Dr. Know (band)
Encyclopedia
Dr. Know is a punk
band which began as a Nardcore
band and now has roots in Los Angeles, CA.
They are one of the founding figures of the "Nardcore" punk movement from Oxnard, CA
. The band was started by Kyle Toucher, Ismael Hernandez, and Robin Cartwright in early 1981, and after auditioning a few singers, former child actor Brandon Cruz
was chosen. Silverstrand Beach
in Oxnard, California. was the birthplace of Nardcore
. The band recorded studio versions of several early songs with Cruz, which led to television appearances and gigs on the Los Angeles
circuit.
However the early momentum was somewhat derailed by escalating inner turmoil which culminated in Cruz leaving the group in 1983, leaving Toucher to take over vocals just as the band was starting recording of Plug In Jesus for Mystic Records
. Several more albums followed, including the Burn EP, This Island Earth, and Wreckage in Flesh, which were subsequently released on Death Records/Metal Blade, signaling a shift to a crossover
direction in their sound. For This Island Earth, the lineup was founding member Kyle Toucher on vocals and guitars, drummer Rik Heller and bassist Ismael Hernandez.
Before an American tour for This Island Earth with Scottish street punk
s The Exploited
, Ismael Hernandez quit the band and was replaced by ex-Stäläg 13 members, bassist Tony Black and second guitarist Tim Harkins.
After another short U.S. tour and attempt at writing a new album, Rick Heller quit the band before moving to Scotland, where he joined The Exploited
and drummer Larry White was brought in to finish writing and begin recording of what would become Wreckage in Flesh. During this period Tony Black was replaced by Mike Purdy and the album was finished April 1988. Two subsequent tours followed in support of the album with bands such as The Circle Jerks, D.R.I.
, Murphy's Law
, 7 Seconds as well as shows with up and coming thrash metal
bands Forbidden
, Vio-lence
, Holy Terror, and Metal Church
.
Dr. Know disbanded to pursue other projects in 1991. Since that time Slayer
covered the Toucher penned "Mr. Freeze" on their Undisputed Attitude
album.
The Dr. Know song "Piece of Meat," written by Toucher and Cruz, is used on the 1998 (season two) South Park
episode entitled "Clubhouse."
In 1998, Cruz called Hernandez and together they approached Toucher to get the band back together. Toucher declined, but Hernandez and Cruz recruited others and embarked on a North American tour with big-name punk acts of the time.
In September 2001, Cruz was asked to sing with old friends, the reunited Dead Kennedys
, leading to a gig that lasted until April 2003. Dr. Know still managed another record, entitled Father, Son, and Holy Shit! and toured the West Coast with Stäläg 13 and Ill Repute
.
In September 2005, Dr. Know played a benefit for CGBG's, and donated their share of the money to The Red Cross for Hurricane Katrina
victims. They also played a free concert in Manhattan's Tompkins Square Park
with Test Specimen, Rabia, Team Spider, Choking Victim
and M.D.C. on 11 September 2005.
Dr. Know continues to play live gigs, touring the country several times. Since the release of Killing For God, Dr. Know have many plans for 2009 and beyond. They have begun work on a split with Capitalist Casualties, begun booking a European tour, and are currently writing material for their next record, due in 2011.
While the band with Kyle broke up in 1991, Cruz and Hernandez have been reunited since 1998, playing gigs all over the world. Dr. Know has finished their new record, entitled Killing For God and are currently going on tour to support it. It is being released on Unrest Records.
Former lead singer and songwriter Kyle Toucher now works as a visual effects and digital artist in Los Angeles, CA. He has done work on TV series such as Battlestar Galactica
and Star Trek Voyager as well as in movies such as Serenity
and Van Helsing
. Toucher has won two Emmys for his work.
On August 18 Brandon Cruz posted the official end of Dr Know.
The same day that Brandon Cruz
announced the breakup of the punk Dr. Know
, Kyle Toucher announced the reformation of the Wreckage in Flesh era line up.
Called DK2010, it features Toucher, Mike Purdy, Tim Harkins, and Larz White.
Brandon Cruz
has announced the formation of his new band, MDCN+MN, (Medicine Man). They are set to perform in the summer of 2011.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band which began as a Nardcore
Nardcore
Nardcore is a hardcore punk movement that came out of Southern California in the early 1980s, originating in Silver Strand Beach, Oxnard and Port Hueneme. Early bands in the Nardcore scene included Agression, Dr. Know, False Confession, Ill Repute, Habeas Corpus, RKL, Stalag 13 and Scared Straight...
band and now has roots in Los Angeles, CA.
They are one of the founding figures of the "Nardcore" punk movement from Oxnard, CA
Oxnard, California
Oxnard is the 113th largest city in the United States, 19th largest city in California and largest city in Ventura County, California, by way of population. It is located at the western edge of the fertile Oxnard Plain, and is an important agricultural center, with its distinction as the...
. The band was started by Kyle Toucher, Ismael Hernandez, and Robin Cartwright in early 1981, and after auditioning a few singers, former child actor Brandon Cruz
Brandon Cruz
Brandon Edwin Cruz is an American former child actor and currently a punk rock musician, and also works in drug and alcohol rehabilitation. In the late 1960s, the freckled-faced Cruz came to prominence by playing Tom Corbett's charming and conniving son, Eddie Corbett, in the comedy-drama The...
was chosen. Silverstrand Beach
Silverstrand Beach
The Silverstrand Beach is small narrow beach located in Clear Water Bay Peninsula, Sai Kung, Hong Kong.-Management:...
in Oxnard, California. was the birthplace of Nardcore
Nardcore
Nardcore is a hardcore punk movement that came out of Southern California in the early 1980s, originating in Silver Strand Beach, Oxnard and Port Hueneme. Early bands in the Nardcore scene included Agression, Dr. Know, False Confession, Ill Repute, Habeas Corpus, RKL, Stalag 13 and Scared Straight...
. The band recorded studio versions of several early songs with Cruz, which led to television appearances and gigs on the Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
circuit.
However the early momentum was somewhat derailed by escalating inner turmoil which culminated in Cruz leaving the group in 1983, leaving Toucher to take over vocals just as the band was starting recording of Plug In Jesus for Mystic Records
Mystic Records
Mystic Records is a record label and music production company that was based in Hollywood CA one block south of Hollywood and Vine and later moved to Oceanside, California...
. Several more albums followed, including the Burn EP, This Island Earth, and Wreckage in Flesh, which were subsequently released on Death Records/Metal Blade, signaling a shift to a crossover
Crossover thrash
__FORCETOC__Crossover thrash, often abbreviated to crossover, is a form of thrash metal that contains more hardcore punk elements than standard thrash. The genre lies on a continuum between heavy metal and punk rock...
direction in their sound. For This Island Earth, the lineup was founding member Kyle Toucher on vocals and guitars, drummer Rik Heller and bassist Ismael Hernandez.
Before an American tour for This Island Earth with Scottish street punk
Street punk
Street punk is a working class-based genre of punk rock which took shape in the early 1980s, partly as a rebellion against the perceived artistic pretensions of the first wave of British punk. Street punk emerged from the Oi! style, performed by bands such as Sham 69, Angelic Upstarts, Cockney...
s The Exploited
The Exploited
The Exploited are a Scottish punk band from the second wave of UK punk, formed in 1979. Originally a street punk band, they transformed into a faster hardcore punk band with a heavy political influence. From about 1987 on they changed into a crossover thrash band...
, Ismael Hernandez quit the band and was replaced by ex-Stäläg 13 members, bassist Tony Black and second guitarist Tim Harkins.
After another short U.S. tour and attempt at writing a new album, Rick Heller quit the band before moving to Scotland, where he joined The Exploited
The Exploited
The Exploited are a Scottish punk band from the second wave of UK punk, formed in 1979. Originally a street punk band, they transformed into a faster hardcore punk band with a heavy political influence. From about 1987 on they changed into a crossover thrash band...
and drummer Larry White was brought in to finish writing and begin recording of what would become Wreckage in Flesh. During this period Tony Black was replaced by Mike Purdy and the album was finished April 1988. Two subsequent tours followed in support of the album with bands such as The Circle Jerks, D.R.I.
Dirty Rotten Imbeciles
Dirty Rotten Imbeciles is a thrash metal/crossover thrash band from the United States that formed in Houston, in 1982. The band currently comprises founding members, vocalist Kurt Brecht and guitarist Spike Cassidy, as well as drummer Rob Rampy and bassist Harald Oimoen.D.R.I...
, Murphy's Law
Murphy's Law (band)
Murphy's Law is an American hardcore band from New York City, New York, formed in 1982. While vocalist Jimmy Gestapo remains the only founding member of the band, the line-up has consisted of former members of bands such as Skinnerbox, Danzig, The Bouncing Souls, Mucky Pup, Dog Eat Dog, Hanoi...
, 7 Seconds as well as shows with up and coming thrash metal
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...
bands Forbidden
Forbidden (band)
Forbidden is a thrash metal band from the San Francisco Bay Area. Formed in 1985 as Forbidden Evil, the group was founded by Russ Anderson and Craig Locicero, who are both permanent members. Since their formation, Forbidden have broken up and reformed twice with numerous line-up changes...
, Vio-lence
Vio-lence
Vio-lence was a thrash metal band formed in 1985 in the San Francisco Bay Area. They released demo tapes, one EP and 3 LPs between 1985 and 1993. Their most stable line-up was Phil Demmel and Robb Flynn on guitars, Deen Dell on bass, Perry Strickland on drums and Sean Killian on vocals.- 1985 -...
, Holy Terror, and Metal Church
Metal Church
Metal Church was an American heavy metal band. They originally formed in Seattle, Washington as Shrapnel in 1980. Their first album was released in 1984, and the band's most recent work, This Present Wasteland, was released in 2008....
.
Dr. Know disbanded to pursue other projects in 1991. Since that time Slayer
Slayer
Slayer is an American thrash metal band formed in Huntington Park, California, in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King. Slayer rose to fame with their 1986 release, Reign in Blood, and is credited as one of the "Big Four" thrash metal acts, along with Metallica, Megadeth and...
covered the Toucher penned "Mr. Freeze" on their Undisputed Attitude
Undisputed Attitude
Undisputed Attitude is the seventh studio album by American thrash metal band Slayer. The album is a collection of punk covers of bands like Minor Threat, T.S.O.L., D.R.I and The Stooges...
album.
The Dr. Know song "Piece of Meat," written by Toucher and Cruz, is used on the 1998 (season two) South Park
South Park
South Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
episode entitled "Clubhouse."
In 1998, Cruz called Hernandez and together they approached Toucher to get the band back together. Toucher declined, but Hernandez and Cruz recruited others and embarked on a North American tour with big-name punk acts of the time.
In September 2001, Cruz was asked to sing with old friends, the reunited Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1978. The band became part of the American hardcore punk movement of the early 1980s. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international punk music scene....
, leading to a gig that lasted until April 2003. Dr. Know still managed another record, entitled Father, Son, and Holy Shit! and toured the West Coast with Stäläg 13 and Ill Repute
Ill Repute
Ill Repute is an American hardcore punk band from Oxnard, California, formed in 1981. They are noted for popularizing the "Nardcore" sound in the mid-1980s hardcore punk scene, and recorded for Mystic Records....
.
In September 2005, Dr. Know played a benefit for CGBG's, and donated their share of the money to The Red Cross for Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
victims. They also played a free concert in Manhattan's Tompkins Square Park
Tompkins Square Park
Tompkins Square Park is a 10.5 acre public park in the Alphabet City section of the East Village neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is square in shape, and is bounded on the north by East 10th Street, on the east by Avenue B, on the south by East 7th Street, and on the...
with Test Specimen, Rabia, Team Spider, Choking Victim
Choking Victim
Choking Victim was a United States punk rock band formed in New York City, which were together from 1992 to 1999. Playing a mix of hardcore punk and ska with anarchist lyrics...
and M.D.C. on 11 September 2005.
Dr. Know continues to play live gigs, touring the country several times. Since the release of Killing For God, Dr. Know have many plans for 2009 and beyond. They have begun work on a split with Capitalist Casualties, begun booking a European tour, and are currently writing material for their next record, due in 2011.
Dr. Know today
- Kyle Toucher - Vocals
- Mike Purdy - Bass
- Tim Harkins - Guitar
- Mike Vega - Drums
While the band with Kyle broke up in 1991, Cruz and Hernandez have been reunited since 1998, playing gigs all over the world. Dr. Know has finished their new record, entitled Killing For God and are currently going on tour to support it. It is being released on Unrest Records.
Former lead singer and songwriter Kyle Toucher now works as a visual effects and digital artist in Los Angeles, CA. He has done work on TV series such as Battlestar Galactica
Battlestar Galactica
Battlestar Galactica is an American science fiction franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The franchise began with the Battlestar Galactica TV series in 1978, and was followed by a brief sequel TV series in 1980, a line of book adaptations, original novels, comic books, a board game, and video games...
and Star Trek Voyager as well as in movies such as Serenity
Serenity (film)
Serenity is a 2005 space western film written and directed by Joss Whedon. It is a continuation of the short-lived 2002 Fox science fiction television series Firefly, taking place after the events of the final episode. Set in 2518, Serenity is the story of the captain and crew of a cargo ship...
and Van Helsing
Van Helsing (film)
Van Helsing is a 2004 American action horror film directed by Stephen Sommers. It stars Hugh Jackman as vigilante monster hunter Gabriel Van Helsing, and Kate Beckinsale...
. Toucher has won two Emmys for his work.
On August 18 Brandon Cruz posted the official end of Dr Know.
The same day that Brandon Cruz
Brandon Cruz
Brandon Edwin Cruz is an American former child actor and currently a punk rock musician, and also works in drug and alcohol rehabilitation. In the late 1960s, the freckled-faced Cruz came to prominence by playing Tom Corbett's charming and conniving son, Eddie Corbett, in the comedy-drama The...
announced the breakup of the punk Dr. Know
Dr. Know
Dr. Know may refer to :*Dr. Know , a punk band from Oxnard, California*Dr. Know , stage name of guitar player Gary Miller from the band Bad Brains*Dr. Know , a TV program on the Discovery Health Channel...
, Kyle Toucher announced the reformation of the Wreckage in Flesh era line up.
Called DK2010, it features Toucher, Mike Purdy, Tim Harkins, and Larz White.
Brandon Cruz
Brandon Cruz
Brandon Edwin Cruz is an American former child actor and currently a punk rock musician, and also works in drug and alcohol rehabilitation. In the late 1960s, the freckled-faced Cruz came to prominence by playing Tom Corbett's charming and conniving son, Eddie Corbett, in the comedy-drama The...
has announced the formation of his new band, MDCN+MN, (Medicine Man). They are set to perform in the summer of 2011.
Dr. Know discography
- We Got Power, Party or Go Home - Compilation LP (Mystic,1983)
- It Came From Slimy Valley, Compilation LP (Mystic, 1983)
- Party Animal, We Got Power II - Compilation LP (Mystic,1984)
- Covers, Compilation LP (Mystic,1984)
- Mystic Super Seven Sampler #1, Compilation LP (Mystic,1984)
- Mystic Sampler #1, Compilation LP (Mystic)
- Mystic Sampler #2, Compilation LP (Mystic)
- Mystic Sampler #3, Compilation LP (Mystic)
- Nardcore, Compilation LP (Mystic, 1984)
- Return to Slimy Valley, Compilation LP (Mystic)
- Plug-in Jesus, 12" LP (Mystic, 1984)
- Burn, 7" EP (Mystic, 1985)
- This Island Earth, 12" LP (Death Records, 1986)
- The Original Group, 12" LP (Mystic, 1987) This was actually the first recording, done with Brandon Cruz in 1981.
- Wreckage in Flesh, 12" LP (Death Records, 1988)
- This Island Earth/Wreckage In Flesh, CD (Death Records, 1990)
- Father, Son, and Holy Shit, LP ( recorded in 2000)
- Habily: What Was Old Is New, CD (Cleopatra, 2001)
- Fish & Vegetables, Compilation CD (Hello Records, 2001)
- Best of Dr. Know, CD (Mystic, 2003)
- Welcome to the Neighborhood, Compilation CD (Let Them Eat Records, 2005)
- Killing For God, CD /Vinyl LP (Unrest, 2008)