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Geoffrey William Rickly (born March 8, 1979) is an American musician, best known as the lead singer and songwriter of rock band
Thursday Thursday is the day of the week between Wednesday and Friday. According to the ISO 8601 international standard, it is the fourth day of the week. In countries which adopt the "Sunday-first" convention, it is the fifth day of the week. Name ''Se ...
. Rickly is also a member of
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...
band
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...
, and the
alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commercial ...
group No Devotion with former members of Lostprophets, and is the founder of the
record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the pr ...
Collect Records.


Personal life

Rickly was born in Providence, Rhode Island and raised in
Dumont, New Jersey Dumont is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 17,479,Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
family, and attended
Dumont High School Dumont High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grade from Dumont, in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States, operating as the lone secondary school of the Dumont Public S ...
, where he was a member of the band and played the
tenor sax The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while th ...
. He was raised Catholic, Rickly is a diagnosed epileptic, which has affected his ability to tour. In early 2013, Rickly was mugged in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, where his cell phone,
iPad The iPad is a brand of iOS and iPadOS-based tablet computers that are developed by Apple Inc., Apple Inc. The iPad was conceived before the related iPhone but the iPhone was developed and released first. Speculation about the development, ...
, wallet,
credit card A credit card is a payment card issued to users (cardholders) to enable the cardholder to pay a merchant for goods and services based on the cardholder's accrued debt (i.e., promise to the card issuer to pay them for the amounts plus the ...
, rent money, and medication were stolen. In 2015, Rickly was poisoned and robbed in
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...
,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
, while touring with No Devotion to play at the Reeperbahn Festival. Rickly was hospitalized, causing them to cancel their concert, but recovered for a scheduled show in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
the following day. In a 2017 interview with ''Spin'', Rickly admitted to battling a heroin addiction that began shortly after Thursday's breakup in 2011. Following Thursday's reunion in 2016, Rickly was inspired to quit using the drug.


Musical career

Rickly has contributed guest vocals to many songs, including
My American Heart My American Heart is an American rock band from San Diego, California, formed in 2001. Originally named No Way Out, the band released two studio albums through Warcon Enterprises and toured the world before disbanding in late 2009. They reunite ...
's "We Are the Fabrication", Murder by Death's "Killbot 2000",
This Day Forward This Day Forward was a Philadelphia-area band active from 1996 to 2003 whose style varied from metalcore to post-hardcore with indie rock influences. History The band was formed in 1997 in the Philadelphia suburbs by brothers Mike and Ga ...
's "Sunfalls and Watershine",
Circa Survive Circa Survive is an American rock band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that formed in 2004. The band, led and founded by Anthony Green, consisted of former members from This Day Forward and Taken. Circa Survive quickly made a name for them ...
's "The Lottery", and My Chemical Romance's "This Is the Best Day Ever". He also occasionally performs solo, most recently in
Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,690 ...
, at the Eyeball Records holiday party, performing his band,
Thursday Thursday is the day of the week between Wednesday and Friday. According to the ISO 8601 international standard, it is the fourth day of the week. In countries which adopt the "Sunday-first" convention, it is the fifth day of the week. Name ''Se ...
songs "Autumn Leaves Revisited" and "This Side of Brightness" acoustically. Lyrically, Rickly has been known to draw from a wide variety of influences, many of them being authors and poets. In a March 2009 interview, he cited the works of
Denis Johnson Denis Hale Johnson (July 1, 1949 – May 24, 2017) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and poet. He is perhaps best known for his debut short story collection, '' Jesus' Son'' (1992). His most successful novel, ''Tree of Smoke'' (2007) ...
,
Martin Amis Martin Louis Amis (born 25 August 1949) is a British novelist, essayist, memoirist, and screenwriter. He is best known for his novels ''Money'' (1984) and ''London Fields'' (1989). He received the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for his memoir ' ...
,
Roberto Bolaño Roberto Bolaño Ávalos (; 28 April 1953 – 15 July 2003) was a Chilean novelist, short-story writer, poet and essayist. In 1999, Bolaño won the Rómulo Gallegos Prize for his novel ''Los detectives salvajes'' (''The Savage Detectives'' ...
and
David Foster Wallace David Foster Wallace (February 21, 1962 – September 12, 2008) was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and university professor of English and creative writing. Wallace is widely known for his 1996 novel '' Infinite Jest'', whi ...
as being among his influences for the lyrics of
Thursday Thursday is the day of the week between Wednesday and Friday. According to the ISO 8601 international standard, it is the fourth day of the week. In countries which adopt the "Sunday-first" convention, it is the fifth day of the week. Name ''Se ...
's
Common Existence ''Common Existence'' is the fifth full-length album from rock band Thursday. Recording In March 2008, the band spent sometime recording at Big Blue Meenie Recording Studio in Jersey City, New Jersey. On August 13, 2008, the band announced that t ...
album, which was released in February 2009. A tattoo on his forearm reads "love is love", a lyric from the band Frail; Rickly adopted these lyrics into Thursday's "A Hole in the World." The band's song, "Autobiography Of A Nation" is clearly influenced by poet Michael Palmer's "Sun." Rickly has also written, recorded and played for
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...
, an experimental powerviolence collaboration.


Collect Records

In 2009, Rickly formed Collect Records, a
record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the pr ...
which in its early years only co-released various albums, including releases by
Touché Amoré Touché Amoré is an American post-hardcore band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2007. The band consists of vocalist Jeremy Bolm, guitarists Clayton Stevens and Nick Steinhardt, bassist Tyler Kirby, and drummer Elliot Babin. Among othe ...
, United Nations and Midnight Masses, but in 2014, the label announced plans to be the primary label behind albums by Black Clouds, Vanishing Life, Sick Feeling and No Devotion, the new band formed by the ex members of Lostprophets, featuring Rickly on lead vocals.


Martin Shkreli controversy

During the 2015 public scandal of
hedge fund A hedge fund is a pooled investment fund that trades in relatively liquid assets and is able to make extensive use of more complex trading, portfolio-construction, and risk management techniques in an attempt to improve performance, such as ...
manager Martin Shkreli and his controversial monetary inflation of
AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ma ...
-related pharmaceuticals, it was revealed that Shkreli was a silent investor in Collect Records, while still allowing Rickly to retain creative control. Rickly and Shkreli met when the guitar that Rickly used to make Thursday's album ''
Full Collapse ''Full Collapse'' is the second studio album by American post-hardcore band Thursday. It was released on April 10, 2001, through Victory Records, to whom the band signed after leaving Eyeball Records. With the addition of guitarist Steve Pedulla, ...
'' was purchased by Shkreli for $10,000. Rickly said he was completely shocked by the scandal, stating: "I've seen the guy give away money to schools, charities, and frankly, our bands, who if anyone really knows the industry, is a hard sell. I am struggling to find how this is OK." Due to the controversy, Shkreli's relationship with Collect Records angered several artists signed to the label. One of the artists, Sick Feeling, said in a public statement: "One thing is clear; as long as he has a part in the label, we, Sick Feeling, cannot. Our experience with Geoff, Norm, and Shaun has been nothing but positive, however, we cannot continue to work with Collect as long as Martin Shkreli has any part in it." Dominic "Nicky" Palermo of Nothing, who had just recently signed a two-record deal with Collect Records, expressed interest in ending the contract and said: "I'm hoping that we can just get out of this with someone else and not have to go down whatever ugly road that could lead to." Within two days of the controversy, Rickly put out a press release stating that the label had severed its relationship with Shkreli, and that the amount of money he currently had in the bank could not cover Collect Records' outstanding invoices, leaving its future uncertain, without Shkreli's significant financial contributions to Collect (estimated to be "somewhere around a million dollars").


Discography


As band member


Thursday

* ''
Waiting Waiting, Waitin, Waitin', or The Waiting may refer to: Film * ''Waiting'' (1991 film), a film by Jackie McKimmie * ''Waiting...'' (film), a 2005 film starring Ryan Reynolds * ''Waiting'' (2007 film), a film by Zarina Bhimji * ''Waiting'' (20 ...
'' (1999, Eyeball) * ''
Full Collapse ''Full Collapse'' is the second studio album by American post-hardcore band Thursday. It was released on April 10, 2001, through Victory Records, to whom the band signed after leaving Eyeball Records. With the addition of guitarist Steve Pedulla, ...
'' (2001, Victory) * ''
Five Stories Falling ''Five Stories Falling'' is a five-song EP released by Thursday in 2002. The first four tracks are live versions of songs from ''Full Collapse'', recorded while the band performed on the Vans Warped Tour. The fifth track, a new song named "Jet ...
'' (2002, Victory) * '' War All the Time'' (2003, Island) * ''Live from the SoHo & Santa Monica Stores'' (2003, Island) * '' Live in Detroit (2003, Island) * ''
A City by the Light Divided ''A City by the Light Divided'' is the fourth studio album by Thursday, released by Island Records on May 2, 2006. Background Following a number of issues regarding promotion and lack of communication with independent label Victory Records, Thu ...
'' (2006, Island) * ''
Kill the House Lights ''Kill the House Lights'' is a compilation album by New Jersey rock group Thursday. Contents The name of the record derives from a lyric from the song "M. Shepard" from the band's 2003 album '' War All the Time''. The CD features five new song ...
'' (2007, Victory) * ''
Thursday / Envy ''Thursday / Envy'' is a split EP by post-hardcore bands Thursday and Envy. It was released exclusively in a package containing the album on both 180 gram 12" vinyl and on CD — individual CDs or vinyl have not been made available. Three limi ...
'' (2008, Temporary Residence) * ''
Common Existence ''Common Existence'' is the fifth full-length album from rock band Thursday. Recording In March 2008, the band spent sometime recording at Big Blue Meenie Recording Studio in Jersey City, New Jersey. On August 13, 2008, the band announced that t ...
'' (2009, Epitaph) * '' No Devolución'' (2011, Epitaph)


United Nations

* ''
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...
'' (2008, Eyeball) * ''
Never Mind the Bombings, Here's Your Six Figures ''Never Mind the Bombings, Here's Your Six Figures'' is the second release from American screamo band United Nations. The four-song EP was released on June 23, 2010, through Deathwish Inc. on both 7" vinyl and digital download versions. The son ...
'' (2010, Deathwish) * '' The Next Four Years'' (2014, Temporary Residence)


Solo

* ''Mixtape 1'' (2012, self released) * ''Darker Matter/// Mixtape 2'' (2013, self-released)


Strangelight

* ''9 Days'' (2013, Sacrament)


No Devotion

* '' Permanence'' (2015, Collect) * '' No Oblivion'' (2022, Velocity)


As guest member


As producer/engineer


References


External links


Geoff Rickly
on
Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online audio distribution platform founded in 2007 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with headquarters in Oakland, California, US. On March 2, 2022, Bandcamp ...

Geoff Rickly Community on BuzznetCollect Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rickly, Geoff 1979 births Living people American rock singers American male singer-songwriters Record producers from New Jersey Singer-songwriters from New Jersey Catholics from New Jersey Dumont High School alumni People from Dumont, New Jersey People with epilepsy Rutgers University alumni 21st-century American singers 21st-century American male singers United Nations (band) members No Devotion members