Geoff Rickly
Encyclopedia
Geoffrey William Rickly (born March 8, 1979 is the lead singer and songwriter of Thursday
, an American rock
band
from New Brunswick
, New Jersey
. They have released six studio albums. Rickly grew up in Dumont, New Jersey
. He was raised Catholic, and attended Dumont High School
, where he was a member of the band and played the tenor sax.
Rickly has contributed guest vocals to many songs, including My American Heart
's "We Are the Fabrication", Murder by Death
's "Killbot 2000" and This Day Forward
's "Sunfalls and Watershine." Geoff also occasionally performs solo, most recently in Hoboken, New Jersey
at the Eyeball Records
holiday party, performing Autumn Leaves Revisited and This Side of Brightness acoustic. Geoff also recently has become extremely popular in the country of Ireland as both a musician and a composer.
Lyrically, Rickly has been known to draw from a wide variety of influences, many of them being authors and poets. In a March 2009 interview, he cited the works of Denis Johnson
, Martin Amis
, Roberto Bolaño
and David Foster Wallace
as being among his influences for the lyrics of Thursday
's Common Existence
album, which was released in February 2009. A tattoo on his forearm reads "love is love", a lyric from the band Frail; Rickly adopted these lyrics into Thursday
's "A Hole in the World." Thursday's "Autobiography Of A Nation" is clearly influenced by poet Michael Palmer
's "Sun."
He is diagnosed with epilepsy
and at one point became severely ill while on tour because of the medication he was taking.
Rickly is currently writing and recording with Glassjaw
singer Daryl Palumbo
and rock columnist, Jonah Bayer, for United Nations
, a grindcore
collaboration. Rickly insists that his main effort will remain Thursday
.
Thursday (band)
Thursday were an American rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey. Formed in 1997, the group has released six full-length albums, their most recent being No Devolución, which was released in April 2011 on Epitaph Records...
, an American rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
from New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. They have released six studio albums. Rickly grew up in Dumont, New Jersey
Dumont, New Jersey
Dumont is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. The population was 17,479 at the 2010 Census.Dumont was formed on July 20, 1894, as the Borough of Schraalenburgh from portions of Harrington Township and Palisades Township, at the height of the "Boroughitis" phenomenon then sweeping...
. He was raised Catholic, and attended Dumont High School
Dumont High School
Dumont High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grade from Dumont, in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Dumont Public Schools....
, where he was a member of the band and played the tenor sax.
Rickly has contributed guest vocals to many songs, including My American Heart
My American Heart
My American Heart was a rock band from San Diego, California. The band's original name was No Way Out, which consisted of Larry Soliman on vocals, Jesse Barrera on bass guitar, Clint Delgado and Jeremy Mendez on guitar, and Steven Oira on Drums...
's "We Are the Fabrication", Murder by Death
Murder by Death (band)
Murder by Death is an American five-piece indie rock band from Bloomington, Indiana. Their name is derived from the 1976 Robert Moore film of the same name.- Early years :...
's "Killbot 2000" and This Day Forward
This Day Forward
This Day Forward was a Philadelphia-area band active from 1996 to 2003 whose style varied from metalcore to post-hardcore with indie rock influences.-History:...
's "Sunfalls and Watershine." Geoff also occasionally performs solo, most recently in Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 50,005. The city is part of the New York metropolitan area and contains Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub for the region...
at the Eyeball Records
Eyeball Records
Eyeball Records is an independent record label based in Northern New Jersey, formed in 1995 by Alex Saavedra. They have released albums by artists such as Thursday, My Chemical Romance and Murder by Death....
holiday party, performing Autumn Leaves Revisited and This Side of Brightness acoustic. Geoff also recently has become extremely popular in the country of Ireland as both a musician and a composer.
Lyrically, Rickly has been known to draw from a wide variety of influences, many of them being authors and poets. In a March 2009 interview, he cited the works of Denis Johnson
Denis Johnson
Denis Hale Johnson is an American author who is known for his short-story collection Jesus' Son and his novel Tree of Smoke , which won the National Book Award. He also writes plays, poetry and non-fiction.- Biography :...
, Martin Amis
Martin Amis
Martin Louis Amis is a British novelist, the author of many novels including Money and London Fields . He is currently Professor of Creative Writing at the Centre for New Writing at the University of Manchester, but will step down at the end of the 2010/11 academic year...
, Roberto Bolaño
Roberto Bolaño
Roberto Bolaño Ávalos was a Chilean novelist and poet. In 1999 he won the Rómulo Gallegos Prize for his novel Los detectives salvajes , and in 2008 he was posthumously awarded the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction for his novel 2666, which was described by board member Marcela Valdes...
and David Foster Wallace
David Foster Wallace
David Foster Wallace was an American author of novels, essays, and short stories, and a professor at Pomona College in Claremont, California...
as being among his influences for the lyrics of Thursday
Thursday (band)
Thursday were an American rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey. Formed in 1997, the group has released six full-length albums, their most recent being No Devolución, which was released in April 2011 on Epitaph Records...
's Common Existence
Common Existence
Common Existence is the fifth full-length album from post-hardcore band Thursday. It was released on February 17, 2009 on Epitaph Records. The band began recording at Dave Fridmann's Tarbox Road Studios on August 11, 2008...
album, which was released in February 2009. A tattoo on his forearm reads "love is love", a lyric from the band Frail; Rickly adopted these lyrics into Thursday
Thursday (band)
Thursday were an American rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey. Formed in 1997, the group has released six full-length albums, their most recent being No Devolución, which was released in April 2011 on Epitaph Records...
's "A Hole in the World." Thursday's "Autobiography Of A Nation" is clearly influenced by poet Michael Palmer
Michael Palmer
Michael Palmer is an American poet and translator. He attended Harvard University where he earned a BA in French and a MA in Comparative Literature. He has worked extensively with Contemporary dance for over thirty years and has collaborated with many composers and visual artists...
's "Sun."
He is diagnosed with epilepsy
Epilepsy
Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by seizures. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or hypersynchronous neuronal activity in the brain.About 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and nearly two out of every three new cases...
and at one point became severely ill while on tour because of the medication he was taking.
Rickly is currently writing and recording with Glassjaw
Glassjaw
Glassjaw is a four-piece rock band from Long Island, New York. The band is fronted by vocalist Daryl Palumbo and guitarist Justin Beck, and have undergone numerous line-up changes since their inception...
singer Daryl Palumbo
Daryl Palumbo
Daryl Palumbo is an Italian American musician, , grew up in Bellmore, New York. He is the frontman of the bands Glassjaw and Head Automatica. As a youth he was a member of the Long Island straight edge band XbustedX, however he has since rejected that philosophy...
and rock columnist, Jonah Bayer, for United Nations
United Nations (band)
United Nations is an experimental punk supergroup whose roots go back to at least 2005. They consider "screamo power-violence" as their main influence.-History:United Nations was started by Geoff Rickly, the vocalist/lyricist of the band Thursday...
, a grindcore
Grindcore
Grindcore is an extreme genre of music that started in the early- to mid-1980s. It draws inspiration from some of the most abrasive music genres – including death metal, industrial music, noise and the more extreme varieties of hardcore punk....
collaboration. Rickly insists that his main effort will remain Thursday
Thursday (band)
Thursday were an American rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey. Formed in 1997, the group has released six full-length albums, their most recent being No Devolución, which was released in April 2011 on Epitaph Records...
.