Rich Hurst, lyricist and lead singer of melodic heavy metal band Jesus Wears Armani, writes combat-tested metal.
His songs address the physical and psychological scars of war: injury, alcoholism, addiction, PTSD, and the feelings of dislocation and alienation that are unfortunately all-too-common for our returning veterans. As Hurst sees it, the mission of the band is to use music to give voice to emotions and experiences his fellow soldiers might find too painful to express. Hurst is also committed to giving back in a material way to his fellow soldiers.
Backing Hurst are musicians Kenton Holme on guitar, Jared Conniele on drums, and Ricy Bjorklund on bass.
Listeners have described Jesus Wears Armani’s sound as “Lamb of God meets Dethklok” (of the animated Adult Swim television show Metalocalypse). The band counts as its musical influences The Black Dahlia Murder, The Faceless, and DevilDriver.
Jesus Wears Armani’s high energy stage show, featuring an original music setlist, a military theme and strobe lights, is heating up the Seattle heavy metal scene. They received honorable mention at the South Sound Underground Festival to directly benefit the Wounded Warrior Project at Louie G’s March 2015. The band co-headlined the Hawaii Metalfest in August 2015 with Suicide Silence, and also received runner-up at Seattle’s iconic Studio Seven’s 2015 KNOTFEST, opening for Slipknot/Judas Priest and Korn.
Hurst and the band have successfully released their second EP, Pray for War (2017), with the help of CaviarGold Records (LA). Pray for War (2017, is available on iTunes, Google Play, YouTube, Spotify, and iHeart radio. Their first EP, Curse of Man (2012), can be heard on ReverbNation.