ABOUT HOMERIK

"Please, carry us through the dark times."

- Atashi, fan of Homerik

At the helm of Homerik is our Mad Composer and twenty-first century architect supernal, Ken Candelas. The demons and hellish landscapes of Candelas’ story are conveyed by the twisted mind of graphic artist and illustrator, David ‘Max’ Millgate, and brought to life through the spoken word narrated by master storyteller, Jonathan Kruk.

Homerik brings the classic adventure of Dante’s Inferno to life with a new perspective in a Cinematic Metal opera featuring a Nazi soldier named Dante who finds himself deep within the conflicts of World War II, begging for forgiveness.

The Mad Composer brings this new musical landscape coupled with the addition of David’s imaginative artworks and Jonathan’s eloquent narration to unearth a magnum opus. The mesmerizing vocal work of Elizabeth Candelas, the enthralling guitar work of Jason Stallworth, and the heavy basslines of Nic Z elevate the album to new musical heights.

Homerik brings a message of quality over quantity and, above all else, an art form unlike anything ever seen before in the Metal community. The feats of Homerik are established by its three essential pillars: music, art, and literature. Taking after the world’s most revered masters, Homerik’s goal is to create a legacy that lasts many lifetimes.

Homerik’s initial efforts began in 2008 under the guise, “Opus” — a project that explored the sounds and structure of Symphonic Metal through Ken’s high school years. Influenced by the likes of Epica, Symphony X, and more, the ideas that were composed eventually found themselves incorporated into the 2017 self-titled “Homerik” debut album long after Opus was initially founded. Opus’ creative endeavors picked up where it left off in 2014, but this time under its new name: Homerik. Ideas from Opus also found their way into “The Circle of Dead Children”.

Ken was a student at the City University of New York and utilized his resources at The Sonic Arts Center at The City College of New York to bring in many friends and colleagues into the studios to create Homerik’s first album. His efforts were a massive success and paved the way for “The Circle of Dead Children”. Its story was written in 2018 and its music was recorded between 2019 - 2021 at Spin Recording Studios and various project studios.

“The Circle of Dead Children” is a story originally inspired by the concept of ‘as above, so below’, an alchemical philosophy that fostered the merging of two concepts: an infernal pilgrimage through the Inferno to unlock the secrets of divine power hidden within the fabled philosopher’s stone. "Godless; A Song of the Night, Part II" takes on after “A Song of the Night: Part I”, the Homerik prologue that explores the relationships of Morgana, the mother of Dante.

Morgana’s role is pivotal to the story, for she is the key to Dante’s connection to the devil. This forces Dante to explore deep within the Inferno and, as he gets closer to the ninth circle of Hell, a great power within him begins to awaken. Whilst Dante seeks answers to correct the errors of his soul, he must uncover what harkens him toward the divine and what kind of power he harnesses. The afterlife depends on it.

This epic quest for redemption and healing explores the workings of humanity’s morals. Homerik has created a reflective journey that which we can ponder on the questions that have no answers. A journey to recognize our mortality and recognize what is good.

Ken Candelas is a busy professional musician and audio engineer who has worked with some of the most celebrated performers today including Wyclef Jean, Lady Gaga, Ricky Martin, Jason Mraz, Rascal Flatts, and Cardi B. He has been a member of the audio team for Good Morning America music presentations between 2017 to 2020. Ken is also the composer, author, drummer, vocalist, orchestrater, arranger, recording and mixing engineer for Homerik. In addition to Ken’s work in music and audio, he is a respected educator who participates in the AES Audio Educators Advisory Group in order to contribute to the discussion on audio technology pedagogy for renown companies such as Neumann, Empirical Labs, Oeksound, the Les Paul Foundation and many more.

As a boy, Ken Candelas grew up in an artistic home where creativity was encouraged. His mother, Abigail Vallé, was a noted fashion designer whose fashion line, Altacalidad, was all the rage in Puerto Rico throughout the 1980's while his father, Hector Candelas, was an in-demand session and touring musician as well as musical director for noted artists such as Lissette Álvarez, Ednita Nazario and Menudo among others. During his teenage years, Ken studied fine art at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, the prestigious institution made popular by the iconic movie, “Fame”. He received several noted awards for his artwork and designs including the Milton Glaser Award and First Place in the Directory of N.Y.C. Public High Schools Design Competition. Upon graduation, Ken decided to pursue his deep interest in rhythm and music production, following in his father's footsteps.

Ken graduated with honors from Queensborough Community College as a Music Production major and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts with a concentration in Audio Technology at The Sonic Arts Center at The City College of New York. Ken operates in New York City and collaborates with clients on both the east and west coasts of the USA. Ken is extremely well-versed in capturing high-definition recordings and has incredible post-production ethics, in addition to having strong musical skill. His experience from interning at studios such as Masterdisk, Harvestworks, Spin Recording Studios, Big Yellow Duck, and Aura Sonic have played a very important role in shaping his career. He worked at Good Morning America and is a professor at three universities.

Ken is endorsed by Antelope Audio, Soundtheory, Audeze, Bettermaker, NUGEN Audio, Eventide and more. He is the co-founder of Metal Mastermind, the drummer for the melodic hard rock band Four Trips Ahead, and the creator behind the cinematic metal project Homerik. He is an avid contributor to the Web3 space as an investor, activist and an ambassador for Opulous.

Ken works with state of the art equipment in his personal studio, “The Cabin at LaGuardia”. His signal chain includes hardware and software by the likes of Antelope, Bryston, Dunlavy, Yamaha, Manley, Neve, API, Chandler, Universal Audio, and more. Ken is certified by Avid, BlackMagicDesign, Audinate, Waves, Focusrite, Solid State Logic, DiGiCo, Yamaha, Eventide, and Empirical Labs.