SUICIDE CITY was first conceived when Biohazard vocalist/guitarist Billy Graziadei (who is now full time with BIOHAZARD) met Karl Bernholtz, vocalist of the south Florida band The Groovenics. The pair was joined by drummer Danny Lamagna, who had been recommended by members of Sworn Enemy. Soon after, Groovenics guitarist AJ Marchetta was added to the fold, and the lineup was finally rounded out by former Kittie bassist Jennifer Arroyo.
Not the type of band to just wait around for things to happen, SUICIDE CITY self-released an EP, ‘Not My Year,’ in 2005 and has since managed to sell over 7,000 copies sans label support. That year they also saw success in the form of a “Best Unsigned Band” award from East Coast Romper. In 2006 Kerrang! called them “a mesmerizing presence” and said that they had “manic wide eyed energy.” They have also self-produced and released a live DVD, entitled ‘Live From CBGB.’
The band has reputation for consistent and energetic touring, having spent time on the road with the likes of Otep, Taking Back Sunday, Gwar, Danzig, Life of Agony, Birthday Massacre, Mindless Self Indulgence, Despairs Ray, MXPX, Mushroomhead, and others.
Although the individual band members come from wildly different backgrounds, they all share a common passion for music and an unfaltering loyalty to SUICIDE CITY. As Arroyo says, “Suicide City inspires to me to reach new levels of sound and emotion.” Graziadei describes SUICIDE CITY’s sound as “punk rock, dirty rock ‘n roll with some big balls of metal and a touch of manic depression thrown in.” Lamagna’s precise percussion fury adds to the speed and aggression of the band’s sound, but is reigned in when a more melodic sound is required. The layers of Marchetta’s and Graziadei’s guitars succeed in laying down an aggressive onslaught as well as some impressive and unexpected melody while Arroyo’s bass holds down the low end of the party. Bernholtz vocalizes emotional poetry masterfully, and more than matches the music’s energy.
On August 4th, SUICIDE CITY releases their debut full-length effort, entitled ‘Frenzy,’ via Brooklyn label THE END RECORDS. “‘Frenzy’ is such an eclectic blend of music,” says Marchetta. “This band is unafraid and unapologetic about what we create, and because of that we have an album with a really wide musical landscape.” Graziadei points out, “In our short time together, Suicide City has achieved more on our own than most bands do in their whole career with the help of a label.” Perhaps Bernholtz sums it up best: “Suicide City thrives on making people happy and smile through our music without having to candy coat anything. Life does not ‘suck and then you die.’ Life is great, dangerous, exciting, strange, and then you die. I guess that’s what we’re trying to portray with our music.”
SUICIDE CITY IN 2010 is:
Kalle Bernholtz - Vocals
Jennifer "Ms.JennCity" Arroyo - Bass, Vocals
A.J. Marchetta - Guitar
Dan Lamagna - Drums
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