INTO ETERNITY Checks in From ICED EARTH Tour

Canadian extreme progressive metal innovators INTO ETERNITY are currently blazing through North America on tour with Iced Earth in support of their latest effort, The Incurable Tragedy. In addition, the band is excited to announce a few new shows alongside the legendary Testament and labelmates Suicide Silence (see their official Myspace page for the complete itinerary).

Troy Bleich (bass) checks in with the following tour update: “It's been a pretty crazy week for all of us in the INTO ETERNITY camp. The insanity began when we found out that Tim would not be coming with us on the Iced Earth tour. Our initial reaction was to cancel, for how could we go on without our founding member? After much discussion, we decided that a replacement shredder would be flown in from New York with only five days of practice, that I would try and figure out how to sing and help out on vocals as best as can be, and that Stu would take over the rest of the vocal responsibilities. Easy, right?

“When we started the 14-hour death drive to the first show in Minneapolis, I can't convey how strange the feeling was of leaving the city without Tim — not to mention that this fill-in shredder had only five days to practice the tunes, and that none of us had ever met him. No worries, right?

“We arrived in Minneapolis a day early and picked up our new shredder from the airport. It turned out his name was Sean Maier. Sean and Justin worked that night and the next day, and crammed as much into his overloaded head as possible. The first show was definitely not perfect, but as a band we could not believe how well Sean played. There definitely was a collective sense of relief within the band after we realized the first show had passed and no train wrecks occurred.

“The improvement has been steady with every show. It's awesome to watch such an accomplished musician take on such a huge task and do so well. Beyond his playing abilities, Sean has also become a good friend and fit in to this rolling circus easily. We've unofficially coined this tour the 'Hell or High Water Tour,' for the way we look at it, our backs are against the wall and we have nothing to lose and everything to prove.

“We've now had seven shows together, and it really is going better than expected. We all owe our thanks to Sean for his relentless hard work and focus. The biggest realization, though, is how accepting our fans have been. The unconditional support we've received through such trying times has been amazing. We cannot thank our fans enough for sticking with us and supporting the band unconditionally. Thanks again, and we'll see you all on the road!”