Gama Bomb formed in 2002 and soon built up a l… Read Full Bio ↴Beginnings: 2002-2005
Gama Bomb formed in 2002 and soon built up a loyal following in their native Newry, Northern Ireland and elsewhere in the UK, which they consolidated with a rigorous touring schedule and frequent forays into self-released recording. The band first gained attention with their demo The Survival Option in the same year. Relentlessly touring was paired with 2003's The Fatal Mission single. At this time frontman Philly Byrne often appeared on stage dressed as a chef, a priest, a pirate and an unhinged scientist in an ever more outrageous live stage show, which frequently included a Thrash Metal version of 80's TV show Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' theme tune.
Survival of the Fastest: 2005-2007
Gama Bomb released their full-length debut Survival of the Fastest (Produced by Alwyn Walker) through European music label Witches Brew in early 2006. The album, which had originally been independently released in a limited edition format in late 2005, included many of the bands then live staples of which many, aside from those present on previous EP releases, had never been commercially available. The 2006 version of the album features the bonus tracks "M.A.D." and "The Survival Option" from their 2004 Fatal Mission single.
Zombi Brew EP
In May 2007, Gama Bomb released their first EP; Zombi Brew. The EP featured new tracks "Zombi Brew" and "Frightmare On Hell St" together with a cover of punk band The Dangerfields' song, "Maniac". The EP was released exclusively on 7" vinyl and limited to 200 copies in conjunction with Problem? Records.
Earache and Citizen Brain: 2007-2009
In September 2007, Gama Bomb announced that they signed a recording contract with Earache Records. The band lent the song "Zombi Brew" to the "Thrashing Like A Maniac" compilation released by Earache
Records, alongside other new Thrash artists such as Evile, Municipal Waste, Short Sharp Shock and Send More Paramedics.
In April 2008 Earache confirmed the release of Gama Bomb's Earache debut Citizen Brain for early June 2008. [2] The album was released in July 2008 to overwhelmingly positive reviews. The band have toured Europe extensively to support the album.
Since the release of Citizen Brain, the band have been vocal in their support of music downloading, and led a campaign to 'Stamp Out Inferior Metal' on their 2008 Thrashing Like A Maniac Tour, asking fans to bring along CD's they regret buying and destroy them at shows. In January 2009 they were voted best newcomer in a Terrorizer magazine readers' poll, and toured Europe with Exodus and Overkill in early 2009.
Tales From The Grave In Space: 2009
Gama Bomb announced via their Myspace blog in August 2009 that they would return to the studio in September to record a new album for November 2009. The album is to be produced by Scott Atkins, who produced the band's Citizen Brain album. The album was released for free digitally on November 5th on the band's page on Earache's website. It will also be available for free with the December issue of Metal Hammer magazine.
Musical Influences
Stylistically rooted in 1980s Thrash metal the band have stated influences include acts such as Nuclear Assault, Kreator, Agent Steel, Sodom, old Slayer, and early Megadeth.
Themes And Lyrics
Gama Bomb's lyrics often refer to the horror, action and sci-fi movies, cartoons and computer games of the 1980s, as well as paying tribute to many classic heavy metal themes. They also write topical songs on social issues like racism and global warming. The band are known for injecting their own sense of humour into their lyrics, with bizarre song concepts which lampoon classic thrash metal topics. Recurrent themes to be found in Gama Bomb songs are cannibalism, war, zombies, human sacrifice, ghosts and murder.
Newry, Northern Ireland
* Philly Byrne: Vocals
* Joe McGuigan: Bass
* Luke Graham: Guitar
* Domo Dixon: Lead Guitar
* Paul Caffrey: Drums
Albums
* Survival of the Fastest (2006)
* Citizen Brain (2008)
* Tales From The Grave In Space (2009)
* Untouchable Glory (2015)
Singles & EP's
* The Survival Option (2002)
* The Fatal Mission (2004)
* Zombi Brew (2007)
* Half Cut (2010)
Space Invaders
Gama Bomb Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Evil forces, the human race
Comets landing in your town
Heed the warning, get underground
We fight them on the sea and land
Death-ray turns your face to sand
To wipe the earth of humans clean
Visitors came and promised peace
On human cattle now they will feast
Don't ask for mercy, they won't comply
So bolt your doors and watch the sky
To Serve Man, they landed here
Burning through the upper atmosphere
Sucking out guts with a lizard's eyes
So bolt your doors and watch the sky
Watch the sky
Push the button, set the charge
Sending our rockets to wipe out Mars
Cities burned, armies fell
Planet Earth becomes a living hell
The song "Space Invaders" by Gama Bomb is a fast-paced, thrash metal song that describes the invasion of Earth by extraterrestrial beings. The lyrics describe the horror and destruction caused by the invasion as well as the people's struggle to survive. The first few lines of the song highlight the fear and terror of the people as they face a powerful and evil force from outer space. The lines, "Comets landing in your town, Heed the warning, get underground" emphasize the people's desperate attempts for survival.
The song then moves to the battle stage where humans fight desperately against the aliens who are determined to wipe out mankind. The line, "Death-ray turns your face to sand, To wipe the earth of humans clean, They are evil, short, green" portrays the aliens as powerful, malevolent, and short green creatures who will stop at nothing to destroy the earth. The song also alludes to the famous Twilight Zone episode "To Serve Man," where aliens come to Earth with promises of peace, only to reveal their true intentions of using humans as food.
The last part of the song shows the humans retaliating against the aliens by launching an attack on their planet Mars. The lines, "Push the button, set the charge, Sending our rockets to wipe out Mars, Cities burned, armies fell, Planet Earth becomes a living hell" portray the humans taking the fight to the enemy's home base.
Line by Line Meaning
Distant powers, outer space
Aliens from far away planets have come to Earth
Evil forces, the human race
These space invaders are a threat to humans and intend to do harm
Comets landing in your town
The aliens are making their presence known and arriving in nearby towns
Heed the warning, get underground
Humans must realize the danger and take precautions to protect themselves, such as hiding underground
We fight them on the sea and land
Humanity is trying to defend themselves from the aliens in all terrains
Death-ray turns your face to sand
The aliens have powerful weapons that can obliterate people's faces
To wipe the earth of humans clean
The aliens want to eradicate humans from the planet
They are evil, short, green
The aliens are described as malevolent and physically short and green
Visitors came and promised peace
The aliens initially pretended to come in peace
On human cattle now they will feast
But, in reality, they consider humans to be cattle to feed on
Don't ask for mercy, they won't comply
People shouldn't expect any compassion or leniency from the space invaders
So bolt your doors and watch the sky
To ensure safety, it is best for people to stay inside and keep an eye on the skies
To Serve Man, they landed here
Some may have thought that the aliens came to serve humanity, but they didn't
Burning through the upper atmosphere
The aliens invaded with force and speed, burning through the upper atmosphere
Sucking out guts with a lizard's eyes
The aliens possess abilities that humans don't, such as being able to extract internal organs
So bolt your doors and watch the sky
People must stay alert and watchful to protect themselves
Watch the sky
The message is reinforced to always be vigilant and aware of the sky
Push the button, set the charge
Humans have retaliated and are preparing to fight back
Sending our rockets to wipe out Mars
The rockets are targeting the alien's home planet
Cities burned, armies fell
Warfare has resulted in widespread destruction and casualties
Planet Earth becomes a living hell
The invasion has turned Earth into a nightmarish and hostile place
Contributed by Cole E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.