Banger Films has found its Ultimate Shredder! Toronto guitarist Frankie Caracci has been declared the winner of the inaugural season of Shredders Of Metal, the first talent competition show dedicated to heavy metal music, broadcast on YouTube channel BangerTV.

Frankie plays lead guitar for the Canadian epic death metal band Vesperia. Throughout the series, he was praised by judges Alex Skolnick, Sam Dunn and Daniel Dekay. After surviving five rounds of elimination, Frankie won the final guitar duel in Episode 6 to claim the top honours.

“While all of the competitors brought their best, Frankie was a cut above,” says Sam Dunn, founder of Banger Films. “From the first episode through the final duel, I was truly impressed by his virtuosity, taste and boundless creativity. I’m proud that Shredders Of Metal crowned a champion that is one of the best emerging lead players in the genre today.”

Fellow judge Alex Skolnick of Testament also complimented Caracci’s versatility. “All the players brought a sense of personality, dedication to the guitar and healthy competition to the show,” says Skolnick. “Frankie is someone whose style blends the most modern techniques of today with a feel and finesse that harkens back to an earlier era when shred was new; I’m pleased our search has yielded someone for whom I can tell friends of mine in the professional guitar community ‘Hey, you gotta hear this guy!’"

Watch the finale below:

Watch the first five Shredders Of Metal episodes below:

(Series Premiere) Shredder’s Choice: Each contestant performs an original 60-second shred, freestyle.

Speed Kills: Alex Skolnick of Testament performs his solo for “Practise What You Preach”. Contestants must replicate a section at ever-increasing speeds.

Metalize This! Five remaining contestants are assigned a children’s song to perform in a metal style of their choice.

The Big Score: Four remaining contestants are given a short video and must create an accompanying original score.

Figure Shredding: Three remaining contestants perform as many techniques as they can, which is given a score of 1-10.