Winters Bane "Heart Of A Killer (Japan, Metal Mania, TECX-25667)"

Winters Bane are a heavy/power metal band formed in 1990.  They have gone through extensive line-up changes throughout their history with only guitarist and sometime-vocalist Lou St. Paul featuring as an ever-present.

In their first incarnation with Tim "Ripper" Owens (who would later join Judas Priest and Iced Earth), they released the Heart of a Killer album in 1993, a concept piece based on the murderous exploits of a character called Judge Cohagen. This album was re-released in 2000 by Century Media Records as a two-CD set, featuring a bootlegged live gig as a bonus disc.

Heart of a Killer is Winter's Bane's debut album, released in 1993. It is a partial concept album, with the first six songs detailing the story of a judge who sentences a murderer to death, and soon afterwards has his heart replaced with the killer's in a transplant operation.

Heart of a Killer was re-released by Century Media in 2000, featuring a bonus disc comprising a live recording from a radio broadcast and a demo. A live recording of the band performing as a Judas Priest tribute band British Steel was submitted to Judas Priest by someone who knew the band, convincing them to hire Tim "Ripper" Owens as a replacement for Rob Halford in 1996.

Track listing

All songs written by Lou St. Paul, except for where noted.

1. "Wages of Sin" (Tim Owens, St. Paul) - 6:28
2. "Blink of an Eye" (Owens, St. Paul) - 3:59
3. "Heart of a Killer" - 4:24
4. "Horror Glances" - 5:01
5. "The Silhouette" - 4:34
6. "Reflections Within" (Owens, St. Paul) - 5:41
7. "Haunted House" - 3:49
8. "Nightshade" (Owens, St. Paul) - 5:17
9. "Winters Bane" (Winter's Bane) - 4:33
10. "Cleansing Mother" - 5:28

Time:  48:14

Recording information:

Recorded at Commusication Studios, Beindersheim, Germany.

Producer – Torsten Hartman

Artwork – Andreas Marschall