Warhellride

Punk Rock has always been about looking through a situation and seeing what's really going on and not the smokescreen that's put up around everything. It's easy to forget this, especially when the scene rigidly builds barriers around its so-called "Elite" and is tainted by corporate/mainstream conformity. Warhellride is a Chicago based rock quartet fusing the influences of classic punk rock, alternative, hardcore, folk, and shimmers of indie rock to the fold. They combine earnestness with pop sensibilities, rounding it off with walls of rambunctious instrument volume, acoustic rhythms, angsty yet emotional vocals and crafty drumbeats while maintaining a sense of honesty, awareness and storytelling aspect in their lyrics. What comes out of their instruments sonically may not always exude the public's stereotypical ear and definition of a punk rock band, but their spirit and attitude strongly suggest otherwise. The band was founded in October 2009, when guitarist Jimmy Natividad and bassist Mathew Stokes, formerly of Capital Eye lore, boarded “The Matmobile” to follow their hearts in search for a new beginning, bringing in their punk ethos to the forefront. They landed on Wilmot Rock and came across ex-Sylis Assigned drummer Kristyne Operzedek, a multi-instrumentalist whose unique drumming style and songwriting abilities catered much to the delight of their ideas for creating a new sound. After many failed attempts of auditioning second guitarists with vocal abilities, the band marched on with Jimmy singing lead vocals and performing both rhythm guitar and leads when possible. This proved doable yet very challenging, with Warhellride’s studio releases being very full sounding and the band’s perfectionist tendencies in wanting to replicate their sound in a live setting. They attempted to clone Jimmy, but failed miserably when they got his metal playing, heroin injecting, transvestite-from-transexual-transylvania alter ego, Metal Jimmy. After being tied to a chair and being forced to listen to Michael Bolton songs, he had a brain aneurism and perished. Then in the summer of 2011, after many attempts of kidnapping threats, waterboarding and dreaming, they got their unexpected wish when their good friend Douglas Emerson of Dynamite 8 / Quite a Mob parted ways with his band and joined the family giving them another vocalist, guitarist and songwriter. With two studio releases, over 30 shows in a two year span, a high octane live show, and another EP on the way, Warhellride is on their way to being a household name not just in Chicago, but wherever the road takes them… One Word. Three Syllables. 1000x the kick-ass band.