Heavy Load (band)

Heavy Load is a Swedish heavy metal band from Stockholm. The band is often hailed as the first Swedish heavy metal band,[1] and were known for their Viking themes. The Wahlquist brothers, who founded the band in 1976 along with Michael Backler, were later producers and owners of Thunderload Records in Sweden, were at one point producing Veni Domine, and also were considering releasing a new album, though that never occurred.

This article is about the Swedish heavy metal band. For the British punk band, see Heavy Load (punk band).
Heavy Load
OriginStockholm, Sweden
GenresHeavy metal, Power Metal
Years active1976–1983, 1985, 1987, 2017–present
MembersStyrbjörn Wahlquist
Ragne Wahlquist
Torbjörn Ragnesjö
Eddy Malm
Past membersMichael Backler
Dan Molén
Eero Koivisto
Leif Liljegren
Andreas Fritz
Paul Gray
Patrick Karlsson

Various touring and demo line-ups of the band have included UFO and The Damned bass player Paul Gray, Treat guitarist Leif Liljegren, and renowned architect Eero Koivisto. Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy played on one of the band's released songs.

Misfortune struck when Thunderload Studios got severely damaged due to a water leakage in the 2000s, which meant a halt to its official existence. After the breakup, the members then went on and performed with other bands.

The band reformed in October 2017 and announced a series of shows for 2018, [2]including an appearance at that year's Sweden Rock Festival in June[3].

Discography

Albums
  • Full Speed at High Level (full-length, 1978)
  • Metal Conquest (EP, 1981)
  • Death or Glory (full-length, 1982)
  • Stronger Than Evil (full-length, 1983) (Phil Lynott playing bass guitar on the track "Free")[4]

Others
  • "Take Me Away" (single, 1982)
  • Live (VHS, 1983)
  • "Free" (single, 1983) (Phil Lynott playing bass guitar on the track "Free")[5]
  • "Monsters of the Night" (single, 1985)

Band members

Current members
  • Styrbjörn Wahlquist – drums, vocals, percussion (1976–1985, 2017–present)
  • Ragne Wahlquist – guitars, vocals, keyboards (1976–1985, 2017–present)
  • Eddy Malm – guitar, vocals (1979–1985, 2017–present)
  • Torbjörn Ragnesjö – bass guitar (1979–1984, 2017–present)

Former members
  • Paul Gray - bass guitar (1986-??)[6]
  • Patrick Karlsson - guitar (1986 - ??)[7]
  • Andreas Fritz – bass guitar (1984-1985)
  • Leif Liljegren – guitar (1979)
  • Eero Koivisto – bass guitar (1979)
  • Dan Molén – bass guitar (1978–1979)
  • Michael Backler – bass guitar (1976–1977)

Timeline

References
  1. Rivadavia, Eduardo. Biography of Heavy Load at AllMusic. Retrieved 2008-12-26.
  2. "Swedish Cult Heavy Metal Band HEAVY LOAD Is Back". Blabbermouth.net. October 26, 2017. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  3. "Heavy Load återförenas på Sweden Rock - Blekinge Läns Tidning". Blekinge Läns Tidning (in Swedish). 2017-10-25. Retrieved 2018-06-17.
  4. Stronger than Evil on Metal-Archives
  5. Free / Run with the Devil on Metal-Archives
  6. "HEAVY LOAD OFFICIAL". www.heavyload-sweden.com. Retrieved 2018-06-17.
  7. "HEAVY LOAD OFFICIAL". www.heavyload-sweden.com. Retrieved 2018-06-17.
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