HEIR APPARENT was founded in 1984 by guitarist Terry Gorle. During 1985, the band signed with Black Dragon Records and completed the first album "Graceful Inheritance" which was released in January of 1986. Up to this day, their debut album is considered as one of the best US metal albums of the 80s. After highs and lows in the music industry and line-up changes, finally Heir Apparent was signed by Metal Blade Records and released their second album "One Small Voice" (1989), one of the best progressive metal albums of all times. Although the future looked bright, tensions surrounding commitment and finances within the band caused a rift that split the group. In 2000, Heir Apparent reunited at the Wacken Open Air festival in Germany, and in the next years more shows followed with different line-ups for festivals like Keep It True, Metal Assault and Up The Hammers. The current line-up consists of original members Terry Gorle (guitar), Derek Peace (bass), Ray Schwartz (drummer) with the addition of Op Sakiya (keyboards) and the great new singer Will Shaw. "The View From Below" was produced by Tom Hall in cooperation with the band. Tom Hall had produced the previous Heir Apparent releases and also worked with Queensryche on their "Queensryche" EP (1983) and "Empire" (1990), among others.
