Upland, CA · deathcore · symphonic deathcore

Winds of Plague

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Symphonic deathcore that never abandoned the orchestral bombast, whatever the trends did — keyboards and breakdowns in full armor.

Winds of Plague formed in Upland, California, in 2002, originally under the name Bleak December before adopting Winds of Plague in 2005, taking the new name from a lyric in the Unearth song "Endless." They became one of the more visible bands to emerge from the Inland Empire's heavy scene.

Their music combines deathcore's low-tuned riffing, blast beats and breakdowns with orchestral keyboard arrangements, a pairing that set them apart from peers who kept the sound stripped down.

Decimate the Weak, released in 2008 for Century Media, re-recorded material from their earlier demo A Cold Day in Hell. The Great Stone War (2009) produced the singles "Approach the Podium" and "Chest and Horns"; Against the World (2011) included "Refined in the Fire" and "California" along with a cover of Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth" for a video game soundtrack. Resistance followed in 2013 and Blood of My Enemy in 2017.

Keyboardist Alana Potocnik joined in 2009 after founding member Kristen Randall's departure, part of a lineup that has changed repeatedly around vocalist Johnny Plague, who announced a brief hiatus in 2015 before the band resumed touring and recording.

They have shared bills with Despised Icon, Parkway Drive, Impending Doom, Danzig, Dimmu Borgir, Veil of Maya, Hatebreed, Chimaira and Dying Fetus, among others, package tours that carried them through the late 2000s and 2010s.

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deathcoresymphonic deathcore