Exciter

==Biography:==
 1978
 In 1978 the band Hell Razor formed in Ottawa ON,Canada. The band consisted of 
 John Ricci (guitars), Dan Beehler (drums) and Allan James Johnson (bass).
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 1980
 In 1980 they changed their name to Exciter and recorded a demo which they then
 sent to Mike Varney of Shrapnel Records. Varney included one song from it,
 “World War III”, on the compilation album US Metal Volume II in 1982. 
 Shortly after that Exciter were signed to Shrapel Records.
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 1983
 In 1983 they released their debut album, Heavy Metal Maniac.
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 1984
 Later that year Exciter signed a record-deal with Jon Zazula’s Megaforce Records 
 and 1984 they released their second album, Violence & Force. After a few opening
 dates with Anthrax They embarked on their first U.S. tour with Mercyful Fate. 
 Exciter switched to a new label, Music For Nations and travelled to London to 
 record their third album (produced by Motörhead producer Guy Bidhead). The album 
 would be titled Long Live the Loud. It was a slightly more ‘mainstream’ heavy 
 metal sound than the speed/thrash metal of the first two albums. After its 
 release the band went on an European tour with Accept and later a U.S. tour with 
 Motörhead and Megadeth. Before the year ended they released the 3-track EP [[Feel
 the Knife, which was the last release from the original line-up. Shortly after
 its release, John Ricci quit the band and was replaced by Brian McPhee.
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 1986
 Along with a new guitarist came a new, more melodic sound. The next album, 
 Unveiling the Wicked, was released in 1986 on the Music For Nations label. After
 its release the band went out on a very successful European tour with Motörhead 
 and Manowar. It was decided at this time that Dan Beehler (who had handled both 
 drums and vocals since the band’s inception) would not sing anymore.
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 1988
 A new vocalist was found in Rob Malnati who made his debut on the 1988 album 
 Exciter(O.T.T.). The album was released on the Canadian record label Maze Music.
 With Exciter(O.T.T.) the band pushed the melodic sound even further. A Canadian 
 tour followed but after that the band went on hiatus.
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 1991
 In 1991 the band re-emerged with Dan Beehler on drums and also lead vocals again.
 Original guitarist John Ricci also returned to the fold. Bass duties were 
 handled by David Ledden. Their first recording was the song “Born to Kill” 
 which appearedon a compilation album titled “Capitol Punishment” released 
 in 1991.
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 1992
 In 1992 the band signed with German metal label Noise Records and recorded their 
 sixth album entitled Kill after Kill. The band went on a three week European tour
 with Rage.
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 1993
 In 1993 they released their first live album, Better Live than Dead, which had
 been recorded during their 1991 Canadian tour. The album consisted of songs 
 taken from the first three albums. After this release the band disappeared for 
 a second time. It would be three years before they would be heard from again.
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 1996
 In March of 1996 an almost completely new line-up was announced. Guitarist, John 
 Ricci, was the only returning original member. Jacques Bélanger was the new 
 vocalist and Rick Charron and Marc Charron (no relation) would handle drum and 
 bass duties. The new line-up played a few well received shows in Canada before 
 recording a new album entitled The Dark Command.
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 1997
 This album was released in 1997. With one of their strongest albums in years, the
 band went out on a European tour with Anvil and Flotsam and Jetsam.
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 1998 - 2000
 Between 1998 and 2000 the band was basically dormant with only two festival 
 appearances in the 2 year span. The summer of 2000 saw the release of the 
 follow-up to The Dark Command entitled Blood Of Tyrants. The new album was 
 heavier and more aggressive than its predecessor.
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 2001
 In the fall of 2001 Jacques left the band due to “creative differences”. A year 
 later Marc quit to pursue a career in the technology industry.
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 2003
 At the beginning of 2003 a new line-up was announced, with John and Rick 
 returning along with vocalist Rob Degroot and bassist Paul Champagne. This 
 line-up only lasted until March of 2003 when Rob Degroot was let go. His 
 replacement was former vocalist Jacques Bélanger.
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 2004
 In 2004 Paul Champagne was released from the band. The band recorded New 
 Testament with John on both guitar and bass. New Testament would be a “best of” 
 album of re-recorded classics from throughout the band’s entire career. Later 
 that year, bassist Rob “Clammy” Cohen would join the ranks. The year 2004 would 
 end with the band heading out on a European tour with Steel Attack.
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 2006
 Jacques Belanger left again in 2006. He was quickly replaced in October that 
 year by Kenny "Metal Mouth" Winter, from Brooklyn, New York.
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 2008
 The band's tenth album Thrash Speed Burn was released on February 22, 2008 in 
 Europe, and on March 4, 2008 worldwide. It has since garnered positive reviews 
 from many a European fanzine
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 2010
 In 2010 the band's eleventh album Death Machine was released.
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 2014
 Exciter re-unites with Allan Johnson, John Ricci and Dan Beehler. Show for 
 2015 at Keep it True Festival confirmed.
==Line Up:==
 Kenny Winter - vocals
 John Ricci - guitars
 Rik Charron - drums
 Rob Cohen - bass
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==Discography:==
 Heavy Metal Maniac (1983)
 Violence and Force (1984)
 Long Live the Loud (1985)
 Unveiling the Wicked (1986)
 Exciter (O.T.T.) (1988)
 Kill after Kill (1992)
 The Dark Command (1997)
 Blood of Tyrants (2000)
 Thrash Speed Burn (2008)
 Death Machine (2010)
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Website: http://www.hemidata.se/exciter/
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Exciter bandpic.jpg
Exciter - dto..jpg
Exciter - Blood of tyrants.jpg
Exciter - Death Machine.jpg
Exciter - Heavy Metal Maniac.jpg
Exciter - Kill After Kill.jpg
Exciter - Long Live The Loud.jpg
Exciter - The Dark Command.jpg
Exciter - Thrash speed burn.jpg
Exciter - Unveiling the wicked.jpg
Exciter - Violence and Force.jpg
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Category:Bands
Category:Speed Metal