Kenny Kweens | |
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Background information | |
Origin | New Orleans, LA, US [1] |
Genres | Hard rock, heavy metal, glam metal |
Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
Instrument(s) | Bass, guitar, vocals |
Years active | 1994–present |
Labels | Warner Bros., JVC, Spitfire, Sire, Alfa-Brunette, Hi/Fi, Perris |
Kenny Kweens is an American musician. He is best known as the bassist in the hard rock band Beautiful Creatures. [2] In 2009, Kweens also joined L.A. Guns (fronted by Phil Lewis), replacing previous bassist Scott Griffin. [3] [4] However, in 2011, Kweens departed, replaced by Griffin. [5] On September 22, 2014, it was announced that Griffin had once again departed the band, and Kweens rejoined the band. [6]
Prior to joining Beautiful Creatures, Kweens was a member of Shake the Faith, [7] No. 9, [7] Diamond Star Halo [7] and Melody Black [7] while in 2008 he formed his own solo project titled Villains of Vaudeville. [1] [8]
Kweens joined the group Shake the Faith, [7] formed in Los Angeles, California by singer David Aragon in 1994, which featured former Black 'n Blue and current Kiss guitarist Tommy Thayer. [9] They released one album, America the Violent in 1994. The group changed their name to No. 9 and recorded a CD for Hi/Fi/Sire Records [7] titled Greatest Hits which was bought out by Geffen, however the group disbanded before its release.
Both groups had music featured on television shows such as The Real World, Road Rules, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Mad About You. [7]
In 1999, BulletBoys guitarist DJ Ashba and Bang Tango singer Joe Lesté formed Beautiful Creatures adding Kweens, guitarist Anthony Focx and drummer Glen Sobel. [2] The group released Beautiful Creatures in 2001 through Warner Bros., [7] [2] and, after some lineup changes, Deuce in 2005 through JVC/Spitfire Records. [2] [10] In 2017, Beautiful Creatures released Deuce Deluxe, a remixed record that included a new song "Get You High" along with all the imported songs released on the European and Asian versions of Deuce.
Beautiful Creatures also toured and supported and number of acts such as Kiss, [2] [11] Genitorturers, [12] Stephen Pearcy of Ratt, [13] Faster Pussycat [14] while they have also performed at festivals such as Ozzfest [7] [2] and Rocklahoma. [15]
A number of songs by the group have featured on soundtracks for films such as Valentine, [16] Rollerball, [16] The Proposal [17] and also television series such as Smallville [16] and Sons of Anarchy. [18]
In 2008, Kenny Kweens moved to center mic as a vocalist to front his own project, Villains of Vaudeville. In 2013, Villains of Vaudeville released Villains De Vaudeville a 10-song full-length record produced by Tracy Swider, (Hate Times Nine). Villains Of Vaudeville released 3 videos from that record "The Devil Is Waiting", "Demolition Baby" and "Black Heart Saints". On New Year's Eve December 31, 2021 Villains of Vaudeville released a 4-song EP titled, Sex, Drugs & The Devil's Music the tracks were produced and mixed by Lonny Paul and mastered by Anthony Focx (Beautiful Creatures).
In July 2009, Kweens was announced as the replacement for the departed Scott Griffin in the Phil Lewis fronted L.A. Guns. [3] [4] In January 2011, Kweens departed the band, with Griffin returning to the lineup. [5]
On September 22, 2014, it was announced that Griffin had once again departed the band, and Kweens rejoined the band. [6]
On October 13, 2017, L.A. Guns releases The Missing Peace record, the song 'The Devil Made Me Do It' is co-written by Kweens.
Nikki Sixx is an American musician, best known as the co-founder, bassist, and primary songwriter of the heavy metal band Mötley Crüe, being the only member to remain throughout their entire history. Prior to forming Mötley Crüe, Sixx was a member of Sister before going on to form London with his Sister bandmate Lizzie Grey. In 2000, he formed side project group 58 with Dave Darling, Steve Gibb and Bucket Baker, issuing one album, Diet for a New America. Also in 2002, he formed the hard rock supergroup Brides of Destruction with L.A. Guns guitarist Tracii Guns. Formed in 2006, initially to record an audio accompaniment to Sixx's autobiography The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star, his side band Sixx:A.M. featured songwriter, producer, and vocalist James Michael and guitarist DJ Ashba.
DevilDriver is an American heavy metal band from Santa Barbara, California, formed in 2002, consisting of vocalist Dez Fafara, bassist Jon Miller, rhythm guitarist Alex Lee and drummer Davier Pérez. The band was originally named Deathride, however, due to copyright issues and the name being taken by several bands, the band changed its name to DevilDriver.
L.A. Guns are an American glam metal band from Los Angeles, formed in 1983. The lineup currently consists of Tracii Guns, Phil Lewis, Ace Von Johnson, Johnny Martin, Adam Hamilton and Shawn Duncan. The first incarnation of the group was formed by Tracii Guns and Rob Gardner in 1983 and merged with fellow Los Angeles group Hollywood Rose to form Guns N' Roses in March 1985. After only a brief tenure in that band, Guns reformed L.A. Guns with a new lineup, consisting of Paul Black, Mick Cripps, Robert Stoddard, and Nickey Alexander. Black would soon be replaced by former Girl singer Phil Lewis while former Faster Pussycat bassist Kelly Nickels was added to the group. Later, Alexander would be replaced by former W.A.S.P. drummer Steve Riley with this being known as the "classic lineup" of L.A. Guns. They achieved moderate chart success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. However, the group went through numerous lineup changes and failed to regain mainstream attention.
Tracy Irving Richard Ulrich, known professionally as Tracii Guns, is an American guitarist best known as the co-founder of glam metal group L.A. Guns, as well as the supergroups Brides of Destruction and Contraband. He was also a founding member of Guns N' Roses, but left shortly afterwards and was replaced by guitarist Slash.
BulletBoys is an American hard rock/glam metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1987. The group's original lineup was composed of singer Marq Torien, guitarist Mick Sweda, bassist Lonnie Vencent, and drummer Jimmy D'Anda. The group released two successful albums and had a number of singles featured on MTV between 1988 and 1991. From the 1990s onward, the group went through numerous lineup changes, with Torien as the only consistent member. Their most recent album From Out of the Skies was released in 2018. The original lineup reunited for one-off shows in 2011 and 2019.
Brides of Destruction was an American hard rock supergroup from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2002. The band's last lineup consisted of singer London LeGrand (vocals), Tracii Guns and Scot Coogan. Previous members of the band were Nikki Sixx (bass), Kris Kohls (drums), Adam Hamilton (keyboard), John Corabi, Scott Sorry (bass) and Ginger.
David Justin Vincent, also known as Evil D, is an American musician who is best known as the former lead vocalist and bassist for the Florida death metal band Morbid Angel, as well as the bassist for Terrorizer and Genitorturers.
Adler's Appetite, previously Suki Jones, is an American rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 2003. The band's current lineup consists of namesake and drummer Steven Adler, vocalist Ari Kamin, guitarists Michael Thomas and Alistair James, and bassist Todd Kerns. Along with original material, the band performs covers of Adler's former band Guns N' Roses, primarily songs from the album Appetite for Destruction.
Beautiful Creatures is an American hard rock band formed in 1999 by guitarist DJ Ashba and singer Joe Lesté of Bang Tango. The group's current lineup is composed of Lesté, Alex Grossi, Anthony Focx, Kenny Kweens (bass) and Timmy Russell (drums). Previously the group featured Michael Thomas and Glen Sobel among others while founder DJ Ashba is currently the lead guitarist for Sixx:A.M.
Beautiful Creatures is the debut studio album by American hard rock band Beautiful Creatures. It was produced by Sean Beavan at Bay 7 Studios in Valley Village, Los Angeles, and was released on August 16, 2001, through Warner Bros. Records. The album peaked at number 29 on the Billboard Top Heatseekers, while the single "Wasted" peaked at number 37 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks.
Deuce is the second studio album by American rock band Beautiful Creatures. It was released in 2005 under the Spitfire label.
Rocklahoma is an annual 3-day hard rock and metal festival held in Pryor, Oklahoma. The festival features 3 official stages, as well as many unofficial campground parties and performing acts and onsite vendors. There were an estimated 100,000 people at the first annual Rocklahoma held in 2007. The Third Annual Rocklahoma had over seventy bands on four stages, including favorites from previous Rocklahoma festivals, Beautiful Creatures, LA Guns featuring Tracii Guns, Bang Tango, Lillian Axe, Gypsy Pistoleros and Faster Pussycat. Included on the side stages are bands from all over Europe. Coffee table books for Rocklahoma 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 have been published and are available on the web.
Scott Griffin is an American musician who is best known as a former bassist for L.A. Guns and Ratt. In 2007, Griffin was announced as the bassist for L.A. Guns, having previously played in Dizzy Reed's cover band Hookers N' Blow, replacing Adam Hamilton. From 2015 until April 1, 2016, Griffin was the bassist of a revamped version of Ratt, led by drummer Bobby Blotzer.
Daren Jay Ashba is an American musician, guitarist, songwriter, record producer, and graphic designer. He was the lead guitarist of Sixx:A.M. He is also known for his work with hard rock bands BulletBoys, Beautiful Creatures and Guns N' Roses. He has worked with various artists including Mötley Crüe, Drowning Pool, Marion Raven, Aimee Allen and Neil Diamond. He is the CEO of Ashba Media.
Loaded is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1999. Since 2001, the band's line-up has included vocalist and rhythm guitarist Duff McKagan, lead guitarist Mike Squires and bassist Jeff Rouse. Since 2009, Isaac Carpenter has been the band's drummer, replacing Geoff Reading.
Ratt was an American glam metal band 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 perhaps best known for hit singles such as "Round and Round" and "Lay It Down", tracks that ranked on Billboard's top 40 at No. 12 and No. 40, respectively, as well as other songs such as "Wanted Man", "You're in Love" and "Dance". Along with bands such as friendly rivals Mötley Crüe, Ratt has been recognized as instrumental in the formation of the early 1980s Los Angeles glam metal scene, also known as "hair metal" or "pop metal".
Matt Starr is an American drummer. He has performed with numerous artists and bands throughout his career, including Ace Frehley, Joe Lynn Turner, Love/Hate, Kevin DuBrow, and Mr. Big.
Devil City Angels is an American rock supergroup formed by guitarist Tracii Guns, drummer Rikki Rockett (Poison), bassist Eric Brittingham (Cinderella), and vocalist and rhythm guitarist Brandon Gibbs.
The Missing Peace is the eleventh studio album by American hard rock band L.A. Guns.