcomed Tyler Parsons-Mathieu as its new bass player. While taking some time off to work on the new line up (learning and writing songs) and getting ready to record their second album, COVID hit the world. Ever resilient, U.P. decided to focus all their energy on making a new record during the lockdown refusing to wither away like so many other bands.
“LOST IN HUMANITY’S GRIP” was released June 28th, 2022 and U.P., like everyone else, started playing live shows again – however, another setback was on the horizon. In July of 2022, Chris Lang had to depart for personal reasons. U.P. wished him all the best and thanked him for his musical input, but as all successful musicians know, the show must go on!!!!!
Enter new drummer Vadim Cartovenco (formerly of 2 DAYS & COUNTING). Vadim brought new life into the band, especially with U.P. reeling from the loss of Lang just as “LOST IN HUMANITY’S GRIP” was being released. Cartovenco’s technical mastery and powerful hits added a huge presence to an already formidable U.P. sound.
Up to this point, U.P had solely relied on Thomas to perform as both lead guitarist and lead singer, which led the band to the realization that they were still missing one crucial element; a true frontman, unburdened by an instrument, with the experience and showmanship necessary to take U.P to that next level. In April 2023, after several rounds of auditions, U.P. found their new dynamic frontman in Tyler Mayfield (formerly of LUNG FLOWER). With over a decade of playing, touring, and recording experience, and the ability to perform both melodic and heavy vocals while still bringing a manic energy to the stage every night, Mayfield’s addition took U.P. up to a whole other gear.
In Spring 2024 U.P. started tracking sessions with the all-mighty Nick Bergeron at Starport Studios (Langley, B.C.) for their 3rd album titled “CHALLENGER”. Bergeron made a massive mark on the record and U.P could not be any happier with the amazing work he did during the recording process. Then in October 2024 mixing and mastering were handed off to the renowned Michael Kraushaar at Little Red Studios (Vancouver B.C). Kraushaar’s work on the “CHALLENGER” album showed a true mastery of the art of sound. U.P. was thrilled with the amount of work and dedication Kraushaar put into making “CHALLENGER” sound exactly as they had envisioned.
Backtracking to summer 2024, after the recording sessions had been completed, Tyler Parsons-Mathieu announced that he would be leaving the band to pursue other musical endeavours. Parsons-Mathieu’s departure was very amicable and U.P has wished nothing but the best for him and all his musical projects! U.P. was also incredibly grateful for the bass riffs and backing vocals he contributed to the “CHALLENGER” album.
Fortunately, Parsons-Mathieu’s replacement was found quickly and came in the form of Shayne Gold (formerly of EDITH), a long-time veteran of the Vancouver music scene. Officially joining the band in September 2024, Gold brought yet another new and creative element to the bass sound of U.P. With his unique style of heavy notes blended into hypnotic hooks, and a wonderfully infectious personality, Gold became a welcome addition to the U.P lineup.
“CHALLENGER” officially drops on November 26th, 2024. Stay tuned!
Album Band Line Up:
Guitar / backing vocals: Chris Thomas
Drums: Vadim Cartovenco
Lead vocals: Tyler Mayfield
Bass / backing vocals: Tyler Parsons-Mathieu
Live Band Line Up:
Guitar / backing vocals: Chris Thomas
Drums: Vadim Cartovenco
Lead vocals: Tyler Mayfield
Bass / backing vocals: Shayne Gold
Discography:
2024 – “CHALLENGER” – album
2022 – “Lost in Humanity’s Grip” – album
2019 – “All in Time” – album
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