Video footage of the reunited original lineup of BULLETBOYS performing on July 3 at the M3 Rock Festival at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland can be seen below.
The original BULLETBOYS lineup made its live return in December 2019 with a sold-out performance at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California.
Aside from one show in 2011, BULLETBOYS — featuring Marq Torien (vocals), Jimmy D’Anda (drums), Mick Sweda (guitar) and Lonnie Vencent (bass) — had not performed together since 1993.
BULLETBOYS formed in 1988 at the very peak of the Los Angeles glam metal movement. As a collection of talented musicians, BULLETBOYS were able to quickly capture the attention of music fans around the world. Unlike other rockers of the day, the BULLETBOYS possessed more hard rock-blues fusion than pure hair metal. Thanks to comparisons to the likes of AEROSMITH and VAN HALEN, talent scouts came running and the band quickly received their first major label contract.
BULLETBOYS‘ self-titled debut was released in 1988 via Warner Bros. and peaked at number 34 on the Billboard 200. The album spawned two hit singles, a cover of the O’JAYS classic “For The Love Of Money” and “Smooth Up in Ya”, both of which charted on the Mainstream Rock chart and saw regular airplay on MTV. BULLETBOYS went on to release two more albums, 1991’s “Freakshow” and 1993’s “Za-Za”, before splitting up.
During an appearance on an episode of the “Appetite For Distortion” podcast, Torien confirmed that the BULLETBOYS are putting together ideas for a new record. “We’ve been working on nothing but new music,” he said. “So we’re diligently writing right now. I’ve kind of put myself away — not talking on the phone, not going out; just diligently working with some stuff.
“This is gonna be such a diverse and really rad record that people have been really expecting from us for a long time,” he explained. “We’re taking our musical prowess into a completely new direction with just a lot of new ideas and with this recharged energy. I wanted to do something special.
“I hear a lot of music that’s out there and I’m fan of so many different bands, and not everybody is really taking risks or taking chances,” he added. “So I think we’re gonna be trying to do that on this next EP or album that we’re writing right now.”
