Grip Inc. - Caught in the Grip

March 31, 1997

With so much of today's new music being somewhat ... uh ... tame or lame, it is refreshing to know that there are still bands out there able to deliver with some power and conviction. I saw one of them doing just that at a local venue, the F.B.I. GRIP, Inc. is a 'no holds barred' band who came out for about an hour just shredding and moshing like no tomorrow. Led by Dave Lombardo, original drummer from Slayer, GRIP triumphantly overwhelmed me, as well as a lot of others around me, as they threw themselves and each other around a ring of flesh and sweat (a.k.a. the pit).

Not only were they fast and furious on their instruments of death, but behind the barrage of sounds were actually really good songs. Along with the tight and fluid droning basslines, the fiery fretwork by Waldemar Sorychta and the English cackling from Gus Chambers were ingredients for in-your-face and up-your-ass music.

With hideously moody songs like Rusty Nail, Ostracized and Scream at the Sky, GRIP is sure to be a contender on the somewhat stagnant Metal scene. By sticking to their guns, musically, maybe they will persevere through this downswing and overcome it all. The bands' two albums, Power of Inner Strength and Nemesis, probably haven't sold as well as some of Slayer's latest creative endeavors but undoubtedly deserve to. It's not that the two bands are similar musically - for they are not - but Grip's music is very powerful and emotional, which was evident in their performance. They have a strong message, and they will travel to great lengths to see that as many people as humanly, or inhumanly, possible hear it.

Eric Levy
My main focus in life is my music. I have been writing and playing music for over a decade, and it has been my labour of love. My main instrument is 6-string guitar, lead and rythym. I listen and play everything from low-down, dirty blues (B. Guy, BB, Howlin' Wolf, J. Winter, SRV, etc.) to more aggressive and heavier stuff (Soundgarden, A.I.C.,Pantera, Sacred Reich, etc.) to many that are somewhere in the middle, (Black Crowes, Stones, STP, Allman bros.) Bottom line is that I love music more than life itself. Well, almost.