Weapons are a new band, but nothing about the story reads like five strangers trying to find a sound from scratch.
The lineup brings together Mike Sloat, Kent Varty, Corky Crossler, and Scott Paterson - all formerly of The King Must Die - with Bill Scheffler, the frontman for Hellbender, on vocals. That matters because Scheffler was not pulled in cold. The King Must Die formed in 2011, but by 2019 the band's singer was dealing with health issues serious enough that performing became too much. The remaining members tried several vocalists after that, but they kept coming back to old rehearsal audio from a benefit show for their TKMD singer. Scheffler had sung with them there, and his voice was the one that kept standing out. The band texted him, half-joking at first, that they needed him. Eventually he came down to check it out. The short version from Weapons: "It just worked."
This is a Bay Area-rooted metal band coming out of a real scene with a June 20 debut at The Big Easy, a first set built around originals, and recorded songs already being mixed and mastered. Weapons are treating it less like a casual first night out and more like a statement: the old fire is still there, but the name on the flyer is new. For readers who have followed the longer Bay Area thrash history, this is the local version of that lineage: players who came up around the language, kept working, and are now trying to put a new name on it without pretending the past disappeared. Metal Mantra sent the band some questions over email. The conversation below has been lightly edited for clarity.
Where did the name Weapons come from?
Weapons: We have dry erase boards on the walls of our studio. Over the years we would write down any name that anyone thought of. I'd say we ended up with over 300 names at one point.
So earlier this year, everyone brought in their five best names. We put all 25 of them on the board and started voting until it came down to two. The winning name was Weapons, and I believe Scott, our bass player, came up with it.
I think for us it basically means "music as a weapon"; we say what we feel through aggressive music.
When did Weapons start feeling like a real band, and does it feel like a fresh start or unfinished business?
Weapons: Having Bill in the band gives it a fresh feeling, but it does not feel unfamiliar. Four of us have played together for a long time, and we've known Bill for years from playing shows with Hellbender. So it feels new, but familiar at the same time.
Without leaning too hard on genre labels, what should Weapons sound like to someone hearing the band for the first time?
Weapons: We are definitely a straight-up metal band with Bay Area thrash influences, but there's a lot of different influences that make up our sound. We all listen to anything from Death Angel and Lamb of God to Billy Joel and Steely Dan.
That is a wider spread than people may expect from a metal band. What makes a song feel like Weapons, and what do you want people to notice first at The Big Easy?
Weapons: I think we have a really powerful set for this first show. The former King Must Die members have been playing some of these songs as instrumentals for several years, so I think we are tight.
And because we've had so much time to put them together, we think they stand out as something very creative.
What is one thing Weapons is deliberately not trying to be?
Weapons: I'm not sure if there's anything we're not trying to be, but at our age and with the experience we have, we just do what we like and hope people dig it.
The June 20 debut at The Big Easy is coming up. Does that feel like a soft launch, a statement show, or a trial by fire?
Weapons: I think we're heading into this show as a statement that we all still love playing this type of music together.
At first I thought of it as a "soft launch," but as we get closer, we're taking it very seriously and dialing in all the sounds, timing, etc. that we need to have a great show.
What should people expect from the first set?
Weapons: We will be doing all originals for this first set. We've been working on a cover as well, but since it's a short set, we'll save it for the next one.
What would make that first show a success beyond attendance?
Weapons: Lots of bodies, people wanting more, new fans at the merch table. It's always more fun when people are up front and digging it.
How does coming out of Sonoma County and the larger Bay Area heavy scene shape this band?
Weapons: We all grew up on Bay Area metal and thrash, so there's no denying that we are heavily influenced by that scene, which I would say is still thriving. There's plenty of great metal bands around, young and old.
Is recorded music coming soon, or is the live show the first?
Weapons: The live show is first, but we have a handful of songs recorded that should be out soon. They are in the mixing and mastering process with Nick Botelho.
That makes June 20 feel like the first public checkpoint. What do you want people to understand about Weapons before they hear those recordings?
Weapons: That this is a band made by people who still love playing this type of music together. We say what we feel through aggressive music, and we hope people connect with that.
The Metal Mantra Read
Weapons are not trying to sell mystery. That is the better sign.
The pitch is direct: four former members of The King Must Die, a vocalist they already knew from Hellbender, original songs, and a first show being treated as more than a casual test run. The name came from years of studio-wall ideas and a final vote. The sound nods to Bay Area thrash without pretending the band is frozen in 1986. That is a useful lane, assuming the songs hold up.
That is the draw for June 20. Weapons are choosing originals for a short debut set, and they are walking in with recorded material already in the mixing and mastering stage with Nick Botelho. This is not just a new name getting tested on a flyer. There is music behind it.
The location matters, too. A Petaluma debut lands differently than a random first gig, especially on a bill that is not built like a nostalgia showcase. Waves of Distortion, The Rift, Syn Absence, and infex put Weapons in front of listeners who already know what local metal sounds like when it is still tied to clubs, garages, practice rooms, and weekend bills. Metal Mantra saw that same pressure at work in the Thrash of the Titans Berkeley review: the songs can carry history, but the crowd decides whether the night feels alive.
That makes the sell straightforward: veteran chemistry, a new vocalist, original material, and a first public shot on the Summergeddon Tour 2026 bill at The Big Easy. The show is all ages, doors open at 7, music starts at 8, and admission is $15 at the door.
For anyone invested in Sonoma County metal, Bay Area thrash lineage, or bands willing to lead with original songs instead of a safe cover-heavy debut, Weapons are giving you a reason to show up early. That does not mean every new band with experienced players deserves automatic attention. It means this one is worth watching before the recordings arrive, because the first public version of Weapons is happening in the kind of room that helped shape the band in the first place.
If you are catching the show from up front, bring hearing protection: Eargasm direct with code MANTRA10 for 10% off, or on Amazon.
Weapons make their live debut June 20 at The Big Easy, 128 American Alley, Petaluma, CA.
