After my first time working with Behold, the Monolith, I knew these guys were going to be a fun band to work with on future projects. They just really mix the right amount of tongue-in-cheek with serious metal style for my tastes. Sure enough, when they came back to me for their second album, they had a whopper of a concept.

Lead singer, Kevin McDade sent me an absolutely massive document detailing the story and concept behind their newest album, "Defender, Redeemist" that details a story of a hero, "The Redeemist", who is summoned by the Guardians of the Abyss (a race of primate warriors who are sworn and implemented to protect an alien kingdom’s people and well being) to defeat an evil, demonic space pirate known simply as "The Desolizator".

There was a lot of a reading and a lot of sifting through details to capture the feel that I wanted to convey, but after all was said and done, I feel like I really achieved that "classic metal album cover" vibe that I grew up loving so much. I take a lot of pride in this piece because I so rarely attempt the fantasy setting. I felt like I stretched my wings out a bit. I hope fans of the band agree!

Behold! The Monolith...