Gzr Biography
Original Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler had wanted to embark on a solo recording career since back in the '80s, but the opportunity -- and more importantly, the right group of musicians -- was never provided to the godfather of all heavy metal bassists until 1995 when the musician released Plastic Planet on TVT Records under the moniker of GZR. While many fans might have been unaware of the group's substantial metal lineage due to the confusing name, those in the know were surely sated by GZR's ultra-heavy aggro thrash metal. Joining Butler on Plastic Planet are Burton C. Bell (Fear Factory) on vocals, Pedro Howse on guitar, and drummer Deen Castronovo, whose résumé features recordings from Ozzy Osbourne, Steve Vai, Bad English, and many others. Besides its driving sound, this debut is most notable for the scathing Tony Iommi commentary on the track "Giving Up the Ghost." Never really a live band, this outfit played a few shows with Bell's Fear Factory, and in 1997, Butler released a second disc under the edited (and more recognizable) moniker Geezer. The record was called Black Science and featured unknown vocalist Clark Brown along with Howse and Castronovo. Like Plastic Planet, this second release featured punishing riffs and fine sonic packaging, proving Butler to be an inventive and singularly heavy artist. Eight years then passed before the band returned with Ohmwork. ~ Vincent Jeffries, All Music Guide
Popular Biographies:
Chalice Biography: Chalice was a popular reggae group from 1980-87 who never expanded their fan base beyond Jamaica's shorelines, where they recorded nearly ten albums on Pipes Music, Rohit, CSA, Sunsplash, and Ras...
Thousand foot krutch Biography: Toronto-area Christian rockers Thousand Foot Krutch first appeared in 1997, when Trevor McNevan, Joel Bruyere, and Steve Augustine started putting a worship song spin on a rap-metal sound similar to...
Heavy pettin Biography: Scottish hard rock outfit Heavy Pettin' was formed in Glasgow in mid-1981 when the trio of guitarist Gordon Bonnar, bassist Brian Waugh and drummer Gary Moat--known collectively as Weeper--added...
Benabar Biography: Singer/songwriter Bénabar emerged at the vanguard of France's "chanson réaliste" movement, crafting uncommonly literary portraits of contemporary life informed by folk, jazz, and film. Born...
Moonsorrow Biography: Formed in 1995 by cousins Henri (guitar/keyboards/vocals) and Ville Sorvali (bass/vocals), Finland's Moonsorrow traced a path similar to that blazed by their countrymen Amorphis by combining death...
Bad manners Biography: Bad Manners, composed of vocalist Buster Bloodvessel (born Douglas Trendle), Louis Cook (guitar), David Farren (bass), Martin Stewart (keyboards), Brian Tuitti (drums), Gus Herman (trumpet), Chris...
Znowhite Biography: One of the several American metal bands whose first national exposure came by way of the Metal Massacre compilation series (in this case Vol. 3, which featured their 1983 song "Hellbent"), Chicago...
Firebird Biography: Years since Carcass' Swan Song in 1996, founding guitarist Bill Steer returns with Firebird in late 2000, releasing a self-titled debut. Renowned for his pioneering efforts in grindcore and extreme...