ICE NINE KILLS

Attempting to whittle down the influences that course through the music of ICE NINE KILLS does a disservice to the threads they pull from, and how from these strands they create a one-of-a-kind tapestry. From the name on down, everything about the Massachusetts-bred alt-metal band is in service to the meticulous foundation of inspiration from which they’ve built their kingdom of bones. The group, which was loosely founded in 2000 by high schoolers Spencer Charnas and Jeremy Schwartz (only Charnas remains in the band), took its name from the killer ice polymorph featured in Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle. Musically, the band pulls from ska, piano-led theater ballads, alternative, hardcore, black metal, and more. Their discography is a grab bag of explosive blast beats, vocals that move from a whisper to a scream with nary a warning, and references to The Silence of the Lambs, Elvis Presley hits, and more. Bolstered by the duet of 2018’s The Silver Scream and 2021’s The Silver Scream 2: Welcome to Horrorwood, ICE NINE KILLS stands apart as one of the most restlessly versatile bands in the metal space.