Jesters of Destiny

T

he quirky, offbeat, psychedelic-tinged band, Jesters of Destiny was borne at a time where there really wasn't a defined audience for such non-mainstream material. Though some of their songs were too pop to be considered heavy metal, Fun at the Funeral (1986; their debut) demonstrated that there is a heavy metal tinge to their offerings. Their membership started with Ray Violet (guitars/keyboards), Bruce Duff (vocals/bass (except track 15)/guitar: tracks 5, 15, 18)/drums: track 18/piano: track 5), Doktor Stixx (drums: track 5/vocals (backing: track 5),Bill Irvin (guitars: track 5/vocals (backing: track 5), Louie Schilling (drums) and Eric Carlson (R.I.P. 2024; guitars (lead: tracks 2, 9). The follow-up, In a Nostalgic Mood (1987) saw the band drastically reduced in size and two new members to feature Duff and Violet now with Dave Kuzma (drums) and Michael Montano (guitars).

For The Sorrows That Refuse to Drown (2017) the band was reduced to just Duff and Violet; likewise for Distorting Everything (2022).

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