In 1994, in San Jose, California, Gary Niederhoff and Chiyo Nukaga decided to start a band that played slow, heavy, riff-based music. They were soon joined by Tom Choi and Luis DaVilla. Their slow tempos and sound was punctuated by a severe low-end attack when Gary and Luis both played bass on many songs.
Turned out Tom and Luis had different ideas on direction and just several months into the project and directly after recording the songs they had written together, both of them departed.Russ Kent joined, new songs were being written and the band began playing out.
Matt Harvey (Dekapitator, Exhumed, ex-Athrenody, ex-Gravehill, ex-Repulsion, ex-Scarecrow) took over second guitar for a short time, before Gary took over his spot, while Al Ruel took over bass for about a year.
Chiyo's friend Chris Dodge soon offered to put out a 7". This created a buzz and offers started coming in to do splits culminating with a split 12" and CD with Corrupted. The 90's were filled with writing, recording, endless shows and doing a few tours along the way with others like Seized, Corrupted and Sour Vein.
Creativity was waning and it appeared that local interest in the band was as well. They needed a break but could not see it and the band drifted apart in Summer of 2001. Over those years there was a bit of activity, mostly when Throne Records did the first official release of Erode The Person in 2006.
Then in 2011 Parasitic, Southern Lord, Fuck Yoga and Emetic Records all agreed to do releases. The band decided that it would be a good thing to help support these releases and played three shows in Summer of 2011, their first in ten years, two of which were with Winter for Southern Lord's Power Of The Riff Festival.
In 2012, Noothgrush added new vocalist Dino Sommese (ex-Asunder, ex-Carcinogen, ex-Dystopia, ex-Ghoul, ex-Phobia, ex-Insideous, ex-Lachrymose) and did a short European tour, starting with the Heavy Days in Doomtown Festival in Copenhagen.
They also played Maryland Deathfest X, 305 Fest in Miami, and hosted Eyehategod in their hometown of Oakland. Plans in 2013 include recording for a split LP with Coffins, with whom they'll be touring Japan in November.
Dino Sommese - vocalsRuss Kent - guitarGary Niederhoff - bass/vocalsChiyo Nukaga- drumsRead more here.
