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Mark IX Depth Charge used by the U.S. Navy late in World War II. Unlike the cylindrical, barrel-shaped depth charge used earlier, the Mark IX is streamlined and equipped with canted fins to impart rotation on the depth charge, allowing it to fall in a straight trajectory with less chance of drifting off target. This type of depth charge contained 200 pounds (90 kg) of Torpex.

A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by surface ships, patrol aircraft, or helicopters. The depth charge has now largely been replaced by anti-submarine homing torpedoes.

A depth charge fitted with a nuclear warhead is known as a nuclear depth bomb. These were designed to be dropped from a patrol plane or deployed by anti-submarine missile from a surface ship, or another submarine, located a safe distance away. All nuclear anti-submarine weapons were withdrawn from service by the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and China in or around 1990. They were replaced by conventional weapons that boasted ever-increasing accuracy and range as ASW technology improved.

History[link]

The idea of firing charges at set depths was not new. The first attempt was by aircraft bombs attached to lanyards which would trigger their charges; a similar idea was a 16 lb (7.3 kg) guncotton charge in a lanyarded can; two of these lashed together became known as the Depth Charge Type A.^[1] Problems with the lanyards tangling and failing to function led to the development of a chemical pellet trigger as the Type B.^[2] These were effective at a distance of around 20 ft (6.1 m).^[3]

The best concept arose in a 1913 RN Torpedo School report, describing a device intended for countermining, a "dropping mine". At Admiral John Jellicoe's request, the standard Mark II mine was fitted with a hydrostatic pistol (developed in 1914 by Thomas Firth and Sons of Sheffield) preset for 45 ft (14 m) firing, to be launched from a stern platform. Weighing 1,150 lb (520 kg), and effective at 100 ft (30 m), the "cruiser mine" was a potential hazard to the dropping ship, but was also on the right track.^[4] The design work was carried out by Herbert Taylor at the RN Torpedo and Mine School, HMS Vernon. The first effective depth charge, the Type D, became available in January 1916. These were barrel-like casings containing a high explosive, usually TNT (amatol, when TNT became scarce^[5]). There were initially two sizes--Type D, with a 300 lb (140 kg) charge for fast ships, and Type D* with a 120 lb (54 kg) charge for ships too slow to clear the danger area of the more powerful charge.^[6][7]

A hydrostatic pistol actuated by water pressure at a pre-selected depth detonated the charge.^[6] Initial depth settings were 40 or 80 ft (12 or 24 m).^[6] Because production could not keep up with demand,^[8] anti-submarine vessels initially carried only two depth charges, to be released from a chute at the stern of the ship.^[6] The first success was the sinking of U-68 off Kerry, Ireland, on 22 March 1916 by the Q-ship Farnborough.^[6] Germany became aware of the depth charge following unsuccessful attacks on U-67 on 15 April 1916 and U-69 on 20 April 1916.^[6] UC-19 and UB-29 were the only other submarines sunk by depth charge during 1916.^[6]

Numbers of depth charges carried per ship increased to 4 in June 1917, to 6 in August, and 30-50 by 1918.^[9] The weight of charges and racks caused instability problems unless guns and torpedo tubes were landed to compensate.^[10] Improved pistols allowed greater depth settings in 50-foot (15-meter) increments, from 50 to 200 ft (15 to 61 m).^[11][12] Even slower ships could safely use the Type D at below 100 ft (30 m) and at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) or more,^[13] so the relatively ineffective Type D* was withdrawn.^[11] Monthly use of depth charges increased from 100 to 300 per month during 1917 to an average of 1745 per month during the last 6 months of World War I.^[11] The Type D could be detonated as deep as 300 ft (91 m) by that date. By war's end, 74,441 depth charges had been issued by RN, and 16,451 fired, scoring 38 kills in all, and aiding in 140 more.^[14]

The depth charge was such a successful device it attracted the attention of the United States, who requested full working drawings of the devices in March 1917. Having received them, Commander Fullinwider of the U.S. Bureau of Naval Ordnance and U.S. Navy engineer Minkler made some modifications and then patented it in the U.S. It has been argued this was done to avoid paying the original inventor^[15].

The Royal Navy Type D depth charge was designated the Mark VII by 1939.^[16] Initial sinking speed was 7 ft/s (2.1 m/s) with a terminal velocity of 9.9 ft/s (3.0 m/s) at a depth of 250 ft (76 m) if rolled off the stern, or upon water contact from a depth charge thrower.^[16] Cast iron weights of 150 lb (68 kg) were attached to the Mark VII at the end of 1940 to increase sinking velocity to 16.8 ft/s (5.1 m/s).^[16] New hydrostatic pistols increased the maximum detonation depth to 900 ft (270 m).^[16] The Mark VII's 290 lb (130 kg) Amatol charge was estimated capable of splitting a ⁷⁄₈ in (22 mm) submarine pressure hull at a distance of 20 ft (6.1 m), and forcing the submarine to surface at twice that.^[16] Change of explosive to Torpex (or Minol) at the end of 1942 was estimated to increase those distances to 26 and 52 ft (7.9 and 16 m).^[16]

The British Mark X depth charge weighed 3000 pounds (1400 kg) and was launched from 21-inch (53 cm) torpedo tubes of older destroyers to achieve a sinking velocity of 21 ft/s (6.4 m/s).^[16] The launching ship needed to clear the area at 11 knots to avoid damage, and the charge was seldom used.^[16] Only 32 were actually fired, and it was known to be troublesome.^[17]

The teardrop-shaped United States Mark 9 depth charge entered service in the spring of 1943.^[18] The charge was 200 lb (91 kg) of Torpex with a sinking speed of 14.4 ft/s (4.4 m/s) and depth settings up to 600 ft (180 m).^[18] Later versions increased depth to 1,000 ft (300 m) and sinking speed to 22.7 ft/s (6.9 m/s) with increased weight and improved streamlining.^[18]

Depth charges on the USS Cassin Young (DD-793)

Although the explosions of the standard United States' 600 lb (270 kg) Mark 4 or Mark 7 depth charge used in World War II were nerve-wracking to the target, an undamaged U-boat’s pressure hull would not rupture unless the charge detonated closer than about 15 ft (4.6 m). Placing the weapon within this range was entirely a matter of chance and quite unlikely as the target maneuvered evasively during the attack. Most U-boats sunk by depth charges were destroyed by damage accumulated from a long barrage rather than by a single carefully aimed attack. Many survived hundreds of depth charges over a period of many hours; U-427 survived 678 depth charges in April 1945, though many may have detonated a considerable distance from the target.

Delivery mechanisms[link]

Loading a drum-type Mark VII depth charge onto the K-gun of the Flower class corvette HMS Dianthus.

The first delivery mechanism was to simply roll the "ashcans" off racks at the stern of the attacking vessel. Originally depth charges were simply placed at the top of a ramp and allowed to let roll. Improved racks, which could hold several depth charges and release them remotely with a trigger, were developed towards the end of the First World War. These racks remained in use throughout World War II, because they were simple and easy to reload.

Some Royal Navy trawlers used for anti-submarine work during 1917–1918 had a thrower on the forecastle for a single depth charge, but there do not seem to be any records of it being used in action.^[11] Specialized depth charge projectors were developed to generate a wider dispersal pattern when used in conjunction with rack-deployed charges.^[11] The first of these was developed from a British Army trench mortar,^[19] 1277 were issued, 174 installed in auxiliaries during 1917 and 1918.^[20][21] The bombs they launched were too light to be truly effective; only one U-boat is known to have been sunk by them.^[22]

Thornycroft created an improved version able to throw a charge 40 yd (37 m).^[23] The first was fitted in July 1917^[24] and became operational in August.^[11] In all, 351 TBDs and 100 other craft were equipped.^[25] Projectors called Y-guns (in reference to their basic shape), developed by the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Ordnance from the Thornycroft thrower,^[26] became available in 1918. Mounted on the centerline of the ship with the arms of the "Y" pointing outboard, two depth charges^[27] were cradled on shuttles inserted into each arm. An explosive propellant charge was detonated in the vertical column of the Y-gun to propel a depth charge about 45 yd (41 m)^[28] over each side of the ship. The main disadvantage of the Y-gun is needed to be mounted on the centerline of a ship's deck, which could otherwise be occupied by superstructure, masts, or guns. The first were built by New London Ship and Engine Company beginning 24 November 1917.^[29]

A depth charge explodes after being dropped from HMS Ceylon.

The K-gun, standardized in 1942, replaced the Y-gun as the primary depth charge projector. K-guns could be mounted on the periphery of a ship's deck, thus freeing up valuable centerline space. The K-guns were often used together with stern racks to create patterns of six to ten charges. In all cases, the attacking ship needed to be moving above a certain speed or it would be damaged by the force of its own weapons.

Depth charges can also be dropped from an attacking aircraft against submarines. At the start of World War II, Britain's aerial anti-submarine weapon was the 100 lb (45 kg) anti-submarine bomb. This weapon was too light and ultimately, a failure. Indeed, 5 September 1939, a Royal Air Force Avro Anson of No. 233 Squadron was destroyed when its own A/S bomb skipped off the surface of the water and detonated under the aircraft.^{[citation needed]} To remedy the failure of this weapon, the Royal Navy's 450 lb (200 kg) Mark VII depth charge was modified for aerial use by the addition of a streamlined nose fairing and stabilising fins on the tail.

The first to use depth charges on airplanes in actual combat were the Finns, though. Experiencing the same problems as RAF with insufficient charges on anti-submarine bombs, Captain Birger Ek of Finnish Air Force squadron LeLv 6 contacted one of his Navy friends and suggested testing aerial use of standard Finnish Navy depth charges. The tests proved successful, and the Tupolev SB bombers of LeLv 6 were modified in early 1942 to carry depth charges. The success of the anti-submarine missions reached also RAF Coastal Command, which promptly began modifying depth charges for aerial use.^[30]

Later depth charges would be developed specifically for aerial use. Such weapons still have utility today and are in limited use, particularly for shallow-water situations where a homing torpedo may not be suitable. Depth charges are especially useful for "flushing the prey" in the event of a diesel submarine lying on the bottom or otherwise hiding, with all machinery shut down. Homing torpedoes can be used for the same purpose, but the cost is prohibitive and aircraft and shipboard inventories limited. An example of such a weapon is the BAE Systems Mark 11, deployed by the British Fleet Air Arm.^{[clarification needed]}

Effectiveness[link]

To be effective depth charges had to be set to the correct depth. To ensure this, a pattern of charges set to different depths would be laid atop the submarine's suspected position.

The effective use of depth charges required the combined resources and skills of many individuals during an attack. Sonar, helm, depth charge crews and the movement of other ships had to be carefully coordinated. Aircraft depth charge tactics depended on the aircraft using its speed to rapidly appear from over the horizon and surprising the sub on the surface (where it spent most of its time) during the day or night (using radar to detect the target and a Leigh Light to illuminate just prior to the attack), then quickly attacking once it had been located, as the sub would normally crash dive to escape attack.

As the Battle of the Atlantic wore on, British and Commonwealth forces became particularly adept at depth charge tactics, and formed some of the first destroyer hunter-killer groups to actively seek out and destroy German U-boats.

The shortcoming of the depth charge as deployed by surface ships was not the weapon itself, but how it was delivered. An attacking vessel would usually detect a submerged contact using its sonar (or in British parlance, ASDIC). However, to drop its depth charges it had to pass over the contact to drop them over the stern. As such, sonar contact would be lost immediately prior to attack, thus rendering the hunter blind at the crucial moment. A skillful submarine commander therefore had an opportunity to take successful evasive action. This situation would be remedied by the adoption of the ahead-throwing weapon, hedgehog, which allowed contacts to be engaged at a "stand-off" distance while still in sonar contact.

Pacific theater[link]

In the Pacific, Japanese depth charge attacks initially proved fairly unsuccessful against U.S. and British submarines. Unless caught in shallow water, a U.S. submarine commander could normally dive to a deeper depth in order to escape destruction.

The deficiencies of Japanese depth-charge tactics were revealed in a press conference held by U.S. Congressman Andrew J. May, a member of the House Military Affairs Committee who had visited the Pacific theater and received many intelligence and operational briefings. Incredibly, May mentioned the highly sensitive fact that American submarines had a high survivability rate because Japanese depth charges were fuzed to explode at too shallow a depth.

Various press associations sent this leaked news story over their wires, compounding the danger, and many newspapers (including one in Honolulu, Hawaii) published it. Soon, Japanese forces were resetting their depth charges to explode at a more effective average depth of 75 m (250 feet), to the detriment of American submariners. Vice Admiral Charles A. Lockwood, commander of the U.S. submarine fleet in the Pacific, later estimated that May's revelation cost the United States Navy as many as ten submarines and 800 seamen killed in action.^[31]

Later developments[link]

For the reasons expressed above, the depth charge was generally replaced as an anti-submarine weapon. Initially, this was by ahead-throwing weapons such as the British-developed Hedgehog and later Squid. These weapons threw a pattern of warheads ahead of the attacking vessel to bracket a submerged contact. Hedgehog was contact fuzed, while Squid fired a pattern of three large (200 kg) depth-charges with clockwork detonators. Later developments included the Mark 24 "Fido" acoustic homing torpedo (and later such weapons) or the SUBROC, which was armed with a nuclear depth charge. The USSR, United States and United Kingdom developed anti-submarine weapons using nuclear warheads and these are sometimes referred to as Nuclear Depth Bombs (NDB).

Underwater explosions[link]

USS Agerholm (DD-826) launched an ASROC anti-submarine rocket armed with a nuclear depth bomb during the Swordfish test of 1962

The high explosive in a depth charge undergoes a rapid chemical reaction at an approximate rate of 8,000 meters per second (25,000 ft/s). The gaseous products of that reaction momentarily occupy the volume previously occupied by the solid explosive, but at very high pressure. This pressure is the source of the damage and is proportional to the explosive density and the square of the detonation velocity. A depth charge gas bubble expands to reach the pressure of the surrounding water.^[32]

This gas expansion propagates a shock wave. The density difference of the expanding gas bubble from the surrounding water causes the bubble to rise toward the surface. Unless the explosion is shallow enough to vent the gas bubble to the atmosphere during its initial expansion, the momentum of water moving away from the gas bubble will create a gaseous void of lower pressure than the surrounding water. Surrounding water pressure then collapses the gas bubble with inward momentum causing excess pressure within the gas bubble. Re-expansion of the gas bubble then propagates another potentially damaging shock wave. Cyclical expansion and contraction continues until the gas bubble vents to the atmosphere.^[32]

Consequently, explosions where the depth charge is detonated at a shallow depth and the gas bubble vents into the atmosphere very soon after the detonation are quite ineffective, even though they are more dramatic and therefore preferred in movies. A sign of an effective detonation depth is that the surface just slightly rises and only after a while vents into a water burst.

Very large depth charges, including nuclear weapons, may be detonated at sufficient depth to create multiple damaging shock waves. However, very large depth charges can produce damage at distance, if reflected shock waves from the ocean floor and/or ocean surface converge to amplify radial shock waves. Submarines or surface ships may be damaged if operating in convergence zones of their own depth-charge detonations.^[32]

The damage that an underwater explosion inflicts on a submarine comes from a primary and a secondary shock wave. The primary shock wave is the initial shock wave from the depth charge, and will cause damage to personnel and equipment inside the submarine if detonated close enough. The secondary shock wave is a result from the cyclical expansion and contraction of the gas bubble and will bend the submarine back and forth and cause catastrophic hull breach, in a way that can be best described as bending a plastic ruler back and forth until it snaps. Up to sixteen cycles of the secondary shock wave have been recorded in tests. The effect of the secondary shock wave can be reinforced if another depth charge detonates on the other side of the hull in a close proximity in time of the first detonation, which is why depth charges normally are launched in pairs with different pre-set detonation depths.

The killing radius of a depth charge depends on the payload of the depth charge and the size and strength of the submarine hull. A depth charge of approximately 100 kg of TNT (400 MJ) would normally have a killing radius (hull breach) of only 3–4 meters (10–13 ft) against a conventional 1,000-long-ton (1,000 t) submarine, while the disablement radius (where the submarine is not sunk but put out of commission) would be approximately 8–10 meters (26–33 ft). A higher payload only increases the radius by a few meters because the effect of an underwater explosion decreases with the distance cubed. The killing range would be greater against a larger submarine and shorter against a smaller submarine. It is doubtful if the hull of a midget submarine with a titanium hull could be sunk by a depth charge by anything less than a direct hit, even though it could be decommissioned with less.

See also[link]

• Bouncing bomb, the specialized air-delivered bomb used for the RAF's Operation Chastise
• Naval mine

References[link]

1. ^ McKee, Fraser M. "An Explosive Story: The Rise and Fall of the Depth Charge", in The Northern Mariner (III, #1, January 1993), p.46.
2. ^ McKee, p.49.
3. ^ McKee, p.49.
4. ^ McKee, p.49.
5. ^ McKee, p.49.
6. ^ ^{a b c d e f g} Tarrant, V.E., The U-Boat Offensive 1914-1945 (New York: Sterling Publishing Company, 1989), p.27.
7. ^ McKee, p.49.
8. ^ McKee, p.50.
9. ^ McKee, p.50.
10. ^ McKee, p.50.
11. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Tarrant, p.40.
12. ^ McKee, p.49.
13. ^ McKee, p.50.
14. ^ McKee, p.50.
15. ^ http://www.culture24.org.uk/history+%26+heritage/war+%26+conflict/art17861
16. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h} Campbell, John, Naval Weapons of World War Two, New York, New York: Naval Institute Press, 1985, ISBN 0-87021-459-4, page 89.
17. ^ McKee, p.53.
18. ^ ^{a b c} Campbell, John, Naval Weapons of World War Two (New York: Naval Institute Press, 1985), p.163.
19. ^ McKee, p.51.
20. ^ McKee, p.52.
21. ^ McKee, pp.51-52.
22. ^ McKee, p.52.
23. ^ McKee, p.52.
24. ^ McKee, p.52.
25. ^ McKee, p.52.
26. ^ McKee, p.52.
27. ^ McKee, p.52.
28. ^ McKee, p.52.
29. ^ McKee, p.52.
30. ^ Karhunen, Joppe (1980). Merilentäjät sodan taivaalla: meri-ilmailusta, suomalaisten merilentäjien vaiheista vv. 1918–39, talvi- ja jatkosodan taistelulennoista. Otava. ISBN 951-1-05830-4. 
31. ^ Blair Jr., Clay, Silent Victory: The US Submarine War against Japan, Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 2001.
32. ^ ^{a b c} Jones, Charles R., LCDR USN "Weapons Effects Primer" United States Naval Institute Proceedings (January 1978) pp.50-55

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Depth charges

• Inventor of the Depth Charge Discovered at "Explosion!"

Devin Townsend
Devin Townsend performing at Tuska Metal Festival, Finland (July 2010).
Background information
Birth name	Devin Garret Townsend[1]
Born	(1972-05-05) May 5, 1972 (age 40) New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
Genres	Extreme metal, thrash metal, industrial metal, death metal, grindcore, progressive metal, progressive rock, ambient
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, musician, producer
Instruments	Vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, drum machine, sampler, banjo
Years active	1993–present
Associated acts	The Devin Townsend Band, The Devin Townsend Project, Strapping Young Lad, Steve Vai, Punky Brüster, IR8, Front Line Assembly, Grey Skies, Caustic Thought, Noisescapes, Ayreon, The Wildhearts, Bent Sea
Website	www.hevydevy.com
Notable instruments
Peavey, ESP, Fender, and Gibson

Devin Garret Townsend (born May 5, 1972) is a Canadian musician and record producer. He was the founder, songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist in extreme metal band Strapping Young Lad from 1994 to 2007 and has had an extensive career as a solo artist.

After performing in a number of metal bands in high school, Townsend was discovered by a record label in 1993 and was asked to perform lead vocals on Steve Vai's album Sex & Religion. After recording and touring with Vai, Townsend was discouraged by what he found in the music industry, and vented his anger on a solo album released under the pseudonym Strapping Young Lad. He soon assembled a band under the name, and released the critically acclaimed City in 1997. Since then, he has released three more studio albums with Strapping Young Lad, along with solo material released under his own independent record label, HevyDevy Records. Townsend's solo albums, a diverse mix of hard rock and progressive metal, have featured a varying lineup of supporting musicians. In 2002 he formed The Devin Townsend Band, a dedicated lineup which recorded and toured for two of his solo releases.

In 2007, Townsend disbanded both Strapping Young Lad and The Devin Townsend Band, taking a break from touring to spend more time with his family. After a two-year hiatus, he began work on a four-album series called The Devin Townsend Project, with each album written in a different style. The first two entries in the series, Ki and Addicted, were released in 2009. Townsend scheduled tours throughout Australia and North America in 2010 in support of the albums, and released the next two, Deconstruction and Ghost, in 2011.

Townsend's trademark production style, featuring a heavily multitracked wall of sound, has been compared to the styles of Phil Spector and Frank Zappa. His versatile vocal delivery ranges from screaming to an opera-esque singing, and his songwriting is similarly diverse. Townsend's musical style is rooted in metal, and his albums are written to express different aspects of his personality.

Biography[link]

Early musical career (1972–1994)[link]

Devin Townsend was born in New Westminster, British Columbia, on May 5, 1972.^[2] Townsend picked up the banjo when he was five, and began playing guitar when he was 12.^[3] He participated in several metal bands while he was in high school, and founded Grey Skies at the age of 19. Around the same time he joined a popular local group called Caustic Thought, replacing Jed Simon on guitar and playing alongside bassist Byron Stroud, both of whom would later become members of Townsend's flagship band, Strapping Young Lad.^[4] In 1993, Townsend began writing material under the name Noisescapes, a project he later described as "just as violent as Strapping Young Lad".^[5]

Townsend recorded a Noisescapes demo and sent copies to various record labels. Relativity Records responded to Townsend with a record deal and Townsend began work on what was to be the first Noisescapes album, Promise.^[6] Shortly afterward, the label introduced him to musician Steve Vai. Impressed with Townsend's vocal work, Vai offered him the role of the lead vocalist on his new album Sex and Religion. Townsend took the offer, unfamiliar with Vai's work and unaware of his acclaim in the music world. After recording Sex and Religion, Townsend accompanied Vai on a world tour in support of the album.^[6] Townsend soon landed a second touring gig, this time with the opening band of Vai's tour, The Wildhearts.^[7] He played live with the band throughout half of 1994 in Europe, and appeared as a guest musician on their single Urge. Ginger, the band's frontman, remained close friends with Townsend,^[8] later co-writing several songs on Infinity and the Christeen + 4 Demos EP.

While on tour with The Wildhearts, Townsend formed a short-lived thrash metal project with Metallica's then-bassist Jason Newsted. The band, known as IR8, featured Newsted on vocals and bass, Townsend on guitar, and Tom Hunting of Exodus on drums. The group recorded a few songs together, although Townsend says that they never intended to go further than that. "People heard about it and thought we wanted to put out a CD, which is absolutely not true," he explains. "People took this project way too seriously."^[5] A demo tape was put together, but the material was not released until 2002, when Newsted published the IR8 vs. Sexoturica compilation.

Though Townsend was proud of what he had accomplished so early in his career, he was discouraged by his experience with the music industry. "I was becoming a product of somebody else's imagination, and it was mixing with my own personality," he later reflected. "This combination was appalling."^[9] He pushed to get his own projects off the ground. Despite getting notable touring gigs with other musicians, however, Townsend continued to face rejection of his own music. Relativity Records dropped Noisescapes from their label shortly after Townsend accepted Vai's offer, seeing no commercial appeal in Townsend's music.^[10] "I have a hunch they only offered me a deal to get me to sing with Steve," he mused.^[5] While touring with The Wildhearts, Townsend received a phone call from an A&R representative for Roadrunner Records, expressing an interest in his demos and an intention to sign him. The offer was ultimately rescinded by the head of Roadrunner, who regarded Townsend's recordings as "just noise".^[11]

[edit] Heavy as a Really Heavy Thing through Infinity (1994–1998)

In 1994, Century Media Records offered Townsend a contract to make "some extreme albums".^[11] He agreed to a five-album deal with the record label^[12], and also provided much of the guitar work on the 1994 album Millennium and the 1995 album Hard Wired by Vancouver industrial band Front Line Assembly. Townsend began to record material under the pseudonym Strapping Young Lad. He avoided using his real name at this point in career, looking for a fresh start after his high-profile Vai gig. "At the beginning, I wanted to avoid at all cost to use my name because I was known as the singer for Steve Vai and it wasn't the best publicity to have," he later explained. "I was playing somebody else's music and I was judged in respect to that music."^[9] Townsend produced and performed nearly all the instruments on the debut studio album, Heavy as a Really Heavy Thing, which was released in April 1995.

Following the release of the record, Townsend and several other musician friends he knew in Vancouver recorded his first solo album in 1996 entitled Punky Brüster – Cooked on Phonics. Written and recorded in under a month, the album was produced as a parody of punk rock bands and documents the act of selling out for mainstream success. Townsend founded his own independent record label, HevyDevy Records, to release the album. Townsend assembled a permanent lineup of Strapping Young Lad to record City, including prolific metal drummer Gene Hoglan, along with Townsend's former bandmates Jed Simon on guitar and Byron Stroud on bass. The industrial-influenced^[13] album was released in 1997. To this day, the album is widely considered Strapping Young Lad's best work,^[14][15] with Metal Maniacs calling it "groundbreaking"^[16] and Revolver naming it "one of the greatest metal albums of all time".^[17] Townsend himself considers it the band's "ultimate" album.^[18] Later that year, Townsend released his second solo album, Ocean Machine: Biomech. The album featured a mix of hard rock, ambient, and progressive rock.^[16]

After the completion of City and Ocean Machine: Biomech, Townsend began to approach a mental breakdown. "I started to see human beings as little lonesome, water based, pink meat," he explained, "life forms pushing air through themselves and making noises that the other little pieces of meat seemed to understand." In 1997, he checked himself into a mental-health hospital, where he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The diagnosis helped him understand where the two sides of his music were coming from; he felt his disorder "gave birth to the two extremes that are Strapping's City record and Ocean Machine: Biomech."^[19] After being discharged from the hospital, Townsend found that "everything just clicked" and he was able to write his third solo album, Infinity, which he described as "the parent project" of City and Ocean Machine: Biomech,^[19] with music influenced by Broadway.^[16] Townsend returned to the studio, accompanied by Hoglan, to work on the album, on which Townsend played most of the instruments. Infinity was released in October 1998. Later in his career, Townsend has cited Infinity as his favorite solo record.^[13]

With Infinity, Townsend began to label all albums outside of Strapping Young Lad under his own name, dropping the Ocean Machine moniker, to reduce confusion. He wanted to show that despite the highly varied nature of his projects, they are all simply aspects of his identity.^[9] The album Biomech was relabeled and redistributed as Ocean Machine: Biomech, under Townsend's name, to reflect the new arrangement. Townsend's bandmates began to play two sets at their shows, one as Strapping Young Lad, and one as The Devin Townsend Band, playing songs from Townsend's solo albums.^[2]

[edit] Physicist and Terria (1999–2001)

Townsend performing at the Wâldrock Festival, Netherlands (June 30, 2001).

Townsend's next project took several years to come to fruition. After the creation of the IR8 demo tape, Townsend and Jason Newsted had begun work on a new project called Fizzicist, which they described as "heavier than Strapping Young Lad". When the IR8 tape was leaked, Newsted's Metallica bandmates James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich learned of the project. Hetfield was "fucking pissed" that Newsted was playing outside the band, and Newsted was prevented by his bandmates from working on any more side projects.^[20] With the project stalled, Townsend instead wrote the album himself, entitling it Physicist. Townsend assembled his Strapping Young Lad bandmates to record it, the only time this lineup was featured on a Devin Townsend album.^[2] The thrash-influenced^[16] Physicist was released in June 2000, and is generally considered a low point in Townsend's career. Hoglan and the rest of the band were dissatisfied with the way the sound was mixed,^[21] and Townsend considers it his worst album to date.^[22]

Feeling he had "ostracized a bunch of fans" with Physicist, Townsend felt he had the chance to make a more personal and honest record.^[13] Townsend was inspired one morning while driving across Canada with his band, and looked to write an "introspective" album dedicated to his homeland.^[23] He produced and recorded Terria, a "highly illustrated stream-of-consciousness" album,^[13] with Gene Hoglan on drums, Craig McFarland on bass and Jamie Meyer on keyboards. Townsend cited Ween's White Pepper as an inspiration for the album.^[13] Terria was released in November 2001.

[edit] Strapping Young Lad through Synchestra (2003–2006)

Townsend's solo run lasted until 2002. After a five-year break from recording, Strapping Young Lad reunited to record a new album. Townsend credits the album, Strapping Young Lad, as an emotional response to the attacks of September 11, 2001, in the United States. "If the world's about to blow up," said Townsend, "let's write the soundtrack for it."^[21] The album's lyrics were based more around fear and insecurity than the "hostile" lyrics of City.^[13] Musically, Strapping Young Lad was less industrial than City,^[24] and more reminiscent of death metal,^[25] with a "larger-than-life" rock production style.^[13] Townsend cited Front Line Assembly, Grotus, and Samael's Passage as influences.^[13] The self-titled album was released in February 2003. It received lukewarm reviews, with critics finding it inferior to City,^[26][27] but it was the band's first charting album, entering at 97th place on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart.^[28]

Townsend filming the music video for "Zen" with Strapping Young Lad (2005).

While Strapping Young Lad was being reunited, Townsend formed a new, permanent band "on par with Strapping" to record and tour for his solo releases.^[13] The Devin Townsend Band consisted of Brian Waddell on guitar, Mike Young on bass, Ryan Van Poederooyen on drums, and Dave Young on keyboards. Townsend performed guitar, vocals, and production, as he did in Strapping Young Lad. Townsend worked on the band's first album, Accelerated Evolution, at the same time he was working on Strapping Young Lad, spending half the week on one and half on the other.^[29] Accelerated Evolution, named for the pace of putting a new band together in under a year,^[13] was released a month after Strapping Young Lad. Mike G. of Metal Maniacs called it "the album of the year", praising it for "the hard-to-accomplish trick of being extreme yet accessible, simultaneously heavy 'n' rockin' yet majestic and beautiful."^[16] Prior to the formation of The Devin Townsend Band, Townsend had represented his solo releases live with the Strapping Young Lad lineup; the band would play one set of Strapping Young Lad songs and one set of Devin Townsend songs.^[30] After the release of Accelerated Evolution, Townsend's two bands toured separately for their separate albums.^[2]

Strapping Young Lad began working on their next album, Alien, in March 2004.^[31] Feeling that the band's previous album did not live up to expectations, Townsend decided to take his music to a new extreme.^[32] To prepare for the new album, Townsend stopped taking the medication prescribed to treat his bipolar disorder.^[33] "I think that as an artist, in order for me to get to the next plateau, I kind of feel the need to explore things and sometimes that exploration leads you to places that are a little crazy," he explains. "And Alien was no exception with that."^[34] Although Townsend considered the album an "impenetrable mass of technicality",^[35] it was well received on its release, selling 3,697 copies in its first week^[36] and appearing on several Billboard charts.^[37]

Shortly thereafter Townsend began putting together the next Devin Townsend Band record, with the working title Human.^[38] Townsend intended the album as the more "pleasant" counterpart to Alien. "It's basically a record about coming back down to earth after being in space with Alien for a while."^[34] The album ended up being renamed Synchestra and was released in January 2006. Townsend showcased a wide variety of musical styles in Synchestra, blending his trademark "pop metal" with influences from folk, polka, and Middle Eastern music.^[39]

[edit] Ziltoid the Omniscient and hiatus (2006–2008)

Townsend's wife, Tracy Turner, gave birth to their first son, Reyner Liam Johnstan Townsend, on October 4, 2006.^[40] Around this time, Townsend withdrew from touring to spend time with his family. From home, Townsend completed his second solo ambient album, The Hummer, releasing it exclusively on his website in November 2006.

In May 2007, Townsend released Ziltoid the Omniscient, a tongue-in-cheek rock opera about the eponymous fictional alien. This was truly a solo album; he programmed the drums using Drumkit from Hell,^[41] a software drum machine that uses MIDI samples recorded by Tomas Haake of Meshuggah^[42] and played all other instruments himself. Shortly after the album's release, Townsend announced that he no longer planned to tour or make albums with Strapping Young Lad or The Devin Townsend Band. He explained that he was "burnt out on travelling, touring, and self promotion" and wished to do production work, write albums, and spend time with his family without the stress of interviews or touring.^[43]

In 2008, Townsend lent his voice to characters in several episodes of the Adult Swim cartoon Metalocalypse (see Musician cameos in Metalocalypse for more). The original character design for Pickles the Drummer, one of the series' main characters, bore a striking resemblance to Townsend. The series' co-creator Brendon Small acknowledged the similarity, and altered the design before the series began. "We made sure he didn't look like Devin Townsend. We gave him the goatee and the dreadover so he wouldn't look like that."^[44]

The Devin Townsend Project (2008–present)[link]

Devin Townsend performing with the Devin Townsend Project in Cleveland, Ohio (January 25th, 2010).

After removing himself from the music industry, Townsend cut his trademark hair off^[45] and gave up drinking and smoking.^[46] Townsend found it "disconcerting" that he had difficulty writing music without drugs, and that he had trouble identifying his purpose as a musician. He spent a year producing albums in absence of writing, but found it unrewarding and decided to "pick up the guitar and just write".^[45] This began a period of "self discovery"^[46] where he learned "how to create without drugs".^[47]

Over two years, Townsend wrote over 60 songs, and found that they fit into "four distinct styles".^[45] In March 2009, Townsend announced his plans for a four-album series called The Devin Townsend Project,^[47] with the goal of clarifying his musical identity and being "accountable" for the persona he projects to the public.^[45] The project's concept includes a different "theme" and a different group of musicians on each album.^[47]

Ki, the first album of The Devin Townsend Project, was written to "set the stage" for the subsequent albums.^[47] Townsend channeled his newfound control and sobriety into Ki, a "tense, quiet" album that contrasts with much of the music he had been known for.^[45] Ki was released in May 2009.^[48] The second entry, a "commercial, yet heavy" album called Addicted, was released in November 2009.

Townsend returned to the stage in January 2010, touring North America with headliner Between the Buried and Me as well as Cynic and Scale the Summit. This was followed by a headlining tour in Australia and a series of high-profile shows in Europe (for example co-headlining the Brutal Assault festival in Czech Republic). He headlined a North American tour with UK label mates TesseracT supporting, which began in October 2010, and toured in Europe with support from Aeon Zen and Anneke van Giersbergen.^[49]

The final albums in The Devin Townsend Project series, Deconstruction and Ghost, were released on June 21, 2011. Townsend performed all four of The Devin Townsend Project albums in the UK and recorded them for a DVD called By a Thread – Live in London 2011 that will be released in 2012. The first three shows were held at the University of London Union, November 10–12, 2011. Ki, Addicted, and Deconstruction were each performed on one night, respectively. The show for Ghost was held at the Union Chapel, Islington on November 13, 2011.^[50] These four shows were each entitled "An Evening with the Devin Townsend Project".^[51]

Since 2009, Townsend has discussed plans to expand the Ziltoid the Omniscient franchise. His ideas included a sequel album, a "full blown musical" with the title Z²,^[52] but the album appeared to have been scrapped, as Townsend stated in mid-June 2011, "I’m very rapidly realizing that humor and metal… it doesn’t really work." However, as of July 2011, he has stated on his Twitter account that the album was still in the works, but was "vying for pole-position" as he works on other projects.^[53] He has expressed possible plans to begin a series of online videos, a series titled ZTV, instead, in which a Ziltoid hand puppet conducts interviews with various bands.^[54] A graphic novel based on the Ziltoid character, and possibly performing the Ziltoid album as a staged musical, at least as a one-off, have also been considered.^[55]

Townsend has stated on his Twitter that he is working on a new album, entitled Epicloud. He described the album as "Big, heavy, romantic kind of melodic stuff. Pretty, ethereal and simple."^[56] Anneke Van Giersbergen will take part in the album. Townsend also announced on his Facebook that the album would be released under The Devin Townsend Project name. Townsend recently played bass on the debut Bent Sea album Noistalgia. He also produced the record.^[57]

As part of Australia's Soundwave Festival Devin announced on Soundwave TV that he will begin recording Epicloud in Perth Australia after the festival.^[58][59]

Musical style[link]

Projects[link]

Townsend (right) performing with Strapping Young Lad in Bologna, Italy (2006).

Townsend designed his two main projects, the aggressive Strapping Young Lad and his more melodic solo material, as counterparts.^[60] Strapping Young Lad's music was a diverse mix of extreme metal genres; death metal, thrash metal, black metal^[61] and industrial metal. Townsend's solo material blends many genres and influences,^[62] with elements of atmospheric ambient music,^[63] hard rock and progressive rock,^[16] along with pop metal and arena rock.^[62] Despite Strapping Young Lad's greater mainstream acceptance, Townsend identifies more with his solo material, and has never intended Strapping Young Lad to be the focus of his music.^[64]

Production style[link]

As a self-proclaimed "fan of multitracking",^[34] Townsend has developed a trademark production style featuring an atmospheric, layered "wall of sound".^[39] Townsend has drawn critical praise for his productions, which "are always marked by a sense of adventure, intrigue, chaotic atmospherics and overall aural pyrotechnics", according to Mike G. of Metal Maniacs.^[16] Townsend mainly uses Pro Tools to produce his music, alongside other software suites such as Steinberg Cubase, Ableton Live, and Logic Pro.^[34] Townsend's musical ideas and production style have drawn comparisons to Phil Spector^[39] and Frank Zappa.^[65] Townsend has carried out the mixing and mastering for most of his solo work himself. He has also mixed and remixed work for other artists such as Rammstein, August Burns Red and Misery Signals.

Playing style[link]

Townsend mainly uses Open C tuning for both six and seven string guitar. He now also uses Open B tuning and Open B flat tuning (Open C tuning tuned a half and a whole step down respectively) on his six string guitars. Townsend's technique varies from fingerpicking, power chords and polychords to sweep-picked arpeggios and tapping techniques. He is also known for his heavy use of reverb and delay effects. He has expressed that he has no taste for shred guitar, saying that "Musically it doesn't do anything for me" and that he only solos when he thinks that he can within the context of the song.^[66] Townsend himself has stated, "Yeah it's played on the...Fourth fret, E string, Eighth fret, A string...", and has remarked, "I have no idea what notes they are, I have people who do that".^{[citation needed]}

Townsend used ESP guitars from 1994 to 2009, when he switched to Peavey guitars. In 2011, Peavey introduced a Devin Townsend signature 7-string baritone guitar with an EMG 81-7 in the bridge position and a 7-string EMG SA in the neck position. Townsend is also known for his usage of the Fractal Audio AxeFX system.

Influences[link]

Townsend draws influence from a wide range of music genres, most prominently heavy metal. Townsend has cited, among others, Judas Priest, W.A.S.P., Frank Zappa, Broadway musicals, Abba, new age music, Zoviet France, King's X, Morbid Angel, Barkmarket, Grotus, Jane's Addiction, Metallica, Cop Shoot Cop and Fear Factory as his influences,^[67] and has also expressed his admiration for Meshuggah on several occasions, calling them "the best metal band on the planet".^[68] City was influenced by bands such as Foetus and Cop Shoot Cop,^[11] and The New Black's influences were Meshuggah, and "more traditional metal" like Metallica.^[22] He is also influenced by classical composers such as Igor Stravinsky.^{[citation needed]}

Discography[link]

Townsend has released fourteen solo studio albums and five studio albums with Strapping Young Lad. He has also released numerous EPs, live albums, compilation albums, and collaborations under a variety of monikers, and has produced several albums for other artists.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Devin Townsend

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Devin Townsend

• HevyDevy Records
• Devin Townsend on Myspace
• Devin Townsend at Allmusic
• Strapping Young Lad on Myspace
• Devin Townsend at YouTube

Silver fox or Silver Fox may refer to:

Animals[link]

• Silver fox (animal), the melanin-related discoloration of Vulpes vulpes, a genetically-determined color phase of the common red fox in which the fur is black tipped with white
• Domesticated silver fox, a domesticated form of the above animal
• Silver fox rabbit, a rare North American breed of domestic rabbit, with distinctive silvering on its coat

Arts and entertainment[link]

• Silver Fox (comics), a Marvel comics character
• "Silver Fox", a song by RJD2 from his 2002 album Deadringer

Transport and military[link]

• Silver Fox UAV, an unmanned aerial vehicle that can conduct autonomous aerial surveillance
• Operation Silver Fox, a World War II military campaign codename
• Silver Fox, an LNER Class A4 steam locomotive (LNER 2512, British Railways 60017), featured in the film Elizabethan Express.

People[link]

"Silver Fox" or "the Silver Fox" is a nickname for:

• Kansas State University head football coach Bill Snyder
• Korean martial artist and film actor Hwang Jang Lee
• Country music star Charlie Rich
• Professional poker player Peter Costa
• Professional poker player Mel Judah
• NHL G.M. Cliff Fletcher
• Hockey player Lester Patrick
• Anglican Bishop Ian Brackley
• NASCAR driver David Pearson
• CNN reporter Anderson Cooper
• Actor John Slattery
• Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre
• Snooker player David Taylor
• Baseball player Duke Snider
• Professional BASE Jumper Collin Scott

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