Verbal Abuse is an American
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 punk ...
band formed in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, United States, in 1981. They are one of the founding bands 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 punk ...
. They later relocated to
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
and eventually to
Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...
.
Early years (1981-1983)
Verbal Abuse was established in 1981 by 17-year-old singer and songwriter Nicki Sicki, former member of the bands Sick Pleasure and Legionnaire's Disease. Radi Kilowatt handled the bass duties, his brother General Electric (aka G.E.) was the original guitarist, and John Glenn played drums. The band members lived together in a church, where Radi was working. G.E. left the band after claiming to have found
religion
Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...
and declaring that Nicki Sicki was evil. He was replaced by guitarist Joie Mastrokalos. During this early period, drummer Jason Riquelmy from the band Skate Death occasionally assumed drum duties when John Glenn was not available.
In February 1983, Glenn was advised by a native American spiritual adviser named Rolling Thunder not to travel with the band to play a concert in New Orleans for Mardi Gras, since it was "a bad day to travel" according to his superstitious beliefs. The other band members told him that if he chose not to come with them, he would be kicked out permanently. Glenn proceeded to assume a meditative pose, sitting cross-legged in the parking lot and burning incense with a sad expression as the group left for the concert without a drummer. In New Orleans the band played with Toxin III, a band from Lafayette, Louisiana, and recruited their drummer Bitchy Bill to play the show with both bands, serving only as a temporary replacement in Verbal Abuse for this one gig. At the end of the concert, Bitchy Bill proceeded to load his drums into Verbal Abuse's van, to the dismay of his bandmates and girlfriend, who convinced him to temporarily abandon his whim to join them and to return with Toxin III to Lafayette. However, three days later, back at the church in Houston, Bitchy Bill arrived unannounced with his drums and officially joined Verbal Abuse.
With this lineup, the band decided to relocate to San Francisco. After Nicki Sicki had left for California, Radi Kilowatt was forbidden by his girlfriend to leave Texas and therefore decided to give up his position in the band. Lacking his own vehicle, Mastrokalos convinced his friend Brett Dodwell to relocate from Texas to California and become the new bassist of Verbal Abuse. Although he had limited skill at playing the instrument, and none of the other members had been informed about the personnel change, Dodwell did become the band's bass player upon arrival in San Francisco.
After a few weeks in California, Bitchy Bill began to annoy the other band members with his selfish behavior. The rest of the group was living on the streets in the van, while Bill rented a comfortable apartment and refused to allow his bandmates access to his facilities. While driving down Market Street in San Francisco, the band pulled over to the curb and unloaded Bill's drum set onto the sidewalk. He got out of the van, and they drove away.
During this time period, the members of Verbal Abuse all kept their heads shaved. When they met drummer Gregg James, his head was already shaved, so the band immediately accepted him as the new drummer without any further auditions.
''Just An American Band'' and departure of Nicki Sicki
With the lineup of Nicki Sicki, Joie Mastrokalos, Brett Dodwell and Gregg James, Verbal Abuse was signed by
Fowl Records
Fowl Records was co-founded in 1994 by Jimi Haha from Jimmie's Chicken Shack, Richard James Burgess, the band's manager (Burgess Worldco Inc.) and Chris Keith, the band's agent ( Creative Booking International, Inc.) as a means to release Jimmie' ...
and in 1983 they recorded their first LP, ''Just An American Band,'' which was released early in 1984. Next, Brett Dodwell left the band to join the army, and Nicki Sicki's former Sick Pleasure bandmate Dave "Koko" Chavez took his place on bass. Verbal Abuse then embarked on a four month tour of the U.S. and Canada to promote their album and performed with numerous influential bands including
Slayer
Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style ...
,
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 ...
,
Agnostic Front
Agnostic Front is an American hardcore punk band from New York City. Founded in 1980, the band is considered an important influence on the New York hardcore scene, as well as a pioneer of the crossover thrash genre.
History First era (1980–19 ...
,
Murphy's Law,
Reagan Youth
Reagan Youth is an American anarcho-punk band formed by singer Dave Rubinstein (Dave Insurgent) and guitarist Paul Bakija (Paul Cripple) in Queens, New York City in early 1980.
History Initial career (1980–1990)
Rubinstein and Bakija a ...
,
The Cro-Mags,
Die Kreuzen
Die Kreuzen (/ˈdiːˈkɹɔɪtsn̩/) is an American rock band from Milwaukee, Wisconsin formed in 1981. The name, which was taken from a German Bible, is grammatically incorrect German for "the crosses."Larkin, Colin (1995) "Die Kreuzen", in ''Th ...
,
The Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band that formed in San Francisco, California, in 1978. The band was one of the defining punk bands during its initial eight-year run.
Dead Kennedys' lyrics were usually political in nature, satirizing p ...
,
Poison Idea
Poison Idea was an American punk rock band formed in Portland, Oregon, in 1980.
History
Formation, 1980s, and 1990s
Poison Idea was formed in 1980 by vocalist Jerry A. (aka Jerry Lang). The initial lineup consisted of Jerry A., Chris Te ...
and Decry. After finishing their tour, Nicki Sicki decided to leave Verbal Abuse early in 1985 due to stylistic and creative differences, citing Joie's penchant for flamboyant wardrobe choices including a bolero, a cape and various scarves and bandanas tied around his legs and microphone stands, as well as his leanings toward a more glam metal musical style. Nicki returned to Houston and formed the band Afterbirth with original Verbal Abuse bassist Radi Kilowatt, guitarists Andy Schumman and Bill Barton and a drummer by the name of Kelp. Afterbirth played new original songs, written mostly by Nicki, which were stylistically similar to the hardcore direction of the ''Just An American Band'' LP, and also performed a few old favorites from that record.
Scotty Wilkins years (1985-1995)
After Nicki Sicki's departure, Verbal Abuse continued on without any original members and adopted a new musical style in an attempt to conform more to a thrash metal sound. The remaining members, Dave Chavez, Joie Mastrokalos, and Gregg James recruited vocalist
Scotty Wilkins
Scotty Wilkins is an American punk rock singer and musician. Wilkins is most widely known as the singer for the Los Angeles punk rock band Hollywood Hate and previously, San Francisco punk rock band, Verbal Abuse. In the mid 1990s, Wilkins joine ...
, who had recently done a very brief stint in the band
Condemned to Death
''Condemned to Death'' is a 1932 British crime film directed by Walter Forde and starring Arthur Wontner, Gillian Lind and Gordon Harker. It was adapted from the play ''Jack O'Lantern'' by James Dawson which was itself based on a 1929 novel by ...
. Later they added Jason Shapiro as a second guitarist, but he left Verbal Abuse the following year to focus on his band Celebrity Skin.
In 1986 the group recorded the album V.A. Rocks Your Liver, which was produced by
Sylvia Massy
Sylvia Lenore Massy is an American record producer, mixer, engineer, instructor and author. Massy is renowned for her multifaceted production/mixing and engineering skills, with her first major breakthrough occurring with 1993's '' Undertow'', th ...
and released on
Boner Records
Boner Records is an American independent record label in Berkeley, California owned by Tom Flynn. It has released recordings by Fang (Flynn's band), Verbal Abuse, MDC, Boneless Ones, Duh, Steel Pole Bath Tub, Melvins, The Warlock Pinchers, ...
. Although the record's credits list Joie Mastrokalos as the only guitarist, at least three other guitarists appear on the recording. Jason Shapiro contributed significantly to the songwriting on the album and played on several tracks but wasn't credited. Performances by session guitarists Tom Flynn (of the band
Fang
A fang is a long, pointed tooth. In mammals, a fang is a modified maxillary tooth, used for biting and tearing flesh. In snakes, it is a specialized tooth that is associated with a venom gland (see snake venom). Spiders also have external fang ...
) and Bill Collins also appear on the album uncredited.
Verbal Abuse continued to perform locally in California and toured the United States and Canada as well. In 1987 Mastrokalos left the band, and was replaced by Nicki Sicki's Afterbirth bandmate, Andy Schuman. Gregg James soon stepped down for family reasons, and was temporarily replaced by former Condemned to Death drummer Mike Chubka before eventually rejoining.
In 1989, drummer
Chris Kontos
Christopher T. Kontos (born December 10, 1963) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Kontos is best known for his nine goals in 11 playoff games while he was a member of the Los Angeles Kings and his franchise opening night four-go ...
replaced Gregg James as the permanent drummer, and the band embarked on a European tour, taking the place of the band M.D.C. who had been scheduled to play the tour but were unable to make the trip. Destiny Records had booked 38 shows across Europe in 42 days and requested a live recording from the tour, which was released as Passport - Verbal Abuse of America. The label sent the band back to Europe in 1990 to tour to promote the live record.
Verbal Abuse recorded another album in 1995 entitled Red, White and Violent, which was released on
Century Media Records
Century Media Records is a heavy metal record label with offices in the United States, Germany and London. In August 2015, Century Media was acquired by Sony Music for US$17 million.
Background
Century Media was founded by Robert Kampf and Oli ...
. This incarnation of the band toured one final time in support of the record and disbanded soon afterward, with no intention to ever reform.
Slayer releases Verbal Abuse cover songs, sparking new interest
In 1996, the
thrash metal
Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...
band
Slayer
Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style ...
released ''
Undisputed Attitude
''Undisputed Attitude'' is the seventh studio album by American thrash metal band Slayer, released on May 28, 1996, by American Recordings. The album consists almost entirely of covers of punk rock and hardcore punk songs, and also includes ...
'', an LP featuring a collection of cover songs originally performed by many of the band's favorite punk rock acts. The record, which peaked at number 34 on the Billboard 200 album chart, included one or two songs each from several bands. But Verbal Abuse's music was featured heavily on the album, with Slayer performing five songs from the band's debut LP, ''Just an American Band'': "Disintegration", "Free Money", "Verbal Abuse", "Leeches", and "I Hate You". A video for Slayer's version of "I Hate You" was well received by fans, many of whom were not familiar with Verbal Abuse's early material. Verbal Abuse, at the time a defunct band, suddenly received a massive surge of recognition and newfound interest when legions of Slayer fans worldwide were exposed to their music.
2000 Reunion, Nicki Sicki benefit concert
In 2000, Verbal Abuse reformed the Wilkins, Chavez, Schuman, Kontos lineup to play a single benefit concert with punk band Cell Block 5 at Annie's club in San Francisco for former vocalist Nicki Sicki as he was experiencing legal troubles.
Reformation with original vocalist Nicki Sicki (2004–present)
In 2004, Nicki Sicki, after having completed his legal obligations, decided to form a new lineup of Verbal Abuse in Houston with Ed Loco on guitar, his teenage son Ed Loco Jr. on drums and Nick Nobody on bass. This version of the band toured the east coast and played numerous west coast shows as well, including headlining the 2005 BOB Fest in Oakland. Bubba Dennis was added as a second guitarist at the beginning of the tour but was quickly relieved of duty due to substance abuse issues. Ed Jr. quit the band during the tour to finish high school and was immediately replaced by drummer Geza Szent-Galy, formerly of
Paul Baloff
Paul Baloff (April 25, 1960 – February 2, 2002) was an American singer, best known as the original lead vocalist of the thrash metal band Exodus. He was shortly fired from Exodus after the release of the band's 1985 debut album ''Bonded by B ...
's post-
Exodus
Exodus or the Exodus may refer to:
Religion
* Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible
* The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan
Historical events
* Ex ...
project, Piranha. Upon completion of the tour, Verbal Abuse relocated to Oakland and were slated to record a cover of a song by the band Aggression to be released on a compilation album entitled ''Taking Out a Little Aggression''. The Texas based members Ed Loco and Nick Nobody returned to Houston, and guitarist Greg Grimple and bassist Dave Chavez were brought in as session musicians to play on the recording, which was eventually released on July 24, 2007 on the Dr. Strange label. Soon after, Nick Nobody returned to California, but Dave Chavez asserted his position in Verbal Abuse as the permanent bassist although he had not been asked to officially rejoin the band. Even so, Nick conceded and Dave did assume the permanent position. Andy Schuman then returned to Verbal Abuse on guitar but soon left again and was replaced by Jess Aaron. Over the next few years the band's guitarist position changed hands several times with stints by Sean Sutton, Greg Elliot,
Luke Skeels and a reappearance of Ed Loco.
In 2014, guitarist "Sick" Scott Stanton of the bands Necrosic, Glob and Mummification joined Verbal Abuse and played his first show with them alongside guitarist Ed Loco in a special one-off concert with this two-guitar lineup. The show was Ed Loco's final performance with the group. Upon Ed's departure, Sick Scott assumed full time guitar duty and is currently the band's only guitarist. As of 2022 this newest version of Verbal Abuse is still performing regularly, their set generally consisting of classic material from the ''Just An American Band'' LP, new material written by the current lineup, and a few songs by Nicki Sicki's various prior bands including Legionnaire's Disease, Sick Pleasure, Afterbirth and Humungus. The current version of Verbal Abuse does not play any of the material which was recorded with former vocalist Scotty Wilkins. The group is in the process of preparing new material to be recorded for an upcoming full-length record, which will be the first album with original vocalist Nicki Sicki since the band's debut LP was recorded in 1983.
Reissues
The band's first record was re-released on LP in 1996 and on CD in 2002 on Beer City Records. The CD also features a complete live recording from 1984. In 2014, the LP was also re-issued on red vinyl.
Discography
LPs
* ''Just an American Band'', Fowl Records (1983)
* ''Rocks Your Liver'', Boner Records (1986)
* ''Passport- Verbal Abuse of America Live in Berlin'', Destiny Records (1989)
* ''Red, White & Violent'', Century Media Records (1995)
* ''Just an American Band'', Beer City Records (LP: 1986, CD: 2002)
* ''Rocks Your Liver (and then some)'', Malt Soda Recordings (2006)
Compilations
* ''Them Boners Be Poppin'' compilation, Boner Records (1985)
* ''Rat Music for Rat People, Vol. 3'', CD Presents (1987)
* ''Thrasher Vol. 10 Compilation'' (1988)
* ''Taking Out a Little Aggression'' (2007)
Personnel
Current members
*Nicki Sicki - Vocals (1981–1984, 2004–present)
*Dave "Koko" Chavez - Bass (1984–1995, 2005–present)
*"Sick" Scott Stanton - Guitar (2014–present)
*Geza Szent-Galy - Drums (2005–present)
Former members
Vocalists
*
Scotty Wilkins
Scotty Wilkins is an American punk rock singer and musician. Wilkins is most widely known as the singer for the Los Angeles punk rock band Hollywood Hate and previously, San Francisco punk rock band, Verbal Abuse. In the mid 1990s, Wilkins joine ...
(1984–1995, 2000)
Guitarists
*General Electric (aka G.E.) (1981-1982)
*Joie Mastrokalos (1982–1987)
*Jason Shapiro (1985–1986)
*Andy Schuman (1987-1995, 2006-2007)
*Ed Loco (2004–2005, 2012-2014)
*Bubba Dennis (2005)
*Jess Aaron (2007)
*Sean Sutton (2007)
*Greg Elliot (2007–2008)
*Luke Skeels (2009-2011)
Bassists
*Radi Kilowatt (1981-1983)
*Brett Dodwell (1983–1984)
*Nick Nobody (2004–2006)
Drummers
*John Glenn (1981-1983)
*Brian "Damage" Keats (1983)
*Bitchy Bill (1983)
*Gregg James (1983–1989)
*Mike Chubka (1988–1989)
*
Chris Kontos
Christopher T. Kontos (born December 10, 1963) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Kontos is best known for his nine goals in 11 playoff games while he was a member of the Los Angeles Kings and his franchise opening night four-go ...
(1989–1995, 2000)
*Ed Loco Jr. (2004–2005)
References
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Verbal Abuse
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups disestablished in 1995
Musical groups reestablished in 2004
Crossover thrash groups
Hardcore punk groups from California
Musical groups from San Francisco
Thrash metal musical groups from California
Heavy metal musical groups from Texas
Musical groups from Houston
Musical quartets
Hardcore punk groups from Texas
Boner Records artists