​WRETCH: U.S. METAL

Nothing comes easy in the Rust Belt of Northeast Ohio, but that instills a certain kind of toughness into the people who live there.  Most spend half their lives fighting their way out of this industrial wasteland.  This is the story of WRETCH, born out the underground Heavy Metal scene of Cleveland and fighting to rise above the desolation.

Formed in the early 80s, WRETCH rose to become one of Cleveland’s most heralded underground metal acts, releasing the classic track “Life” on Auburn Records “Heavy Artillery” compilation album in 1989. However, after the band moved to Los Angeles in 1989 in a failed bid to get signed to a major label, things fell apart, and WRETCH was abandoned.

WRETCH lay dormant for decades until its 2004 reformation, when the band recorded and released their full-length "Reborn" CD.  The “Reborn” CD got them international attention and garnered an invitation to play at Germany’s Headbangers Open Air Festival in 2007.  WRETCH recorded and released the follow-up CD, “Make this Garden Burn” to coincide with the HOA appearance, and Festival organizers thought so much of the title track, that it has since served as the Headbangers Open Air Festival’s theme song.

In 2013, WRETCH was invited to play Greece’s Up the Hammers Festival, and the band again entered the studio to craft a release to coincide with the festival appearance.  The result was 2013’s “Rise to Power” EP.  The “Rise to Power” release got the attention of Germany’s Pure Steel Records, signing WRETCH to a 5-year recording contract. 

WRETCH’s current consists of Juan Ricardo on vocals, Nick Giannakos & Michael Stephenson on guitars, Tim Frederick on bass guitar and Jeff Curenton on drums.  WRETCH released its third full-length CD, "The Hunt", with Pure Steel in February of 2017.  The band is currently supporthing "The Hunt" - to include it's recent "The Hunt over Europe Tour".