Arizona extreme metallers JOB FOR A COWBOY have completed work on their fourth full-length album, "Sun Eater", for a November 11 release in North America (one day earlier internationally) via Metal Blade Records. The CD was poroduced by Jason Suecof, who has previously worked with TRIVIUM, AUGUST BURNS RED, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, ALL THAT REMAINS, WHITECHAPEL and DEVILDRIVER, among others.
After JOB FOR A COWBOY wrapped up touring in 2013 as part of that year's Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival, the band — vocalist Jonny Davy, guitarists Al Glassman and Tony Sannicandro, bassist Nick Schendzielos, and session drummer Danny Walker —decided to sharpen its focus and cook up a record that encompassed its full dynamic range of talent. The group had all agreed on the main course being a desire for futuristic tones, a wider spectrum of textures and tempos, and an emphasis on slightly more ancestral song construction. The result, "Sun Eater", does not just sound like a new record, it sounds like an entirely new band.
Following the departure of longtime skinsman Jon Rice, JOB FOR A COWBOY, cognizant of the size of shoes that needed to be filled in addition to the depth and versatility demanded by the new material, enlisted the services of Danny Walker (INTRONAUT, MURDER CONSTRUCT, EXHUMED). Walker's mastery of his craft, coupled with his creativity and enthusiasm for the material, strongly influenced the outcome of the record, and it only takes a few minutes of listening to hear this is JOB FOR A COWBOY at their finest.
Regarding composition, Sannicandro recalled: "This album came together very smoothly. We had the concept beforehand and I took it upon myself to try and portray that concept through the music.
"I took a much more melodic approach than 'Demonocracy', focusing on the structuring and the layering that would complement the story to my ears."
The other half of the guitar duo, Al Glassman, continued to be a driving force behind the band's sound. Schendzielos said that "Al riffs long and hard for greater the good of everyone involved. He really used a lot of foresight in his revisions during the writing process, creating ample room for me to mood out the tracks with bass that you can actually hear. in the end I think we really brought the character out in each and every song."
With this new album, JOB FOR A COWBOY had the luxury of relative longevity in the core of their songwriting lineup. This led to a far stronger vibe and a much more realized final product.
Audiohammer producer Jason Suecof, whose first collaboration with the band was 2009's "Ruination", has now worked with the band for over six years. Few are more familiar with how JOB FOR A COWBOY operates in the studio than Suecof, and he was also feeling the "vibe" on "Sun Eater". "This band is composed entirely of top notch musicians all the way around and they are clearly at the top of their game," he said.
"This new album is a stellar combination of everyone's efforts and what we have now is something that conveys everyone's musicianship without being techy for the sake of being tech. This album has got feeling and it is fucking brutal!"