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Nuclear Assault | |
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 Erik Burke (left) and John Connelly at Party.San Open Air in 2015 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | New York City, U.S. |
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| Years active |
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| Past members | John Connelly Dan Lilker Glenn Evans Anthony Bramante Dave DiPietro Scott Metaxas Eric Burke Scott Harrington |
Nuclear Assault was an Americanthrash metal band formed in New York City in 1984. Part of the mid-to-late 1980s thrash metal movement, they were one of the main bands of the genre to emerge from theEast Coast along withOverkill,Whiplash,Toxik,Carnivore, andAnthrax,[1] the last of which was co-founded by Nuclear Assault bassistDan Lilker, who had been canned from Anthrax shortly after the release oftheir first album. Nuclear Assault released five full-length albums and toured relentlessly throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, and broke up in 1995. The band reunited briefly in 1997, and permanently from 2001 to 2008 and again from 2011 to 2022.
Nuclear Assault released six studio albums, in addition to two live albums, four EPs and onecompilation album. Their most successful records areSurvive (1988) andHandle with Care (1989), which peaked at Nos. 145 and 126 on theBillboard 200 chart, respectively.[2] Other than four new songs in 2015 on the EPPounder, the band did not release any more full-length studio albums after 2005'sThird World Genocide, but continued to perform live sporadically over the following years before calling it quits once again in 2022.
After the release ofAnthrax's debut albumFistful of Metal, bassistDan Lilker, a founding member of the group, was fired by the band. He decided to pursue a more aggressive style of music and formed Nuclear Assault with guitarist/vocalistJohn Connelly,[3] who had been part of an early version of Anthrax.[citation needed] They were joined by guitarist Mike Bogush and drummer Scott Duboys. They then recorded the first of twodemos, which included the songs "Stranded in Hell", "The Plague", and "Hang the Pope".[4]
The group's first live performance was at the Union Jack inSouth River, New Jersey, in late 1984.[citation needed] Bogush was later replaced by Anthony Bramante.[3] Bramante's first live performance with the group was atL'Amour inBrooklyn, New York, in April 1985.[citation needed] Shortly after the performance, Duboys left the band and was replaced by drummer Glenn Evans formerly of New Jersey–based bandT.T. Quick.[3]
Nuclear Assault's second demoLive, Suffer, Die was recorded in 1985 and they began touring the United States consistently. The band signed a multi-album contract withCombat Records and recorded theGame Over album in April 1986, released to critical acclaim later that year.[citation needed]Game Over was followed by an extended play calledThe Plague, which was released to coincide with a 1987 European tour withAgent Steel andAtomkraft.[5] Later, feeling constrained by their contract with Combat, the band signed withI.R.S. Records and releasedSurvive in 1988.[6] The album reached number 145 on the U.S.Billboard 200 chart[7] and Nuclear Assault set off on a 180-day world tour[5] in the United States and Europe; first as an opening act forSlayer and later headlining with British groupAcid Reign as a support act.[8] The Survive soundtrack was featured in the underground film on I.R.S. MediaBlood & Concrete. The band's next album, 1989'sHandle with Care, would see the band at their commercial peak, hitting the U.S. chart at number 126,[7] and peaking in theUK Albums Chart at No. 60,[9] with more touring, including a trip to Japan and a U.S. tour opening forTestament andSavatage.[5] The band released their first live album,Live at the Hammersmith Odeon, in 1990,[3] but internal troubles were causing problems for the band.[10]
Constant touring and recording was taking its toll on the band, and there was a rumor that the band might split.[11] The recording ofOut of Order was problematic as all four members were in the process of making solo projects.[12] Lead songwriter Connelly was conspicuously absent from the recording process.[citation needed] He only sang on five of the songs and played the guitar on one ("Quocustodiat" was his only full writing credit), leaving Evans and Lilker to do most of the recording alone.[citation needed]Out of Order was poorly received, and during the subsequent tour in 1991 to 1992, there was some line-up shuffling – Connelly moved to vocals only for a time with second guitarist Dave DiPietro joining in 1992. Founding member Lilker departed to concentrate onBrutal Truth and longtime guitarist Bramante followed by the end of the year.[citation needed]
Undaunted, Connolly, Evans and DiPietro recordedSomething Wicked for IRS/EMI in 1993 with new bassist Scott Metaxas, the title track featuring in the filmWarlock: The Armageddon. Reviews again were somewhat unfavorable, as Nuclear Assault struggled to adapt to a less thrash-friendly music scene.[citation needed] After touring Europe and the US for much of 1993 the band returned with a new line up of Dave Spitz on bass and a returning Bramante,[13] joining Connelly and Evans for more North American touring before slowly coming to a halt in early 1995.The band contributed their take onDie Hard for a Venom tribute album in 1995 before calling it a day.
Nuclear Assault's classic lineup later reunited for one concert in 1997 (put on by Eric Paone of Candy Striper Death Orgy inNew Hampshire) then, two more shows the following year with Eric Paone on bass guitar in New England before parting ways a second time.[14][15]
The classic lineup reformed once again in 2002 to perform at the Metal Meltdown and Wacken festivals[16] and subsequently recorded a live album entitledAlive Again, Bramante leaving for the last time and adding guitarist Eric Burke in time for several European tours, first withTestament andDeath Angel, and then withExodus andAgent Steel, both in 2003.[8] A new studio album entitledThird World Genocide followed in 2005, with yet more touring, including a South American tour with Death Angel.[8] and a headlining European tour. The band released theLouder, Faster, Harder DVD before more US touring in 2006.
From 2007 to 2012 Nuclear Assault occasionally played shows, returning to Japan and South America along with a guest appearance at theMaryland Deathfest and at the Metal Merchants Festival inOslo, Norway, in January 2011.[17]
In 2013, it was announced that Nuclear Assault was working on a new album, which was due for release in 2015. They instead released an EP on June 1, 2015, titledPounder, which featured "four killer old-school thrash" songs written byDan Lilker andJohn Connelly.[18] The band embarked on the "Final Assault" tour to support the EP in 2015 to 2016.[19] By 2022, however, Nuclear Assault had continued to perform live sporadically, mostly in South America as well as both theEast Coast andWest Coast of the United States.[20][21][22]
On November 20, 2022, Nuclear Assault announced on social media that they had again broken up.[23]
Studio albums[edit]
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Live albums[edit]
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