Benümb
Encyclopedia
Benümb was a grindcore
band from Oakland, California
.
, Spazz
, Exhumed
, Dystopia
and Capitalist Casualties
, among others. In 1997 the band recorded and released numerous 7" records, including splits with Dukes of Hazzard and Apartment 213. Their live set at the "Fiesta Grande" festival was recorded and released as part of the Fiesta Comes Alive! LP on Slap-a-Ham Records
. In late 1997 the Gear In The Machine 7" was released on the Relapse
7" series, and in 1998 a live split with Suppression, pressed on a flexi-disc, accompanied issue #3 of the fanzine Monkeybite.
In May 1998, Benümb released their first full-length album, Soul of the Martyr. The album was described as angry and intense, and contained 19 bonus tracks taken from preveious splits and live performances. Soul of the Marytr was well-received, and the band promoted the release by completing several mini-tours of the United States. Benümb also appeared at every major U.S. heavy music festival in the two years that followed, including the 1998 and 1999 Milwaukee Metalfests and the 1998 and 1999 March Metal Meltdowns.
In 2000 Benümb released the album Withering Strands of Hope. The album was produced by Bart Thurber (Spazz, Exhumed) at Oakland's House Of Faith. In Spring 2002, Benümb released a split 3" CD with labelmates Pig Destroyer
. This split showed an evolution in the band's sound with the return of Paul Ponitkoff on guitar.
Benümb released By Means of Upheaval on Relapse Records in 2003, and a split with Premonitions of War in 2005. By Means of Upheaval continued the band's angry, punk-leaning grindcore sound, political lyrics, and short songs.
The band broke up in 2006. Pete Ponitkoff and John Gotelli have sinced formed Agenda of Swine, and have released an album on Relapse Records.
Grindcore
Grindcore is an extreme genre of music that started in the early- to mid-1980s. It draws inspiration from some of the most abrasive music genres – including death metal, industrial music, noise and the more extreme varieties of hardcore punk....
band from Oakland, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Biography
Formed in 1994 in Oakland, California, Benümb became known within the local hardcore community as a respected grindcore band. The band went through various lineup changes during their early years. After playing together for almost a year, a split 7" with Short Hate Temper was released in mid-1995 on the Same Day label. Benümb spent the next year and a half playing shows with bands including Man is the BastardMan Is the Bastard
Man Is the Bastard were a pioneering hardcore punk band who contributed the name, and perhaps also the ethos, to the punk subgenre known as power violence...
, Spazz
Spazz (band)
Spazz was an influential American powerviolence band active between 1992 and 2000. The trio released numerous records within this time, many of which are now highly collectible due to their relative rarity...
, Exhumed
Exhumed (band)
Exhumed is an American death metal band from San Jose, California, most recently signed to Relapse Records. They were formed in 1990, when sole remaining founding member Matt Harvey was at the age of 15. Exhumed spent much of the ensuing decade hacking its way through numerous demos, split CDs,...
, Dystopia
Dystopia (band)
Formed in Orange County, California in 1991, Dystopia was a sludge metal band, popular in both the heavy metal and crust punk scenes, due in large part to their bleak, misanthropic imagery...
and Capitalist Casualties
Capitalist Casualties
-Discography:*Nuclear National Park demo *The Art of Ballistics EP *Disassembly Line LP *Raised Ignorant EP *split EP with The Dread *split EP with Discordance Axis *split EP with Millions of Dead Cops...
, among others. In 1997 the band recorded and released numerous 7" records, including splits with Dukes of Hazzard and Apartment 213. Their live set at the "Fiesta Grande" festival was recorded and released as part of the Fiesta Comes Alive! LP on Slap-a-Ham Records
Slap-a-Ham Records
Slap A Ham Records was a hardcore punk, thrash metal and grindcore label from San Francisco, California owned and operated by Chris Dodge of Spazz, Despise You, Lack Of Interest and several other bands.-Discography:Published albums include:...
. In late 1997 the Gear In The Machine 7" was released on the Relapse
Relapse Records
Relapse Records is an independent record label based in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. It was founded by Matthew F. Jacobson in 1990.-History:The label was started by Matthew F. Jacobson in August, 1990 in his parents' basement in Aurora, Colorado...
7" series, and in 1998 a live split with Suppression, pressed on a flexi-disc, accompanied issue #3 of the fanzine Monkeybite.
In May 1998, Benümb released their first full-length album, Soul of the Martyr. The album was described as angry and intense, and contained 19 bonus tracks taken from preveious splits and live performances. Soul of the Marytr was well-received, and the band promoted the release by completing several mini-tours of the United States. Benümb also appeared at every major U.S. heavy music festival in the two years that followed, including the 1998 and 1999 Milwaukee Metalfests and the 1998 and 1999 March Metal Meltdowns.
In 2000 Benümb released the album Withering Strands of Hope. The album was produced by Bart Thurber (Spazz, Exhumed) at Oakland's House Of Faith. In Spring 2002, Benümb released a split 3" CD with labelmates Pig Destroyer
Pig Destroyer
-Biography:The band formed in 1997 with vocalist J. R. Hayes , guitarist Scott Hull , and drummer John Evans. Evans was later replaced by Brian Harvey...
. This split showed an evolution in the band's sound with the return of Paul Ponitkoff on guitar.
Benümb released By Means of Upheaval on Relapse Records in 2003, and a split with Premonitions of War in 2005. By Means of Upheaval continued the band's angry, punk-leaning grindcore sound, political lyrics, and short songs.
The band broke up in 2006. Pete Ponitkoff and John Gotelli have sinced formed Agenda of Swine, and have released an album on Relapse Records.
Members
- Pete Ponitkoff – vocals
- John Gotelli – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Dave Hogarth – guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
- Paul Ponitkoff – guitar, vocals
- Tim Regan – bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
Releases
- 1995 – split w/ Short Hate Temper 7" (Same Day Records)
- 1997 – split w/ Apartment 213 7" (Stenchasaurus Records)
- 1997 – split w/ Dukes of Hazzard 7" (Rape An Ape Records)
- 1997 – Gear in the Machine 7" (Relapse RecordsRelapse RecordsRelapse Records is an independent record label based in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. It was founded by Matthew F. Jacobson in 1990.-History:The label was started by Matthew F. Jacobson in August, 1990 in his parents' basement in Aurora, Colorado...
) - 1998 – Soul of the Martyr CD/LP (Relapse Records)
- 1998 – split w/ Suppression 7" (Monkeybite Magazine)
- 1999 – split w/ Bad Acid TripBad Acid TripBad Acid Trip is an American metal band, currently signed to System of a Down lead singer Serj Tankian's record label, Serjical Strike Records. Their 2004 album, Lynch the Weirdo, was produced by Daron Malakian, another System of a Down member. In 2006 they performed on the second stage at the...
7" (X Agitate 96 X Records) - 2000 – Withering Strands of Hope CD/LP (Relapse Records)
- 2002 – split w/ Agoraphobic NosebleedAgoraphobic NosebleedAgoraphobic Nosebleed is a grindcore band formed in 1994 in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States. Its line-up has changed often during the years, leaving the only permanent member Scott Hull , also a guitarist in Pig Destroyer...
7" (Relapse Records) - 2002 – split w/ Pig DestroyerPig Destroyer-Biography:The band formed in 1997 with vocalist J. R. Hayes , guitarist Scott Hull , and drummer John Evans. Evans was later replaced by Brian Harvey...
CD (Robotic Empire Records) - 2003 – By Means of Upheaval CD (Relapse Records)
- 2005 – split w/ Premonitions of War CD (Thorp Records)
Compilation appearances
- 1997 – Bllleeeeaaauuurrrrgghhh! - A Music War 7" (Slap-a-Ham RecordsSlap-a-Ham RecordsSlap A Ham Records was a hardcore punk, thrash metal and grindcore label from San Francisco, California owned and operated by Chris Dodge of Spazz, Despise You, Lack Of Interest and several other bands.-Discography:Published albums include:...
) - 1997 – America in Decline LP/CD (Six Weeks Records)
- 1997 – El Guapo CD (Same Day Records/625 Records625 Thrashcore625 Thrashcore is a small American record label started by Max Ward of long-standing powerviolence band Spazz. They put out records of different genres, including hardcore, grindcore, thrashcore, powerviolence and others, mainly from the US and Japan....
) - 1997 – Fiesta Comes Alive LP/CD (Slap-a-Ham Records)
- 1997 – No Fate CD (H:G Fact Records)
- 1998 – Solid: Strip Mining the Underground Since 1990 CD (Relapse Records)
- 1998 – Hard Sound Part 1 CD (Trainwreck Records)
- 1998 – Contamination MCMXCVIII CD (Relapse Records)
- 1999 – Accidental Double Homicide Vol. 4 2x7" (Satan's Pimps Records)
- 1999 – Reality Part 3 CD/LP (Deep Six Records)
- 1999 – Relapse Sampler CD (Relapse Records)
- 1999 – Contaminated 1999 CD (Relapse Records)
- 2000 – Barbaric Thrash Detonation CD + 7" (625 Records)
- 2000 – Contaminated 3.0 2xCD (Relapse Records)
- 2000 – Hurt Your Feelings CD (Six Weeks Records)
- 2000 – Menus with Manpower CD (KDVS Records)
- 2003 – Contaminated 5.0 2xCD (Relapse Records)
- 2001 – Transcendental Maggot CD (Meconium Records)
External links
- Official Benümb website
- Benümb @ MyspaceMyspaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
- Benümb @ Relapse RecordsRelapse RecordsRelapse Records is an independent record label based in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. It was founded by Matthew F. Jacobson in 1990.-History:The label was started by Matthew F. Jacobson in August, 1990 in his parents' basement in Aurora, Colorado...