24-7 Spyz
[4] The fact that they are African Americans playing variations of heavy metal led critics to compare them to bands such as Living Colour and Bad Brains.
Upon their formation in 1986, the band, consisting of Jimi Hazel, Rick Skatore, Kindu Phibes, and P. Fluid, quickly earned a dedicated following in New York City due to the eclectic mix of their music.
The band would switch gears from Motown and soul sounds with lush vocal harmonies to violent heavy metal and hardcore punk with ease, sometimes several times within the course of one song.
Critics and fans took notice of the band's left-wing political stance and the unique sound of their tight-knit, high-energy music.
It remains a pioneering classic in the rock/funk/hip hop genre made popular in later years by such bands as 311, Limp Bizkit, and Kid Rock.
[4] The album was much softer than the previous effort, focusing mostly on clean guitar and lush R&B harmonies and grooves although it still contained elements of thrash metal and punk.
[4] Fluid made the announcement of his departure during the band's live performance on the final date of the Jane's Addiction tour.
Johnson followed suit and, as a result of the departures, the band dropped out of a planned co-headlining tour with Suicidal Tendencies.
The company tested the marketability of the new band by releasing a five-song EP titled This is...24-7 Spyz!,[4] produced by Jimi Hazel and Bruce Calder in 1991.
The album's single, "Break The Chains," received minor radio airplay and MTV exposure but Sylvia Rhone pulled the label's support before dropping the band altogether.
The Black Angus sessions were eventually recorded with drummer and longtime friend Carlton Smith of the Royal Crescent Mob.
Maitoza formed Shockhead with vocalist Joseph McCraw and Nixons bassist Ricky Wolking, recording one disc, titled Television, which was produced by Jimi Hazel.
The album was released exclusively in Europe by Enemy Records, and was followed by a quick tour of the continent before Johnson and Fluid left the band once again.
The track listing would remain almost identical to 6 with the exception of the removal of "Along Comes Mary" and "7 and 7 Is" and the additions of "Earth And Sky" and "Save The World" as replacements.
[8] In 1997, the If I Could EP, featuring remixes and live performances recorded while Maitoza was still a member, was released exclusively through the band's fan club.
[10] In November 2011, the band announced that the lineup would continue performing together with the Strength In Numbers Twentieth Anniversary Tour beginning with a string of European dates from late February through March 2012.
In January 2015, it was officially announced that the band had emerged from their self-imposed hiatus with plans to not only perform select dates in Europe but also to release a single and a new EP later in the year.
[11] The digital single, "Jungle (for Jef)" was credited as 24-7 Spyz & Family and featured a core lineup of Hazel and Drayton alongside drummer Lenny White and bassist Chico Huff, with additional instrumentation performed by Jesse Johnson, Eddie Martinez, Vernon Reid and Skatore.
The song was a tribute to Jef Lee Johnson, a friend and fellow musician who had died in 2013 at age 54 due to complications from pneumonia and diabetes, and was released via iTunes and SoundCloud.
The band's next release came in April 2016 in the form of CD and digital single for a song titled "Anthem" that would also be featured on their upcoming album.
At Fishbone's August 24, 2018 Brooklyn, New York show, a three-piece version of the band consisting of Hazel, Skatore and Fish performed a short, unannounced opening set.
[12] In January 2020, a three-piece version of the band featuring Hazel, Skatore and Tony Lewis, replacing Fisher who had returned to the Fishbone lineup, announced their "Sex, Juice & Heavy Metal Soul" tour which was scheduled to run from April through October 2020.
[13] In September 2021, the band's Facebook page indicated that Hazel and Skatore were once again working on new music with Tobias Ralph playing drums.
The track features guest vocalists Ryan Bland of New York hardcore band Ache, and Corinne Drewery of Swing Out Sister.
Anthony Johnson reappeared as the drummer for the band Middle Man before moving on to perform a lead role in the Off-Broadway production of Stomp.
The book, based on a short film and characters created by Thinner, was written by CJ Cassidy and edited by Hector Valle.
Thinner also appeared in the film Riot on the Dance Floor, a documentary about City Gardens, a nightclub formerly located in Trenton, New Jersey.
[17] Joel Maitoza has continued playing drums with bands such as Crown 10, Shockhead, Headtrip Superstar, Don Lithgow, Sahara, Seventrain and Kerry Conally.
In early 2020, Maitoza announced his solo project called The Frequency Conspiracy and released two singles and accompanying videos of cover versions of "Rock Candy" by Montrose and "Carry On Wayward Son" by Kansas.
