THE REKKENING

Vancouver’s The Rekkening has just brought out their new 4-song EP called Broken Mind. For those of you who don’t know or who’ve never heard of The Rekkening, here is the background – Tracey Lynn Satann (main vocals/guitar) joined forces with bassist extraordinaire Goredzilla to form what is the backbone of The Rekkening. At that time, they recorded a demo called “Best Served Cold” which went over well. They played some gigs with a rotating door of guitarists and drummers and wrote songs. They found guitarist Travis T (Treacherous T) who plays guitars on the EP and drummer Jordan Meyer. However, Jordan just didn’t work out the way they had hoped, and they’re recruiting a new drummer, Natalie Elliot who has yet to find her nickname in the band.

As we speak, Goredzilla is in LA right now at the Bassist Convention where he handed out the EP to bassists’ for Metallica, Megadeath, Billy Sheehan, etc. He’s also done an interview with the co-host of City Talk TV LA Robin Takizawa.

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The EP was engineered by Esteban Cruz Z., Roger Lee and Jeevanath Sekaran. And, it was mixed and mastered by Ken Burke.

The 4 songs are (in order): In The End, Broken Mind, Cry, Is This Love (Whitesnake cover).

Starting with “In The End” the first words you hear are “Blinded by rage/At a young age…” and “I am who I am” should tell you right off the bat that this band follows their own muses and if you don’t like the music, then leave now. Tracey has very powerful pipes and she can get in your face literally with a focus and concentration that probably scares most other people. Her intensity with music is evident in the vocal work on all 4 songs. The music is hypnotizing, the drums pound and the song explodes from the speakers. Travis’ guitars are very good throughout the songs as well. And the bass work is impeccable.

“Broken Mind” has a sinister quality about it musically right from the start due to the song being in a minor key. Tracey picks up a megaphone to use it as an extension of her powerful vocals which only a few bands have ever used. Asking questions “why…” make me wonder what is she looking for which is interesting in of itself. It’s a dark song about why why why do certain things keep happening in life. Many people wonder the same thing about their lives as well.

“Cry” starts out with an acoustic guitar and fills out as soon as the drums enter the song. It’s a great ballad song and is radio friendly. With lyrics “But now I only cry/When it’s late at night/And now I only cry/Instead of holding you” are some strong emotions in the words which you can hear in the vocals. This song is mixed well. The guitars are lovely, played with graceful hands by Travis. And the bass work speaks for itself.

“Is This Love” is a Whitesnake cover which isn’t like the original. The band took this song and put some speed into it and grind it out with powerful vocals, pounding drums, choppy but fluid guitars and the bass just goes with speed beat drums. A great headbanging song!

The one thing I like about this fresh band is their passion, focus and concentration on the music. Tracey and Goredzilla are working hard this time around to make a name for themselves in the competitive genre of hard rock/metal. I asked Tracey what would be the ultimate thing to happen to which she replied “We’d love to play some festivals in Europe, Germany in particular.” With the right karma, this just might happen. This EP is solid, refreshing and hard hitting, and when more songs are written and recorded, who knows what can happen! - Jade Sperry

SURREY — The suicide death of teen Amanda Todd in 2012 hit very close to home for Tracey Shane, singer in the local metal band The Rekkening.

Bullied and abused as a child, Shane found herself on the streets of Whalley at age 12.

“I can remember sitting on the curb looking for broken glass to cut my arms, because I hated my life, hated everything,” said Shane.

“I’ve come a long way from there, though, thanks to significant counselling for a couple years. I’ve come to terms with all that.”

Today, Shane is busy spreading the word about Bullies Break Hearts, a benefit concert for the Amanda Todd Legacy Society, this Sunday night (Feb. 16) at Panchos Top 40 Rock Club in Surrey. Tickets are $10 at the door, 10768 King George Blvd.

The event will feature live music by The Rekkening and five other bands, including Random Dander, Bridges to Royal, Maiden B.C. (an Iron Maiden tribute) and Born To Sever.

Shane hopes to fill the venue with music and an anti-bullying message.

“Doing this at Panchos, a place where I went to quite a bit back in the day when I was a real mess… It’s pretty crazy how all of this is happening,” said Shane, known as Tracey Lynn Satann on stage. “It was quite a hiding place for me.”
- See more at: http://www.thenownewspaper.com/entertainment/local-entertainment/anti-bullying-rockers-in-surrey-to-raise-cash-for-amanda-todd-legacy-society-1.846185#sthash.1wMpnCx8.dpuf - The Surrey Now Newspaper