Quick Info
GENRE - Beatdown Hardcore / Hardcore Punk
BAND - Winston, Rico, Krusty & John
LOCATION - Chicago, IL.
GENERAL - The band rises from the ashes of 'The Ghost of Rick James' with a more refined sound, a new member and new attitude. They play an aggressive and pummeling hardcore style known as beatdown. The band used the name 1st Blood for a little while but got into legal troubles so now they are 1st Assault. They have a positive attitude, are prideful & are anti-defeatist, but they're also complete assholes. When apart the members seem mild but when together, they just get rambunctious, hostile and take stuff way too far, even when it doesn't seem like they would.
BAND - Winston, Rico, Krusty & John
LOCATION - Chicago, IL.
GENERAL - The band rises from the ashes of 'The Ghost of Rick James' with a more refined sound, a new member and new attitude. They play an aggressive and pummeling hardcore style known as beatdown. The band used the name 1st Blood for a little while but got into legal troubles so now they are 1st Assault. They have a positive attitude, are prideful & are anti-defeatist, but they're also complete assholes. When apart the members seem mild but when together, they just get rambunctious, hostile and take stuff way too far, even when it doesn't seem like they would.
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MANAGER - TheGhostofRickJames / VideoRoom207
ASSOCIATED ACTS - A 3rd Murder, Warning Shot, The Divine Grace Beyond Gravity, Suicide By Spoon
LABEL - POM Records / http://pomrecords.weebly.com/1st-assault.html
WEBSITE - http://www.wix.com/1stassault/pom-band#!
MANAGER - TheGhostofRickJames / VideoRoom207
ASSOCIATED ACTS - A 3rd Murder, Warning Shot, The Divine Grace Beyond Gravity, Suicide By Spoon
LABEL - POM Records / http://pomrecords.weebly.com/1st-assault.html
WEBSITE - http://www.wix.com/1stassault/pom-band#!
Achievements
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Due to various issues including state specific legal actions and a federal warrant out for an arrest, the information below may or may-not be accurate or credible. Subjects referenced may possibly not be real or alive either.
drummer
name: Rico 'Diamonds' Suave age: 24 birthplace: Mexico drums: Pearl bio: He was the son of a miner and had a hard time growing up; He basically had to fend for himself. After numerous drug runs for the local cartel he found himself in the middle of an assassination of a local musician. Long story short, he left and vowed to focus on music and leave the rest behind. influences: deathklok, my autumn, taking your last chance, as they sleep, silence, thy art is murder, sumatra, bermuda, the faceless, a bloodbath in boston role: He's the hardest working member of the band; he's constantly coming up with ideas for better accents and highlights in the songs and he hates staying in the same tempo and style for long. He practices hours upon hours a day in his time-off, constantly honing in his skills. He comes off as constantly mad but he's the most rational member of the band. |
bassist
name: 'Trikky Coxx' or 'Krusty' age: 23 birthplace: Chicago bass: Panther & Turbocaster bio: He always wanted to be part of the early Glam metal scene but things turned sour since he was born way too late for it. So because of this injustice he started a brutal hardcore band to let out his rage; well until the other scene picks up again. influences: bad news, spinal tap, ratt, motley crue, poison, stryper, van halen, heart throb mob, discharge, amebix, anti cimex, the varukers, gbh, g.i.s.m, crucifix, gauze, one way system role: Don't be fooled by his good looks and brooding composure, he's a real douche and the leader of the band but he takes care of most of the behind the scenes work and sets the bands direction. He's also the bands tech guy and also does the sound engineering, graphic design and video work for the band. |
lead guitarist
name: 'Winston Churchill' age: 22 birthplace: New York guitar: Over-G & Redgie bio: Had a deadbeat dad, fucked up in school and wasn't doing shit for a while except waiting for the next fix. He stole a friends guitar and just traveled around squatting from place to place. He wanted a little more out of his life and one day he met Krusty and joined the band. influences: converge, coalesce, curl up and die, breather resist, scarlet, gaza, the chariot, botch, the architects, the dillinger escape plan role: He is the main riff writer for the band and comes up with all of the solos. He loves coming up with new combinations and textures to the sound. He's usually a smart ass to people he doesn't know but the most social and charismatic. |
rhythm guitarist
name: 'John Wayne' age: early 20's birthplace: North Korea guitar: Voyager & Redgie bio: "John Wayne" is a North Korean defector. He was trained since the age of 12 to be part of North Korean Special Forces. Born into a family with strong ties with the North Korean Workers Party it is unknown why or how he defected but he has a strong passion for American hardcore music. influences: madball, hatebreed, throwdown, terror, agnostic front, death before dishonor, blood for blood, minor threat role: He creates the solid backing riffs that fill in Winston's more intricate work. He makes sure the band has the right mix of slams, grooves and breakdowns. He also has no problem busting some kneecaps if it comes down to it. For the most part though, he's the calmest member of the band. |
The Crew
The Manager- Rick James used to be in the band itself as the lead guitarist; He's actually the one that came up with the band name 'The Ghost of Rick James'. Nobody knows his real name but he likes to get drunk, really high and everyone in the band and crew accepts him as Rick James now. He makes sure the band is getting from location to location, has a proper recording space, gets paid, and has a good time. He has been best friends with Krusty since they both grew up in Chicago and together they started the original band. He got too deep into all the bad stuff, worse than he is now, but after rehab he decided to take on a different role with the band. He has made quite a name for himself and the band now idolizes their managers spirit and attitude because he really makes the best out of any situation and really pushes everyone. He also runs Pwnage Studios, which produces all of 1st Assault's work.
The Assistant- Spectre is a long time friend of 'The Ghost of Rick James' and now '1st Assault'. He's sometimes the bands roadie when not working on his stuff for the bands 'Pay the Price' & "Convicted". 1st Assault consults Spectre all the time and the members and crew highly respect him and his opinions. He's part of the family and helped the overall musicianship of the band.
The Photographer- Trace has taken some of the best shots of the band and has really helped the bands image from just something going on in the local scene to a fairly well known presence. The band continues to work with Trace on new promotional material and constantly coming up with ideas and ways to show them. Trace even helped the band out by getting them on the Punk-o-Magazine; it's run by two jerks by the way.
The Record Label (previous) - Spanky with his label 'Cookies and Biscuits Records' has helped the band in the long run by being there to promote all of 'The Ghost of Rick James' material. He really helped the band get their shit together and get out of their long hiatus and start producing music again. The band got to relive fond memories when they did a short tour with his band 'Spanky Revolution'.
The Record Label (present) - Mr. Schultz is a wealthy entrepreneur that is throwing copious amounts of money at the band. He wants his record label to become incredibly popular because he has a huge rivalry with another wealthy German. He will do anything to double or even triple his investment. The band loves money so they highly respect Mr. Schultz. Anything they have in mind, including more expensive ass music videos, is a phone call away with Mr. Schultz.
Blondie - A very nice friend of the band.
Reporter - Randy "...we fucking hate this guy. What a piece of shit. Every time I see him I wanna knock his damn teach out - Krusty". They hate him but Randy still covers whatever they're up to. Nuff' said.
Helper - Sid, without him 1st Assault would of never gotten their first shot. He offered them a space in his garage and helped them get their first fans, cash, useless items and also introduced them to some kick ass venues and people. The band wants to say hi to August especially. Thanks Sid.
The Assistant- Spectre is a long time friend of 'The Ghost of Rick James' and now '1st Assault'. He's sometimes the bands roadie when not working on his stuff for the bands 'Pay the Price' & "Convicted". 1st Assault consults Spectre all the time and the members and crew highly respect him and his opinions. He's part of the family and helped the overall musicianship of the band.
The Photographer- Trace has taken some of the best shots of the band and has really helped the bands image from just something going on in the local scene to a fairly well known presence. The band continues to work with Trace on new promotional material and constantly coming up with ideas and ways to show them. Trace even helped the band out by getting them on the Punk-o-Magazine; it's run by two jerks by the way.
The Record Label (previous) - Spanky with his label 'Cookies and Biscuits Records' has helped the band in the long run by being there to promote all of 'The Ghost of Rick James' material. He really helped the band get their shit together and get out of their long hiatus and start producing music again. The band got to relive fond memories when they did a short tour with his band 'Spanky Revolution'.
The Record Label (present) - Mr. Schultz is a wealthy entrepreneur that is throwing copious amounts of money at the band. He wants his record label to become incredibly popular because he has a huge rivalry with another wealthy German. He will do anything to double or even triple his investment. The band loves money so they highly respect Mr. Schultz. Anything they have in mind, including more expensive ass music videos, is a phone call away with Mr. Schultz.
Blondie - A very nice friend of the band.
Reporter - Randy "...we fucking hate this guy. What a piece of shit. Every time I see him I wanna knock his damn teach out - Krusty". They hate him but Randy still covers whatever they're up to. Nuff' said.
Helper - Sid, without him 1st Assault would of never gotten their first shot. He offered them a space in his garage and helped them get their first fans, cash, useless items and also introduced them to some kick ass venues and people. The band wants to say hi to August especially. Thanks Sid.
various images from other photoshoots and promos
click to see larger versions with the caption
The band spares no expense when making their promotions & music videos. Also check out these videos from The Ghost of Rick James era.
HERE WE GO
How it all got muthafukin staaarted.
Hiatus
After nights of heavy drinking and constant drug use, three of the
members of The Ghost of Rick James decided it was time to get the band
moving forward again. The band had numerous run-ins with the law and
other illegal activities which in-turn led to stints in prison and lots
of rehab. While on a long hiatus the band came up with new material few
and far between but when they did, they made sure to really work on their musicianship. The band decided to split with one of its founding members due
to disagreements in style and started to pursue something even more
aggressive. The band still idolizes Rick James and wants nothing more
than to party hard, get a lot of tattoos, make expensive music videos
and get laid but knows that their music has to progress. P.S. send
groupies our way!
"Yeah I don't really like their sound but fuck that, I still want in. They've decided to tour under a different name; What a bunch of assholes......Aye, gimmie a smoke, I'm stressing the fuck out!" - The Manager, Rick James
"Yeah I don't really like their sound but fuck that, I still want in. They've decided to tour under a different name; What a bunch of assholes......Aye, gimmie a smoke, I'm stressing the fuck out!" - The Manager, Rick James
Switch Up
(mid 2011)
Since the band had lost a member they went through a few fill-ins. None of the sissies seemed to fit what the band wanted. Most of the replacements wanted to be all serious & shit and become some lame hard rock or metal band. The members couldn't stand it. But then, one day, they finally found the right replacement.
"We basically found John Wayne sleeping in a camouflaged tent behind Vana's about to punch out Hackit. He basically said he came here to get into hardcore music and he ain't leaving until he finds a band to play with. Well we needed a member and he looked like he was gonna kick our asses...perfect!" - Krusty
With John Wayne now a part of the band, they started to draw even bigger crowds into Vana's particularly. A lot of people at Vana's really disliked Rick James so now that he was more behind the scenes than upfront, the crowd was more accepting of the band.
"We basically found John Wayne sleeping in a camouflaged tent behind Vana's about to punch out Hackit. He basically said he came here to get into hardcore music and he ain't leaving until he finds a band to play with. Well we needed a member and he looked like he was gonna kick our asses...perfect!" - Krusty
With John Wayne now a part of the band, they started to draw even bigger crowds into Vana's particularly. A lot of people at Vana's really disliked Rick James so now that he was more behind the scenes than upfront, the crowd was more accepting of the band.
Legal troubles
(mid to late 2011)
The band early on found itself in trouble with the law. Krusy would start a lot of fights at Vana's over the most trivial things. If someone looked at him wrong during a show he would jump kick them in the face! If he needed another beer on stage he would throw the empty bottle at the bar. Sometimes he would grope one of the other bands girlfriends when he would run around the audience floor. Winston would talk trash to bands while on & off stage. Sometimes he would tamper with their gear just to get a quick laugh, especially if the band they were playing with was new. Rico would steal drum parts once in a while from other bands when he would wear out his own gear. But it didn't end there. Rick James would sometimes steal money from various venues and show promoters, sell drugs to other bands and managers and even help the band trash hotel & motel rooms then skip out on the bill!
After the release of the Punk-o-Magazine Issue #02 the band got into a serious trademark case about the bands name. The magazine gathered quite a following and it turned out someone from another band read it and showed it to a band with the same name! It turns out there already was a 1st Blood touring in the UK. The band just never bothered to look it up before they used it. Cookies & Biscuits Records lawyers tried to help but ultimately failed because Spanky decided to use grad students instead of successful ones. So because Rick James was a cheap ass and the rest of the band was off doing other crap, so the band name got changed to 1st Assault.
After the release of the Punk-o-Magazine Issue #02 the band got into a serious trademark case about the bands name. The magazine gathered quite a following and it turned out someone from another band read it and showed it to a band with the same name! It turns out there already was a 1st Blood touring in the UK. The band just never bothered to look it up before they used it. Cookies & Biscuits Records lawyers tried to help but ultimately failed because Spanky decided to use grad students instead of successful ones. So because Rick James was a cheap ass and the rest of the band was off doing other crap, so the band name got changed to 1st Assault.
In Studio
(early 2011 to early January 2012)
From early 2011 to January 2012 the band has been producing demo tapes trying to figure out what songs are going to go on their major LP called 'Windy City Takeover'. But tensions have been high between the band. Lack of commitment, seriousness and extreme partying have totally distanced the band members from each other and goals. Tracks have been made here and there but nothing is set in stone yet. Some suspect the band will never release a full LP and instead will break-up. Despite putting out a promotionl advertisement recently on Youtube, many old fans are low on hopes for seeing & listening to anything soon. The band members themselves are so disjointed from music at the moment that morale is at a all time low while each member is trying to get themselves back together. Another issue is that long time friend, co-producer and adviser Spectre hasn't been seen for a while and this of course has the members worried and not as confident about their work. The band recently released a remix of the song 'These Pretzels are Satly' which was produced by Spectre for the 'C&BR End of the Year' album. But no news on Windy City Takeover.
Label Split
_ (Late January - April 2012)
Rick James was trying to avoid an album contract with Cookies & Biscuit Records and paying a penalty for not having 1st Assault's album out on time. At the moment the band can't get themselves together and unless they would of released an album soon, C&BR was going to fine them. The contract says this would only happen if they stayed with C&BR. C&BR was pissed that they spent so much money promoting 1st Assault but they haven't really put out anything and running a label is expensive. So 1st Assault moved over to Metal Militia Records for a little while. They were suppose to release their first single on Metal Militia (if they made one). And then see where they go from there.
Rick James later decided without the approval of the band to drop Metal Militia and make the band independent. He started promoting their previous two albums on his own trying to gather some cash to help kick-start the bands commitment to music. So far there hasn't been any other news but fans are staying hopeful.
Rick James later decided without the approval of the band to drop Metal Militia and make the band independent. He started promoting their previous two albums on his own trying to gather some cash to help kick-start the bands commitment to music. So far there hasn't been any other news but fans are staying hopeful.
POM RECORDS
(present time)
In late July the band joined POM Records. Previously the band has been on Cookies & Biscuits but left over a contract dispute. After that they joined Metal Militia and again, they had more disputes especially because they felt MM was "worthless & a waste of time; they're all talk but no show! - Winston", so they left. For a while the band stayed unsigned and self-promoted through Bandcamp. But things change in late 2012. Mr. Schultz, the CEO of POM Records, was looking for bands for his fresh label. He was well connected to the financial world so he heard of 1st Assault back when they were 1st Blood and were fighting a legal battle for their name. He also heard about all the trouble they would get in. He knew the label needed a band that would stir up noise, get on the news and make an intense entrance. A dull & quiet band would not help the label get any attention, he thought. Mr. Schultz has been prepping the band and getting them the best help possible for their release of Windy City Takeover.
John put up some riffs he was messing around with on Youtube as well. Mr. Schultz was also able to get John a sponsorship from Guitar World and now shreds on a Redgie.
The Eras
These Pretzels are Salty - This was the bands first song. It encompassed the sound they wanted. They became really egotistical after a friend decided to shoot a video for them because that's when new friends, money, booze and drugs started popping up frequently, not to mention their first groupies. The band did very little for a while. They basically just coasted off one track. Although the local scene enjoyed sharing this track around. The video ended up on the local cable access music show. The band knew there had to be more though.
Carnage Pwnage - This was the bands first serious song. Well at least serious in song writing terms. The song basically mocked the local metal-heads and started up controversy but the band really got a kick out of it. The video was quite a success and even has a re-edit. The video was in heavy rotation for a while but the band still didn't even have a demo release. There has also been two fan made covers/tributes of the song; one by band 'Wasted' and the other by the band 'Inked and Scarred'.
Paranoia Junkie - Drugs...lots of drugs. The band started messing around with psychotropic drugs to try to get a new sound but they just ended up tweaking a lot and making another hard rock song. They were super paranoid but they loved it. They're look change a bit to reflect that.
No Rush - Growing tired of the pressure to make a song they just sat around drinking booze and sure enough someone left the recorder on and this is what came out of a really short jam session. The band decided to calm their look down even further but kick up the pace of the music.
Punk Riots EP - Sometime later the band decided to go back to their roots and started getting back into the bands Krusty was a huge fan of. They were going around local small clubs and playing some really raw music. At one of the shows the band got frustrated by cops hovering around and that night the pigs finally crashed the whole show. They found Spectre there and after more drinking they decided to make an EP together. With their new sound came a new attitude and style.
Windy City Takeover - The bands reinvention of themselves, although still in progress.
Carnage Pwnage - This was the bands first serious song. Well at least serious in song writing terms. The song basically mocked the local metal-heads and started up controversy but the band really got a kick out of it. The video was quite a success and even has a re-edit. The video was in heavy rotation for a while but the band still didn't even have a demo release. There has also been two fan made covers/tributes of the song; one by band 'Wasted' and the other by the band 'Inked and Scarred'.
Paranoia Junkie - Drugs...lots of drugs. The band started messing around with psychotropic drugs to try to get a new sound but they just ended up tweaking a lot and making another hard rock song. They were super paranoid but they loved it. They're look change a bit to reflect that.
No Rush - Growing tired of the pressure to make a song they just sat around drinking booze and sure enough someone left the recorder on and this is what came out of a really short jam session. The band decided to calm their look down even further but kick up the pace of the music.
Punk Riots EP - Sometime later the band decided to go back to their roots and started getting back into the bands Krusty was a huge fan of. They were going around local small clubs and playing some really raw music. At one of the shows the band got frustrated by cops hovering around and that night the pigs finally crashed the whole show. They found Spectre there and after more drinking they decided to make an EP together. With their new sound came a new attitude and style.
Windy City Takeover - The bands reinvention of themselves, although still in progress.
Thank You to all the Fans!
Any comments are welcomed!
updated 04/24/2012
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