Lynch Mob is an American
hard rock
Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...
band featuring former
Dokken
Dokken is an American glam metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1978. It split up in 1989 and reformed four years later. The band had several hit singles which charted on the Billboard Hot 100, such as " Alone Again", " In My Dreams", and " Burn ...
guitarist
George Lynch. He has been the band's only permanent member.
[
]
History
1989 formation
Lynch Mob was formed in 1989, from the remains of Lynch's former band, Dokken. The band original line-up also featured Dokken's drummer, Mick Brown. The first Lynch Mob album was released in 1990, titled ''Wicked Sensation
''Wicked Sensation'' is the debut album by American rock band Lynch Mob. It was George Lynch's first release since leaving Dokken. Singer Oni Logan provided vocals, contributed to the lyrics and composition and also played harmonica. Also joi ...
.''
The title track, along with "River of Love," "She's Evil But She's Mine," and "For a Million Years" were archetypes of the 1980s glam metal
Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam r ...
scene. However, with the waning popularity of the genre, the album did not gain a widespread audience. Vocalist Oni Logan
Leonardo Gustavo Gimenez, better known by his stage name Oni Logan, is an Argentine American singer, best known as the original lead vocalist of the rock band Lynch Mob. He joined the band in 1990, only to leave after the release of the first a ...
was fired shortly after the tour, as his lifestyle had negatively impacted his ability to perform. According to a Rockshowmagazine interview with former bassist Anthony Esposito, he explained that Logan was not a great performer live and Lynch decided to go with a different singer on their follow up, a self-titled album.
The next album, '' Lynch Mob'' (released in 1992), fared worse upon its release due to the explosion of 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 Popular culture, mainstre ...
. The album had anthemic numbers such as "Tangled in the Web" and a cover of Queen's "Tie Your Mother Down
"Tie Your Mother Down" is a song by the British rock band Queen, written by lead guitarist Brian May. It is the opening track and the second single from their 1976 album '' A Day at the Races''. On its original release as a single in 1977 the s ...
". The album featured new vocalist Robert Mason, despite attempts to re-unite with Oni Logan.
Lynch Mob disbanded after the album tour, and in 1995 Lynch and drummer Mick Brown reunited with Dokken.
1998 reunion
In 1998, Lynch and Don Dokken fell out again over control and money relative to the Dokken band. Consequently, Lynch attempted to reform the original Lynch Mob line-up. The band broke up after a single writing session, although the fruits of this session were a three-song demo that was released as '' Syzygy''. A Lynch Mob tour of 13 U.S. cities followed in 1998 featuring vocalist John West and bassist Anthony Esposito.
"Smoke This" era and second break-up
Lynch then formed the third incarnation of the group with new and unknown members taking the music into a rap metal
Rap metal is a subgenre of rap rock and alternative metal music which combines hip hop with heavy metal. It usually consists of heavy metal guitar riffs, funk metal elements, rapped vocals and sometimes turntables.
History Origins and early ...
and nu metal
Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, sometimes called aggro-metal) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, alternative rock, funk, industrial, and grunge. Nu met ...
direction. In 1999, ''Smoke This
''Smoke This'' is the third studio album by American rock band Lynch Mob, released in 1999. After the second breakup of the original line up in 1998, George Lynch reformed the band with all unknown members, taking the music into a rap metal
...
'' was released to disappointed fans and critics. According to Lynch, fans referred to the ''Smoke This'' album as "Lynch Bizkit". A tour followed the album and the group disbanded again.
2003 reunion and third break-up
In 2003, vocalist Robert Mason, original bassist Anthony Esposito and Lynch reformed to record modernized Lynch Mob and Dokken material. Mick Brown stayed with Dokken, and Michael Frowein was hired as the drummer. The new recordings on the album, titled ''REvolution
In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...
,'' were heavier and faster than the originals. Frowein was replaced by Chas Stumbo (ex-Earshot
Earshot is an American alternative metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1999. The band's lineup has changed several times during their existence, with vocalist Wil Martin being the band's sole constant member.
After signing to Warner Bros. Reco ...
) for the 2003 REvolution Tour. A live CD/DVD package of the final show of that tour was later released, although the audio was from a different performance and often does not match the images.
George Lynch toured Europe in 2006 under his own name and focused on his 'Guitar Dojo' online lessons. In 2007, George and his solo band performed a marathon 26-show/30-day tour, which included an appearance on ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that first aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009. It resumed production on March 1, 2010 and ended on February 6, 2014.
The fourth incarnation of the ...
''. The line-up was: George Lynch - guitars, Andrew Freeman - vocals, Vinny Appice
Vincent Samson Appice (born September 13, 1957) is an American rock drummer best known for his work with the bands Dio, Black Sabbath, and Heaven & Hell. Of Italian descent, he is the younger brother of drummer Carmine Appice.
Career
Appice ...
(Black Sabbath/Dio) - drums, and Marten Andersson (Lizzy Borden, Steelheart) - bass.
Lynch later started a new band, Souls of We
Souls of We (also known as George Lynch's Souls of We) is an American hard rock supergroup from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2007. The lineup consists of London LeGrand (vocals), George Lynch (guitar) and Johny Chow (bass). Since 2009, Jord ...
.
2008 reunion to moniker retirement
The popular lineup of Dokken was set to reunite to play Rocklahoma 2008 in Pryor, Oklahoma
Pryor Creek or Pryor''Oklahoma Atlas & Gazeteer,'' DeLorme, 1st Edition, 1998, p. 36 is a city in and county seat of Mayes County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 8,659 at the 2000 census and 9,539 in the 2010 census.
Originally ...
and tour during the summer, however, those plans fell apart. George used this chance to reunite Lynch Mob (with original vocalist Oni Logan) to play at Rocklahoma 2008 sans Esposito and Brown. As of January 2009, Oni Logan and George Lynch rejoined to form another incarnation of the band, releasing ''Smoke and Mirrors
Smoke and mirrors is a classic technique in magical illusions that makes an entity appear to hover in empty space. It was documented as early as 1770 and spread widely after its use by the charlatan Johann Georg Schröpfer, who claimed the app ...
'' in 2009, featuring Marco Mendoza on bass. A tour followed, with Fred Coury on drums. Drummer Brian Tichy
Brian Tichy (born August 18, 1968) is an American musician, best known as having been the drummer for Whitesnake, Billy Idol, Foreigner (band), Foreigner, Sass Jordan, and Ozzy Osbourne. He was the drummer of Whitesnake from 2010 to 2013. His s ...
joined Lynch Mob in 2010.
Anthony Esposito played bass on tour with former Kiss
A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...
guitarist Ace Frehley
Paul Daniel "Ace" Frehley (; born April 27, 1951) is an American musician, best known as the original lead guitarist and co-founding member of the hard rock band Kiss. He invented the persona of The Spaceman (a.k.a. Space Ace) and played wit ...
and was featured on his 2009 release '' Anomaly'', Mick Brown still does shows playing drums with Dokken and Ted Nugent
Theodore Anthony Nugent (; born December 13, 1948) is an American rock musician and activist. He initially gained fame as the lead guitarist and occasional lead vocalist of The Amboy Dukes, a band formed in 1963 that played psychedelic rock an ...
, and Robert Mason is currently Warrant's lead singer.
Bassist James Lomenzo
James LoMenzo (born January 13, 1959) is an American heavy metal bass guitarist. He was a member of the band White Lion, performing with them from 1984 to 1991. He was later the bassist for Black Label Society, Slash's Snakepit, and Megadeth. ...
joined Lynch Mob in late July 2010, replacing Marco Mendoza. James previously jammed with Lynch Mob drummer Brian Tichy in both Pride & Glory and Slash's Snakepit
Slash's Snakepit was an American rock supergroup from Los Angeles, California, formed by Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash in 1994. Though often described as a solo or side project, Slash stated that Snakepit was a band with equal contributions b ...
.
Two shows (August 26, 2010 in Calgary, Alberta, and August 27, 2010 in Edmonton, Alberta) saw Marq Torien (Bullet Boys) handle the vocal duties. Keith St. John ( Montrose and Burning Rain
Burning Rain is a band formed by guitarist Doug Aldrich (Revolution Saints, The Dead Daisies, ex- Dio, ex- Whitesnake) and singer Keith St. John ( Montrose) in 1998. Joining the group were drummer Alex Makarovich (ex-Steelheart) and Ian Mayo (e ...
) replaced Marq Torien on vocals for the last two U.S. dates on the tour.
Bassist Robbie Crane of Ratt
Ratt is an American glam metal band formed in San Diego, California, in the 1970s, that had significant commercial success in the 1980s, with their albums having been certified as gold, platinum, and multi-platinum by the RIAA. The group is bes ...
joined the touring line up of Lynch Mob for the band's fall of 2010 European tour. Crane become the permanent bassist of Lynch Mob thereafter, but on September 17, 2012, a press release stated that after two years he had resigned from the band.
Dokken drummer Mick Brown reunited with Lynch Mob for the first time in 15 years on a full U.S. tour, in January 2011.
George Lynch stated on Eddie Trunk
Edward Scott Trunk (born August 8, 1964) is an American music historian, radio personality, talk show host, and author, best known as the host of several hard rock- and heavy metal-themed radio and television shows.
Biography
Trunk was born on ...
's radio show that a new Lynch Mob album would be recorded with Oni Logan
Leonardo Gustavo Gimenez, better known by his stage name Oni Logan, is an Argentine American singer, best known as the original lead vocalist of the rock band Lynch Mob. He joined the band in 1990, only to leave after the release of the first a ...
, Mick Brown, and Jeff Pilson
Jeffrey Steven Pilson (born January 19, 1959) is an American musician best known for being the bass player in the glam metal band Dokken and currently classic rock band Foreigner. He has also had an extended stint with Dio in the 1990s. He is ...
. No release date was set. On "That Metal Show" in April 2012, George stated the new Lynch Mob album would be entitled ''I Am Weapon'' and was close to being finished.
On June 6, Scot Coogan
Scot Coogan is an American musician known for his accomplished drumming and vocal skills, working as both a session and touring musician. Scot resides in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he records, performs and has worked as a counselor at Rock and Ro ...
, then current Lynch Mob drummer, posted that he would be the drummer for Lita Ford
Lita Rossana Ford (born 19 September 1958) is an English-born American guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. She was the lead guitarist for the all-female rock band the Runaways in the late 1970s, before embarking on a successful glam metal solo ...
on her upcoming tour. It was then announced that Lynch Mob had tapped Brian Tichy
Brian Tichy (born August 18, 1968) is an American musician, best known as having been the drummer for Whitesnake, Billy Idol, Foreigner (band), Foreigner, Sass Jordan, and Ozzy Osbourne. He was the drummer of Whitesnake from 2010 to 2013. His s ...
(Whitesnake) as its new touring drummer for the upcoming summer shows in support of the band's new release.
On June 19, Deadline Music/Cleopatra Records were due to release a special three-disc audio/video deluxe collection of Lynch Mob's ''REvolution''. The set features the full-length studio album ''REvolution'' with supercharged renditions of classic Dokken/Lynch Mob tracks such as "Tooth and Nail", "Breaking the Chains", "Wicked Sensation", and more. It also includes professionally filmed live performances recorded during the 2005 ''REvolution'' tour, mixed in 5.1 surround sound. These have been previously released, as separate packages, in 2003 and 2004 respectively.
In August 2020, George Lynch revealed he was no longer going to release music or tour with the band's name due to its racial connotations. However, in October 2022, Lynch resumed performing under the Lynch Mob moniker.
Members
Current lineup
* George Lynch – guitars (1989–present)
* Jimmy D'Anda
Jimmy D'Anda is an American hard rock drummer who is perhaps best known as the original drummer for the Los Angeles glam metal band, BulletBoys.
Biography
D'Anda was born and raised in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, California and began playing ...
– drums (2001–2002, 2013–2014, 2015–2018, 2019, 2022–present)
* Gabriel Colon – vocals (2022–present)
* Jaron Gulino – bass (2022–present)
Former
* Oni Logan
Leonardo Gustavo Gimenez, better known by his stage name Oni Logan, is an Argentine American singer, best known as the original lead vocalist of the rock band Lynch Mob. He joined the band in 1990, only to leave after the release of the first a ...
– vocals (1989–1991, 1998, 2008–2011, 2012–2013, 2014–2018, 2020)
* Andrew Freeman – vocals (2003, 2010, 2019)
* Robert Mason – vocals (1991–1994, 2003–2006, 2018)
* Keith St John – vocals (2010, 2013–2014)
* John West – vocals (1998–1999)
* Kirk Harper – vocals (1999)
* Christopher C. Romero – vocals (2011)
* Chas West – vocals (2011–2012)
* Nathan Utz – vocals (2018-2019)
* Anthony Esposito – bass (1989–1994, 1998, 2003–2006)
* Gabe Rosales – bass (1999)
* Marten Andersson – bass (2003–2007, 2011)
* Marco Mendoza
Marco Mendoza is an American rock musician who has worked in diverse genres. He became a professional rock musician in 1989 and debuted on Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward's solo album '' Along the Way''. He has performed on a number of nota ...
– bass (2008–2010)
* James LoMenzo
James LoMenzo (born January 13, 1959) is an American heavy metal bass guitarist. He was a member of the band White Lion, performing with them from 1984 to 1991. He was later the bassist for Black Label Society, Slash's Snakepit, and Megadeth. ...
– bass (2010)
* Michael Devin – bass (2010, 2020)
* Kevin Baldes – bass (2013–2015)
* Jeff Pilson
Jeffrey Steven Pilson (born January 19, 1959) is an American musician best known for being the bass player in the glam metal band Dokken and currently classic rock band Foreigner. He has also had an extended stint with Dio in the 1990s. He is ...
– bass (2015)
* Sean McNabb
Sean McNabb (born September 24, 1965) is an American actor and bassist. While still on tour with rock bands, he is also acting and writing, composing, and singing music for TV and film. In 2015, he released his first solo music as a lead singer, ...
– bass (2015–2019)
* Mick Brown – drums (1989–1994, 1998, 2011)
* Clancy McCarthy – drums (1999)
* Michael Frowein – drums (2003)
* Chas Stumbo – drums (2003)
* John Macaluso
John Macaluso (born January 21, 1968) is an American drummer who has played for bands such as Ark, TNT, and Yngwie Malmsteen. Born in Commack, New York, Macaluso started playing drums at age 11. He has recorded over 200 records and played multi ...
– drums (2004)
* Vinny Appice
Vincent Samson Appice (born September 13, 1957) is an American rock drummer best known for his work with the bands Dio, Black Sabbath, and Heaven & Hell. Of Italian descent, he is the younger brother of drummer Carmine Appice.
Career
Appice ...
– drums (2005-2007)
* Tommy Aldridge
Tommy Aldridge (born August 15, 1950) is an American heavy metal and hard rock drummer. He is noted for his work with numerous bands and artists since the 1970s, such as Black Oak Arkansas, Pat Travers Band, Ozzy Osbourne, Gary Moore, Whitesnak ...
– drums (2008)
* Fred Coury
Fred Coury (born October 20, 1967) is an American musician best known as the drummer for the glam metal band Cinderella. Coury lists Neil Peart, Peter Criss, Bobby Blotzer, John Bonham, Eric Carr, Tommy Lee and Tommy Aldridge as his drumming i ...
– drums (2008–2009)
* Scot Coogan
Scot Coogan is an American musician known for his accomplished drumming and vocal skills, working as both a session and touring musician. Scot resides in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he records, performs and has worked as a counselor at Rock and Ro ...
– drums (2009–2011, 2011–2012, 2013, 2014–2015, 2018–2019)
* Brian Tichy
Brian Tichy (born August 18, 1968) is an American musician, best known as having been the drummer for Whitesnake, Billy Idol, Foreigner (band), Foreigner, Sass Jordan, and Ozzy Osbourne. He was the drummer of Whitesnake from 2010 to 2013. His s ...
– drums (2010, 2012–2013, 2015, 2020)
* Robbie Crane – bass (2010–2014, 2020)
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Live albums
* '' Evil: Live'' (2003)
* '' REvolution: Live!'' (2006)
EPs
* '' Syzygy'' (1998)
* '' Sound Mountain Sessions'' (2012)
* '' Unplugged: Live from Sugarhill Studios'' (2013)
* ''Sun Red Sun
Sun Red Sun was an American heavy metal project created by guitarist Al B. Romano. It also featured several prominent musicians: vocalists Ray Gillen of Badlands and Black Sabbath, and John West of Artension and Royal Hunt; drummer Bobby Ro ...
'' (2014)
Singles
References
External links
Website for George Lynch
2015 George Lynch Interview on Guitar.com
{{Authority control
1989 establishments in California
2020 disestablishments in California
Cleopatra Records artists
Elektra Records artists
Frontiers Records artists
Glam metal musical groups from California
Hard rock musical groups from California
Musical groups established in 1989
Musical groups disestablished in 2020