Rockland County NY - Heavy Metal
Suburbia...Suburbia...SUBURBIA!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Monoxide - Piermony, N.Y. (1988-1991)
I would describe Monoxide as a Death/Thrash band. Again, I remember seeing them live back in the day, but the only thing I remember about the band is that Tito Puente Jr. (Decomposed) was their drummer at some point.
I know from the bands bio and my own terrible memory that Monoxide were originally called Dregs of Society, and I believe Tito played drums in Monoxide prior to playing with Decomposed. Anyway, the music is solid, well recorded and well performed, and definitely worthy of a listen if you are a fan of obscure 80's- 90's metal.
Unfortunately, I do not have either of the bands demo tapes...demo #1 from 1988 or Live To DAT from 1991, however you can stream the bands music on their Myspace page...so do it!
Dave G.
02/02/2012
Monoxide Myspace
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Out of Darkness - Congers N.Y. (1990? - ?)
I was trying to find some additional information about Out of Darkness to fill in the blanks spots in my memory and all I could find was this video clip from a local cable access TV show recorded around 1990.
In closing I have to say that the music produced by Out of Darkness some 20+ years ago holds up really well today. Give these sample tracks a listen especially if you are a fan of 90's thrash with some modern metal touches. Really top musicianship all the way around.
Dave G.
02/01/2012
Songs:
Unknown #1
Unknown #2
Unknown #3
Mutilation - New City, N.Y. (1988-1993)
Mutilation was formed in early 1988 by Randell Salmon (Decomposed) with the late Jeff Reimer (Decomposed, Morpheus Descends) on vocals. This incarnation of the band did not last long, and Mutilation was reformed in late 1988 by Ron Colandra with Randell Salmon, adding Jason Trenczer, Lou Lehman and Dante Sciosia.
Shortly after reforming the band recorded and released their first demo tape "Seasons of Death", and following the success of this first demo tape , which firmly planted the band in the NY Death Metal scene Mutilation returned to the studio and recorded and released their second demo tape "Dead By Dawn" in 1989. In 1990 Randell Salmon left the band to reconnect with Jeff Reimer in Decomposed and Mutilation brought in Rob Moschetti to replace him.
It appears that a third demo tape "In The Flesh" was released in 1992, prior to the band signing to JL America and releasing their excellent self titled full length Lp. Unfortunately, Mutilation broke up in 1993 shortly after the albums release.
Dave G.
02/01/2012
Line up:
Dante Scioscia-VOCALS-1988-1991
Randell Salmon-BASS-1988-1990 (ex-Decomposed)
Ron Colandria-DRUMS-1988-1992 (ex-Undivided)
Lou Lehman -GUITAR AND VOCALS 1988 TO 1992 (Generation Kill)
Jason trenczer -GUITAR-1988 TO 1992 ( Generation Kill. ex-Undivided)
Rob MOSCHETTI - BASS AND VOCALS-1990 TO 1992.. ( Generation Kill , ex-Full Scale Riot, ex-Hollow, ex-Pro-Pain, ex-Undivided, ex-M.O.D.)
Dead By Dawn
Last Second of Pain
No Choice
Mutilation Myspace
You may have noticed that 3 members of Mutilation are currently in Generation Kill, which is a currently active Rockland metal band featuring Rob Dukes of Exodus on vocals, yes Rob is a Rockland County guy as well. Check out Generation Kill here
Monday, January 30, 2012
Permanent Damnage – Pearl River, N.Y. – ( 1991 to 1997 )
If you we’re a Metal band from Rockland…chances are you weren’t that talented, doing anything remotely innovative, and not really looking to far beyond playing “Cheers” in Nyack once every two months…usually to 10 of your friends. It was easy….and it was guaranteed! To stand out, and to carve a different path from this inert scene….a Metal band had to have a different approach, an almost outsider point of view, something unique to offer beyond the ‘chuga chuga chuga…thud thud thud” that was mind numbingly prevalent in Rockland. One band that had that approach, who stood out, and carved a unique path through the muck, and sludge of Rockland Metal was Permanent Damnage from Pearl River, N.Y.
Permanent Damnage started off initially as a three-piece band called“Noyes”….named after the surname of the brothers in the band…Darren (Guitar / Vocals) and Kent (Bass) Noyes. They retained this name for a few years, and moved through a succession of drummers until finally landing the hard hitting and talented Tim Roche (ex-Drill), which helped to round out the line-up, and give the band the ferocity it needed. After a name change to the certainly more Metal name of “Permanent Damnage” this secured line-up would go on to be the version of the band that achieved the most recognition and success.
Permanent Damnage had a unique sound, and to describe that sound, one has to harken back to a different time…a time less influenced by bands like Judas Priest and Iron Maiden, and seemingly more influenced by bands like Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, and even to a certain degree some touches of Southern Rock. While all the “Metal” components are certainly there in Permanent Damnage’s music….there is a vein of “classic rock” that seems to run through their songs that give them a really different sound, one that raises their particular version of “metal” above the others who were simply grinding it out. There is thoughtful songwriting mixed in the onslaught, there is melody wrapped around the power, there is progression intertwined in the riffs, there is a sense of tradition in the songs that was definitely not the norm for all other Rockland Metal bands…..it works, and it worked really well for them.
Permanent Damnage managed to break out a bit of the Rockland confines that trap so many other bands, and played quite often in NYC, New Jersey, and many other surrounding states….to much acclaim and success. They managed to release one proper LP called “Dirty Mary”, which seemed to sell very well at their shows, and they continued on for a few more years…..expanding and refining their sound before the band came to a halt in 1997, and each band member moved on to other projects both personal and musical.
It could most certainly be said that if Permanent Damnage had continued on, and achieved the success they sought…that they would have been most definitely ahead of their time with their melodic / heavy “arena” sound (as evidenced by certain bands of lesser talent and vision currently tearing up the charts with the exact sound Permanent Damnage seemed to be doing long before anyone else).
Alas….some bands are only meant to exist for the exact time that they do, and they move on. Permanent Damnage was a bright spot in a rather mundane Rockland Metal scene, and high praise goes to them for having the balls to be themselves, and in the process creating some really great music that we are proud to share with you! Enjoy!
Chris Skelly
January, 29, 2012
Permanent Damnage
Freedom Supression
I'll Never Need You
Pain
What Are You Trying To Say
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Malicious Onslaught - Stony Point N.Y. (1986 - 2000's)
If memory serves I believe Malicious Onslaught was the first truly extreme death metal band to form in Rockland County, though their first demo tape from 1987 does lean a bit more to the thrash side of things, their later releases were pure death metal.
Malicious Onslaught Released a number of demos and two full length Albums, the albums were titled Rebellious Mayhem (1992) and Grutal Gore (1994), I will attempt to give a complete discography below.
Dave G.
01/26/2012
Discography
Demo # 1 (1987)
Thrashed Black (Demo 1988)
Rebllious Mayhem (Rehearsal Demo 1989)
Rebellious Mayhem (Full Length Lp 1992)
Brutal Gore (Full Length Lp 1994)
Brutal Gore (Demo 1994)
Corpsified Maliciously (Demo 1995)
Malicious Onslaught Facebook
Killpower - Garnerville/Stony Point N.Y. (1986/87 - PRESENT? )
I remember seeing Killpower live all around Rockland County back in the day before I fell out of the metal scene in the early 90's...however I believe Killpower persevered for many years after I lost track of their doings. Anyway, Killpower are a good band with mainly a thrash/death metal feel to their songs, at least that is what I hear...be sure to check out the bands Myspace for more information about Killpower.
Dave G
01/26/2012
From Killpower Myspace BIO:
"Killpower began as an idea of Brian Finucane. In it's hey day, it played many venues on the east coast, and almost every dive in the NY metro area including Rockland, Westchester, and Orange counties. Known for their brutal live shows, they had quite a following".
Classic line up: Joe Delehanty-guitar (RIP); Brian Finucane-Vocals/Guitar; John Gillespie-Bass; Rob Cadiz-Drums; OTHER MUSICIANS: BASS-Rob Moschetti & many others; DRUMS-Vinny Quattrocci, & too many others to mention.
Blood Will Bring Blood (Demo 1988)
01 Hostile Assailant
02 Blood Will Bring Blood
03 Can't Take The Heat...
04 Merchants of Death
Catalyptic World (Demo 1989)
01 Hienous Pariah
02 Vivasected
03 Hostile Assailant
04 Catalyptic World
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Torment - (1986 - 1988)
To the best of my knowledge Torment featured members from Rockland County NY and Bergen County NJ. After the demise of Torment Guitarist John Eleazar (RIP) went on to join Riphouse and Guitarist Ron Roshong joined Out of Darkness and perhaps Sadistik Ritual as well but I am not 100% certain.
I never saw Torment live, and honestly do not recall hearing them back in the day, but I can honestly say that musically they were one of the best if not the best thrash band in and around Rockland based on these demo recordings. The musicianship is top notch...excellent riffs, insane guitar soloing and solid drumming all add up to some must hear thrash metal.
Dave G.
01/25/2012
Take Every Life (Demo 1987)
01 Take Every Life
02 Madball
03 Strive To Win
04 Torment
05 Hello Insanity
Death Toll (Demo 1988)
01 Death Toll
02 Electrocution
03 Gotta Get A Gun
04 Back From The Dead
05 Pitbull Hysteria
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Bar Sinister - Pearl River N.Y. (late 80's early 90's )
As far as the music presented below goes I know the drummer who had previously played in Selective Outrage gave me this demo tape in 1988 as we had been working together at the time picking and packing books at a local warehouse. Anyway, musically Bar Sinister play power/thrash metal that doesn't bring any popular 80's band in particular to mind which is a good thing.
Besides the "Sin Now Pray Later" demo tape from 1988, Bar Sinister also released a second live demo in 1989 called "Live and Sin".
Dave G.
01/24/2012
Bar Sinister - Sin Now Pray Later 1988
Evil Man
Trilogy of Terror
Attack
Bar Sinister - Live Sin (Live Demo 1989)
Dark Night
Attack
Nuclear War
Bastards Will Pay (Trouble Cover)
Death Penalty
Bar Sinister Myspace
Sectorian - Garnerville, N.Y. (1991- ?)
Sectorian play a sloppy style of Death metal with out of tune guitars, non-existent bass, sloppy drumming and gruff vocals. I have no idea how seriously Sectorian took themselves, but I have a feeling they took themselves very seriously. If anyone can provide us with more details regarding this band then please leave a comment so I can flesh out this post.
Dave G.
01/12/2012
Succubus
Tears No More
Lycanthropy
The Wastes Below
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Decomposed - Monsey NY
Decomposed formed in the Spring Valley /Monsey area of Rockland County somewhere around 1990.
I wish I could give you all an in depth history about the band, but my memories are very blurry some 22 years after the fact. What I do remember is the band had a show at Mr Rips in Valley Cottage shutdown by the cops because they were using actual human bones as stage props which the band may or may not have dug up themselves, now that is death metal.
Vocalist Jeff Riemer (RIP) went on to Morpheus Descends...drummer Tito Puente JR. (yes the son of that Tito Puente) also played in Monoxide and bassist Randell Salmon also played in Mutilation. These 3 bands made up the bulk of the Spring Valley Death Core scene aka S.V.D.C. which was a town in Rockland were most of the band members lived in or near...Dave G.
Demo #1 (1991)
Demo #2 (Live Rehearsal 1991)
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Sadistik Ritual - Congers NY
Hailing for Congers NY (Rockland County) Sadistik Ritual released 2 demo tapes 1988's demo #1 and 1989's "Dealing With Darkness".
Sadistik Ritual played a style of Thrash Metal similiar to Exodus and Testament with some crossover elements thrown in as well. I saw Sadistik play in and around Rockland many times back in the day and I always thought they deserved much more recognition than they ever received. Hopefully this post will shine some light on the band and introduce them to a whole new generation of Metalheads.
Sadistik Riual eventually morphed into Out of Darkness who I hope to add to the blog in the near future...Dave G.
Members:
Matt Hodge - vocals
Chris Mondelli - bass
Greg Paravati - guitars
Jon Ciorciani - guitars
Forrest Leighton - drums
Download:
1988 Demo Tape
1989 Dealing With Darkness Demo Tape
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Hostile Rage - New City N.Y. 1987 -Present
Hostile Rage Bio.
"HOSTILE RAGE was formed in March of 1987 in Bergen County,NJ, and Rockland County, NY. The bands first release,"Hostile Rage Volume 1" was released later that same year. The band immediately made themselves known, appearing on the New Renaissance Records compilation albums,"Thrash Metal Attack 2" and "Speed Metal Hell 4" with the track "Dead Meat". Then, 1989, brought the release of their second album entitled :"On The Rampage". During this time HOSTILE RAGE was a mainstay on the club scene opening for Major acts such as "Dark Angel", Nuclear Assault, Laaz Rocket, etc. Also during this time the band added another guitarist in Art Peterson. But after a short while, Peterson went on to form his own band "Chaotic Realm", and HOSTILE RAGE remained a four piece band from then on. In 1990, HOSTILE RAGE teamed up with OVERKILL to play a Benefit Concert at Ramapo College for a young girl with a rare liver disease. This year also marked the bands third release, "Adrenaline Flow". In the years to follow, Hostile Rage saw a member change on Bass. Bill Buckley left the band for personal reasons. Mike Dolan then took over the duties on Bass. These years saw the release of the bands 4th and 5th albums, "Furious Brutal Loud" in 1995 and 'Uncontrollable Urge" in 1997. The band then disbanded until recently reuniting in October of 2009 with the original members from 1987. Which brings us to now! HOSTILE RAGE is back once again to deliver it's brand of Heavy Metal Music for the masses!!!"
Like many Rockland County bands Hostile Rage had/has some members from our closest neighbor Bergen County NJ (as noted in the bio), however I remember going to band practices in Congers N.Y. so in my opinion Hostile Rage has always been a Rockland County band. It was actually very common for bands from Rockland to have members from Bergen County due to the the close proximity of these Northern NYC suburban Counties...as it was also common for many NYC and NJ bands to have Rocklanders as members...for example Overkill and Anthrax.
Hostile Rage was probably the most prolific and long running Metal band to come out of Rockland County considering they have released 5 demo tapes and they are still performing live to this day...so check them out live if you get a chance...Dave G.
Discography:
Volume 1 ... 1987 Demo
On The Rampage ... 1989 Demo
Adrenalin Flow ... 1990 Demo
Furious Brutal Loud ... 1994 Demo
Uncontrollable Urge ... 1996 Demo
Links:
Encyclopedia Metallum
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Selective Outrage - Pearl River , N.Y. ( 1986 - 1988 )
SELECTIVE OUTRAGE – Pearl River, N.Y. (1986 to 1988)
By the summer of 1985, Hardcore Punk and Heavy Metal…former enemies at large, we’re now starting to notice each other. It wasn’t yet at this point a full blown love affair, but it is safe to say that some interest beyond the standard “hmmmm?” was beginning to happen. Depending on who you consult on this issue, this was either evolution or blasphemy for both camps…..yet as Victor Hugo once said (and I paraphrase) “ No army can stop an idea whose time has come”. Welcome to the story of Selective Outrage……Rockland County’s first “Thrashcore” band.
Selective Outrage began in the spring of 1986, with vocalist Chris Skelly and guitarist Mike Wilson coming together over their shared mutual loves of bands like Discharge, Slayer, Angry Samoans, Metallica, Adrenalin O.D., etc……and wanting to create a project that reflected these shared influences. Mike O’Keefe (bass) and Manny Fasano (drums) were brought in as the rhythm section, and songwriting began in earnest.
Shortly after compiling a sturdy roster of about 10 to 12 quick, and angry songs….Selective Outrage played their first show at a party thrown by future members of the North Rockland metal band Killpower. Selective Outrage left the metalheads stunned with a 25 minute set of ferocious hardcore punk / metal that no one had seen up until that point. The future members of Syianic we’re in attendance at this show, and their excitement of what they had just seen helped to forge a tight alliance with Selective Outrage that lasted until the demise of both bands.
Selective Outrage next went into the studio to record their first “8 Song” demo, and this tape quickly made the rounds of the burgeoning Rockland County hardcore / metal scenes. Their sound was a ferocious mix of high speed punk riffs, and technical metal structure….with a lyrical base that delved into topics such as war, politics, scene division, and personal liberty. Even with this new scene starting to grow…..venues we’re elusive, and fear of these “lunatic” kids made shows even harder to come by. In the early spring of 1987…Chris Skelly and Mike Wilson walked into a rinky dink bar in Nyack, N.Y. called “Blondies” and asked the owner if she would be interested in hosting an all ages matinee show for some of the up and coming bands in this scene, to which she reluctantly said yes. With massive promotion through flyers and word of mouth……the four band bill of Selective Outrage, Syianic, Malicious Onslaught & Violent Youth drew close to 250 paying customers, and marked the new age, and new home of Rockland County hardcore and metal. Shows at this venue (which has gone through a variety of name changes) continue to this day.
Selective Outrage continued to play, and organize shows in Rockland County, and North Jersey through 1987, and in 1988 recorded their 2nd demo called “We’re All Mad”. This demo saw Selective Outrage progress to an even more technical and brutal sound, and was greeted with much acclaim in fanzines, and received moderate radio airplay on college stations throughout the country.
1988 saw the demise of Selective Outrage simply due to the fact that the band had run it’s course, and the members we’re looking towards other projects and futures.
Selective Outrage will always be remembered as the band that started it all for the 2nd wave of Rockland County hardcore and metal, and how they worked tirelessly to create a viable scene…. where one hadn’t existed before...Chris S.
Selective Outrage - recorded history.
1985/1986 - Practice Tape - Containing 3 never recorded songs
01. Spock - The Space Hippies / Aids
02. Vision
03. Barking At Religion
Download
1986 Demo Tape
01. Dump Trucks
02. Peer Pressure
03. Mr. God
04. Unity
05. Vaticon
06. Think For Yourself
07. The Cries
08. Wargames
09. Manson
Download
1988 Demo Tape
01. This Is Not A Test
02. Living The Horror
03. Crucifixion Party
04. Children of Democracy
05. State Violence / State Control ( Discharge cover)
Download
Friday, July 1, 2011
Syianic - Garnerville, N.Y. (1987 - 1988)
Syianic hailed from northern Rockland County NY and consisted of Glenn (Guitars), Rodney (Drums) and Damon (Bass and Vocals) who later went on to play in Non-Fiction with Dan Lorenzo of Hades.
While a majority of the metal bands from Rockland were playing a clean thrash metal style in the 80's and 90's Syianic stepped up to the plate with a more technical Death/Thrash approach that blew me away from my very first listen almost 25 years ago.
I remember the drummer Rodney giving me their demo back in 87 and really not knowing what to expect in all honestly. I mean, I was 20 years old and Rodney was probably 15 years old at the time so I wasn't expecting much from this kids demo , and man was I surprised when I dropped that sucker into the tape deck. The demo immediately grabbed me with it's dirty sound quality, frantic riffing, walking bass lines and quick solid drumming.
In 1988 the band went back into the studio looking to improve on the sound quality of the 87 demo, and also to take the music to an even more complex place, and what they ended up with is an epic VoiVoid meets Slayer "Hell Awaits" era sounding masterpiece of a song. Unlike the 1987 demo I do not think the 1988 demo track was ever released to the public, beyond being given to a handful of close friends...so I am glad that I can now turn the rest of the world on to this incredible song.
In closing I need to thank Glenn for hooking me up with these demos again after 20 plus years as my original cassettes had fallen victim to time. Also, Glenn sent me a copy of the most recent cd from his band "At War With Self" so give them a listen as well (Glenn incorporated a few old Syianic riffs into a couple of the songs). At War With Self have a more progressive sound to their music and Glenn is one hell of a good guitarist...really top notch musicianship on this cd...very impressive indeed...Dave G.
1987 " The Cross Has Fallen" demo + the 1988 demo + a song from At War With Self .
Riphouse - Congers, NY
My dad worked at the post office. Riphouse drummer Jim DeMaria was a postman as well at a different office, but on some sort of delivery or drop off, they got to talking and my dad and Jim got on the topic of Jim being in a band and my dad told him I was a big music fan. Jim, ever the constant promoter, sent me a Riphouse cassette ("Rip II") and I was hooked. I got in touch, and Jim and the guys changed my entire world. Going to rehearsals, hocking tickets to kids in my high school. Jim came to my school and told them he was my uncle and got me out of class. I was already running a fanzine at the ripe old age of 15 (Unchain the Underground) and covered Riphouse, but really it was just a way in the door to hang with the guys. They were rock stars to us, but treated the 'fans' like family. We converted people to the Riphouse faith. If they made it, we made it. We were such a part of things that when guitarist Jon Eleazar died, it was like losing a member of our families. We all felt it. We still do. Suddenly we all grew up a little bit and realized we weren't going to live forever, but damn if our heroes weren't.
"The Family" on stage singing at the Jon Eleazar memorial show at World Stage
Riphouse dominated the Rockland scene, inspiring a bunch of bands, wiping the floor with them at shows, and showing everyone how it was done, and then how not to do it. They released two "official" demos: "Join The Family" in 1988 and "The Family Dies"! in 1990, then the never-officially-released "The Cat Starves" with what could be their best recordings. A two-track live recording is floating around out there too with the last batches of songs they wrote. It is criminal they were never really recorded properly. Riphouse never got signed. Came close, but naturally somehow it got all fucked up. Sure, some other Rockland bands put out "albums," but they never touched Riphouse, and they all knew it then and know it now.
The Riphouse story has everything a music story worth telling should have: success, failure, religion, drugs, happiness, sadness, life, death. I'll never forget seeing them open for Flotsam and Jetsam. They outdrew and outplayed them. Flotsam were going to be HUGE, or so we thought. Jason Newstead went on to Metallica, for fuck's sake. And here were our local boys beating the absolute tar out of them on stage. How could Riphouse NOT make it? Our pal Pete O'Brien made a documentary called "RIPHOUSE 151: Could've Been's & Wanna Be's" that covers exactly how. He summed it up better than I ever could, and credit to Pete... he wasn't even there back in the day. His brother turned him on to the 'House, and Pete took it on himself to go deeper into the story than anyone thought possible. I couldn't come close to making sense of it all the way Pete managed to, so I won't even try.
Check out www.neddihyllausiv.com/p/riphouse-dvd.html for the lowdown on the movie, and a link to watch the whole thing online. You'll see my grim mug all over that flick, and get an insight into the band that we all loved and why we loved them so much. I am not sure if listening to the tunes below will make you like the documentary more, or if the documentary will make you like the tunes more (Anvil, anybody?), but check out both.
Rest in peace, Jon. And rest in peace, Riphouse. We miss you both. I am sure I am not the only one to think that we sure as hell could use another band like Riphouse right now...Greg S.
Riphouse I: Join the Family (1988):
1. Bacardi 151
2. Deglammerizer
3. Big Box Bitch
4. Riphouse
5. Warriors March
6. Square World
http://www.mediafire.com/?ma2dmr0ydycd07f
Riphouse II: The Family Dies (1990):
1. R.A.D.
2. G.B.A./Propagate
3. War Of The Worlds
4. Riphouse II: The Family Dies!
5. Speed Metal Blues
6. Big Box (re-recorded)
http://www.mediafire.com/?f6n1hg08da6n146
Riphouse III: The Cat Starves (1990):
1. Circles
2. No Police State
3. The Big E (Evil All Around Us)
4. Existence Refused
http://www.mediafire.com/?dj3stgtbuttv88u
Riphouse Remixes (2008)
1. R.A.D.
2. Square World
3. Existence Refused
4. The Big E
5. Deglammerizer
6. No Police State
7. Speed Metal Blues
http://www.mediafire.com/?ph1w6mwrztibdda
Riphouse...Facebook
Riphouse 151