German Version

“This German debut is especially good, because it is consistent in spite of the style being impossible to label,” said Tobias Blum two years ago about Layment’s dark power metal album “Declaration” in the Rock Hard, Europe’s biggest metal magazine, thus awarding 7 out of 10 points.

April 24, 2009, Layment are back with their new record “Traces”. The style is still extremely diverse, but now the band got much more rocking attitude. This CD might exactly be what fans of bands like Sentenced, Volbeat, Metallica, Iced Earth, the Apocalyptic Riders and In Flames have been waiting for.

One can hear at once that the six musicians have worked very hard. But also the numerous headlining shows in Germany and Slovenia, among those a remarkable gig in front of over 3,500 fans at the Rock am Ring festival, contributed to making Layment proud of their forthcoming album.

Although the roots of the band can be traced back to the mid-90s, the real formation of Layment was in 2002. The core of the band consists of old schoolpals from Herne, which is located in the Ruhr Area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany: The three brothers of the Schmidt familiy Tobe (guitars), Julian (bass) and Marosh (vocals), Kris Krajewski (keys) and Moritz Schuster (drums). Guitarist Olli Pospiech from Heidelberg joined the band in 2005 completing the debut lineup, but had to leave before “Declaration” was released.

“Traces” is Benny Burschei’s, a long-time friend of the band, recording debut. This time, everything but the drums was recorded in Herne at the Ohrwerk 13 Studio of Martin Jeromin, one of Layment’s original founding members. The drums were recorded again in the Metallurgy-Studios in Mönchengladbach, where “Declaration” was recorded. Also the final mix was done there by Andi Funke (ex- Midwinter) in close cooperation with the band. “Traces” received its final polish at the monoposto mastering studio by Michael Schwabe (Scorpions, Doro, Guano Apes, ...). Chrys Jeromin, who already created a distinctive style for “Declaration”, again contributed her unique artwork for the band.

When you get the chance to see the “probably best-looking band of the Ruhr Area” (Bitchhammer in the Rock Hard forum) you will soon notice that it’s not a casting show band, but six friends who do exactly what they like most: open-minded metal with balls!