We Are Viking

Originating in the heart of Ireland childhood friends Brody Bunyan and Carlow Ballard were infected with the musical bug at an early age playing old folk songs and dancing in the streets of Limerick. They then met Lee Roth in a pub one night after underage drinking and kicking people’s drinks off the table as they dance and sung. Together the trio began playing music in public places such as the local pub and bathroom stalls. Surviving off of the donations of generous patrons they wandered the streets and were notorious for sleeping in the venue they previously played at. Eventually they ran into Olaf Fergusson, an ex Vietnam veteran who moved to Ireland to escape his insane asylum and fulfill his LSD fueled hallucinations that he was indeed a Viking, which is where the name of the band originated from. He taught the rest of the band how to play their instruments in a proper fashion and taught them the secret and revered art of math rock. Together scrounging up pennies that they had saved from couches of local joints they occupied from time to time. Putting out “Hobbit of the Blind” on their own dime they expected to at least some compensation for their efforts as they were on a budget of $6000. However they realized too late that there was no market for Celtic Math Rock nor was Olaf sane. He quickly left the band afterwards during their tour to go “fights dragons and drink their blood.” It was an emotional break for the band as Olaf served as a father figure to the other members. To this day there have been reports of a large man dressed as a Viking screaming and scaring natives of Ireland.

As the band tried to regroup and find a way to be commercially successful with a new direction in a similar style of Yes and Supertramp, Lee Roth became addicted to second rate computer dusters and had to go to rehab for this addiction, he went three times and relapsed twice. The two remaining members, bloodied by this and Olaf’s leaving Ireland to go search for a career in the United States. They landed in Boston, Massachusetts and began playing in smaller venues as they assembled members for their new project. At the Paradise Rock Club they met a duo of childhood friends Gongsun Hei and Justin Time. From relentless songwriting sessions at Justin Time’s flat they came up with what is widely considered “an out of date effort”. The sounds used and the beats of “Affliction of the Puffin” were 20 years old. They got recognition from Pitchfork proclaiming “The music scene is about to undergo the largest landscape change since Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’. Viking has found a way to incorporate the past as well provide a door for future bands to go through.” The album barely hit the Billboard top 200. An astringed and lost label representative heard the group playing in the Paradise Rock Club and signed them to EMI. With the sudden influx of resources the band quickly began to write something that none of them had any experience for; thrash metal.

Once again tragedy struck the band as keyboardist Gongsun Hei was struck by a rouge penny falling from the Empire State as he was on vacation with his family. Justin Time had to take a break from the band as he had to attend his childhood friend’s funeral and therapy. However there was also light as bassist and theoretical physicist Lee Roth returned from rehab, finally cured of his addiction by using the famed Ludovico’s procedure. He also brought a friend, Dusty Rhoades, who was in rehab for an addiction to Creed. Putting their heads together they banged out their break through album “Bushal of Brutality”. With an instant success of over 6 million copies and their own label not being able to predict the success of this album. Suddenly they were shooting stars and the world knew their songs. Even Olaf heard the songs and a single tear was shed for the success.

The current album in the works “Metal without a Cause” is said to be a groundbreaking epic double album with Justin Time playing drums.