Throwdown (band) Early years (1997-2002) What was the band doing in 1997? Throwdown was formed in 1997 Who were the original members? Visions, guitarists Tommy Love and Javier Van Huss, bassist Dom Macaluso, and drummer Marc Jackson. Where were some of their first gigs? The band released their debut, self-titled 7-inch single that same year through Prime Directive Records. Did they have an personnel changes over those first years? Van Huss left the band, and was replaced by Brandan Schieppati. Were those the only changes in this first years? Schieppati left the band to concentrate full-time on his other band Bleeding Through, being replaced by Dave Peters. Was the band very popular at first? I don't know.
Did the band get a recording contract in those early years?
Did Throwdown get a recording contract in the early years?
Throwdown was formed in 1997 by vocalist Keith Barney, who would also be an active member of both Adamantium and Eighteen Visions, guitarists Tommy Love and Javier Van Huss, bassist Dom Macaluso, and drummer Marc Jackson. The group took on the title Throwdown as a "wry irony on their collective stature," at the time no band member being more than 5 feet 8 inches (1.73 m). The band released their debut, self-titled 7-inch single that same year through Prime Directive Records. Van Huss left the band, and was replaced by Brandan Schieppati. After sign a recording contract with Indecision Records, the band released their first studio album Beyond Repair the following year. In 1999, Barney also relinquished his role in Death by Stereo to prioritise Throwdown. Schieppati left the band to concentrate full-time on his other band Bleeding Through, being replaced by Dave Peters. The following year, the new line-up released the Drive Me Dead EP. In 2001, Throwdown released their second studio album, You Don't Have to Be Blood to Be Family. They also recorded a tongue-in-cheek metalcore version of Sir Mix-a-Lot's hit single "Baby Got Back" for Radical Records' Too Legit for the Pit: Hardcore Takes the Rap compilation, which also featured Candiria, Stretch Arm Strong, and The Movielife. Allmusic reviewer Rick Anderson gave the album four and a half out of five stars, stating that Throwdown's version for the song was "absolutely hilarious". The idea of cover a hip hop song, was a collaboration between Macaluso and Love. Originally they wanted to cover House of Pain's "Jump Around". Then the band decided there was too much in the song, as they felt that hip hop songs are hard to cover. Peters said, "Sir Mix-a-Lot was easy and funny, and that's what we're all about, playing easy stuff and trying to be funny." The following year, Barney expressed a desire to switch to guitar (which he played in Eighteen Visions already) because he would often lose his voice on tour. Peters took over on vocals. Fill-in guitarist Matt Mentley would fill in whenever Barney had shows with Eighteen Visions. Lacking a permanent drummer after the departure of Jackson, 18V drummer Ken Floyd regularly filled in around this time as well. After that in 2002 Throwdown made their next cd Face the Mirror EP with no changes except for Ken Floyd on drums. CANNOTANSWER
Prime Directive Records.
Throwdown is an American heavy metal band from Orange County, California. Formed in 1997, the band has endured numerous lineup changes to the point where no original members remain. Throwdown has toured as part of Ozzfest, Sounds of the Underground, Hellfest, and Warped Tour, as well as with bands such as In Flames, Lamb of God, As I Lay Dying, Killswitch Engage, Korn and Cavalera Conspiracy. The songs "Forever" and "Burn" were staples on MTV2's Headbangers Ball and Revolver Magazine called them part of "The Future of Metal" after hearing the album Vendetta. Initially branded a hardcore punk band, albums like Venom and Tears and Deathless took a sharp turn towards metal, with critics likening the band's sound to that of Pantera and Sepultura. The band are straight edge.

History

Early years (1997–2002)
Throwdown was formed in 1997 by vocalist Keith Barney, an active member of both Adamantium and Eighteen Visions, guitarists Tommy Love and Javier Van Huss, bassist Dom Macaluso, and drummer Marc Jackson. The group took on the title Throwdown as a "wry irony on their collective stature", at the time no band member being more than . The band released their debut, self-titled 7-inch single that same year through Prime Directive Records. Van Huss left the band and was replaced by Brandan Schieppati. After signing a recording contract with Indecision Records, they released their first studio album Beyond Repair the following year. Schieppati was replaced by Dave Peters. The following year, the new line-up released the Drive Me Dead EP.

In 2001, Throwdown was scheduled to release a split 7" vinyl with Poison the Well through Surprise Attack Records. Instead, the band released their second studio album, You Don't Have to Be Blood to Be Family. Not long afterward, Jackson left the band, who, lacking a permanent replacement, recruited Barney's 18 Visions bandmate Ken Floyd to fill-in. Floyd appeared on their self-released 2002 EP Face the Mirror. The same year, Barney told the band he'd like to switch from vocals to guitar, as he would often lose his voice on tour, so Peters took over on vocals. Barney would often miss shows due to his commitments to 18 Visions; Matt Mentley was drafted to fill in for him.

Haymaker (2003–2004)
In 2003, Throwdown recorded and released Haymaker, featuring the Peters-penned straight-edge anthem "Forever", on Trustkill Records. The lineup was Peters on vocals, Macaluso on bass, Love & Barney on guitars, and session drummer Jarred Alexander. A tour with Hatebreed followed in support of the album's release. 

As Barney stayed busy with 18 Visions, Macaluso and Love started the band The Lost, who released an EP with Indecision very reminiscent of the group HIM. 

Mentley officially replaced Barney in 2004. The band played Japan, with a fill in drummer, and embarked on a short tour of Europe with new drummer Ben Dussault. Former drummer Jackson filled in for Love, on guitar. Peters, Mentley, Dussault, Macaluso, and Love spent the summer of 2004 on Ozzfest's second stage.

Vendetta (2005–2006)
Throwdown spent the early part of the year recording Vendetta, made at Planet Z Studios with producer Zeuss. Mark Choiniere joined the band shortly before the album was recorded, although he does not appear in the music video for "Burn". Peters, Dussault, Choiniere, Mentley and Macaluso hit the inaugural Sounds of the Underground tour that summer. 

In the fall, they headlined a US tour sponsored by To Die for Clothing with Sinai Beach as support. Following this tour, Macaluso, the band's only remaining original member, exited Throwdown. Mentley switched to bass, with Mark Choiniere covering all guitar duties in the live setting. Throwdown has remained a four-piece ever since.

Venom & Tears (2007–2008)

Throwdown recorded Venom & Tears with producer Mudrock in Los Angeles. 

They spent the summer headlining the Ernie Ball stage on the Vans Warped Tour. After the tour, they filmed a video for "Holy Roller" with director Andy Reale. In the fall, they supported Machine Head on a US tour. Mentley left the band afterward. His replacement, Mark Mitchell, made his live debut in South America in December. Mitchell had previously been the vocalist in the straight edge, vegan metalcore band Culture in the mid-1990s and had also played guitar in Until the End and Red Roses for a Blue Lady.

In March 2008, Throwdown announced that they had fulfilled their contractual obligations and were no longer signed to Trustkill Records. In December 2008, the band signed to Koch Records and began working on their sixth album. In the same announcement, it was stated that Jarrod Alexander, who worked with the band on Haymaker, would return for the new album.

Deathless (2009–2013)
In February 2009, the band played at the second annual MusInk festival in Orange County, supporting Danzig and The Used.

In the Spring, Throwdown began recording with Mudrock (who previously recorded Venom & Tears) in Los Angeles. The new album featured Peters, Choiniere, Mitchell, and session drummer Alexander. The album was mixed by Zeuss, who had produced and mixed Vendetta. 

They spent September and October touring Europe with Chimaira and Unearth, with Living Sacrifice drummer Lance Garvin behind the kit. 

On November 10, 2009, Throwdown released Deathless in North America via Koch (now called eOne). 

In November and December, they headlined the Deathless Tour across America, with support from Bury Your Dead, For Today, ABACABB, and The World We Knew, again with the lineup of Peters, Choiniere, Mitchell, and Garvin. 

In December, the band announced they would join Five Finger Death Punch and Shadows Fall on a lengthy U.S. tour set for January and February 2010. However, without a permanent replacement for Dussault, Choiniere opted to bow out of Throwdown roughly two weeks before the start of the tour. Throwdown dropped out of the tour and was replaced on the bill by the band God Forbid. 

Deathless was released in Europe on January 25, 2010, via Nuclear Blast Records.

In October 2011, Throwdown headlined a short West Coast trek dubbed "Brawloween". The lineup was Peters and Mitchell with Demon Hunter drummer Tim "Yogi" Watts and then-Bleeding Through guitarist Dave Nassie filling in. Support for the shows included Carnifex, First Blood, and Suffokate.

Intolerance & Take Cover (2014–present)

After a long period of inactivity, Throwdown released a new album, Intolerance, on January 21, 2014, via eOne Music. It was produced by Peters with Davey Worsop and mixed/mastered by Zeuss. Peters performed everything on the album, save for drums (handled by longtime session player Alexander) and guitar solos, which were tracked by Nassie. Since the release of Intolerance, the band has made only two live appearances: at Canada's Amnesia Rockfest in 2014 and Belgium's Groezrock festival in 2015. Both shows featured Dave Peters on vocals and the return of bassist Matt Mentley, with Alexander and Nassie filling in. 

In April 2020, Throwdown released a surprise EP, Take Cover, collecting five cover songs from over the years. The EP was issued by the band's own label, Pit Viper Records. Throwdown's Trustkill-era albums are now on all digital services via Pit Viper Records, as well.

Members

Current
 Dave Peters – lead vocals (2002–present); guitar (1999–2002)
 Matt Mentley – bass (2005–2007, 2014–present); guitar (2004–2005); touring guitar (2001–2004)

Touring
 Nick Jett – drums (2003)
 Lance Garvin – drums (2009–2011)
 Timothy "Yogi" Watts – drums (2011)
 Dave Nassie – guitar (2011–2015)
 Jarrod Alexander – drums, percussion (2014–2015)

Former
 Tommy Love – guitar (1997–2004)
 Dom Macaluso – bass (1997–2005)
 Keith Barney – lead vocals (1997–2002); guitar (2002–2004)
 Javier Van Huss – guitar (1998)
 Marc Jackson – drums, percussion (1998–2002); guitar (2004)
 Brandan Schieppati – guitar (1998–1999)
 Ken Floyd – drums (2002)
 Ben Dussault – drums, percussion (2004–2008)
 Mark Choiniere – guitar (2005–2011)
 Mark Mitchell – bass (2007–2014)

Timeline

Discography

Studio albums 
 Beyond Repair (1999)
 You Don't Have to Be Blood to Be Family (2001)
 Haymaker (2003)
 Vendetta (2005)
 Venom & Tears (2007)
 Deathless (2009)
 Intolerance (2014)

Extended plays
 Throwdown (1998)
 Drive Me Dead (2000)
 Throwdown / Good Clean Fun (2001)
 Face the Mirror (2002)
 Americana / Planets Collide (2007)
 Covered with Venom (2007)
 Take Cover (2020)

Videos
 Together. Forever. United. (2004)

Music videos
 "Forever" (2004), directed by Chris Sims
 "Burn" (2005), directed by Chris Sims
 "Holy Roller" (2007), directed by Andy Reale
 "The Scythe" (2010), directed by Cale Glendening
 "This Continuum" (2010), directed by Cale Glendening
 "Tombs" (2010), directed by Cale Glendening
 "The Blinding Light" (2010), directed by Cale Glendening

References

External links

Throwdown - Beyond Repair (Indecision Records, 1999)

American metalcore musical groups
American groove metal musical groups
Musical groups from Orange County, California
Straight edge groups
Musical groups established in 1997
MNRK Music Group artists
Heavy metal musical groups from California
Musical quartets
Trustkill Records artists
Elias "E.Vil" Einari Johannes Viljanen (born 8 July 1975) is a Finnish musician from Tampere, Finland, known for being the guitarist for Sonata Arctica since 2007. Viljanen joined Sonata Arctica in spring 2007 in order to replace Jani Liimatainen, who left the band in August 2007 to fulfill his civil duties in Finland. The decision was only made official on 8 August 2007, but Elias Viljanen had been known to replace Liimatainen in concerts during the spring and summer tour. Viljanen cites Kiss, Metallica, Slayer, and Whitesnake as his musical influences.

Biography

Early life

Viljanen was born in 1975, and started playing the guitar at eight, in 1983. Initially, he says that he began playing "because his dad forced him... and, of course, I wanted to be like Kiss." He got his first acoustic guitar a year later, but did not get an electric guitar until nearly four years later. After finally convincing his parents to let him purchase his first electric guitar (a white Leadstar), he took a few guitar lessons and learned some basic chords, but believed that if he wanted to learn rock'n'roll, it would be something he would have to teach himself. Around that same time, Viljanen began playing in local bands, heavily influenced by Metallica's early thrash metal.

At age seventeen, his band Depravity was signed by Adipocere Records, this being Viljanen's first record contract.

In the early 1990s, Viljanen was introduced to the music of Steve Vai and Joe Satriani, but initially wrote it off as "just music for sports." As time went by, however, he developed a love of Satriani's music, calling it the "bluesiest rock'n'roll," and considers Vai "God." Viljanen also lists Dream Theater as his progressive metal influence that pushed him towards the style he is today. A little later he became a drummer in a band called Twilight Lamp, which released EP "Grandiose" in 1999.

Formation of Elias Viljanen and Evil Spirit
As 2001 approached, Viljanen felt that he had to get his own project going. He spent several months writing down his music ideas he'd had for many years, but never expressed. He did have doubts, however, about his solo project, stating: 

To prepare for his three-demo, The Axe-Master, Viljanen practiced for 2–3 hours each day for nearly four months. While he may have had doubts before, they were now erased, as the demos and recording became both a dream and an obsession. Viljanen never dreamed of getting a serious record contract out of it, but sent his demos out anyway. The record company Lion Music, however, replied and offered him a recording contract. Thus, eighteen years after the dream began, Elias Viljanen's first album, Taking the Lead was born.

Feedback for Taking the Lead was overall positive, placing in the top ten hard rock/shred CD's at guitar9.com in 2003. Steve Vai himself also got Viljanen's CD, and gave him some encouraging feedback as well. In 2004, Lion Music again offered Viljanen a record contract when he sent in new demos, and he entered the Studios with Evil Spirit in early 2005. Recording went well, and he emerged satisfied with the completion of his second solo album, The Leadstar.

Sonata Arctica and recent work
Elias Viljanen traveled with the band Sonata Arctica in 2007, filling in for their guitarist Jani Liimatainen on tour. On August 8, Sonata Arctica formally released a letter naming Viljanen the official guitarist in Sonata Arctica. Liimatainen had apparently not been fulfilling his mandatory civic duties as declared by the Finnish government, and this had caused a rift in between him and the other members of the band. Viljanen took up the mantle as guitarist with much controversy, with many hard-core fans still wanting Liimatainen to be a part of the project. But Sonata Arctica were adamant, as was Liimatainen, and Viljanen thus maintained his status.

Viljanen toured with Sonata Arctica in support of their album Unia in late 2007 and early 2008. During the time off from tour in 2008, he began work on his third studio album, but the recording of Sonata Arctica's sixth studio album. So, Viljanen entered the studio with Sonata Arctica for the first time in the earlier half of 2009, recording the album The Days of Grays. As they were touring at the time of the release, Viljanen did not get to begin recording work on his album until early 2009. Later that year, his third studio album with Evil Spirit was released, Fire-Hearted.

Personal life
Viljanen has stated that, if not a musician, he would likely be a silversmith. He enjoys the racing video game Need for Speed: Underground, likes parrots and his favorite sport is ice hockey. He is also married.

Equipment

Sonata Arctica 
Various Ibanez Jem and Universe models (Steve Vai)
However, he's been seen using custom ESP guitars, as well as he has his very own signature guitar from ESP: EV-7.

 Ibanez UV777
 Ibanez RG550XH
 Carvin DC400
 Ibanez JEM 7DBK
 ESP EV-7

Discography

Sonata Arctica
 The Days of Grays (2009)
 Live in Finland (2011)
 Stones Grow Her Name (2012)
 Pariah's Child (2014)
 Ecliptica - Revisited: 15th Anniversary Edition (2014)
 The Ninth Hour (2016)
 Talviyö (2019)

Elias Viljanen
 Taking the Lead (2002)
 The Leadstar (2005)
 Fire-Hearted (2009)

Blackbay
 Arouse (2001)

Twilight Lamp
 Grandiose (1999)

Depravity
 Silence Of The Centuries (1993)

References

Sources
 Profile on the Official Sonata Arctica Website
 Official announcement concerning the departure of Jani Liimatainen

External links
 Elias Viljanen official website
 Sonata Arctica official website

Finnish heavy metal guitarists
Sonata Arctica members
Living people
1975 births
Seven-string guitarists Atom Seed was an English hard rock band, popular in the early 1990s. They released their debut album, Get in Line in 1990.

History
Atom Seed were formed in early 1989 in London, England, by former Zoodoll guitarist Simon James' and bassist Chris Huxter's meeting with singer Paul Cunningham and the Iranian-born drummer, Amir. After recording a demo and playing a handful of gigs, Chris Huxter left in late 1989 to be replaced by Chris Dale on bass. The band toured the UK constantly as headliners and also supporting Wolfsbane and Red Hot Chili Peppers. Their debut EP was released in early 1990, followed in 1991 by the album Get in Line on FM Revolver Records. Amir was replaced by Jerry Hawkins (formerly of Metal Monkey Machine) on drums before the band's debut European tour. They were signed to London Records for the Dead Happy EP in 1992, but were dropped from the label and split up soon after, with an unreleased album, Hard Sell Paranoia, shelved.

After parting ways, their member's enjoyed success over the years, most notably Chris Dale performing, recording and writing for Bruce Dickinson. Dale now plays for the British heavy metal band Tank as well as his own pop rock band, Sack Trick. Simon James formed the band Moko Jumbi, recording an album for A&M Records in 1996 which remained unreleased after the label folded. In 2006, he released an acoustic album The Old Straight Track for Stovepony Records under the name 'Onions', launched at the Green Man Festival.

Discography

LPs
 Get in Line (1990) FM Revolver Records / (1991) London Records Worldwide
Tracks: "What You Say", "Get in Line", "Rebel", "Shake That Thing", "Shot Down", "Forget it Joe", "Better Day", "What?!", "Castles In The Sky", "Bitchin'", "What You Say" (Live), "Burn" (Live)

 Hard Sell Paranoia (1992) Unreleased
Tracks: "Enemy Song", "Love Money Hate", "Best of Life", "Mother Junk", "Tastes Like Money", "Idiots", "Delusions", "Changing Years", "Shadows", "Rooms", "Hard Sell Paranoia"

EPs
 I Don't Want To Talk About It (1990) ORG/FM Revolver Records
Tracks: "Doghouse", "Sexbeat", "Shake That Thing", "What?!"

 Rebel (1991) London Records
Tracks: "Rebel", "Everybody", "Forget It Joe", "Fools To Fall"

 Get In Line (1991) London Records
Tracks: "Get In Line", "Castles In The Sky", "What You Say" (Live), "Burn" (Live)

 Split with Sepultura – Rock Power Magazine (1991) : Tracks: Sepultura - "Dead Embryonic Cells"; Atom Seed - "Get in Line"

 Dead Happy  (1992) London Records
Tracks: "Happy", "What Gives?", "Fear", "The Assassin"

References

External links
 Atom Seed on Myspace

English hard rock musical groups
Musical groups established in 1989