A summer trip to Europe in 2009, and a few metal festivals later, and Striker found themselves signed on to Germany’s Iron Kodex Records. A representative heard the band’s original four song demo, written by founding members Dan Cleary and guitarist Ian Sandercock two years prior.

The Edmonton, Alta.-based Striker has since released another collection of songs, their first release through Iron Kodex. Road Warrior was written by the quintet as a collective, and the six song EP, released March 31, 2009, gives listeners a taste of the fierce metal that will rip through their skulls on the group’s upcoming full-length debut, which has a projected release date of late January 2010.

“No official release date yet,” says Striker frontman Cleary.

“It all depends on our label, since they have some other releases to deal with first,” he reveals, keeping mum on the new album’s title. “That will probably be (unveiled) in November. When we get our artwork, we’ll announce the title, as well as the track listing.”

For those unfamiliar with the shredtastic sounds of Striker, Cleary claims a dialog with someone unfamiliar with metal would go somewhat like this:

Bob: “So what kind of music do you play?”

Striker: “Heavy metal. You know, like Iron Maiden type stuff.”

Bob: “Oh cool, I have a brother/sister/cousin/neighbour who listens to them.”

Striker: “Neato…”

Bob: “So, do you guys do the headbanging stuff?”

Striker: “Yep, that’s us.”

At that point, the conversation is over and the band walks away.

To a metalhead, who knows there might be more to metal than just that “headbanging stuff,” the band would describe themselves as a speed/heavy metal band with clean vocals.

“Leather pants for the win baby! Denim and leather!” Cleary says of the bands image.

The leather clad metallers have been gaining exposure all over the world since signing to Iron Kodex, the same label that represents Slough Feg and The Gates of Slumber, just to name a couple. The organizers of Germany’s Keep It True Metal Festival contacted Striker over MySpace, and now the band is on the bill for the April 2010 festival and will be sharing the stage with the likes of Candlemass and Satan’s Host. Striker is also featured on the Keep it True – The Underground Kodex Compilation Vol.1 [Iron Kodex, 2009], released Oct. 22, and they’ve submitted a previously unreleased song, “White Knight.”

Are you going set up more shows in Europe around the time of the Keep It True Metal Festival?

We are planning a tour. Keep It True is our first official European show, and then after that we plan on doing about a two week tour.

What kind of arrangements and preparations are being made for Europe?

Our label is taking care of everything; we just have to show up. As for preparation, we will be rehearsing a lot to get ready, jamming our new songs and stuff. Also working on our stage moves! Gotta look cool, you know?

What did you learn from your Canadian summer tour that might help you on your upcoming trip to Europe?

Dave (Arnold, bass) will probably get punched in the face for waving farts at Chris (Segger, guitarist). Also, if it’s really hot, you can always buy a bag of ice, wrap it in a towel and put it under your shirt. These are the things we have learned. Also, in Montreal, you can buy beer from the gas station, not that that helps us in Europe.

Does the band have any pre-show rituals?

For sure! We usually rock a high five circle, which for people who don’t know (probably most people) we do alternate high fives and low fives. Took a while to get it down, but it’s awesome and gets us pumped.

We know you can’t reveal too much about the new album, but can you tell us how the recording is coming along?

Well, we plug shit in and let ’er rip. The screaming and swearing method dates back to the late Jurassic period where dinosaurs running away from a massive T-Rex would scream and swear at each other to try and push each other’s limits to get the fastest get away possible. It’s history. Basically, we just fuck around a lot when we are recording because we aren’t paying anyone for the time we waste. We are also foul-mouthed Canadians.

Are you recording everything in your basement?

Yep, except for my vocals which I will be doing with Cam MacLeod (of Edmonton metal act White Wolf).

Cam is also mixing the CD…

Why you ask? Because Cam knows how to make us sound like a million bucks! He is also one of the coolest dudes around.

You have posted a video of your recording session on YouTube. Can we expect to see more of these?

There will be some more of some solos being recorded. We didn’t film that much because we end up just fucking around and not getting anything done.

What do you expect viewers to get out of these videos?

Probably a brain tumour.

Do you guys have a favourite Alberta metal band?

I would have to say Sixguns over Tombstone, or Sixgun, as I like to call them. They shred super hard and are all rad dudes. Check out their new album, Putting Revenge on the Map. It rips!