Although not active for 20 years, one of Seattle's finest metal bands, FIFTH ANGEL, has begun work toward a new studio project. Fifth Angel, formed in the mid-1980s, released two studio records, Fifth Angel (1986) and Time Will Tell (1989) to critical acclaim, building a rabid underground fan following. The band's song 'Midnight Love' was the featured theme song of radio personality Howard Stern's TV show in the early 1990s. The following is an official statement from the band on its status:

"After 20 years, the musical wheels have started turning in the Fifth Angel world. Last fall, Ed Archer (rhythm guitar) felt the time was right to open up and get out the songs popping into his head and slowly began talking to the other members of Fifth Angel about working on some material. Now in 2009, that work has commenced, with Ed having completed demos for four songs, with another 15-20 ideas being worked on for future demos. John Macko (bass) and Kendall Bechtel (lead guitar) are also doing work with writing and recording demos.

The road to this point was a long one. We disbanded in 1990 after not receiving support from the industry. Promises weren't kept and the change in musical landscape from metal to grunge had the same impact on Fifth Angel as it did with most bands of the period. While fans didn't forget about Fifth Angel, the business side of music did. We all went on to other careers or other bands, perhaps not con tent, but proud of what we achieved.

However, with technology today allowing for remote recording, the Internet, etc., the world is a smaller place and the time is right for us to reconnect with our music and see where it leads. At present, the plan isn't for Fifth Angel to be a “career band,” but we're all dedicated to working on songs, and working toward the possibility of getting an album out there, and perhaps playing a few shows in different areas of the globe for all those fans that were denied that so many years ago.

Our lineup, as it sits now, remains the one on the Time Will Tell album: Ted Pilot on vocals, Ed Archer on rhythm guitar, John Macko on bass, and Kendall Bechtel on lead guitar. We have a drummer or two in mind to complete the lineup, and when the time is right, will announce who will fill that role in Fifth Angel.

For now, just know that the entire band appreciates every fan out there that has said such complimentary things about our music over the past 20 years. We've seen the comments on Amazon.com and YouTube, read the e-mails sent to FifthAngel.net and observed all the discussion on message boards on the Internet. We know bands say this all the time, but we truly are humbled by your enthusiasm for our music, particularly after being disbanded for so long. It means a lot to us. Hopefully, schedules permitting, we'll have some new music for everyone in the next year."