Ruby Bullet

Many bands make it their mission to break the rules but few accomplish it as seamlessly as Ruby Bullet. The NYC-based duo of Suzanne Sterne and Pete Vassil blends metal, prog rock, punk and pop with astounding proficiency to create their unique, bedlam-meets-beauty sound. It is controlled chaos at its finest and the reviews follow a basic form: “I've never heard anything like it. It makes me want to hear more”. Ruby Bullet is currently recording their second independent album in Vassil's Ma...

Many bands make it their mission to break the rules but few accomplish it as seamlessly as Ruby Bullet. The NYC-based duo of Suzanne Sterne and Pete Vassil blends metal, prog rock, punk and pop with astounding proficiency to create their unique, bedlam-meets-beauty sound. It is controlled chaos at its finest and the reviews follow a basic form: “I've never heard anything like it. It makes me want to hear more”. Ruby Bullet is currently recording their second independent album in Vassil's Manhattan based Gain Studios, recently featured in Mix Magazine (February 2008). Inspired by extremes, the songs are intelligently rebellious. “You'll either want to make out or break something,” quips Vassil, whose bombastic, imaginative drumming heightens the complex prog-punk riffage spit out by Sterne's thrashy guitars and riotous bass lines. Add her enchanting vocal with its cryptic, hook-laden tales of passion and death and the result is an alluring marriage of misdirection and melody. The band's own turbulent dynamic allows this precarious balance to fester. “We have a very obvious love/hate relationship,” muses Sterne, who was Vassil's next door neighbor for several years before the duo met face to face in 2000. Since then the two have been nearly inseparable, “although not necessarily by choice,” she adds. Armed with their self-released 2007 debut “Nothing Left to Bleed On”, recorded with Grammy winner Jason Corsaro (Motorhead, Soundgarden), Ruby Bullet has been storming the NYC music scene. Fans know to expect an intense show with varying line-ups, sometimes with Sterne performing guitar, bass and vocals all at once. With a unique combination of talent, creativity and passion, the duo draws comparisons to music mainstays ranging from Tool and Kate Bush to Rush and Pantera. Would-be critics looking for a direct influence are hard pressed to find one – their juxtaposition of influences catapults them an entirely new genre.