RUTHLESS - USA

Discipline Of Steel - 1986 - Axe Killer
They Rise - 2015 - Pure Steel
Evil Within - 2019 - Pure Steel
The Fallen - 2024 - Fireflash
Curse Of The Beast - 2026 - Fireflash

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Members
Vocals
Blood Alliance, Sacrament L.A., Malicious, Scarred, Final Decree>>SAMI D. [SAMI DEJOHN]>>Blood Alliance, Sacrament L.A., Malicious, Scarred, Final Decree

Guitar
Julliet, Heartless, The Naked School Girls, Lefty, Sponge, Scarred, Solo>>Ken McGee>>Solo, Julliet, Heartless, The Naked School Girls, Lefty, Scarred, Sponge - Rollen Legman/Rollen Schroeder>>Knightmare II, Doomzday - Steven T.Z.Z. - DeathRiders, Final Decree, Hauk, Resistance, The Prodigal Son, Rotten Rod And The Warheads, Mother Mercy, Hirax, The Prodigal Son, Shades Of Crimson>>Dave Watson>>Shades Of Crimson - Chris Westfall>>Attika, Attaxe - GLEN PAUL

Bass
Jack Black [Jack Blum]>Twist Of Fate - Knightmare II, Twist Of Fate>>Marc McGee - Bloodlust, Last Rites, Neil Turbin, DeathRiders, Primal>>SANDY K. VASQUEZ>>Bloodlust, Primal

Drum
Todd Billings>>Powertrip - Bryant Scott - Jason VanSlyke - Predator, Axehammer, New Eden, Recmatix>>Joe Aghassi>>New Eden, Recmatix - BOB GUITRAU

Keyboard
Steven T.Z.Z.




History & Biography
Ruthless out of California, USA was one of the earliest power metal bands. The band was founded by vocalist Sammy D. and guitarist Kenny McGee in 1982 and released a single called The Fever b/w Mass Killer through Iron Works in 1984. The two had been jamming since 1979. Sami had jammed with Metallica and older sources considered him a short-term member. Founding members were also bassist Jack Black, Todd Billings and Rollen Schroeder who had all been recruited through a local classified ad. Schroeder would become the main songwriter. The single's songs were also part of the simultaneous Metal Without Mercy MLP. Notice that 'Ruthless' and 'Without Mercy' are synonymous. The killer title track made a splash on the metal scene. The band was singer Sami DeJohn, guitarists Ken McGee and Rollen Legman, bassist Jack Black and drummer Todd Billings. Bill Metoyer was one of the album's engineers.

Discipline Of Steel was the full-length and released in 1986. Upheaval meant that new members were Sami D., Steven T.Z.Z. (also credited to keyboards sadly) and Bryant Scott. The act disbanded two years later. Reportedly, Sammy wanted to go heavy and Mcgee wanted to go glam. In fact, Mcgee would be in Julliet. Jim Durkin of Dark Angel had joined upon reformation in 2008. Ruthless and Dark Angel had played together in the earlier incarnation and Sami and Jim had been in Blood Alliance recently.

To nobody's surprise, the band reformed in 2008, which was 20 years after its dissolution. The impetus was an invitation to play at Keep It True festival, which they did in 2009. The group had also opened for UFO back home. Sammy and Kenny had reunited to form a local band called Scarred at the beginning of the century. Returning were Ken McGee and Sami D. FnA Records reissued Metal Without Mercy. The group went back into hibernation until another return that is. They Rise was on Pure Steel whose idea of promotion and distribution rivalled Axe Killer's. The band and label had signed for three records. The record also credited Dave Watson, Marc McGee (Ken's brother) and drummer Jason Van Slyke. Ruthless appeared at Headbangers Open Air in 2015. Jack Black died in 2017. He had cancer. Another record was 2019's Evil Within. This came with more member changes meaning Ruthless had two mainstays and three new members. The band was booked for the Throwback Metal Fest III in California in 2019 and The Heavy Metal Maniacs Festival 2019 in The Netherlands. Chris Westfall would also be in Pure Steel label-mates Attika.

McGee left and the 2024 album came out as a quartet. The record was due in 2023 at first and the band had booked several local gigs. Before that, however, the band had signed a double deal with Skol Records and its twin company Gabriel Management. As a consequence, the band promised an album called Soldiers Of Steel for late 2022. Instead, the band was on Fireflash and moved to RPM ROAR following the label's implosion and subsequent lawsuits, etc. Soldiers Of Steel was a song on The Fallen now. Skol Records was out of business next. The band was booked for Rage Of Armageddon fest in the USA in 2025.

Ruthless had a studio album called Curse Of The Beast in 2026. The album is available through Fireflash Records on the 14th of July, 2026. It was mixed and mastered by Ronald Sandoval.


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