Metal supergroup BPMD, featuring vocalist Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth (Overkill), guitarist Phil Demmel (Vio-lence/ex-Machine Head), drummer Mike Portnoy (The Winery Dogs/ex-Dream Theater) and bassist Mark Menghi (Metal Allegiance), has released a video for their debut single. The track is a cover of Aerosmith’s 1975 song “Toys In The Attic.”
Wrote Ellsworth in a statement accompanying the video premiere on social media,
“I remember waaaaaaaaaaay back when Overkill formed, we were cutting our teeth on covers as I was finding my way around the mic. The Aerosmith covers were right in my wheelhouse, so when Mike [Portnoy] picked ‘Toys’ to cover, I was like… ‘Hell Yea’!”
“It was tricky because Aerosmith have two guitarists, Joe Perry and Brad Whitford, playing different things,” continued Demmel about the recording of the track:
“So, as one guitar player, I had to pick a medium place between the two that sounded good. I thrashed it up a little by adding a lot of down picking and some gallops and triplets.”
In addition to the single, the band has also announced a release date for their upcoming debut album, American Made. The album arrives June 12 on Napalm Records and is available for pre-order now.
American Made finds the band reimagining 10 American classic rock songs in the metal style, calling it an “homage to some of rock music’s greatest treasures… turbocharged by the experience and enthusiasm of its four creators.” Aside from Aerosmith, artists covered include Ted Nugent, ZZ Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Blue Öyster Cult, Van Halen, Grand Funk Railroad and more. The band has been revealing the tracklist in short videos every other day for the past few weeks. A full tracklist is available below.
BPMD announced their formation in late March, saying in a social media post that they got together in summer 2019:
“to pay homage to some of their favorite classic rock tunes, give them their own heavy twist, and to have a blast doing it. We all could use a bit of fun, and that’s what BPMD is here to provide.”
American Made tracklist:
01) “Wang Dang Sweet Poontang” (Ted Nugent)
02) “Toys In The Attic” (Aerosmith)
03) “Evil” (Cactus/Willie Dixon)
04) “Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers” (ZZ Top)
05) “Saturday Night Special” (Lynyrd Skynyrd)
06) “Tattoo Vampire” (Blue Öyster Cult) (feat. Buck Dharma)
07) “D.O.A.” (Van Halen)
08) “Walk Away” (James Gang)
09) “Never in My Life” (Mountain)
10) “We’re An American Band” (Grand Funk Railroad)
