Seventh Angel

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nglish white metal band Seventh Angel was formed in 1987 by Ian Arkley (guitars/vocals) and Andrew (Andi) Blount (drums) with Scott Rawson (guitar/bass) joining soon after. In August 1988, Blount was replaced by Andy Hopkins who played with the band until December. Stuart Benton stepped in as the vocalist for a brief period in 1988. The band was known for its combination of doom metal and thrash metal mixed in with doses of white metal.

In early 1989, Mark Ruff joined the band as their drummer. Seventh Angel's self-titled demo, sometimes referred to as the "Red" demo, was produced in 1989 with Arkley playing lead guitar and bass (as "Neil A Kray") along with vocals. A few days later, Simon Bibby joined as the bassist and the band began to play local concerts around the West Midlands; playing their first concert in May 1989 in Netherton. Seventh Angel's second demo, The Rehearsal Demo, was recorded whilst Scott Rawson had a short break away from the band.

On 14 February, Arkley and Bibby were involved in a car crash in which Bibby broke his arm and Arkley damaged several of his teeth. However, the band was able to play their confirmed concerts. Simon took over on vocal duties and Scott played bass for the gig following the accident.

With Andrew Thompson on drums, Seventh Angel would release their debut album, The Torment (1990). For the follow-up, Lament for the Weary (1991), Simon Jones took bass.

In October 1991, after a concert in Croydon, Scott left the band, as did Jones after the Greenbelt festival. The band continued with only Thompson and Arkley as permanent members. After touring at festivals and concerts in UK, Netherlands, and Germany, Seventh Angel called it quits in 1993 to re-emerge in 2009 with The Dust of Years under the membership of Ian Arkley (vocals/guitars), Simon Bibby (vocals/guitars/keyboards), Mark Broomhead (bass/vocals (backing)/narration) and Andrew Thompson (a.k.a. Tank; drums).