ORBYNOT have been making a metallic racket since initially forming in Wanaque, New Jersey back in 2008 but they are truly coming into their own, turning heads, and leaving a metallic mark with the release of 2015’s Without a Trace. 

 

The band’s humble beginnings are as such: Tony “TonyBro” Gabriele started the band, recruiting a friend to fill in on vocals. The original lineup didn’t last long, splintering in 2009 due to a variety of issues, among them commitment levels of the members. But Gabriele was undeterred and kept going—writing, recording, and eventually releasing Try to Stop Me in 2012. 

 

The release featured four guest vocalists from all over the U.S. and Canada. But the multiple vocalist situation was just a temporary one, as Gabriele eventually met up with ORBYNOT’s current vocalist Metal Rose through a Metal Heroes program, which workshops artists, in 2013. 

 

The band’s brand new release is the groove-laden, classic-without-being-retro-or-stuck-in-a-time-warp Without a Trace. If you worship at the riff-soaked altars of Black Sabbath, Dio, Metallica, Megadeth, Pantera, Guns N’ Roses, Motley Crue, and/or Skid Row, well, elements of all those bands and their sonic styles influence Without a Trace. But rather than copy their elders and those legends, ORBYNOT are inspired by them, distilling that sway into a sound that is uniquely their own and that is also very current. 

 

The album was recorded at House of Metal Studios and Backroom Studios in Rockaway, New Jersey and produced by Gabriele, so it’s Jersey-bred. With a permanent and official, and not to mention fiercely female, vocalist firmly installed behind the microphone, the project finally has the ability to tour and bring the ORBYNOT sound to the masses outside of The Garden State. 

 

Without a Trace boasts unforgettable, metallic tracks like “Icon,” which opens the album. The song’s lyrical thrust is a powerful one, as Gabriele notes that the first half of the song is “about putting an end to a bad relationship,” while the rest of the song states that “I won’t back down on making my dreams into a reality while telling arm chair critics that they will just sit there and judge, yet they won’t budge.” 

 

Then there is the utterly anthemic and motivating “5 Minutes of Fame,” which not only boasts deep grooves, but is also anchored by thunderous percussion and rhythmic firepower. Gabriele says the song is “aimed at all the jealous people that just lay around wanting to be famous or want good things to happen to them without putting any work towards it. If you want something to happen, get up and go make it happen.” 

 

Clearly, ORBYNOT are doers, not dreamers; they are makers, not sayers.

The best thing about ORBYNOT and Without a Trace is that the music is steeped in the traditional and classic metal sound—don’t expect to find any trendhopping happening here. 

 

“Since I am a weekly personal student of Metal Mike Chlasciak of Halford, Judas Priest and Halford play a major influence,” Gabriele noted and that’s audible in the music. He continued, “I usually play in the style I love, so I always find myself playing and writing in multiple styles of classic metal.” However, since “inspiration is a constant,” according to Gabriele, and since we don’t live in vacuums, the music is impacted by, well, life as the members live and know it. 

 

So while the album is classic, it is in no way a throwback or un-modern, thanks to the wide variety of influence. All the jigsaw puzzle pieces have fallen into place. With a permanent singer, an arsenal of unforgettable tracks, and undiluted ambition, ORBYNOT are ready for liftoff. 

 

“We’re out there to turn our dreams into reality, but we understand it will take loyalty, sacrifice, determination, drive, discipline, desire, and dedication,” Gabriele said. “We write from the heart and to get certain things off of our chest. So while listening to most of our material, listeners will find something that they can relate to.” 

 

And as stated previously, the band is not hopping on what’s cool or “in” right now. In fact, their M.O. is quite the opposite. “We’re not your typical band that makes music just to fit in with was is popular at the moment,” Gabriele declared matter-of-factly. “We go out there, play what we want, say what we wanna say and put a piece of ourselves in everything we write.”

 

And that’s the recipe for a long, healthy future in the oft-fickle metal  scene. ORBYNOT have arrived.