Ludichrist
Encyclopedia
Ludichrist was an American hardcore punk
/speed metal
band formed in the 1980s in New York
. Their musical style broke from traditional New York hardcore
roots by adding aspects of rock
, heavy metal
and jazz
, like extended guitar solo
s and musical interludes. After their second proper album, lead singer Tommy Christ and guitarist Glen Cummings broke up the band and reformed with a new rhythm section as the more humor-oriented, style-jumping Scatterbrain
.
called Off the Board.
On their debut album Immaculate Deception, one track featured guest vocalists from fellow New York bands Agnostic Front
, Nuclear Assault
, The Crumbsuckers
and Leeway
. The original drummer and founder of Ludichrist (also the guy who named the band), Al Batross, left after the first album Immaculate Deception was recorded. Incredibly, Immaculate Deception was reviewed in the May 11, 1987 issue of People
between Bryan Adams
Into the Fire and The Kinks
Think Visual!
By the time Ludichrist's second album Powertrip was released, the band only retained two original members, vocalist Tommy and guitarist Glen which naturally lead to a drastic change in style and sound. The band became far more metallic in style, while retaining a range of musical influences and being more overtly humorous, they abandoned the early hardcore style and featured musicianship by Paul Neider (guitar) and Dave Miranda (drums) in particular. Many have noted that the track "Green Eggs and Ham" (on Immaculate Deception) was possibly the first example of a hard core or metal band paying homage to rap music, as a break in the middle of this song is a cover of the Run DMC song "Rock Box" (with self-mocking, humorous lyrics added.) This for, example, pre-dates songs by bands like Anthrax which later received heavy rotation on MTV.
in the 1990s. He later played with the band MDC (Millions of Dead Cops) from 2001 through 2003. , Batross continues to live in NYC and has been the sole American member in three all-Japanese bands to date, curiously enough, also based in NYC called The Plungers, The Spunks and Gelatine. The Spunks released "Yellow Fever Blues" in 2007 on Gearhead Records. Following a few years of consistent touring and local gigs, The Spunks disbanded when members Hajime and Joji decided to move back to Japan after having lived in the US for almost 9 years. Al, properly known as Alan Bazin, is an accomplished film and video editor who has also been working on a book related to New York City architecture. He was recently signed by a literary agent.
Glen Cummings toured with Mucky Pup
for a brief time, released two albums with his own band, Stone Deep, while living in Nashville, TN , and eventually left the music world in the 1990s to pursue a career in design. He received a BFA from The School of The Art Institute of Chicago and an MFA from Yale University School of Art. He currently lives in New York City, is art director at 2x4, a well-respected downtown design studio, and is a lecturer in design at Yale University.
Original bassist Chuck Valle later joined Murphy's Law
, and had become an audio engineer (see Six and Violence
), but was stabbed to death in California following an argument with an unknown man. Recently, Valle's family has been involved with trying to prevent the man who murdered him from being released from prison.
Recently, 2007, several Ludichrist reunion shows took place in New York.
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
/speed metal
Speed metal
Speed metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that originated in the late 1970s from NWOBHM and hardcore punk roots. It is described by Allmusic as "extremely fast, abrasive, and technically demanding" music....
band formed in the 1980s in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Their musical style broke from traditional New York hardcore
New York hardcore
New York hardcore refers to hardcore punk and metalcore music created in New York City and to the subculture associated with that music. New York hardcore grew out of the hardcore scene established in Washington, D.C., by bands such as Bad Brains and Minor Threat. Hardcore '81 is an album by the...
roots by adding aspects of rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
, heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
and jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, like extended guitar solo
Guitar solo
In popular music, a guitar solo is a melodic passage, section, or entire piece of music written for an electric guitar or an acoustic guitar. Guitar solos, which often contain varying degrees of improvisation, are used in many styles of popular music such as blues, jazz, rock and metal styles such...
s and musical interludes. After their second proper album, lead singer Tommy Christ and guitarist Glen Cummings broke up the band and reformed with a new rhythm section as the more humor-oriented, style-jumping Scatterbrain
Scatterbrain
Scatterbrain was an eclectic thrash metal band formed in 1989 when Long Island, New York hardcore group Ludichrist featuring Tommy Christ and Glen Cummings regrouped and changed their name....
.
History
Original guitarist Mark Kanabrocki, who had written most of the first albums songs, left the band before it was recorded and appears only on the record release issued from CBGBCBGB
CBGB was a music club at 315 Bowery at Bleecker Street in the borough of Manhattan in New York City.Founded by Hilly Kristal in 1973, it was originally intended to feature its namesake musical styles, but became a forum for American punk and New Wave bands like Ramones, Misfits, Television, the...
called Off the Board.
On their debut album Immaculate Deception, one track featured guest vocalists from fellow New York bands Agnostic Front
Agnostic Front
Agnostic Front is an American hardcore band. The band began playing hardcore similar to their contemporaries, and were thrust to the forefront of the burgeoning New York hardcore scene in the mid-1980s with their widely regarded 1984 classic Victim in Pain before evolving to incorporate thrash...
, Nuclear Assault
Nuclear Assault
Nuclear Assault is an American thrash metal/crossover thrash band formed in 1984.-History:After the release of Anthrax's debut album Fistful of Metal, bass player Danny Lilker, a founding member of the group, was fired by the band...
, The Crumbsuckers
Crumbsuckers
Crumbsuckers was a 1980s crossover/thrash band that formed in 1982 on Long Island by bass player Gary Meskil in their home town of Baldwin.-History:...
and Leeway
Leeway (band)
Leeway is a crossover thrash band formed in Astoria, New York, USA in 1984 by guitarist A.J. Novello and vocalist Eddie Sutton under the name The Unruled. They played alongside groups such as Crumbsuckers, Prong, Ludichrist, Bad Brains, and Sick of It All at the predominantly hardcore punk-oriented...
. The original drummer and founder of Ludichrist (also the guy who named the band), Al Batross, left after the first album Immaculate Deception was recorded. Incredibly, Immaculate Deception was reviewed in the May 11, 1987 issue of People
People (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
between Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams
Bryan Adams, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, bassist, producer, actor and photographer. Adams has won dozens of awards and nominations, including 20 Juno Awards among 56 nominations. He has also received 15 Grammy Award nominations including a win for Best Song Written...
Into the Fire and The Kinks
The Kinks
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies in 1964. Categorised in the United States as a British Invasion band, The Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential rock acts of the era. Their music was influenced by a...
Think Visual!
By the time Ludichrist's second album Powertrip was released, the band only retained two original members, vocalist Tommy and guitarist Glen which naturally lead to a drastic change in style and sound. The band became far more metallic in style, while retaining a range of musical influences and being more overtly humorous, they abandoned the early hardcore style and featured musicianship by Paul Neider (guitar) and Dave Miranda (drums) in particular. Many have noted that the track "Green Eggs and Ham" (on Immaculate Deception) was possibly the first example of a hard core or metal band paying homage to rap music, as a break in the middle of this song is a cover of the Run DMC song "Rock Box" (with self-mocking, humorous lyrics added.) This for, example, pre-dates songs by bands like Anthrax which later received heavy rotation on MTV.
Post-Ludichrist
Al Batross http://www.digitalsharkstudio.com/albatrossdrums formed Big Sniff (with releases on both Mint Tone Records and Do iT! Records in Germany) with future members of The Arsons and Kill Your IdolsKill Your Idols
Kill Your Idols was a hardcore punk band from Long Island/New York City, New York. The band was active from 1995 through 2007. They were signed to SideOneDummy Records....
in the 1990s. He later played with the band MDC (Millions of Dead Cops) from 2001 through 2003. , Batross continues to live in NYC and has been the sole American member in three all-Japanese bands to date, curiously enough, also based in NYC called The Plungers, The Spunks and Gelatine. The Spunks released "Yellow Fever Blues" in 2007 on Gearhead Records. Following a few years of consistent touring and local gigs, The Spunks disbanded when members Hajime and Joji decided to move back to Japan after having lived in the US for almost 9 years. Al, properly known as Alan Bazin, is an accomplished film and video editor who has also been working on a book related to New York City architecture. He was recently signed by a literary agent.
Glen Cummings toured with Mucky Pup
Mucky Pup
Mucky Pup began as an American hardcore and crossover thrash band formed in Bergenfield, New Jersey in 1985, when brothers John and Chris Milnes joined up with Dan Nastasi and former Hades member, Scott LePage . The band went through various incarnations and several musical style changes while...
for a brief time, released two albums with his own band, Stone Deep, while living in Nashville, TN , and eventually left the music world in the 1990s to pursue a career in design. He received a BFA from The School of The Art Institute of Chicago and an MFA from Yale University School of Art. He currently lives in New York City, is art director at 2x4, a well-respected downtown design studio, and is a lecturer in design at Yale University.
Original bassist Chuck Valle later joined Murphy's Law
Murphy's Law (band)
Murphy's Law is an American hardcore band from New York City, New York, formed in 1982. While vocalist Jimmy Gestapo remains the only founding member of the band, the line-up has consisted of former members of bands such as Skinnerbox, Danzig, The Bouncing Souls, Mucky Pup, Dog Eat Dog, Hanoi...
, and had become an audio engineer (see Six and Violence
Six and Violence
Six and Violence is a musical group in the genre of New York Hardcore. Established in Queens New York in 1985, the band appeared at the seminal club CBGBs and other punk and heavy metal related venues in the New York area between 1985 and 2005. The band released 2 full length albums and a series...
), but was stabbed to death in California following an argument with an unknown man. Recently, Valle's family has been involved with trying to prevent the man who murdered him from being released from prison.
Recently, 2007, several Ludichrist reunion shows took place in New York.
Members
- Glen Cummings (guitar)
- Tommy Christ (vocals)
- Mark Kanabrocki (guitar)
- Alan Bazin aka "Al Batross" (drums)
- Joe Butcher
- Chuck Valle (bass)
- Dave Miranda (drums)
- Tony Scaglione (drums)
- Mike Walter
- Paul Nieder (guitar)
Discography
- CBGB presents Off the Board (1985)
- Immaculate Deception (1987)
- Powertrip (1989)
Related bands
- MDCMDC (band)MDC is an American hardcore punk band formed in Austin, Texas in 1979. The band were subsequently based in San Francisco, California, and are currently based in Portland, Oregon. MDC originally formed as The Stains before changing their name...
- Al Batross - Magic Elf - Dave Miranda
- Mucky PupMucky PupMucky Pup began as an American hardcore and crossover thrash band formed in Bergenfield, New Jersey in 1985, when brothers John and Chris Milnes joined up with Dan Nastasi and former Hades member, Scott LePage . The band went through various incarnations and several musical style changes while...
- Glenn Cummings - Murphy's LawMurphy's Law (band)Murphy's Law is an American hardcore band from New York City, New York, formed in 1982. While vocalist Jimmy Gestapo remains the only founding member of the band, the line-up has consisted of former members of bands such as Skinnerbox, Danzig, The Bouncing Souls, Mucky Pup, Dog Eat Dog, Hanoi...
- Chuck Valle - Scatterbrain - Glenn Cummings, Tommy Christ, Paul Nieder
- Gelatine - Al Batross
- The Spunks - Al Batross
- Big Sniff - Al Batross
- The Plungers - Al Batross
External links
- Ludichrist on MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
- Ludichrist - BandToBand.com