Andy Sneap (born 18 July 1969) is an English guitarist, record producer, and composer with over 100 albums to his name, most of which have been produced at his Backstage Recording studios in rural Derbyshire. Some of the most critically acclaimed mixing-work on albums include Deliverance by Opeth and Disarm the Descent by Killswitch Engage; for which he earned a Swedish Grammis and a US Grammy nomination, respectively. As a performer, he first built his reputation as one of the guitarists in the British thrash metal band Sabbat, and played with them up until their disbanding. He is currently one of the co-guitarists of the British heavy metal band Hell. In 2018, Sneap joined Judas Priest as a touring guitarist, following long-time lead guitarist Glenn Tipton's reduction of touring due to Parkinson's disease.
He is one of the most active music producers in the heavy metal music genre and has worked with bands such as Judas Priest, Accept, Blaze Bayley, Dream Theater, Saxon, Opeth, Amon Amarth, Arch Enemy, Exodus, Megadeth, Kataklysm, Kreator, Nevermore, Testament, Carcass, Fear Factory, Overkill and DevilDriver. He also mixed Megadeth's show from the DVD The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria, also featuring Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax.
Biography Andy Sneap was born on 18 July 1969 in Belper, Derbyshire. He got his first guitar and amplifier from his parents at age 12 as a Christmas present. He started learning guitar with founding Hell member Dave Halliday, who had a huge effect on Andy and left him all the rights to all his songs and equipment in his will following his death. Sneap joined a British heavy metal band called Hydra as the second guitarist when he was 15 years old. But two weeks later, the original guitarist and drummer quit, Simon Negus joined them, and the band's name changed to Sabbat.
After disbanding Hydra and forming a new band, they chose Sabbat as the new name, which came from a book on witchcraft. After one year of rehearsing, they recorded a four-track demo tape, Fragments of a Faith Forgotten. Sneap distributed the demo tape to many record companies, but on listening, Berlin-based recording company Noise Records showed interest and asked for more material. In 1987, Noise Records offered the band a recording contract, but the contract could not be signed until Sneap turned 18 years old in July 1987. So they made a plan to start recording the band's first full studio album, History of a Time to Come. Andy wrote all the music while Martin Walkyier was responsible for the lyrics. Sabbat released the album on 20 April 1988 via Noise Records, which received positive attention from journalists and fans alike.
In January 1989 Sneap and the other band members entered Sky Trak Studio in Berlin to start recording their second album, Dreamweaver, which was a concept album based on the 1983 book by Brian Bates – The Way of Wyrd: Tales of an Anglo-Saxon Sorcerer. Andy wrote almost all of the music except three songs, which Simon Jones also wrote with Andy. The album has come to be regarded as a classic of the thrash metal genre, which reflects Andy's predilection at that time for increasingly lengthy and progressively technical thrash metal songs.
Discography As a band member Band Album details Role Source Sabbat History of a Time to Come Label: Noise Records Release date: 20 April 1988 Composer, Guitar, Remastering Dreamweaver Label: Noise Records Release date: 15 May 1989 Composer, Guitar, Remastering Mourning Has Broken Label: Noise Records Release date: 26 March 1991 Composer, Guitar Hell Human Remains Label: Nuclear Blast Release date: 13 May 2011 Engineer, Guitar, Mixing, Producer Curse and Chapter Label: Nuclear Blast Release date: 22 November 2013 Composer, engineer, Guitar, Mixing, Producer
Selected production Year Album details Role Source 1994 English Dogs – Bow to None Label: Impact Records Release date: 1994 Assistant, Mixing 1996 Dearly Beheaded – Temptation Label: Music for Nations Release date: 3 June 1996 Engineer 1997 Machine Head – The More Things Change... Label: Roadrunner Records Release date: 25 March 1997 Mixing Napalm Death – Inside the Torn Apart Label: Earache Records Release date: 3 June 1997 Mixing Exodus – Another Lesson in Violence Label: Century Media Records Release date: 8 July 1997 Producer Skinlab – Bound, Gagged and Blindfolded Label: Century Media Release date: 8 July 1997 Engineer, Mixing, Producer Napalm Death – Breed to Breathe (EP) Label: Earache Records Release date: 17 November 1997 Mixing 1998 Obituary – Dead Label: Roadrunner Release date: 21 April 1998 Mixing English Dogs – All the World's a Rage Label: Impact Records Release date: 25 August 1998 Producer Earth Crisis – Breed the Killers Label: Roadrunner Release date: 8 September 1998 Audio Engineer, Audio Production, engineer, Mixing, Producer 1999 Skinlab – Disembody: The New Flesh Label: Century Media Release date: 23 February 1999 Mixing, Producer, Vocals (Additional) Testament – The Gathering Label: Burnt Offerings, Spitfire Records (1999), Prosthetic Records (2008) Release date: 28 June 1999 Engineer, Mixing Artillery – B.A.C.K. Label: Die Hard music Release date: 2 October 1999 Mixing 2000 B L A Z E – Silicon Messiah Label: SPV Release date: 22 May 2000 Engineer, Mastering, Mixing, Producer Nevermore – Dead Heart in a Dead World Label: Century Media Release date: 17 October 2000 Engineer, Mastering, Mixing, Producer Fozzy – Fozzy Label: Palm Pictures / Megaforce Records Release date: 24 October 2000 Mastering, Mixing 2001 Arch Enemy – Wages of Sin Label: Century Media Release date: 2 April 2001 Mastering, Mixing Kreator – Violent Revolution Label: SPV/Steamhammer Records Release date: 25 September 2001 Engineer, Mastering, Mixing, Producer Testament – First Strike Still Deadly Label: Spitfire Records Release date: 24 October 2001 Audio Engineer, Mixing 2002 B L A Z E – Tenth Dimension Label: SPV Release date: 15 January 2002 Engineer, Mastering, Mixing, Producer Arch Enemy – Burning Angel Label: Century Media Release date: 6 March 2002 Mastering, Mixing Killswitch Engage – Alive or Just Breathing Label: Roadrunner Release date: 21 May 2002 Mastering, Mixing Skinlab – Revolting Room Label: Century Media Release date: 27 May 2002 Additional tracking, Mixing Living Sacrifice – Conceived in Fire Label: Solid State Records Release date: 24 September 2002 Mastering, Mixing Opeth – Deliverance Label: Koch, Music for Nations Release date: 12 November 2002 Mixing Masterplan – Enlighten Me Label: AFM Records Release date: 18 November 2002 Engineer, producer 2003 Masterplan – Masterplan Label: AFM Records Release date: 20 January 2003 Engineer, producer B L A Z E – As Live as It Gets Label: SPV Release date: 25 March 2003 Engineer, Mastering, Mixing, Producer Nevermore – Enemies of Reality Label: Century Media Release date: 29 July 2003, April 2005 (reissue) Remastering, Remixing (2005 reissue) Arch Enemy – Anthems of Rebellion Label: Century Media Release date: 23 August 2003 Engineer, Mastering, Mixing, Pre-Production, Producer MTV2 Headbangers Ball Label: Roadrunner Release date: 7 October 2003 Mixing, producer Machine Head – Through the Ashes of Empires Label: Roadrunner Release date: 31 October 2003 Technician Opeth – Lamentations (Live at Shepherd's Bush Empire 2003) Label: Koch, Music for Nations Release date: 24 November 2003 Mixing, Recording 2004 Exodus – Tempo of the Damned Label: Nuclear Blast Records, King Records (Japan), Dream On Music (Korea) Release date: 2 February 2004 Engineer, Mastering, Mixing, Producer 36 Crazyfists – A Snow Capped Romance Label: Roadrunner Release date: 16 March 2004 Mastering, Mixing B L A Z E – Blood & Belief Label: SPV/Steamhammer Release date: 26 April 2004 Audio Engineer, Audio Production, engineer, Mastering, Mixing, Photography, Producer Killswitch Engage – The End of Heartache Label: Roadrunner Release date: 11 May 2004 Mastering, Mixing Caliban – The Opposite from Within Label: Roadrunner Release date: 17 October 2004 Audio Engineer, Mastering, Mixing Bullet for My Valentine – Bullet for My Valentine Label: Visible Noise Release date: 15 November 2004 Mastering 2005 Kreator – Enemy of God Label: SPV/Steamhammer Release date: 10 January 2005 Audio Production, Mixing, Producer Trivium – Ascendancy Label: Roadrunner Release date: 15 March 2005 Mastering, Mixing, Vocals As I Lay Dying – Shadows Are Security Label: Metal Blade Records Release date: 14 June 2005 Mastering, Mixing Arch Enemy – Doomsday Machine Label: Century Media Release date: 26 July 2005 Mastering, Mixing Nevermore – This Godless Endeavor Label: Century Media Release date: 26 July 2005 Engineering, Mastering, Mixing, Producer Bullet for My Valentine – Hand of Blood Label: Trustkill Records Release date: 22 August 2005 Audio Production, Mastering Bullet for My Valentine – The Poison Label: Visible Noise Release date: 3 October 2005 Mixing, Producer (track 6) Exodus – Shovel Headed Kill Machine Label: Nuclear Blast Release date: 4 October 2005 Mastering, Mixing 2006 Caliban – The Undying Darkness Label: Abacus Release date: 4 April 2006 Mastering, Mixing As I Lay Dying – A Long March: The First Recordings Label: Metal Blade Release date: 16 May 2006 Mixing (tracks 1 and 3) 36 Crazyfists – Rest Inside the Flames Label: Roadrunner, DRT Entertainment 12 June 2006 Mastering, Mixing Kerrang Album Release date: 11 September 2006 Producer Into Eternity – The Scattering of Ashes Label: Century Media Release date: 3 October 2006 Mastering, Mixing Cradle of Filth – Thornography Label: Roadrunner Release date: 17 October 2006 Mastering, Mixing 2007 Onslaught – Killing Peace Label: Candlelight Records Release date: 5 March 2007 Mixing, Producer Chimaira – Resurrection Label: Ferret Music (U.S.), Nuclear Blast (Worldwide) Release date: 6 March 2007 Audio Engineer, Engineer, Mixing Annihilator – Metal Label: SPV/Steamhammer Release date: 16 April 2007 Mixing, Producer Job for a Cowboy – Genesis Label: Metal Blade Release date: 15 May 2007 Mastering, Mixing Megadeth – United Abominations Label: Roadrunner Release date: 15 May 2007 Audio Engineer, Audio Production, engineer, Mastering, Mixing, Producer Rise to Addiction – A New Shade of Black for the Soul Label: Mausoleum Records Release date: 21 May 2007 Audio Production, engineer, Mixing, Producer Despised Icon – The Ills of Modern Man Label: Century Media Release date: 22 May 2007 Mastering, Mixing DevilDriver – The Last Kind Words Label: Roadrunner Release date: 31 July 2007 Mastering, Mixing As I Lay Dying – An Ocean Between Us Label: Metal Blade Release date: 21 August 2007 Technician (guitar re-amping) Exodus – The Atrocity Exhibition... Exhibit A Label: Nuclear Blast Release date: 26 October 2007 Engineer, Mixing, Producer 2008 Testament – The Formation of Damnation Label: Nuclear Blast Release date: 29 April 2008 Engineer, Mixing 36 Crazyfists – The Tide and Its Takers Label: Ferret Release date: 27 May 2008 Mastering, Mixing Soulfly – Conquer Label: Roadrunner Release date: 29 July 2008 Mixing Unearth – The March Label: Metal Blade Release date: 14 October 2008 Mastering, Mixing Nevermore – The Year of the Voyager Label: Century Media Release date: 20 October 2008 Mastering, Mixing Cradle of Filth – Godspeed on the Devil's Thunder Label: Roadrunner Release date: 28 October 2008 Audio Engineer, Audio Production, Engineer, Mastering, Mixing, Producer Exodus – Let There Be Blood Label: Zaentz Records Release date: 28 October 2008 Mastering, Mixing 2009 Iron Monkey – Our Problem Label: Earache Records Release date: 26 May 2009 Engineer, Mixing, Producer DevilDriver – Pray for Villains Label: Roadrunner Release date: 14 July 2009 Guitar Producer, Mastering, Mixing, Mixing Advisor Megadeth – Endgame Label: Roadrunner