Akimbo was an American

hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...

band from

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, Washington. The band was founded by its two original members, Jon Weisnewski ( bass,

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

) and Nat Damm (

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

). The two met in 1995 in a high school gym class after noticing each other's home-made punk T-shirts. They quickly became friends, sharing a love of DC hardcore and punk rock. Akimbo played its first show on Halloween of 1998. Akimbo has had eleven guitarists over the course of its existence. The first, Kyle Iman, was featured on two albums: a split 10-inch with Seattle's Teen Cthulhu, and a 7-inch released in 1999 entitled ''An Army of Evil Robots Programmed for Human Destruction'' (

Rock and Roleplay records Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

). Iman was replaced in 2000 by full-time guitarist

Jared Burke Eglington Jared is a given name of Biblical derivation. Origin In the Book of Genesis, the biblical patriarch Jared (יֶרֶד) was the sixth in the ten pre-flood generations between Adam and Noah; he was the son of Mahalaleel and the father of Enoch, ...

. "Burke", as he is known by friends, served the band from 2000 to 2006, and is featured on several records. It was with him that Akimbo developed what would come to be known as their signature sound. The constraints of Eglington's career as a financial analyst caused the band to enlist the help of several part-time guitarists to fill out their lineup for their rigorous touring schedule. Among these guitarists are Chuck Rowell, Dustin Brown (featured on ''City of the Stars''), Demian Johnston (of

Playing Enemy Play is a range of intrinsically motivated activities done for recreational pleasure and enjoyment. Play is commonly associated with children and juvenile-level activities, but may be engaged in at any life stage, and among other higher-functio ...

), Patrick Cunningham (featured on ''Forging Steel and Laying Stone''), and

Stacy Schrag Stacy or Stacey may refer to: Places In the United States: * Stacy, California, an unincorporated community * Stacy, Kentucky * Stacy, Minnesota, a city * Stacy, Virginia, a village People * Stacy (given name) * Stacy (singer) (born 1990 ...

(a notable fixture of the Southern Oregon hardcore scene). In 2006,

Aaron Walters Aaron Walters (August 7, 1809 – December 27, 1889) was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly. Biography Walters was born on August 7, 1809, in Plattsburgh, New York. He married three times. First, to Orpha B. Griswold in 1831. They had three ...

was recruited to join Akimbo for a ten-day West Coast tour. Shortly thereafter, he accompanied the band on a month-long tour of the US. His collaboration with the band eventually led to his replacement of Eglington as Akimbo's sole guitarist. In 2005, Akimbo was approached by punk artist

Jello Biafra Eric Reed Boucher (born June 17, 1958), known professionally as Jello Biafra, is an American singer, spoken word artist and politician. He is the former lead singer and songwriter for the San Francisco punk rock band Dead Kennedys. Initially ac ...

after opening for him and

Melvins Melvins (sometimes The Melvins) are an American rock band formed in 1983 in Montesano, Washington. Their early work was key to the development of both grunge and sludge metal. Initially, they performed as a trio but later also sometimes appeare ...

. The next year, they released ''Forging Steel and Laying Stone'' on Biafra's

Alternative Tentacles Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 in San Francisco, California. It was used by Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single " California Über Alles". After realizing the potential for an independent label, t ...

label. In 2007, the same label released ''Navigating the Bronze'', which was the band's first recording with Aaron Walters on guitar. After a show with

Converge Converge may refer to: * Converge (band), American hardcore punk band * Converge (Baptist denomination), American national evangelical Baptist body * Limit (mathematics) * Converge ICT, internet service provider in the Philippines *CONVERGE CFD s ...

and

Neurosis Neurosis is a class of functional mental disorders involving chronic distress, but neither delusions nor hallucinations. The term is no longer used by the professional psychiatric community in the United States, having been eliminated from th ...

, Akimbo was asked by members of Neurosis to join

Neurot Recordings Neurot Recordings is an American independent record label founded by members of avant-garde metal band Neurosis in 1999. Gradually expanding, it has showcased a variety of artists including a number of sludge metal, post-rock, and noise bands. ...

' roster. Neurot, owned by Neurosis guitarist-singer Steve Von Till, released Akimbo's most critically acclaimed album entitled ''Jersey Shores'' in October 2008. ''Jersey Shores'' is a concept album inspired by a series of mysterious shark attacks which occurred on the beaches of New Jersey in 1916. It showed a substantial deviation in style from previous recordings, which can be attributed in part to Aaron Walters' contributions as a guitarist-writer. The band broke up in 2012 after the departure of guitarist Aaron Walters, with the remaining members deciding not to continue. Jon and Nat now play in Sandrider. Burke plays in X Suns. Weisnewski also hosts the podcast Tomorrow We Die, with Jeff McNulty of Bloodhag.

Members

*Jon Weisnewski - Bass, Vocals *Nat Damm - Drums *Aaron Walters - Guitar

Selected discography

*''An Army of Evil Robots Programmed for Human Destruction'' (Rock and Roleplay records, 1999) *''Harshing Your Mellow'' (CD - Dopamine records / Vinyl -

Seventh Rule Recordings Seventh Rule Recordings is a record label based in Portland, Oregon that formed in 2003 to release underground metal and noise rock. Founded by Scott and Cara Flaster, who still operate the label today, they have released albums by bands such as ...

, 2001) *''Elephantine'' (CD - Dopamine records / Vinyl -

, 2003) *''City of the Stars'' (

, 2004) *''Forging Steel and Laying Stone'' (

, 2006) *''Navigating the Bronze'' (

, 2007) *''Jersey Shores'' (

, 2008) *''Live to Crush'' (

, 2013)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Akimbo (Band) Hardcore punk groups from Washington (state) Alternative Tentacles artists