Biography

The first incarnation of the band was under the name Aslan, after a character in the novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a fantasy novel for children by C. S. Lewis. Published in 1950 and set circa 1940, it is the first-published book of The Chronicles of Narnia and is the best known book of the series. Although it was written and published first, it is second in the series'...

by C. S. Lewis

C. S. Lewis

Clive Staples Lewis , commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis and known to his friends and family as "Jack", was a novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Belfast, Ireland...

. With money earned from local shows and T-shirt sales, they recorded a self-titled demo tape in 1986. After discovering another band with the same name, they changed theirs to Psychotic Waltz and recorded a new four-song demo in 1988.

In 1990, they debuted with their independently financed debut A Social Grace

A Social Grace

A Social Grace is Psychotic Waltz's first studio album released in 1990 .In 2004, Metal Blade Records reissued A Social Grace in a box set also containing the band's third album, Mosquito and a bonus DVD.-Track listing:...

, which was released in Europe via a licensing deal with the German label Rising Sun Productions. The album was very well received in Europe, being named album of the month in some European magazines, The situation in US was more difficult, as the album was released under the band's own Sub Sonic Records label. With practically no promotion and minimal distribution, it remained an extremely underground item. In 1991, the band appeared in the Dynamo Festival in Holland.

After the tour, the band's guitarist, Dan Rock, suffered a near-fatal accident after falling off a bridge while rappelling. The band went on to record their second album, Into the Everflow

Into the Everflow

Into the Everflow was the second of Psychotic Waltz's four albums.In 2004, Metal Blade Records reissued Into the Everflow in a box set also containing the band's final album Bleeding and a bonus CD contain demos.-Track listing:# "Ashes" - 5:09...

. The album was recorded from August–October, 1992, at Phoenix Studios in Herne, Germany

Herne, Germany

Herne is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the Ruhr area directly between the cities of Bochum and Gelsenkirchen.- History :Like most other cities in the region Herne was a tiny village until the 19th century...

, and was produced by Mekong Delta

Mekong Delta (band)

Mekong Delta is a German progressive/thrash metal band, formed in 1985.-History:The band was founded by a group of German metal musicians with the goal to 'musically outshine' all then-current, independent releases. The line-up and the history of the group was to be "the best kept secret in the...

's main man, Ralph Hubert. After recording the album, but before its release, the band did a small tour while Dan Rock recovered from his accident. The CD was released in Europe on Dream Circle Records, and was very well received, getting album of the month honors in many European magazines. After Rock recovered, the band was nominated as the Best Hard Rock band at the 1992 San Diego Music Awards

San Diego Music Awards

The San Diego Music Awards are an awards show held annually in San Diego, California to recognize the best bands and artists in local music. The awards have been held since 1991 and were originally organized by the city's main local music publication, , which eventually became the alternative...

.

By that time, the band was at the peak of its popularity. They signed with Ralph Hubert's own label, Zardoz Music, for their third album, Mosquito

Mosquito (Psychotic Waltz album)

Mosquito was the third of 4 studio albums by Psychotic Waltz. Due to a tactical change of styles, it is also the least popular amongst fans. However, a significant minority regards this album to be their greatest work...

. Recording took place in late 1994 in Record Plant and Madhatter studios in Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

, with the help of the famous metal producer Scott Burns

Scott Burns (producer)

Scott Burns is an American computer engineer and an ex-music producer of death metal music, resident at Morrisound Recording studio in Tampa, Florida in late 1980s and 1990s.-Biography:...

. The initial response for this album was mixed, as the more conventional songwriting that the band followed led some hardcore fans of the band to label it as a sell-out. This was the last album that was recorded with their initial lineup, as bassist Ward Evans left the band after two tours in Europe and was replaced with Phil Cuttino.

They entered the studio once again in 1996, for what proved to be their last studio work together, Bleeding. This time, Scott Burns did the engineering, but the record was mixed by Dan Rock and engineer Woody Barber. Before the band started touring in support for the new album, guitarist Brian McAlpine announced that he would not be able to follow the band due to familial obligations. He was replaced by Steve Cox

Steve Cox

Charles Steven Cox is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays....

 for the band's final two European tours. Phil Cuttino filmed a promotional video for the track "Faded". This proved to be disastrous for the band, as a crew member sued the band in April 1998, claiming that a light on the set caused him to go blind

Blindness

Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...

.

The lengthy court battle that followed, coupled with the different musical interests that the band members had, contributed in the band's demise. Buddy Lackey was the first to leave the band. For a short while, the remaining band members tried to continue with the band, but eventually each went his own way. Rock recorded two instrumental albums with his project Darkstar. Norm Leggio and Steve Cox created the band Teabag, and Buddy Lackey formed the band Deadsoul Tribe

Deadsoul Tribe

Deadsoul Tribe are an Austrian progressive metal band founded by Devon Graves from Psychotic Waltz.-Biography:Deadsoul Tribe was formed by Devon Graves in 2000...

, where he performs using his real name, Devon Graves.

Psychotic Waltz reunited in 2010, will tour Europe in support of Nevermore and Symphony X, and are planning to write, record and release a new album.

Band members

Current members

• Devon Graves (aka Buddy Lackey) - vocals, flute
• Dan Rock - guitars, keyboards
• Brian McAlpin - guitars
• Ward Evans - bass
• Norman Leggio - drums

Former members

• Phil Cuttino - bass
• Steve Cox - guitars

Studio albums

• A Social Grace
  A Social Grace
  A Social Grace is Psychotic Waltz's first studio album released in 1990 .In 2004, Metal Blade Records reissued A Social Grace in a box set also containing the band's third album, Mosquito and a bonus DVD.-Track listing:...
  
  (1990)
• Into the Everflow
  Into the Everflow
  Into the Everflow was the second of Psychotic Waltz's four albums.In 2004, Metal Blade Records reissued Into the Everflow in a box set also containing the band's final album Bleeding and a bonus CD contain demos.-Track listing:# "Ashes" - 5:09...
  
  (1992)
• Mosquito
  Mosquito (Psychotic Waltz album)
  Mosquito was the third of 4 studio albums by Psychotic Waltz. Due to a tactical change of styles, it is also the least popular amongst fans. However, a significant minority regards this album to be their greatest work...
  
  (1994)
• Bleeding
  Bleeding (album)
  Bleeding was Psychotic Waltz's fourth and final studio album, released in 1996. In 2004, Metal Blade Records reissued Bleeding in a box set also containing the band's second album Into the Everflow and a bonus CD containing demos...
  
  (1996)
• TBA (201?)