Denton has an often overlooked behemoth in multi-instrumentalist Raymond MacDonald, currently an ax wielder in the gore-obsessed band 200 Stab Wounds and a veteran of local acts Frozen Soul, Tribal Gaze, Kombat and Imperial Slaughter, just to name a few.
Formed in Ohio in 2019, 200 Stab Wounds made the most from the pandemic, dropping multiple releases on Maggot Stomp, a label known for leading the hardcore-influenced death metal revival, and garnering quite a rabid fanbase. The band signed with Metal Blade Records and quickly went to work, writing their sophomore album Manual Manic Procedure.
Released two weeks ago, the album's nine-track onslaught of chainsaw guitars, thick groovy bass lines and precision drumming has achieved both critical acclaim from the bastion of metal magazines worldwide and commercial success, appearing on multiple Billboard charts. The record made it to No. 4 on the trade magazine's current hard music albums chart — something MacDonald says came as a surprise.
"It's pretty insane to think about," the 27-year-old says of the achievement. "We're pretty proud of it, and Metal Blade was pretty excited, too. It's not every day that a debut album for them does something like that."
MacDonald's time in the band began two years ago while he was on tour filling in as bassist for Tribal Gaze during Frozen Soul's headline tour with Creeping Death, SpiritWorld and Stabbing. The band also includes frontman Steve Buhl, bassist Ezra Cook and drummer Owen Pooley.
"Me and Steve just hung out pretty much the whole time, and I got along pretty well with Ezra and Owen," MacDonald says. "When their other guitar player left the band, they just hit me up and I said, 'Yeah, fuck it.'"
Originally from Florida, MacDonald moved to Texas with his family and quickly immersed himself in the music scene, playing in various bands and taking lessons on how to shred from Cliff Cambell of Fair To Midland and Dustin Fleming of Trebuche. (Fleming now plays electric guitar in the Vandoliers.)
But there's one band that MacDonald says launched his career.
"Looking back, it all started with Kombat," MacDonald says of his other band. "We started playing any show we could, whether it be hardcore, punk, grindcore, brutal death metal, whatever."
MacDonald says it was the group's willingness to play wherever that helped them make friendships with musicians who would later find their own success.
"Other bands were starting off, and they needed people to fill in," MacDonald says. "That's how I ended up in Frozen Soul. Playing all those shows with different people gave us a bunch of different connections."
Salt in the Wounds
Joining 200 Stab Wounds in the later stages of recording, MacDonald says his contribution to the new album is minimal."Most of everything has to do with Ezra and Steve on this one," he says, downplaying his involvement. "I did two solos on the record."
Those two solos, heard in the title track "Manual Manic Procedures" and the instrumental interlude "Led to the Chamber / Liquified," give a glimpse of what future collaborations will sound like, MacDonald says.
For now, he's focusing on the band's upcoming tours, when MacDonald and company plan to blaze a path of bloody entrails across 35 North American cities.
"We're pretty locked in," he says of tour preparations. "We have been playing for the past year, and we're going to throw in a lot of new stuff from the record."
The tour's first run of dates is 200 Stab Wounds' first proper headlining tour, and MacDonald says they plan to be loud.
"Everything is going to sound sick. We're going to try to have full stacks and all that shit," MacDonald confirms. "It's actually going to be badass."
How badass, you ask?
"All I can say is the tour is going to be fucking awesome," MacDonald concludes. "It's a solid lineup. Come party with us and say what's up. We're going to have a good ass time."
200 Stab Wounds is headlining Aug. 17 at Trees, 2709 Elm St., with Balmora, Upon Stone and Stabbing.
