| Greg Puciato | |
|---|---|
Greg Puciato at the Picture On festival in Bildein, Austria, August 2011 |
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Gregory John Puciato |
| Born | March 27, 1980 Baltimore, Maryland, United States |
| Genres | Mathcore, alternative metal, experimental metal, hardcore punk, digital hardcore |
| Occupations | Musician, singer |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, programming, keyboards |
| Years active | 2001–present |
| Labels | Season of Mist, Party Smasher, Relapse, Epitaph |
| Associated acts | The Dillinger Escape Plan, Spylacopa, Error, Soulfly |
Greg Puciato (born March 27, 1980 in Baltimore, Maryland) is the lead singer of the band The Dillinger Escape Plan. He is known for his reckless live performances, wide vocal range, and outspoken views, having caused controversy due to both performances and interviews. He joined the group in September 2001 and first performed with the group weeks later at the CMJ music conference in October 2001.
In a scenario mirroring that of young Henry Rollins & Black Flag, and Mark "Barney" Greenway & Napalm Death, Puciato started out as a fan of the band in their earlier days. When the band split with their singer Dimitri Minakakis (due to him wanting to focus more on Graphic Arts/Design), they searched publicly for a new singer by releasing the instrumental version of the song "43% Burnt" (off of their debut album).
Puciato sent in a tape with one version of him mimicking Dimitri Minakakis and one with his own take on the song. He was contacted shortly after by the band, auditioned in person, and was subsequently asked to join.
Coincidentally his first recording with Dillinger was a song for a Black Flag tribute album. His first recorded original song with Dillinger was "Baby's First Coffin", which appeared on the Underworld soundtrack, and was included on his first full length album with the band, Miss Machine.
In the December 2007 issue of Revolver Puciato was voted one of the "37 greatest metal frontmen" of all time.[1]
Contents |
Puciato also sang all of the vocals on the five-song, self-titled EP of Electro-Punk-Hardcore band Error (founded by Trent Reznor collaborator Atticus Ross and Brett Gurewitz of Bad Religion). However his position could only be considered temporary studio work, since the band never played any concerts. Rumors spread later on, indicating Error was looking for a permanent singer.
Puciato is/was also involved with Spylacopas, an experimental musical project headed by Candiria guitarist John LaMacchia (along with Julie Christmas of Made Out of Babies and Jeff Caxide of Isis). Spylacopa released a self-titled EP in 2008, with vocals, as well as some guitar and piano/programming, written by Puciato. Similar programming and piano playing would appear on The Dillinger Escape Plan's Option Paralysis album as the bonus track "Chuck McChip".
Puciato is furthermore a frequent collaborator, and guest on other shows. He lent his vocals to Genghis Tron's song "The Feast" on their 2008 release Board Up the House. He contributed a remix of the song "Bad Fall" on the 2009 Prong remix album Power of the Damn Mixxxer. He features in A Static Lullaby's song "The Pledge" from their 2008 album Rattlesnake!. He and The Dillinger Escape Plan repeatedly joined the stage with Nine Inch Nails during their Wave Goodbye Tour in North America, and in Australia (both with The Dillinger Escape Plan, and solo, performing the songs "Wish" and "Mr. Self Destruct"). He contributed minor backup vocals on the song "The Marvelous Slut" on the Every Time I Die album New Junk Aesthetic. In late November 2009 he came on stage during the two Deftones concerts at the Avalon Hollywood. He sang the Deftones songs "Passenger" and "Hexagram", as well as the Metallica classic "Battery", all with Chino Moreno, as part of the Chi Cheng benefit show, and then later performed "Passenger" most nights on the 2011 Deftones/Dillinger Escape Plan tour. In 2010 he appeared on and co-wrote(with Max Cavalera) the Soulfly track "Rise of the Fallen" on their record Omen, and has on occasion performed the song live with them. He also appears on the Architects track "Year In/Year Out" on their 2011 release The Here and Now.
On July 23, 2010, Greg's death was faked by bandmates, Ben Weinman and Liam Wilson, when they posted on their Twitter accounts that Greg had passed in his sleep. Shortly after their Warped Tour set on July 23, Every Time I Die vocalist, Keith Buckley tweeted, "If Greg Puciato is dead, then his corpse just played a great set on mainstage today." debunking the rumors of Greg's death.
In February 2011 Puciato and Devin Townsend publicly decided to collaborate after both being Tweeted by a fan expressing interest in seeing them work together. The track ended up being called "The Mighty Masturbator" and was released as part of Townsend's Deconstruction album. Upon hearing the vocals, Townsend remarked "Ladies and Gentlemen, Greg Puciato just tore me a new asshole. Fucking hell…AWESOME". [1]
A few days later, Max Cavalera, in an interview with Swedish magazine Metalshrine, revealed that he and Greg were working on a full length album, similar in style to Cavalera's Nailbomb project.
Puciato has been involved with multiple band "feuds", including Avenged Sevenfold, Disturbed, and most recently Jared Leto's 30 Seconds to Mars, the latter being mainly between fans of the two bands.
In September 2011 Greg recorded a solo cover of the song "Driving" by Oupa, the solo project of Yuck frontman Daniel Blumberg. [2]
| Year | DEP album | Non DEP album | Song DEP contributed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Black on Black: A Tribute to Black Flag | "Damaged, Parts I & II" (cover) | |
| 2003 | Underworld Soundtrack | "Baby's First Coffin" | |
| 2004 | Bring You to Your Knees: A Tribute to Guns N' Roses | "My Michelle" (cover) | |
| 2004 | Miss Machine | ||
| 2005 | We Reach: The Music of the Melvins | "Honey Bucket" (cover) | |
| 2006 | Plagiarism (EP) | ||
| 2007 | Ire Works | ||
| 2010 | Option Paralysis | ||
| 2011 | Homefront: Songs For The Resistance | "Fight the Power (feat.Chuck D)" (cover) |
2008: Spylacopa (EP)
| Year | Band | Song | Album | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Error | --- whole EP --- | Error (EP) | vocals |
| 2008 | Genghis Tron | "Colony Collapse" | Board Up the House | vocals |
| 2008 | A Static Lullaby | "The Pledge" | Rattlesnake! | vocals |
| 2009 | Prong | "Bad Fall" | Power of the Damn Mixxxer | remix |
| 2009 | Every Time I Die | "The Marvelous Slut" | New Junk Aesthetic | vocals |
| 2010 | Soulfly | "Rise of the Fallen" | Omen | vocals |
| 2011 | Architects | "Year In Year Out"[2] | The Here and Now | vocals |
| 2011 | The Devin Townsend Project | "The Mighty Masturbator" | Deconstruction | vocals |
|
||||||||||||||||||||