Hollowstone isn't your average Minneapolis metal band. Aside from being one of the few metal bands fronted by a female, Hollowstone is old-school metal reborn. A tasteful blend of galloping drums, progressive guitars, introspective lyrics, crystal clear vocals, and songs of epic proportion shape their sound into a modern twist of '80s power metal. Hollowstone officially formed in fall of 2008, but the band's history goes back much further. Bassist Jared Bittner and guitarist Nick Anderson met in junior high in 1993 with the idea of forming a heavy metal band. After several lineup changes, Nick and Jared were still serious about the music and wanted to pursue it further. By the time both were out of high school, they met drummer Corey Kirk through a mutual friend and the three hit it off right away and thus began writing. But lineup changes and life changes soon proved to be an obstacle and the band was dis-membered (so to speak) for several years. Still unable to quench the desire for a metal band, they formed once again and soon sought guitarist Chris Tacheny, a high school friend of Jared's. After a year of producing new material, Jared, try as he might, still couldn't produce a singing voice. Tacheny, unable to stand Jared's agonizing wails, could take no more and began searching the internet for a singer. After seeing a Craigslist ad from a local singer named Chelsea Wrathchild, Chris immediately contacted Chelsea for an audition. The band had never previously entertained the thought of having a female singer, but Chelsea proved to deliver an interesting twist to the already existing songs. Soon, the five members were writing together and in summer of 2009, recorded two demos and immediately began gigging around the Twin Cities. In 2011, longtime friend Don E.V. joined as the keyboard player and sixth member of the band. Recording of their full-length album, "Rite of Existence," began in early 2011 and was released December 2011. The bond among the members remains strong, thanks to a passion for metal and a very quirky sense of humor that they all share. (of which Jared is usually the brunt)