"Pestroy"
"Pestroy"
In 2001 Pestroy released their debut album entitled “Skam” which was a huge underground success and still sells well at gigs and events. The band, however, were not satisfied and, for two years have been working on, and perfecting live, a catalogue of new songs intended for their new album. 2004 saw the release of “Counter Attack”, Pestroy’s second full length album, a mix of anthemic ballads, such as the deeply moving “Obligation”, the beautiful “Aim to Please” and the angst ridden “Categories” which features Andrew Maskell from the band 16 Stitch, and the massive heaviness and heart-stopping ferocity of monster tracks such as “Killswitch”, “Seven” and “This song.” The album also boasts a level of production from Tripwire that is truly worthy of its sheer power. His patience, attention to detail and drive towards perfection during the recording of this record has been a truly inspiring process to watch, I have no doubt that “Counterattack” has set a new standard for heavy music in South Africa in terms of songwriting as well as production. Pestroy’s stage presence, razor sharp sound and air-tight technical prowess make them an event-organizers dream (or nightmare if your trying to maintain calm silence) and they have repeatedly headlined the country’s biggest festivals including Splashy-Fen, multiple Woodstock’s, numerous Oppikoppi’s and closed the show at Barney Simon’s Farewell (from 5FM). They’ve toured the entire east coast between Durban and Cape Town and have played just about every conceivable venue in the Johannesburg and Pretoria plus finishing off 2004 with a nationwide tour with The Narrow to support the release of the “Split” album, a limited release featuring new and remixed tracks from both bands. 8 years of gigging and recording 2 full length albums plus numerous other projects pushed Pestroy into 2005 where they headed for a very successful tour of Europe and a support slot to American punk rockers PENNYWISE in Berlin Germany was one of many highlights. Taking in Germany, Austria, Czech Republic and The Netherlands the tour was everything a band would want from a first tour abroad. In this day and age when simply having an awesome catalogue of mind-blowing songs, a fanatical following and a brutal live show is not enough, Pestroy are leading the prevailing “Do it yourself” attitude amongst bands locally. They have, over the years, developed themselves into a world-class brand, taking care of all the conceptual, design and production responsibilities themselves. They have an extensive merchandise catalogue, including stickers, T-shirts, video - enhanced singles, Cd’s, DVD and posters as well as a self-maintained website (www.pestroy.co.za). Pestroy have been played on our national radio stations and have themselves produced a video for their single “Killswitch.” They’ve also been featured on Africa’s satellite network “DSTV” and were involved in a pilot for a band-based reality show on DSTV’s channel “Go”. 2006 saw the launch of their much-anticipated 3rd full-length album, ‘Enemy Within’. Pestroy are a band of the highest caliber. Their dedication, devotion, passion and awesome power are mind blowing.
