Grip Inc. was an American groove metal band and side project of drummer Dave Lombardo. The band was formed in 1993 and was signed to Steamhammer Records. They released four full-length albums in total.
History Following the birth of his first child in 1993, Lombardo formed Grip Inc. with Voodoocult guitarist Waldemar Sorychta. The pair recruited bassist Jason VieBrooks and vocalist Gus Chambers to complete the line-up, releasing their debut record Power of Inner Strength (1995), distributed via Metal Blade Records.
Prior to the album's release Lombardo described leaving Slayer as a career low, because he did not know what type of music to play. AllMusic reviewer Vincent Jeffries singled out Lombardo for praise on the album, remarking that Slayer fans "will enjoy the drummer's double bass work and overall aggression throughout the disc." Sorychta said critics and music fans always spot mistakes in their music, because of Lombardo's popularity with Slayer – expecting the band to sound like Slayer and complain. However, when Lombardo uses the double bass drum, Sorychta said people complain "now Grip Inc. sound exactly like Slayer."
The band released Nemesis in 1997. Jeffries praised Lombardo's "crushing drum work" which takes center stage on the album. Bassist VieBrooks left the band and was replaced by Stuart Carruthers in 1997. With a new bassist, the band released Solidify in 1999, which was described as a step towards "progressive and exotic rhythms, structures, and instrumentations, while never compromising intensity" by Jeffries.
Members
Final line-up Gus Chambers – vocals (1993–2006; died 2008) Dave Lombardo – drums, percussion (1993–2006) Waldemar Sorychta – guitars (1993–2006), bass (1999–2006)
Former members Chaz Grimaldi – bass (1993) Bobby Gustafson – guitars (1993) Jason VieBrooks – bass (1993–1997) Stuart Carruthers – bass (1997–1999)
Discography
Studio albums Title Album details Peak chart positionsGERNLDFRAGRCPower of Inner Strength Released: March 7, 1995 Label: Steamhammer / SPV Formats: CD, CS, LP, digital download 91 — — —Nemesis Released: February 25, 1997 Label: Steamhammer / SPV Formats: CD, CS, LP, digital download 75 94 — —Solidify Released: February 23, 1999 Label: Steamhammer / SPV Formats: CD, CS, digital download 58 — 65 —Incorporated Released: March 16, 2004 Label: Steamhammer / SPV Formats: CD — — 140 45Hostage to Heaven EP Released: June 9, 2015 Label: KFM Formats: digital download — — — — "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
Music videos Year Title Directed Album1994"Ostracized"Power of Inner Strength1997"Rusty Nail"Nemesis2004"The Answer"Kobayashi MediaverbundIncorporated"Curse (of the Cloth)"
References
External links
SPV (Label) page for Grip Inc. coventrytelegraph.net