Legacy of Disorder to rock Headliners
Written by Mike Bauman | | mbauman@toledofreepress.comDon’t tell guitarist Rana Freilich of rising metal band Legacy of Disorder that dreams aren’t worth pursuing. Twenty-three years after he started playing the guitar with aspirations of one day making his riffs known stateside, the New Zealand native is finally getting that chance.
“A long time coming,” Freilich said of his musical journey. “A long, long time coming.”
Together with bandmates James Robinson (vocals), Jason Keill (bass) and Matt Thompson (drums), Freilich and Co. will look to gain more fans March 23 when L.O.D. performs at Headliners as one of the opening acts for metal mainstay GWAR.
The show is one of several dates the New Zealand-based band has slated on the “Return of the World Maggot Tour” with GWAR before joining the “Noise in the Machine Tour” in May, which is headlined by Fear Factory.
“I’m 38 and a half,” Freilich said. “There are times when many people would give something up, but it was impossible for the likes of myself because it’s who you are. Sometimes good things take time.”
Freilich started playing guitar at 15 and was performing in bands at 16. He was part of one of the first groups in his hometown of Nelson, New Zealand, to play heavy covers from the likes of Pantera, Slayer, Death and Sepultura.
But like many trying to make it in music, Freilich struggled to find likeminded musicians and had to do other work as means for survival, including 12 years as a lumberjack.
“In logging, I used to get up at 4:30 in the morning and get home at 6:30 [at night],” Freilich said.
It wasn’t until approximately nine years ago that Freilich met a musician with similar talent and passion in Keill. After going through lineup changes and relocating to Auckland, New Zealand, the pair eventually discovered Robinson and formed the core of Legacy of Disorder.
As L.O.D. gained popularity in its homeland, one of the names that surfaced when the band was looking for a producer to work with on its first full-length album was Sterling Winfield (Pantera, Damageplan, HELLYEAH). With his favorite guitar player being the late Darrell Lance Abbott — aka “Dimebag Darrell” — of Pantera and Damageplan fame, Winfield was a perfect match for Freilich and the guys. The band left New Zealand in 2008 to go record in Dallas.
“It was awesome,” said Freilich, who had never been to the United States before recording with Winfield. “I wanted to sit in the hot seat, you know what I mean? Like, sit where my pretty much hero used to sit, which is Dimebag.”
Legacy of Disorder decided to make a switch at the drummer spot and recruited Matt Thompson (King Diamond) prior to recording, emerging from Dallas with its self-titled debut in 2008.
“I learned [a lot],” Freilich said of working with Winfield. “Sometimes people talk too much, and you should sometimes just shut up and listen and read between the lines. And I came out of there a better guitar player, so it was one of the more meaningful moments in my life.”
After touring to promote “Legacy of Disorder,” L.O.D. returned to Dallas in June to record with Winfield again for the band’s sophomore effort “Last Man Standing.”
“We’ve spent a lot of time with Sterling since that first album,” Freilich said. “We’re friends now. We all get along. We all know each other’s personalities. We all know each other’s limitations — when someone’s being grumpy or in his head too much. It’s really cool. You don’t have to walk on eggshells.”
The strength of Legacy of Disorder’s sound is evident on the title track of its second full-length album as the rhythm of Thompson and Keill serve as the backbone to Freilich’s chugging riffs and Robinson’s vocals, whose voice has hints of Corey Taylor. Freilich also displays his shredding ability on “Last Man Standing,” giving stateside metal fans a taste of what they can expect when they listen to the new album, which he said should be out by early May.
“In Legacy of Disorder, we’ll just do our thing and throw down,” Freilich said of opening for GWAR. “It is what we always do — as good as humanly possible — and I believe that people will dig it.”
On March 23, Legacy of Disorder will be one of the opening acts for GWAR in a show that also features Municipal Waste and Ghoul at Headliners, 4500 N. Detroit Ave.
Tickets are $19 in advance and $22 at the door the day of the show. Advance tickets can be purchased through all Ticketmaster outlets, as well as locally at Culture Clash Records (419) 536-LOVE and RamaLama Records (419) 531-ROCK. Doors are at 7 p.m. and all ages are welcome. For more information, visit the website headlinerstoledo.com.
Tags: Death, Headliners, Legacy of Disorder, Pantera, Sepultura, Slayer
