In the beginning....... |
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Our story begins in the late 80's/early 90's. Four young men with very long hair (some of that hair feathered, some not) and a considerable amount of talent decided to embark on a heavy metal journey of unlimited proportions. They had but one mission- TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD WITH EAR-SPLITTING ROCK MADNESS! Could these four men, nay, boys, change the face of the earth with their thrashing guitars? Could they acheive metal god status (or atleast get some of the chicks from Northeast High to pay some attention to them)? |
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Jay Horvath (drums) and Jay Mintz (bass) were but mere children when they were approached by guitarists/vocalists/older dudes from high school Greg Sacks and Tom Owens to form a heavy metal tribute band. At first, Jay and Jay were a bit frightened, since they were members of the high school jazz band. After some serious deliberation, they decided to give it a shot since they had nothing better to do. Some amazing, highly sought after basement recordings were made and some high profile gigs followed. The live performances were astounding. "Our first gig was on the back of a pick up truck at a backyard party," recollects bassist Mintz. "It was the worst gig of all time. We got through like 3 songs. Everybody booed us. It was terrible." |
Although they were reaching unthinkable peaks of stardom and musical virtuosity, the band eventually parted ways. Jay and Jay both attended the highly respected Esther Boyer College of Music at Temple University. Jay Horvath also attended the New School in New York and played in local math rock band Krakatoa and hip-hop band Fathead. Greg received a degree in A/V from Temple University and continued playing music in bands such as Angry Green Giant.
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Exit Light, Enter........ROCCO! |
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The year is 1999. Feathered hair and spandex are gone. A new era has arrived, an era where the dudes no longer look cool by cutting their hair short except for the back. "Tails" and "mullets" were gone. It was an entirely new world. Jay Horvath is playing and touring with Fathead and decides he'd like another musical outlet for when he's off the road. A light goes off in his brain. Yeah, that's right, like in the cartoons. He calls his old friend and bandmate Greg Sacks and makes a simple pitch- "LET'S GET THE BAND BACK TOGETHER!" After alot of serious thought, Greg decides he's in because he's got nothing better to do. Jay Mintz signs on as well. The only problem is that guitarist Tom Owens is unavailable. A serious decision must be made. Who will the new guitarist be? Jay H. pitches the name of an old friend, Rocco DeCicco, to the guys. Greg and Jay M. ask "Can he play this stuff? It's pretty hard." Jay H. responds "Rocco can do anything. He is a golden god." |
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Jay approaches Rocco with the proposition of joining the band. Rocco responds with "I can't play that shit. It's too hard!" Jay is persistent and Rocco decides to give it a shot. He eventually gets himself up to speed and has his long lost love and need for the metal reinvigorated! The band is ready to go and many difficult but rewarding rehearsals follow. A name is decided upon- Disposable Heroes, after the Metallica song from the "Master of Puppets" album. The band performs their first show with their new lineup at the prestigious VFW off of Shurs Lane in Manayunk. That show, referred to as the notorious "The Spaghetti Incident" (referencing Rocco's mess of tangled amplifier cords that he had to sort through when he was getting no sound), was a complete success. "That show was a complete mess," recalls Jay Mintz. "Rocco's amp didn't work for the first five songs. I look over and he's on the floor trying to sort through 15 tangled cables with a look on his face like he had no idea what was going on. Man, it was terrible." |
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Since that first fateful show, the band has stuck together, grown tighter and played in various Philly venues such as John's Boarwalk, Sweeney's, the Pontiac Grille, the Blarney, Kenny's Bar and Shooters just to name a few. Their repertoire has grown from about 8 Metallica songs to close to 70 songs from various bands including Slayer, Tool, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Pantera, Helmet, Alice in Chains, Anthrax, and more. They'll be coming to a venue near you soon. So, prepare to have your head blown off!!!!!! Here comes the Metal Militia!!!!!!! |
