Today, New Jersey hard rockers WHO ON EARTH are proud to release their new EP 'Smoke & Mirrors.'
The release of 'Smoke & Mirrors' comes in the wake of a heartbreaking loss for the band. In July, WHO ON EARTH completed recording their new material, only to lose their lead guitarist, Bruce Gatewood, to a sudden heart attack. Bruce was a beloved musician, friend, and mentor whose legacy is deeply embedded in the band’s music.
“Bruce will always live on in our hearts, and his contributions will be heard for many years to come,” reflects the band. “We’ve vowed to honor him by getting this music out to the world and keeping his memory alive.”
'Smoke & Mirrors' was produced, mixed, engineered & mastered by Mike Orlando (Category 7, Adrenaline Mob) at Sonic Stomp Studios, NY, NY, while the EP cover art was created by Ken Adams (Lamb of God).
On the release of the EP, WHO ON EARTH comments,
"We plan on releasing new music throughout the year, and 'Smoke & Mirrors' is part one. We can't wait for people to hear how the band has grown from 'Blame' and how layered our songwriting and musicianship has become." they continue, "We are very proud of 'Smoke & MIrrors'. It speaks to the deceptive nature of corporations (Dawgz, Voodoo), shitty people (Trash Talker) and social media, bastardized news reporting (Lobotomy). What you see is, unfortunately, rarely the truth. 'Yesterday's Future' is our epic song, 6 minutes in length. It's our Hallowed be Thy Name and you can certainly hear the Iron Maiden influences coming through!"
WHO ON EARTH is a band with stories to tell and experiences to share, which they deliver with groove and melody, bringing back the lost art of the sing-along chorus, the ripping guitar solo, and the crunchy, head-bopping swagger of the rock of yesteryears! Not only are they not afraid to pay homage to the great hard rock of the 70s/80s & 90s, WHO ON EARTH wears it like a badge of honor and plays it boldly with a refreshing, modernized confidence.
Somebody needed to pick up the torch for hard rock and heavy metal with real grit and gusto without a gimmick. Enter WHO ON EARTH. The New Jersey quintet—Andrew Couche [vocals], Pete Rizzi [bass], Howie Fallon [drums], Johnny James Barone [guitar], and Jimmy Kocha [guitar]—deliver a one-two punch of hard-hitting hooks and airtight instrumentation bolted down by pummeling grooves and piercing riffs. The band continues to pay homage to rock’s past as they usher in its future on their latest EP, 'Smoke & Mirrors'.
It all gestated from a question…
“We wanted to fill in the blank of ‘WHO ON EARTH is going to bring back good rock and metal?’,” explains Pete. “We grew up on the new wave of British heavy metal and classic rock. We went through grunge and other great genres of metal. We wanted to resurrect the melodies, hooks, and guitar solos. We returned to our roots yet upgraded everything with modern production.”
The group made their bones through countless gigs across the Tristate area in every dive bar and concert hall with a stage. Along the way, Andrew and Pete tore up venues as part of MadHaus, performing marathon covers. During 2021, the longtime friends chose to forego covers, hunker down, and compose an original album. The composing came easy, and in a short time, the founding fathers had 10 songs ready to go. To bring the record to life, the band hit the studio with none other than Mike Orlando (Category 7, Adrenaline Mob). Over the next year, the guys endured numerous COVID delays as they recorded with Orlando behind the board as producer, engineer, and “stunt” guitarist. Nodding to everyone from Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Metallica to Rush, Alice In Chains, and Tool, they placed storytelling in the spotlight.
“Most of our songs are complete stories from start to finish,” notes Andrew. “We’re talking about our lives.”
“There’s a personal vulnerability in the lyrics,” adds Pete. “It’s reflective and honest.”
In November of 2023 the band recorded a refreshing, heavier version of Toto’s "Hold the Line", adding crunchy guitars, pounding drums, new solos, some tasty bass elaboration and the signature Coosh vocals. The revitalized version quickly became a hit and is the band’s most streamed song.
In July of 2024, after completing the recording of 10 new songs, the band lost their beloved guitarist, Bruce Gatewood, to heart disease. Devastated by the loss, the boys emerged from a very trying time with the decision to forge on, making it their mission to honor Bruce’s passing by promoting the music they have created together. Today, WHO ON EARTH released the first half of those songs with the EP, ‘Smoke & Mirrors’.
In the end, WHO ON EARTH fill a void for rock ‘n’ roll.
“We just tried to write good songs,” Pete leaves off. “We’ve gone back to what we grew up on. It’s still valuable and relevant. It can’t die.”
“We want to inspire younger people to play this style,” concludes Andrew. “It would be nice to pass on the tradition.”
WHO ON EARTH are:
Coosh – vocals
Pete Rizzi – bass
Howie Fallon – drums
Johnny James Barone – guitar
Jimmy Kocha – guitar