The Joy Kills

Based in  Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward, The Joy Kills are a devastating four-piece rock n roll band that makes no apology for their sound. “We've worked on a sound that's a vicious compromise between punk and blues,” says lead singer Eric Haugh. Forged by influences that include: Iggy and Stooges, GG Allen, The Kinks, The New York Dolls, Black Sabbath, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Pixies, and The Rolling Stones, the group developed a healthy education in the school of rock n roll before meeting...

Based in  Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward, The Joy Kills are a devastating four-piece rock n roll band that makes no apology for their sound. “We've worked on a sound that's a vicious compromise between punk and blues,” says lead singer Eric Haugh. Forged by influences that include: Iggy and Stooges, GG Allen, The Kinks, The New York Dolls, Black Sabbath, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Pixies, and The Rolling Stones, the group developed a healthy education in the school of rock n roll before meeting in 2011. By combining bits of dashing glamour and trashy lyrics they've managed to create a solid three-track demo and, within only months, have already headlined venues like The Masquerade; feats that would take years for some bands to accomplish. Atlanta hasn't seen a 3-minute friendly rock n roll band in quite some time. Some would say its pop music, and pop is a dirty word. According to The Joy Kills they love it dirty… The lineup of the band comprises of four members from across the country, brought together by fantastic fate and the power of the Internet. If it weren’t for a few random occurrences, this biography may have never been written. The Joy Kills began with guitarist and founding member Michael Westberg, who started his musical journey a few years earlier with a totally different sound in Statesboro GA. “We sounded like Wolf Mother – it was a fun, garage style of music. It didn’t necessarily have the unique edge that I wanted though.” After school, Westberg moved to Atlanta in the pursuit of forging new musical projects. It was a chance meeting with Haugh at the Independent Pub in Midtown where the two struck a common chord chatting about proto punk music from the mid-seventies like old friends. It was a meeting that would forever change their lives. After meeting the bassist and multi-instrumentalist Daniel Eskridge through yet another fateful encounter online, the trio was able to successfully widen their sound to incorporate multiple vocal and instrumental harmonies, adding a crucial and differentiating layer to their sound. That sound was later given a tremendous shot in the arm from the thunderous sounds of drummer Brad Jensen who rounded out the ensemble late in the summer of 2011. The group is preparing to record a full-length debut album in 2012. There are talks of management deals in the works and future touring dates for the band. “We’re excited about today; tomorrow may never come – but we’re ready for it if it does,” says Haugh.