Thursday, September 10, 2020

Defunct Local Band Profile Series: Full Throttle

It is now time for this month's Defunct Local Band Profile, keeping our monthly spotlight of inactive local metal, hard rock, and punk bands going into the fall season! This month, our initial randomly selected band was supplemented with a second act (Poison Girl) due to what appeared to be a lack of surviving information, but I underestimated them, so I will hold Poison Girl for next month's installment, and give the former band a full spotlight today, and they paint an interesting tale from their lineup changes and collective runs. Here's what you should know!
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Full Throttle

Genre: Classic/Hard Rock

Hometown: Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan

Members: (Members never in Mark 2 of the band are in italics; This information may be incomplete, let me know if you can fill in any blanks!)

Ryan Kitzmiller (Hawk Junction, RamWagon), vocals
Joe Jenkins (Project 906, Ten Kings), guitar
George Belleau (Mackinaw Trail, Hawk Junction), bass
Will Storey (Project 906, Ten Kings), drums

Donny Newell (Absolute, Monkey's Uncle), vocals
Jason Lamoreaux, guitar
Nathan Switzer (Highway 63, Analog Deficiency), guitar
Steve Pevarnic, guitar
Chris Gurnoe (Power Slug, River Witch), bass
Mark Gillotte, drums

Audio/Video: A covers-only band in either incarnation with no known original songs, Full Throttle's surviving public media is limited, and the only live video I have found on public sources is this cover of Velvet Revolver's "Slither" by Full Throttle Mark I at the former Golanka's Bar (a.k.a. The Bird) in March 2013. For similar classic rock cover material from members' later bands, track down videos and media of The Bottom Line, Exiled, Hawk Junction, Highway 63, Project 906, RamWagon, and Ten Kings, who all shared at least two Full Throttle members, and in Hawk Junction's case, their logo.



Info/Analysis: Originally launched in late 2012, Full Throttle spent their first incarnation primarily as a regular sight at The Bird through June 2013, though a massive overhaul that spring saw 3/5ths of their original lineup splinter off into the short-lived band RamWagon. Only guitarist Jason Lamoreaux & drummer Mark Gillotte remained through those lineup changes. After announcing "a short break" that August, nothing new made it's way online until July 2014, when members of the also short-lived The Bottom Line announced that they had launched a new band also named Full Throttle, with original members Ryan Kitzmiller and George Belleau re-purposing the apparently defunct band's name anew. Full Throttle Mark II only played a handful of concerts that summer, primarily at The Rapids Lounge at the Sault Ste. Marie Kewadin Casino. The band dissolved for good by that September, with members breaking off into the longer-lasted Highway 63 and Ten Kings by the following year.

Full Throttle's timeline is very confusing, but they were never devoid of talent in either variation, and it's a shame that neither version of the band survived beyond one year! I can't speak directly for Mark II (partially due to their Facebook page being deleted), but the second lineup of Mark I showed promise on the above video, despite stiff stage presences and slightly out-of-time chorus vocals. Hopefully members of both versions are staying active in music nowadays, and R.I.P. Steve!
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I hope you guys liked this month's Defunct Local Band Profile! This series will return on or around October 10th with our previously announced profile on Sault Ontario-based HIM tribute band Poison Girl, and to round it out once again, I have randomly selected one more channel, namely for inactive local/London progressive metal solo project Hiroshima Mutant Mindframe! Look for all of this next month, and for more news and notes on the site in the coming days! Thanks everyone!

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