 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source .(November 2019) |
Dr. Mastermind | |
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| Origin | Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
| Genres | Heavy metal, speed metal |
| Years active | 1982–present |
| Members | Matt McCourt |
| Past members |
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Dr. Mastermind is an American heavy metal band formed in 1982 and initially featuring future Journey drummer Deen Castronovo, Wild Dogs vocalist Matt McCourt, and guitarist Kurt James. [1]
Singer and bassist Matt McCourt formed the band in 1982 under the name Evil Genius. In the same year, he recorded a demo in the Ace Tunnel Sound studio in Portland, Oregon, United States, with musicians Dave Koening, Chon Carter and Kip Doran featuring three tracks.
After several line-up changes, another demo with the title Evil Genius was recorded, which was later released as Dr. Mastermind Must Die! under the original band name Evil Genius. With this line-up the band played several local shows, before they split up again after not receiving contract offers by music labels.
After sending the Evil Genius demo to Mike Varney of Shrapnel Records, McCourt was offered a contract with the label, under the condition that he found a drummer for the band, which he found in Deen Castronovo, who he had already played with before in Wild Dogs. On guitar, they found Kurt James. [1]
Shortly before the album Dr. Mastermind was released in 1986, [1] the band was renamed to Mastermind after being urged to do so by their label. Shortly after, the name was changed again, this time to Dr. Mastermind, after another band called Mastermind threatened to sue them. The first tracks for the album were recorded at Cascade studio in Portland, Oregon. The mixing and mastering took place at Prairie Sun studios in Cotati, California. After the release of Dr. Mastermind, Castronovo, James and session guitarist Ronn Chick left the band. [1]
From this point on, the band primarily consisted only of McCourt, who in the following years released a DVD and a few compilations on his own label US Metal Records. During the early 2000s, he re-released the Dr. Mastermind album with additional live recordings and the song "Evil Seed". At around the same time he also released the DVD Captured Alive! - One Night Stand and the compilation History of Evil Genius, which included unreleased demo recordings.
In 2005, the album Sin Sandwich was released with a new, but also short-lived, line-up.
In 2017, another compilation with the title Before and After was released.
Dingo is a Finnish rock band formed around 1982. They fused Finnish melancholy with catchy rock melodies. The band was led by the frontman Pertti Neumann. For a few years of top success, Dingo was one of the most popular Finnish rock bands and caused a phenomenon called "Dingomania" all over Finland.
GZR was an American heavy metal band founded by and named after Black Sabbath bassist/lyricist Geezer Butler. The band has been marketed with three different names on different releases, g//z/r in 1995, geezer in 1997, and GZR in 2005. Most fans refer to the band as "geezer," although Butler himself refers to the band name as "gee-zed-R". This incarnation of the band is not to be confused with Butler's previous attempt in 1985 to form a solo band, then known as the Geezer Butler Band – the two outfits are largely unrelated.
Tankard is a German thrash metal band from Frankfurt, founded in 1982. Alongside Kreator, Destruction and Sodom, Tankard is often considered one of the "Big Four" of Teutonic thrash metal. Stylistically, Tankard have consistently played thrash metal that thematically centres primarily on alcohol reverence, unlike the remaining "Big Teutonic Four", who are all known for covering such topics related to death, politics, violence and anti-fascism.
Deen J. Castronovo is an American drummer and singer, best known for being a member of classic rock band Journey and hard rock acts Bad English and Hardline. He currently plays drums and shares lead vocals for the bands Journey, Generation Radio and the Revolution Saints. He has been a touring and studio player for Ozzy Osbourne, Steve Vai, Paul Rodgers, and Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler's GZR.
Hardline is an American hard rock band. Originally formed in 1991 by brothers Johnny Gioeli and Joey Gioeli, the band consisted of five members, Johnny Gioeli, Joey Gioeli, Neal Schon, Todd Jensen and Deen Castronovo. The band's most recent album is Heart, Mind and Soul, which was released in 2021. Joey Gioeli has not appeared on a Hardline album since 2002's II after retiring from music to focus on family business. Johnny Gioeli remains the only original member of the band.
Hirax is an American thrash metal band from Cypress, California. Starting in 1984 under the leadership of vocalist Katon W. De Pena, the band played in Los Angeles and San Francisco with several of their thrash metal peers such as Metallica, Exodus, and Slayer. The band was an early example of thrash metal, speed metal and crossover thrash, yet inspired by cross-genre influences including blues vocalist Sam Cooke, who De Pena once cited as "the greatest vocalist [De Pena] has ever heard."
Steeler was an early 1980s American heavy metal band that featured Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen upon his arrival in the United States. The band was founded in 1981 in Nashville, Tennessee, by vocalist Ron Keel and released one album on Shrapnel Records in 1983 before morphing into Keel.
Abruptum is a Swedish black metal and dark ambient solo side-project band. It is run by Evil of Marduk, but the band was formed in 1989 by IT. All, Ext and Evil joined the band later. IT was one of the leaders of the True Satanist Horde, part of the Swedish Black metal scene. Euronymous, co-founder of Mayhem and founder of Deathlike Silence Productions, described Abruptum as "the audial essence of pure black evil".
Armoured Angel were an Australian thrash and death metal band from Canberra, which formed in 1982 as Metal Asylum. The band's founding mainstay, Glen "Lucy" Luck provided bass guitar. They pushed the musical boundaries of the local thrash metal scene and were pioneers of Australian death metal. The group also helped establish Australia's metal festival, Metal for the Brain in 1991. They issued a studio album, Angel of the Sixth Order, in July 1999 before disbanding soon after.
The 4-Skins are an English working-class Oi! band from the East End of London, England. Originally composed of Gary Hodges (vocals), 'Hoxton' Tom McCourt (guitar), Steve 'H' Hamer (bass) and John Jacobs (drums), the group was formed in 1979 and disbanded in 1984 – although new line-ups formed in 2007 and 2008. Many of their songs dealt with violent topics, but the band has claimed they were discussing the realities of inner city life, not promoting violence. Other 4-Skins song topics include police harassment, political corruption, war and unemployment.
Malice is an American heavy metal band formed in 1981, best known for their appearance on the first Metal Massacre compilation and the release of a pair of albums on Atlantic Records. Their heavily-European-influenced style elicited comparisons to Judas Priest.
Raw Power is an Italian hardcore punk band from Reggio Emilia, formed in 1981 and still active.
Jack Starr is an American heavy metal and blues guitarist and songwriter, born of a French mother and American father.
Fang is an American hardcore punk band from the early East Bay punk rock scene, established in Berkeley, California, in 1980.
Overkill L.A. or SST Overkill is a hardcore punk/speed metal band started in 1980 in Los Angeles and which recorded two records on SST Records and some tracks on compilations. The band started as Overkill but they were rechristened Overkill L.A. by SST Records when they re-released their albums in the '90s and SST Overkill when they reunited in 2005.
Impaler is a Minnesota horror rock band from the Twin Cities. Impaler formed in the spring of 1983 with founding members Bill Lindsey (vocals), Michael James Torok (guitar), "Commander" Court Hawley (bass), Robert "Meaty Bob" Johnson (drums), and Mike Senn (guitar). The band played original songs sprinkled with a few covers by favorite influential bands such as Kiss, Alice Cooper, and Motörhead. Bill Lindsey is the sole continuing member of Impaler, keeping the band alive for over 30 years.
Wild Dogs is an American heavy metal band from Portland, Oregon, formed loosely in 1981 by original members Jeff Mark, Danny Kurth, Matt McCourt, and Pete Holmes. The band has since released six albums, three live albums and one DVD. Wild Dogs rose to local and regional recognition in the 1980s as a pioneer of metal in the Pacific Northwest, followed by international recognition after the release of their second album.
Heir Apparent is an American heavy/progressive metal band from Seattle, formed in 1983.
Savage Grace was an American power and speed metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by Chris Logue and Brian East, initially active between 1981 and 1993. They reformed in 2009, and subsequently released an EP entitled The Lost Grace. In 2010, they performed at the Up the Hammers, Bang Your Head!!! and Keep It True festivals.
Revolution Saints is an American supergroup conceptualized by Frontiers Records president Serafino Perugino, and formed by Jack Blades of Night Ranger, Damn Yankees and Shaw Blades; Deen Castronovo of Journey and formerly of Wild Dogs, Cacophony, Marty Friedman, Joey Tafolla, The Dead Daisies, Ozzy Osbourne, Bad English and Hardline; and Doug Aldrich of Whitesnake, Dio, Hurricane, Lion, Bad Moon Rising, Burning Rain, House of Lords and The Dead Daisies.
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