Chuck Biscuits

Chuck Biscuits (born Charles Montgomery<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> on April 17, 1965)<ref name="allmusic">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> is a retired Canadian drummer best known for his work across multiple punk rock and heavy metal bands.

Biscuits was a member of D.O.A. from 1978 to 1982, playing on the band's first two albums before briefly joining Black Flag and later Circle Jerks. He later joined Danzig in 1987, playing on the band's first four albums as well as their first EP before leaving in 1994. Most recently, he played in Social Distortion from 1996 to 1999.

Career

Musical Influence

Biscuits has named his main influences as John Bonham, Rat Scabies of the Damned, Topper Headon of the Clash, Keith Moon and Stewart Copeland.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Black Flag & Circle Jerks Era

Biscuits is the brother of Ken "Dimwit" Montgomery, a fixture on the Vancouver music scene—at different times, both brothers played drums for D.O.A. Biscuits joined Black Flag in 1982 and toured with them for five months. His only studio recordings for the band were the 1982 demos for the My War album, which have been widely bootlegged.<ref name="Misfits Central - Black Flag">Template:Cite web</ref>

However, Biscuits and Henry Rollins had clashing personalities, and problems with their record label nudged the drummer to jump ship and join original Black Flag singer Keith Morris’s influential band, the Circle Jerks. Biscuits played with the Circle Jerks relatively briefly until he joined Floorlords. Biscuits planned to quit the music business and took art and electrical engineering courses when that band broke up. He briefly filled in on drums for a few shows for the Red Hot Chili Peppers during their Freaky Styley tour in 1986.

Danzig Era

In 1987, producer Rick Rubin invited Biscuits to become the drummer for Danzig.<ref name="Flipside">Template:Cite web</ref> Biscuits had been vocalist/songwriter Glenn Danzig's first choice as drummer for his band.<ref name="Metal Mania">Template:Cite web</ref>

Biscuits joined Danzig in 1987 and appeared on the band's first four albums and one EP. In 1990, he recorded drums for one track on Glenn Danzig's final album with the band Samhain. In 1994, he became the first member of the original Danzig line-up to leave the band, citing a contract dispute as the reason for his departure.<ref name="Entertainment Weekly">Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Social Distortion

Biscuits left Danzig in 1994 over royalty disagreements. He was replaced by a pre-Queens Of The Stone Age Joey Castillo, after Dave Grohl turned down an offer to join. Biscuits tried to rejoin the group but was rejected and forced to find another group to play with. In 1996, Biscuits hooked up with another big act from the punk scene, joining Social Distortion between the recording and release of the band's White Light, White Heat, White Trash album. Biscuits is credited on the album's liner notes, although Deen Castronovo's playing was featured on the record.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Biscuits participated in a special concert held on December 28, 1994, to honor the lifetime achievements of his brother Ken, who had died earlier in the year of a drug overdose.

Death Hoax

On October 27, 2009, a blogger named James Greene Jr. who claimed to have been in recent contact with Biscuits posted a report on his blog announcing that the drummer had died on October 24 of throat cancer. This report quickly circulated to multiple media sources,<ref>Original CBC report of deathTemplate:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore</ref><ref name="inlog.org">R.I.P. Chuck Biscuits (1965 – 2009); www.inlog.org.</ref> but was soon questioned by Biscuits' friends and family as a hoax. That evening, Biscuit's sister-in-law e-mailed Greene to confirm that the musician was still alive.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Biscuits himself never released a statement concerning the death hoax, and Greene would later argue that Biscuits was entirely responsible for the false report.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="JG2Land">Chuck Biscuits "Could Not Care Less" You Thought He Was Dead; www.crawdaddyarchive.com.</ref>

Equipment

Biscuits used Pro-Mark<ref name="Musician">Template:Cite web</ref> DC-10<ref>Von, Eerie. Misery Obscura: The Photography Of Eerie Von (1981-2009). Milwaukie, OR: Dark Horse Books, 2009: p. 140</ref> marching sticks to drum. His drumkit at the beginning of Danzig was a black Premier Resonator, though he switched to a chrome covered 1970s era Ludwig<ref name="Musician"/> Classic maple kit for Danzig II, and continued with that kit to record and tour for Danzig III and Danzig IV. Biscuits was usually seen using Zildjian cymbals. His regular ride cymbal sound during his work with Danzig was a Zildjian 22" Earth Ride.<ref name="Musician"/> Biscuits also favored Paiste Rude cymbals. He used medium and rock ride cymbals as crashes. Biscuits' mainstay snare with Danzig was a Sonor steel model, though he also used a Ludwig piccolo snare.<ref name="Musician"/>

With D.O.A. and Black Flag, Biscuits used an older blonde maple Slingerland kit and was also photographed using various colored Ludwig drums. For Social Distortion, Biscuits used a Boom Theory kit, including a Bridgedeck snare built by Al Adinolfi.

Discography

D.O.A. (1978–1982)

• Disco Sucks
• The Prisoner
• Triumph of the Ignoroids
• World War III
• Vancouver Complication
• Something Better Change
• Hardcore '81
• Let Them Eat Jellybeans!
• Positively D.O.A. (No God, No Country, No Lies)
• Rat Music for Rat People Vol. 1
• Bloodied But Unbowed
• War on 45 (partial)
• 1978 (2019 2-LP single CD compilation featuring rare Biscuits performances)

Black Flag (1982)

• 1982: The Complete 1982 Demos Plus More (bootleg album)
• 2010: Live at the On Broadway 1982 (live album)

Circle Jerks (1983–1984)

• Repo Man (soundtrack)
• The Best of Flipside Video

Floorlords (1986)

• Black Ice Ride 2-Nite

Glenn Danzig and the Power and Fury Orchestra

• 1987: Less than Zero soundtrack

Danzig (1987–1994)

• 1988: Danzig
• 1990: Danzig II: Lucifuge
• 1992: Danzig III: How the Gods Kill
• 1993: Thrall-Demonsweatlive
• 1994: Danzig 4
• 2001: Live on the Black Hand Side
• 2007: The Lost Tracks of Danzig

Run-D.M.C.

• 1988: Tougher Than Leather (drum tracks only)

Samhain

• 1990: Final Descent

Social Distortion (1996–1999)

• 1998: Live at the Roxy

External links

• Biography from Misfits Central