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John Connelly | |
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 John Conelly live with Nuclear Assault at Party.San Open Air 2015 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | July 28, 1962 New York City, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instrument(s) |
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| Years active | 1981−present |
| Website | nuclearassault |
John Connelly (born July 28, 1962) is an American musician, best known as the lead vocalist and guitarist of New York City thrash metal band Nuclear Assault.
Connelly started as a roadie for thrash metal band Anthrax where he became a close friend of Anthrax bassist Danny Lilker. He formed the band Nuclear Assault in 1983, and Lilker, having left Anthrax, joined him soon after. [1]
In 1986, Connelly was a guest vocalist on Immaculate Deception, the first album by New York hardcore band Ludichrist and again on a track called "Goodbye Freedom, Hello Mom" from the 1989 Scatterbrain album Here Comes Trouble.
Around 1991, Connelly saw fit to take a break from Nuclear Assault, and released a low profile solo record under the name John Connelly Theory, entitled Back to Basics. The differences between his solo project and Nuclear Assault was mostly found in the more rock oriented song structures and occasional humor.[ citation needed ].
John found himself in New London, Connecticut, at this time after the release and tour supporting Nuclear's album Something Wicked . He formed a new solo project combining the names of his previous solo project and Nuclear Assault, with the premise being that the band would concentrate on work from both as well as work on new material. Area musicians Patrick Vitagliano, lead guitar, Tony O'Brien, bass and Tom Maynard drummer from Senslis Killin' were recruited to perform gigs and support new material. The direction for the new material was heavy guitar oriented music combining elements of punk, thrash, and speed metal with some blues thrown in occasionally. The setlist typically contained the songs "L. H. A", "Aggressive", "7/8 Solution" from "John Connelly Theory" and "Another Violent End", "Behind Glass Walls" and "Hang The Pope" from Nuclear Assault's catalog. In September 1997, Patrick left to concentrate on his sound and lighting company. Tom Maynard recruited another local musician, Chris Boix to take over lead guitar duties. Nuclear Theory opened for Brutal Truth in December 1996, with Dan Lilker joining in for "Hang the Pope". About this time the band relocated to Pawcatuck, CT. On May 14, 1997, John reunited with Glenn Evans, Dan Lilker and Anthony Bramante for one Nuclear Assault show at the Colosseum in Manchester, NH. Also in early 1997, Nuclear Theory played at the Living Room in Providence, RI. Both of these shows were made possible with the help of Eric Paone of Candy Striper Death Orgy. This was the last gig for the band Nuclear Theory. Soon afterward Tom and Chris lost interest in the band due to lack of direction and each decided to devote more time to their new families.
He formed a 3 piece line up called Rite Bastards. The line up consisted of John on guitar and lead vocals. Bass player Tony O'Brian sang back up vocals and Tom Maynard played drums. Tom left the band and was replaced by Jim Villano. During this time they recorded a demo CD with songs titled, "Carmen", "Oh Why", "Other Man's Song" and 3 others. They played in Boston at a club with Overkill. John had played a reunion show with Nuclear Assault and when he came back to Rite Bastards he asked the band if they would like to form a reformed version of Nuclear Assault. Tony and Jim declined. Shortly after this John reformed Nuclear Assault.
In early 2002 the band was approached by a mutual friend to reform for a couple of shows. Their first reunion show was the Metal Meltdown in April and there they found out that there was a demand for the band to continue. They played the classic NYC venue CBGB in May along with a show in Massachusetts that was recorded for a live album to be released on Screaming Ferret Wreckords in early 2003. After a well-received performance at the Wacken Open Air festival in Germany in August, original guitarist Anthony Bramante left the band due to commitments at home and was replaced by Erik Burke. In September 2002 the band returned to Sao Paulo, Brazil, where they had played back in 1989 with the then fledgling Sepultura opening.
The band released a live album Alive Again in 2003, and a studio album Third World Genocide in 2005. Lyrical themes on that album include broad criticisms of holy war, and the song "Price of Freedom" is specifically about the response of the United States after September 11, 2001. Nuclear Assault remained active sporadically before the band broke up once again in 2022. [2]
In 2012 Municipal Waste released a track called 'The Fatal Feast'. It features John Connelly on guest vocals. He can be heard singing the chorus.
Anthrax is an American thrash metal band from New York City, formed in 1981 by rhythm guitarist Scott Ian and bassist Dan Lilker. The group is considered one of the leaders of the thrash metal scene from the 1980s and is part of the "Big Four" of the genre, along with Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer. They were also one of the first thrash metal bands to emerge from the East Coast. The band's current lineup consists of Scott Ian, drummer Charlie Benante, bassist Frank Bello, vocalist Joey Belladonna and lead guitarist Jonathan Donais. Anthrax's lineup has changed numerous times over their career, leaving Ian as the only constant member of the band. Ian and Benante are the only two members to appear on all of Anthrax's albums, while Bello has been a member of Anthrax since 1984, replacing Lilker.
Thrash metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and fast tempo. The songs usually use fast percussive beats and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead guitar work. The lyrical subject matter often includes criticism of The Establishment, opposition to armed conflicts, and at times shares a disdain for the Christian religion with that of black metal. The language is typically direct and denunciatory, an approach borrowed from Punk.
Fistful of Metal is the debut studio album by American heavy metal band Anthrax, released in January 1984 by Megaforce Records and Music for Nations internationally. The album includes a cover of Alice Cooper's "I'm Eighteen". This is the band's only album to feature original frontman Neil Turbin and original bassist Dan Lilker, who were replaced by Matt Fallon and Frank Bello, respectively. Former original guitarist Greg Walls claims that Anthrax "ripped him off" as he claims he wrote the material on the album.
Spreading the Disease is the second studio album by the American heavy metal band Anthrax, released in October 1985 by Megaforce Records and Island Records. It was the band's first album to feature vocalist Joey Belladonna and bassist Frank Bello. A special two-disc edition of the album was released in 2015, celebrating its 30th anniversary.
Among the Living is the third studio album by American heavy metal band Anthrax. It was released on March 16, 1987, by Megaforce Records in the US and by Island Records in the rest of the world. The album is dedicated to Cliff Burton of Metallica, who died in a bus accident six months before its release while Metallica were on tour with Anthrax as the opening act.
Stormtroopers of Death was an American crossover thrash band formed in New York City in 1985. They are credited as being amongst the first groups to fuse hardcore punk with thrash metal into a style often referred to as crossover thrash. The band is also known for reuniting Anthrax members, guitarist Scott Ian and drummer Charlie Benante, with their former bassist Dan Lilker. Their instrumental song "March of the S.O.D." from their 1985 debut album, Speak English or Die, was the Headbangers Ball intro anthem for many years. Another song from the same album, "Chromatic Death", was also used during the show as a segue between ads and videos.
Daniel Adam Lilker is an American musician best known as a bass player, but also guitarist, pianist, drummer and vocalist. He was the bassist for the thrash metal band Nuclear Assault and was a founding member of Anthrax with Scott Ian. Lilker was then playing rhythm guitar and recorded bass guitar and co-wrote on their first album, Fistful of Metal. He also founded Nuclear Assault, grindcore band Brutal Truth and crossover band Stormtroopers of Death with Scott Ian and Charlie Benante, and Billy Milano. He also plays bass with Exit-13, Malformed Earthborn, The Ravenous, Overlord Exterminator, Venomous Concept, Crucifist, Nokturnal Hellstorm, Nunfuckritual and Extra Hot Sauce. During his tenure with Anthrax, Lilker played bass by fingerpicking, but since forming Nuclear Assault, he has mostly been using a pick.
Speak English or Die is the debut album by the American crossover thrash band Stormtroopers of Death, released in August 1985.
Bigger than the Devil is the second album by crossover thrash band Stormtroopers of Death (S.O.D.). The album was released in May 1999 on the Nuclear Blast label. Its cover design is based on Iron Maiden's 1982 album The Number of the Beast and its title is a play on words on The Beatles member John Lennon proclaiming The Beatles were "bigger than Jesus Christ".
Brutal Truth was an American grindcore band from New York City, formed by ex-Anthrax, Nuclear Assault, and Stormtroopers of Death bass guitarist Dan Lilker in 1990. The group disbanded in 1999, but reformed in 2006 and continued to release music until 2014.
Discharge are an English hardcore punk band formed in 1977 in Stoke-on-Trent, England. The band is known for influencing several sub-genres of extreme music and their songs have been covered by some of the biggest names in heavy metal and other genres. The musical sub-genre of D-beat is named after Discharge and the band's distinctive drumbeat.
Nuclear Assault was an American thrash metal band formed in New York City in 1984. Part of the mid-to-late 1980s thrash metal movement, they were one of the main bands of the genre to emerge from the East Coast along with Overkill, Whiplash, Toxik, Carnivore, and Anthrax, the last of which was co-founded by Nuclear Assault bassist Dan Lilker, who left Anthrax shortly after the release of their first album. Nuclear Assault released five full-length albums and toured relentlessly throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, and broke up in 1995. The band reunited briefly in 1997, 2002, 2005 and 2015 before breaking up for the fourth time in 2022.
Municipal Waste is an American crossover thrash band from Richmond, Virginia, formed in 2000. To date, the band has released seven studio albums, three EPs and four splits. They have gone through a few line-up changes, leaving vocalist Tony Foresta and rhythm guitarist Ryan Waste as the only constant members. In addition to Foresta and Waste, their current lineup includes Philip "Land Phil" Hall on bass, Dave Witte on drums and Nick "Nikropolis" Poulos on lead guitar.
Game Over is the debut album by thrash metal band Nuclear Assault, released in 1986.
Handle with Care is the third studio album by American thrash metal band Nuclear Assault released in 1989. This is the band's most successful and best-selling album to date, peaking at number 126 on the Billboard 200, making it their highest position so far. "Critical Mass" was released as a single to promote the album.
Something Wicked is the fifth studio album by American thrash metal band Nuclear Assault, released on February 23, 1993 by I.R.S. Records.
Out of Order is the fourth studio album released by american thrash metal band Nuclear Assault in 1991. This was the last Nuclear Assault studio album to feature Danny Lilker.
The Plague is the second extended play by the American thrash metal band Nuclear Assault. The six-track EP was originally released as a 12-inch vinyl record through Combat Records in 1987, and later combined with the band's full-length debut, 1986's Game Over, into one CD by Relativity Records.
Survive is the second studio album by American thrash metal band Nuclear Assault, released in 1988 on vinyl, compact disc and cassette. As of 2012, the album has been out of print. Propelled by the single "Brainwashed", Survive was the album that broke Nuclear Assault into the thrash metal mainstream, and was their first album to enter the Billboard 200, reaching number 145 on that chart. "Good Times Bad Times" was originally recorded by Led Zeppelin in 1969.
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