Kill Cheerleadër (previously known as Cheerleader 666) was a Canadian

rock 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 ...

band whose members formed in 1999 in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. Mainly influenced by punk rock and heavy metal acts such as

The Stooges The Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, also known as Iggy and the Stooges, was an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Dave ...

, early era

Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...

Mötley Crüe Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1981. The group was founded by bassist Nikki Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee, lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil. Mötley Crüe has sold over 100 million albums ...

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

the Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United ...

Girlschool Girlschool are a British rock band that formed in the new wave of British heavy metal scene in 1978. Frequently associated with contemporaries Motörhead, they are the longest-running all-female rock band, still active after more than 40 yea ...

Joan Jett Joan Jett (born Joan Marie Larkin, September 22, 1958) is an American singer, guitarist, record producer, and actress. Jett is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and for earlier founding and per ...

and

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay ...

, they had crafted their own unique, sleazy style of

rock 'n' roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...

, once being described as "a derailed train hitting a Baptist Church". Lemmy from Motörhead described Kill Cheerleader as the "greatest rock n' roll band since Guns N' Roses."

History

The original members of the group were childhood friends who learned their instruments practicing old

and

songs. A band member reportedly said that the name came from miserable high school experiences, saying, "beat up the jocks and kill the cheerleaders". They started off playing shows in Toronto but were soon banned from clubs for their on and off stage antics. They started playing shows in Southern California after being invited by Chris Squire to open dates for his garage punk group, The Tori Cobras. During this tour Squire introduced the band to professional skateboarder, Kris Markovich, landing Kill Cheerleader the opening music track in Markovich's "Hollywood Skateboards" video. After this tour the band became popular among hardcore skateboarders and so-cal punk rockers. After some 8000 demo CDs were sold, a German record label licensed one of their unmixed/unmastered recordings and released it as 7 track LP titled '' Gutter Days'' which was rereleased on 10" vinyl in 2003. One reviewer called it "the greatest punk n' roll recording ever made... completely redefined excellence in that genre... I am shaken..." (House of Smut). Ky Anto, lead guitarist for

Robin Black Robin Black is a Canadians, Canadian mixed martial arts commentator, former mixed martial artist, and Glam rock, glam rock musician. History Originally a member of the Pinawa, Manitoba band Ballroom Zombies, Robin Black moved to Toronto in 1998 ...

once called them "The sound of desperation"...

Nikki Sixx Nikki Sixx (born Frank Carlton Serafino Feranna Jr.; December 11, 1958) is an American musician, best known as the co-founder, bassist, and primary songwriter of the heavy metal band Mötley Crüe. Prior to forming Mötley Crüe, Sixx was a me ...

called them the "best new band" in his online journal.Newton, Steve (2007)
Kill Cheerleader shrugs off hometown bans
, straight.com, February 22, 2007, retrieved 2011-12-15 ''

SPIN Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'' Magazine journalists wrote how they were "blown away" about their live show, and Alternative Press has called them a "band to watch." Rock legend

Lemmy Ian Fraser Kilmister (24 December 1945 – 28 December 2015), better known as Lemmy Kilmister or simply Lemmy, was an English musician. He was the founder, lead singer, bassist and primary songwriter of the rock band Motörhead, of which he wa ...

from

Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a precu ...

invited them to open their UK tour and talked about them on SuicideGirls.com and in

Playboy ''Playboy'' is an American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, formerly in print and currently online. It was founded in Chicago in 1953, by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. K ...

, declaring Kïll Cheerleadër as the "greatest

rock n' roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...

band since

."Kemp, Rob (2006)
Kill Cheerleader
, ''

'', October 2006, p. 50, retrieved December 15, 2011 Their music has been described as "the greatest fusion of Stooges/Guns fuck rock anyone has ever spewed", as well as "taking the energy of early Motorhead while grinding it together with the energy of bands like The Ramones or The Stooges". Critics have also stated that "pre-punk rockers The Stooges, glam stalwarts Motley Crue, and straight-up scumbags Guns N' Roses have their fingerprints all over Kill Cheerleader's sound". Ethan Deth has pointed out that "we have our punk and metal songs but we also have a strong Neil Young influence, which we don't ignore". After travelling to the U.S west coast and playing a number of high-profile shows in Los Angeles the band gained a new following for their destructive and fresh take on dirty punk-metal. Their debut album ''

All Hail All Hail may refer to: * ''All Hail'' (Kïll Cheerleadër album) * ''All Hail'' (Norma Jean album) * ''All Hail'' (film) {{dab ...

'' was released in 2004 through Spinerazor Records. The band broke up in 2006 on the eve of a major record deal.Reilly, Phoebe (2008)
Thick as Thieves
, ''

'', September 2008, p. 72-79, retrieved December 15, 2011

Aftermath

Kill Cheerleader split off into many new bands. Ethan Deth (as

Ethan Kath Claudio Paolo Palmieri known professionally as Ethan Kath, is a co-founder and songwriter/producer for Crystal Castles and previously the bassist of Kïll Cheerleadër and Die Mannequin. ''Rolling Stone'' named Crystal Castles icons of 20 Years of ...

) formed successful

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

band

Crystal Castles Crystal Castles was a Canadian electronic music group formed in 2006 in Toronto, Ontario, formed by songwriter-producer Ethan Kath and singer-songwriter Alice Glass, who later left and was replaced by Edith Frances. Crystal Castles were known ...

and soon drafted in Kill Cheerleader drummer Christoper Chartrand (aka Kriss Rites). Jason Decay started heavy metal band

Goat Horn Goat Horn was a Canadian heavy metal band founded in Pembroke, Ontario in 1999. The band was composed of Jason Decay (vocals / bass), Brandon Wars (guitar) and Steel Rider (drums). Decay, Wars, and Rider had all been in and out of bands on the ...

, which achieved success after morphing into

Cauldron A cauldron (or caldron) is a large pot (kettle) for cooking or boiling over an open fire, with a lid and frequently with an arc-shaped hanger and/or integral handles or feet. There is a rich history of cauldron lore in religion, mythology, and ...

. Anthony Bleed (aka Useless aka Cobra) joined Canadian hard rock radio mainstays

Die Mannequin Die Mannequin is a Canadian alternative rock band from Toronto, founded by guitar player and singer Care Failure (born Caroline Kawa) in 2005. The band has toured across Canada several times, opening for Buckcherry, Guns N' Roses, Marilyn Manso ...

and now releases acoustic music as tonyswar. Jimmy Nova formed a rock & roll band called Darlings of Chelsea with a member of Black Halos. Jacki Slaughter leads 80s metal revivalists

Skull Fist The skull is a bone protective cavity for the brain. The skull is composed of four types of bone i.e., cranial bones, facial bones, ear ossicles and hyoid bone. However two parts are more prominent: the cranium and the mandible. In humans, the ...

who have achieved success in Europe and Japan.

Discography

*2000: ''Demo CD-R'' *2001: '' Gutter Days'' (CD-R released in 2001, 10" vinyl released in 2003 as ''Cheerleader 666'') *2004: ''

All Hail All Hail may refer to: * ''All Hail'' (Kïll Cheerleadër album) * ''All Hail'' (Norma Jean album) * ''All Hail'' (film) {{dab ...

'' (debut full-length CD as ''Kill Cheerleader'' released on Spinerazor/Corporate Punishment in 2004, re-issued on Sanctuary in 2006, limited vinyl release on Yeah Right Records in 2015.)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kill Cheerleader Musical groups established in 1999 Musical groups disestablished in 2006 Musical groups from Toronto Canadian heavy metal musical groups Canadian punk rock groups 1999 establishments in Ontario 2006 disestablishments in Ontario Sanctuary Records artists

History

Aftermath

Discography

See also

References