XYZ (French band) explained

XYZ
Origin:Lyon, France
Genre:Hard rock, glam metal[1]
Years Active:1980–1992, 2002–present
Label:Enigma, Axe Killer, Capitol
Current Members:Terry Ilous
Pat Fontaine
Tony Marcus
Joey Shapiro
Past Members:Bobby Pieper
Joey Pafumi
Mark Diglio
Paul Monroe
Paul Villet
Uncle RV

XYZ is a French-American hard rock band. It was originally formed in Lyon, France, where Pat Fontaine and Terry Ilous were born and grew up. The first members were Paul Villet on drums, Uncle RV on guitars and Pat Fontaine on vocals and bass. After a few shows as a trio through western Europe and even New York's CBGB, Terry Ilous joined as the lead vocalist, cementing XYZ as a four-piece, and in 1984 the band moved to Los Angeles. Both Villet and RV bowed out a few months later and were replaced by Robert Pieper from New Haven, Connecticut on guitars and Joe Pafumi from Boston, Massachusetts on drums.

XYZ started off as the unofficial house band of the Whisky a Go Go nightclub in Los Angeles. A tour of the US with Ted Nugent followed the success of their 1989 Enigma-released debut album, which includes one of their best-known songs "Inside Out", and they were signed by major label Capitol for their 1991 follow-up Hungry.[2] XYZ disbanded in 1992 but has reunited occasionally since the early 2000s.

History

XYZ originally formed in Lyon, France in 1980, but relocated to Los Angeles, California in 1984 where they experienced much of their success. XYZ sold more than two million records worldwide and was a staple on MTV during the early 90s. The band played Hollywood clubs throughout the mid-1980s and first got a record deal in 1989 with Don Dokken (frontman of Dokken) as a producer.[3] Ilous and Fontaine then recruited Marc Diglio (guitars) and Paul Monroe (drums) to replace the departing Pieper and Pafumi, to record the debut album, simply titled XYZ, released in 1989 and containing the hits "Inside Out" and "What Keeps Me Loving You". Videos for both songs received reasonable airplay managing to reach No. 99 on the Billboard 200. A third single from the album, "Maggy", was used in the 1990 Dolph Lundgren movie I Come in Peace.

The next album, Hungry, released in 1991, had less commercial success, not charting at all. Just one video was released, "Face Down in the Gutter", directed by Michael Bay. A few months later, both Diglio and Monroe left the band and were replaced by Tony Marcus and Joey Shapiro, respectively. After the next tour (Foreigner) was finished, band members went separate ways once again.

They reunited in 2008 with the 1992 lineup of Ilous, Fontaine, Marcus and Shapiro.

Recent events

XYZ actively continues to play festivals and shows across the US and Europe and is a regular addition to Monster of Rock Cruises out of Miami, Florida. In addition to fronting XYZ, Terry Ilous leads The Vagabonds, an acoustic outfit mixing flamenco with classic rock.

Terry Ilous was interviewed by Argentinean rock journalist Lucas H. Gordon, where the singer talked about a charity event called 80's Rockers for Japan, organized by Ilous to raise money for the Red Cross from Japan, to help victims of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The event featured many hard rock musicians, including ex-Toto singer Bobby Kimball, Paul Shortino, Rudy Sarzo, Michael T. Ross, John Payne, Carmine Appice, Vinny Appice, Lorraine Lewis, and others.

XYZ performed at Rocklahoma Festival in 2008, the M3 Rock Festival, Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD, and Firefest, Rock City, Nottingham, England, in 2012.

In 2012, drummer Joey Shapiro purchased drumstick and guitar pick grip company Gorilla Snot, and since 2019 owns Avalanche Studios, a recording facility in Denver CO.

Pat Fontaine was featured in the opening scene of The Dirt, a Netflix movie about Mötley Crüe.

Paul Monroe, drummer from the classic lineup, was a contestant with his daughter on a 2016 episode of That Awkward Game Show on Spike TV.

As of March 2022, according to Pat Fontaine, new music from XYZ is in the works.[4]

Members

Current members
Former members

Timeline

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Discography

Studio albums

YearAlbum detailsPeak positions
US
1989XYZ 99
1991Hungry
2003Letter to God
  • Release date: May 13, 2003
  • Label: MTM Music / FYCO Records
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Compilation albums

YearAlbum details
2005Rainy Days (demos)
  • Release date: May 14, 2005
  • Label: unofficial release
2005Forbidden Demos
  • Release date: November 14, 2005
  • Label: FYCO Records
2008Best of XYZ
  • Release date: October 7, 2008
  • Label: Perris / FYCO Records

Live albums

YearAlbum details
1995Take What You Can Live
  • Release date: 1995
  • Label: FYCO Records
1997Take What You Can Live (European Edition)
  • Release date: 1997
  • Label: Axe Killer

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: XYZ Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More . .
  2. Web site: NME artist biographies and discographies . . May 15, 2009 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20091023064348/http://www.nme.com/artists/xyz . October 23, 2009 .
  3. Book: The Guinness Who's Who of Heavy Metal. Colin Larkin. Colin Larkin (writer). Guinness Publishing. 1995. Second. 0-85112-656-1. 393/4.
  4. Web site: XYZ – Working On New Music. Metal Storm. March 21, 2022.