Heavy Metal Ninjas: Masked men with axe to grind

The Heavy Metal Ninjas started dressing up with 'a bandanna and a bit of tablecloth' when playing in Japan. Photo / Supplied

The Heavy Metal Ninjas have unleashed their first epic rock EP on the world, writes Scott Kara

Like all good ninjas, Richie Allan doesn't talk much. He's a guitar ninja by the way, not the sword-wielding kind. And there really is no need to say much when you are a stealth, virtuoso axe slinger and leader of local instrumental band the Heavy Metal Ninjas.

"This cat never says anything," smiles bandmate Francis Kora, who is also in reggae dub fusion band Kora with his brothers Stu, Laughton, and Brad, and their mate Dan McGruer.

"He's a dollar a word. But when he starts playing the guitar - your jaw just drops."

Allan, who is also the sound man for Kora and knows the brothers from their hometown of Whakatane, really is that good.

He's a mean mix of Steve Vai (one of his idols) and some staunch, metal head. And the music of Heavy Metal Ninjas brings together the grandeur of a metal symphony, the progressive heaviness of Swedish titans Opeth, and the ruthless riffs of Meshuggah.

"It just comes naturally, eh," says Allan of his lightning fast, yet effortless playing style. "As soon as I started playing [at 11] I could play [Joe] Satriani and [Yngwie] Malmsteen straight away."

In case you are wondering, those two blokes and their contemporaries such as Vai and Paul Gilbert are virtuoso guitar playing greats.

"They were my influences growing up and I guess they just become a part of you and the way you think," says Allan. "And the good thing about instrumental music is you can use your own imagination and make your own mind up about the music."

HMN, also made up of Stu Kora on guitar, drummer Joe Brownless, and the mysterious Quasar on "stunt" guitar, keys and samples, released their self-titled debut EP this week. Though there are only four tracks it's diverse and thrilling, from the triumphant opening onslaught of The Author (like the soundtrack to a twisted Martian sci-fi film) and the wailing and over-wrought What If, through to the more heavy-handed and pummelling M45 (with synth flourishes to boot) and the fearsome Redshift to end.

It's a wild, and at times unhinged listen. Or, as Allan says, "out there, epic, and moving".

Allan hooked up with three of the Kora brothers - Stu, Francis and Brad - in the early 2000s in a metal band called Hyet, which whipped up a wild metal circus of aggressive riffs over the top of frantic grooves.

"We had pretty out-of-it costumes back then, white overalls, and we had ponytails," remembers Francis of the hair dos that they used to flail around like lethal weapons as they played.

Out of Hyet came Kora, which is where the band's experimental fusion element comes from, and the roots of the Heavy Metal Ninjas lie in the jam sessions they used to have to kill time while on tour in Kora.

"Instead of hanging out at the hotel getting really bored we'd do heaps of Paul Gilbert songs, Steve Vai, Yngwie Malmsteen," says Francis.

But they wouldn't just play, they would also dress up, and when Kora got to Japan the bros started dressing up like ninjas. And anyone can do it by the sounds.

"A bandanna and a bit of a tablecloth will do," laughs Allan.

Although most of us might have to work on the guitar-playing ninja bit.

Who: Heavy Metal Ninjas
What: Virtuoso instrumental metal
Listen to: Heavy Metal Ninjas, available now
Touring: In April, with dates yet to be confirmed

-TimeOut