Culprit (band)

Culprit
Culprit
	(L-R) John DeVol, Jeff L'Heureux, Bud Burrill, Kjartan Kristoffersen, and Scott Earl (front)
Background information
Origin	Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Genres	Heavy metal
Years active	1982–1985, 2010–present
Labels	Shrapnel Records, Hellion Records
Members	Scott Earl; Gabriel Colon; Fred Aching; P.J. Toyne;
Past members	Jeff L'Heureux; Kjartan Kristoffersen; John DeVol; Bud Burrill; Steve Nations; Tim Kleiman; Saul Ashley; Mino Mereu; Lamar Little; Patrick Abbate;
Website	culpritonline.com

Culprit is an American heavy metal band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1981 by vocalist Jeff L'Heureux, guitarists John DeVol and Kjartan Kristoffersen, bassist Scott Earl, and drummer Bud Burrill.^[1] Their debut album Guilty as Charged was first released through Shrapnel Records in 1983 and later again through Hellion Records in 2000.^[1]^[2] The band broke up in 1985 and each of its members moved on to other endeavors.^[1]

History

Formation (1981–1985) and Guilty as Charged

Culprit was the result of a merger between two Seattle area bands named Orpheus and Amethyst in 1981.^[1] Guitarist John DeVol, bassist Scott Earl, and drummer Bud Burrill played in Orpheus while vocalist Jeff L'Heureux and guitarist Kjartan Kristoffersen were in Amethyst. These five musicians first came together when their respective bands played at a mutual gig. They later got together with plans on forming a new band, which they ultimately named Culprit. This new band got their first taste of success in 1982 when their debut song "Players" was selected on Shrapnel Records' U.S. Metal, Vol. 2 compilation.^[1] Shortly afterward, Culprit signed a proper recording contract with Shrapnel and began work on their debut album.

In 1983, Culprit released their first and only studio album thus far Guilty as Charged to much critical acclaim.^[3] Eduardo Rivadavia of AllMusic gave the album four and a half stars, calling it "a lost gem of American metal from the 1980s, and well worth seeking out for fans of other bands from the period."^[2] Scott Earl left the band in 1984 and the band broke up soon after.

Post-break-up and reunion (1986–present)

Following the break-up, L'Heureux became lead vocalist for the band Mistrust^[1]^[4] while Kristoffersen and Earl joined the band TKO, appearing on their third album Below the Belt,^[1]^[5] then relocated to Hollywood, California and formed The Bang Gang, which released Love Sells... in 1990 on Sinclair/MCA Records.

In 2000, Guilty as Charged was re-released on CD for the first time through Hellion Records. The original lineup has reunited on various occasions for one-off shows, most recently in 2001.^[1] In 2005, they released a compilation album of rarities titled Innocent 'Til Proven Guilty.^[6]

Throughout the 2010s, the band has reformed for several reunion shows and undergone many lineup changes with founding bassist Scott Earl as the only constant member. In 2019, they released Guilty as Charged Live under the lineup of Earl, vocalist Mino Mereu, guitarist Patrick Abbate, and drummer Saul Ashley. As of 2021, the band have announced through their Facebook page that they are working on their long-awaited sophomore album tentatively titled Layin' Down the Law.

Members

Current line-up

Scott Earl – bass guitar
Gabriel Colon – vocals
Fred Aching – drums
P.J. Toyne – guitar

Notable past members

Jeff L'Heureux – vocals
John DeVol – guitar
Kjartan Kristoffersen – guitar
Bud Burrill – drums
Saul Ashley – drums
Mino Mereu – vocals
Patrick Abbate – guitar

Discography

Studio albums

Year	Album details
1983	Guilty as Charged Released: 1983 Label: Shrapnel Records Hellion Records

Live albums

Year	Album details
2019	Guilty As Charged Live!!! Released: 2019 Label: Independent

Compilation albums

Year	Album details
2021	First Offense Released: 2021 Label: Lost Realm

Other appearances

Year	Song	Title	Label
1982	"Players"	U.S. Metal, Vol. 2	Shrapnel Records

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Culprit biography". AllMusic. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
^ ^a ^b Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Guilty as Charged AllMusic review". AllMusic. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
^ Colin Larkin, ed. (1995). The Guinness Who's Who of Heavy Metal (Second ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 90. ISBN 0-85112-656-1.
^ "Mistrust – Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives". Metal-archives.com. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
^ "TKO – Below the Belt – Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives". Metal-archives.com. Archived from the original on May 1, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
^ "Innocent 'Til Proven Guilty at Encyclopaedia Metallum". Metal-archives.com. June 25, 2011. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved January 11, 2012.

[Culprit_Allmusic_Bio-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Culprit biography". AllMusic. Retrieved January 10, 2012.

[Guilty_as_Charged_Allmusic_Review-2] Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Guilty as Charged AllMusic review". AllMusic. Retrieved January 10, 2012.

[LarkinHM-3] Colin Larkin, ed. (1995). The Guinness Who's Who of Heavy Metal (Second ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 90. ISBN 0-85112-656-1.

[Mistrust_at_Encyclopaedia_Metallum-4] "Mistrust – Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives". Metal-archives.com. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved November 13, 2019.

[Below_the_Belt_–_TKO-5] "TKO – Below the Belt – Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives". Metal-archives.com. Archived from the original on May 1, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.

[6] "Innocent 'Til Proven Guilty at Encyclopaedia Metallum". Metal-archives.com. June 25, 2011. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved January 11, 2012.

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