Take one last breath and raise your hand, for this could be your final stand

No, not an ominous headline about the future of Shaft of Steel, but lyrics from 'Steel Avenger (Stand Your Ground)', the latest track to be completed for the new EP. Click on the play button below to hear it in full.

Here's a snap from rehearsal. The rest of us were enjoying a Pot Noodle while Adam was in his own little world bashing out Petrucci riffs. Business as usual then!

An update on the forthcoming EP

We are very pleased to present the artwork for our debut EP, drawn by none other than the amazingly talented Felipe Machado Franco! Felipe has been responsible for the album covers of loads of our favourite bands (Blind Guardian, Iced Earth, Rhapsody and Gamma Ray, to name a few). We were delighted when he accepted the job and even more overjoyed when we received the finished product.

As well as featuring the two songs already available to stream on SoundCloud, the EP, titled simply Shaft of Steel, sees the return of fan favourite 'Steel Avenger' and the addition of a brand new track, 'Lust and Power'. The full track list is as follows:

1) Spinning Vortex of Love
2) Steel Avenger (Stand Your Ground)
3) Release the Lion Within
4) Lust and Power

We're currently seeking a label to work with on the release of Shaft of Steel. Any interested parties should get in touch through our contact form. Also, we'll be shooting a video for one of the songs, but we're not telling you which just yet!

Check out a brand new clip from 'Steel Avenger (Stand Your Ground)' using the player below.

Releasing the lion within

We thought that it was about time we took a break from our hectic recording schedule to update you with the latest news from the Steel camp.

First off, we've been hard at work rehearsing in one of London's top studios, The Joint. We were all pretty amazed at how we managed to gel instantly as a band, given that all six of us had never played together as one group before. We can confidently say that things are looking (and sounding) pretty damn good for this incarnation of Shaft of Steel.

The second song from the EP is now available to stream in full from SoundCloud. We've been getting some really great feedback on this track, from all kinds of intriguing sources. If you haven't done so already, you can check out 'Release the Lion Within' using the player below.

You can also view the rest of the promo shots from our recent photoshoot by visiting our Flickr page. We have some exciting news about the EP, but that will have to wait until next time... See you then!

The Steel

Introducing... Shaft of Steel v2.0

Happy new year from Shaft of Steel!

Over the last few months, we've been making some big changes. We're massively excited about what 2012 has in store for us and we can now share some news with you.

We're very pleased to announce the return of Garth Vickers to the drum throne of Steel. Garth is an accomplished drummer who has toured extensively with other acts and performed with us for a couple of years when we were based in Scarborough.

Ex-Acrimonious Anguish guitarist Adam Carruthers is making his formal debut with the band. Adam will be a familiar face to most people who remember our songs. It's now 10 years since the Anguish formed as Acid Grave and Adam was present in the band from the start.

And if you thought it couldn't get any more Steel-tastic, we've finally taken on a full-time keyboardist. We're very glad to welcome Chris Smurthwaite (formerly of Sole Survivor), who will be enormously enhancing our live sound by bringing his keyboard wizardry to the Steel.

All three make fantastic additions to the band and we feel that this is the strongest line-up we've had to date.

More photos from the shoot (courtesy of Danny Sambuca) coming very soon!

Alex, Rob, Andy, Adam, Chris and Garth