Grip Inc. was an American groove metal band and

side project In popular music, a side project is a project undertaken by one or more people already known for their involvement in another band. It can also be an artist or a band temporarily switching to a different style. Usually these projects emphasize ...

of drummer

Dave Lombardo David Lombardo (born February 16, 1965) is a Cuban-American drummer, best known as a co-founding member of American thrash metal band Slayer. He is currently playing drums with Testament, Fantômas, Suicidal Tendencies, Dead Cross, Mr. Bungl ...

. The band was formed in 1993 and was signed to Steamhammer Records.

History

Following the birth of his first child in 1993, Lombardo formed Grip Inc. with

Voodoocult Voodoocult was an international thrash metal supergroup formed in 1993 by Phillip Boa, vocalist of the alternative band Phillip Boa & The Voodooclub. The project was especially notable for the reputation of the participating musicians, such as ...

guitarist Waldemar Sorychta. The pair recruited bassist Jason VieBrooks and vocalist Gus Chambers to complete the line-up, releasing their debut record '' Power of Inner Strength'' (1995), distributed via

Metal Blade Records Metal Blade Records is an American independent record label founded by Brian Slagel in 1982. The US office for Metal Blade is located in Agoura Hills, California. It also has offices in Germany, Japan, Canada, and the UK. The label is distr ...

. Prior to the album's release Lombardo described leaving Slayer as a career low, because he did not know what type of music to play.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

reviewer Vincent Jeffries singled out Lombardo for praise on the album, remarking that Slayer fans "will enjoy the drummer's double bass work and overall aggression throughout the disc." Sorychta said critics and music fans always spot mistakes in their music, because of Lombardo's popularity with Slayer – expecting the band to sound like Slayer and complain. However, when Lombardo uses the

double bass drum The bass drum is a large drum that produces a note of low definite or indefinite pitch. The instrument is typically cylindrical, with the drum's diameter much greater than the drum's depth, with a struck head at both ends of the cylinder. Th ...

, Sorychta said people complain "now Grip Inc. sound exactly like Slayer." The band released '' Nemesis'' in 1997. Jeffries praised Lombardo's "crushing drum work" which takes center stage on the album. Bassist VieBrooks left the band and was replaced by Stuart Carruthers in 1997. With a new bassist, the band released '' Solidify'' in 1999, which was described as a step towards "progressive and exotic

rhythm Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular re ...

structures A structure is an arrangement and organization of interrelated elements in a material object or system, or the object or system so organized. Material structures include man-made objects such as buildings and machines and natural objects such as ...

, and instrumentations, while never compromising intensity" by Jeffries.

Members

Final line-up

*Gus Chambers – vocals (1993–2006; died 2008) *

– drums, percussion (1993–2006) * Waldemar Sorychta – guitars (1993–2006), bass (1999–2006)

Former members

*Chaz Grimaldi – bass (1993) *

Bobby Gustafson Robert Wayne Gustafson (born July 15, 1965) is an American musician, best known as the former guitarist of the New Jersey-based thrash metal band Overkill from 1982 until his split with the band in 1990. He was also the rhythm guitarist for thr ...

– guitar (1993) * Jason VieBrooks – bass (1993–1997) *Stuart Carruthers – bass (1997–1999)

Discography

Studio albums

Music videos

References

External links

Grip Inc
at Myspace *
coventrytelegraph.net
{{Authority control Musical groups established in 1993 American groove metal musical groups American progressive metal musical groups Heavy metal musical groups from California 1993 establishments in California Musical groups from Los Angeles