Job for a Cowboy is an American death metal band from Glendale, Arizona, formed in 2003. They released their first EP, Doom in 2005, and later that year signed with Metal Blade Records. Their official debut album, Genesis, was released in 2007, peaking at #54 on the Billboard 200 and selling 13,000 copies in its first week.
Job for a Cowboy started as a deathcore group, and evolved into a predominantly death metal sound with their full-length debut Genesis. Their influences include bands such as Decapitated, Hate Eternal, Mastodon, Nile, and The End. They have been defined by The New York Times as "an Arizona band with a guttural, brute-force sound descended (indirectly) from hard-core punk" and "straightforwardly brutal act" by Rolling Stone magazine.
The band has played in several festivals, including Download Festival, Sounds of the Underground, Mayhem Festival and Wacken Open Air. The current line-up of the band consists of vocalist Jonny Davy, guitarists Al Glassman and Bobby Thompson, bassist Brent Riggs, and drummer Jon Rice, with Davy being the only original member.
History
Formation and Doom (2003–2006)
Job for a Cowboy was formed in Glendale, Arizona in December 2003. The group was founded by vocalist Jonny Davy, guitarists Ravi Bhadriraju and Andrew Arcurio, bassist Chad Staples, and drummer Andy Rysdam. In 2004, they created a MySpace profile, posted songs online, and began to connect with several worldwide fans. Later that year, Staples and Rysdam left Job for a Cowboy and were replaced by Brent Riggs and Elliott Sellers respectively as bassist and drummer. Traffic to the band's MySpace profile increased exponentially in late 2005 when the band released its first EP, entitled Doom. The EP attracted the attention of Arizona independent label King of the Monsters, who distributed the disc after an initial self-released pressing by the band.
Job for a Cowboy extensively promoted their debut EP, including three performances on the Sounds of the Underground tour. By the end of the year, the band obtained professional management and signed a deal with Metal Blade Records,[8] who reissued Doom with a bonus track. Also in 2006, Arcurio left Job for a Cowboy, and new guitarist Bobby Thompson joined the group. While Job for a Cowboy was writing material for their first full-length album, Sellers announced that he would be leaving the band to go back to school immediately after recording the album. In search of a permanent drummer, the band then posted a bulletin on Blabbermouth.net, which was seen by Jon "The Charn" Rice. He made a video of himself, posted it on YouTube, and sent the link to the band. Soon after, Rice was announced as the new drummer.
Genesis and Ruination (2007 onward)
In March 2007, Job for a Cowboy completed their debut full-length album, Genesis. The album was recorded at Blue Light Audio Media in Phoenix, Arizona with producer Cory Spotts. It was mixed by Sabbat guitarist Andy Sneap; released on May 15, the album peaked at #54 on the Billboard 200, and sold nearly 13,000 copies in its first week, which made Genesis the best-selling heavy metal debut since Slipknot's 1999 debut album. The album received generally positive reviews, with Kerrang! magazine saying, "an album that quite literally obliterates everyone else currently residing within the death and grind scenes" and "one of the year's most essential metal purchases".
In June 2007, the band performed at the Download Festival in Donington Park, England. The group also played at the Sounds of the Underground festival along with Amon Amarth, Chimaira, Gwar, and Shadows Fall. In October, Job for a Cowboy co-headlined the 2007 Radio Rebellion Tour, teaming up with Behemoth, Gojira and Beneath the Massacre. The band featured on the 2008's Gigantour with headliners Megadeth, Children of Bodom, In Flames and High on Fire. In addition, they have been confirmed for a number of festivals during 2008, including Wacken Open Air in Germany and a second appearance at England's Download Festival. Job for a Cowboy have embarked on a U.S. headlining tour in November and December 2008 with supporting acts Hate Eternal and All Shall Perish. In late-2008 guitarist Ravi Bhadriraju left Job for a Cowboy to return to school because want to pursue a more rewarding career in the medical field, in his words "reinvent the pacemaker"; he was replaced with ex-Despised Icon guitarist Al Glassman.
On May 1, 2009, the band announced that they completed recording their second studio album, Ruination, at AudioHammer studios in Sanford, Florida with producer Jason Suecof. The album marks the debut of drummer Jon "the Charn" Rice, who has actually been with the band since the tour for Genesis, and also of guitarist Al Glassman. Ruination, was then released on July 7, 2009 worldwide through Metal Blade Records. Job for a Cowboy will take place in the second Mayhem Festival, playing on the Hot Topic stage along with bands such as Cannibal Corpse and Whitechapel.
Job for a Cowboy are currently touring to support their Ruination album in the US with Gwar and The Red Chord while Gwar supports their newest release Lust in Space. Occasional shows will have Lamb of God headlining. Job for a Cowboy will then tour in Europe with Lamb of God and then tour Asia and Australia with Behemoth.
On April 24th, 2010 Job For A Cowboy will be co-headlining New England Metal and Hardcore Festival with other bands such as Cannibal Corpse, Amon Amarth, Whitechapel, Skeletonwitch, and many others.
Members
- Current
- Jonny Davy – lead vocals (2003–present)
- Bobby Thompson – guitar (2006–present)
- Al Glassman – guitar (ex-Despised Icon) (2008–present)
- Brent Riggs – bass guitar, backing vocals (2004–present)
- Jon "the Charn" Rice – drums, percussion (2007–present)
- Former
- Chad Staples – bass guitar (2003–2004) (never on album)
- Andy Rysdam – drums, percussion (2003–2004) (never on album)
- Andrew Arcurio – guitar (2003–2006) (only on the EP)
- Elliott Sellers – drums, percussion (2004–2006)
- Ravi Bhadriraju – guitar (2003–2008)
Discography
- Studio albums
- EPs
- Doom (2005)
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