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Greg K.

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Greg K.
Greg K. performing in 2009
Greg K. performing in 2009
Background information
Birth nameGregory David Kriesel
Born (1965-01-20) January 20, 1965 (age 59)
Glendale, California[1]
Genres
OccupationBassist
Years active1984–2018
Formerly ofThe Offspring

Gregory David Kriesel (born January 20, 1965)[2] known by his stagename Greg K., is an American retired musician and the founding bassist of the rock band the Offspring.[3] He is also the co-founder (along with bandmate Dexter Holland) of the record label Nitro Records.[4]

Career

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In 1984 Kriesel formed the band alongside friend and cross-country teammate Dexter Holland after the duo failed to participate in a Social Distortion concert. The duo hired James Lilja as their drummer and after a year Noodles joined as guitarist, Manic Subsidal changed their name to the Offspring in 1986. After drummer Ron Welty joined the band in 1987 to replace James Lilja, the band started recording their debut album in 1989.[5]

After recording a demo in 1988,[6] the Offspring signed a deal with a small-time label, Nemesis Records, for whom they recorded their first full-length album, The Offspring, in March 1989.[6] This album would eventually be re-issued in 1995, by Kriesel and Holland's own record label, Nitro Records.[7]

In 1991, the Offspring signed with Epitaph Records (home of Bad Religion, L7, NOFX, Pennywise and other similar bands). Their first release on the label was Ignition, which was released in 1992. Their last album for that label was 1994's Smash, which still holds the world record for most sales of an album on an independent label.[8] The band then signed with Columbia Records in 1996 (after Brett Gurewitz, owner of Epitaph and guitarist for Bad Religion, sold the contract to Columbia)[9] for whom they released their next six albums, Ixnay on the Hombre (1997), Americana (1998), Conspiracy of One (2000), Splinter (2003), Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace (2008) and Days Go By (2012).

Lawsuit

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In August 2019, Kriesel filed a lawsuit against his Offspring bandmates Dexter Holland and Noodles, following an alleged decision by the two in November 2018 to fire Kriesel from the Offspring and exclude him from band related activities such as studio recordings and live performances.[10] Kriesel and his lawyers also alleged that the two conspired to "seize the business, business opportunities, and assets" of Kriesel's stake in the band without compensation. As the result of his absence from touring, he had been filled in by Tony Kanal of No Doubt,[10][11] with the Offspring’s touring guitarist Todd Morse becoming Kriesel's official replacement. Dexter Holland and Noodles later also filed lawsuit against Kriesel, stating that "Kriesel's arguments have no basis in fact". They claimed that Kriesel apparently was asked and agreed to leave the band after "differences developed between how both parties viewed the band's present and future."[12] In 2023, the case was settled out of court.[13]

References

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  1. ^ "Family tree of Greg K." Geneanet. Retrieved April 23, 2024.
  2. ^ Rose, Mike (January 20, 2023). "Today's famous birthdays list for January 20, 2023 includes celebrities Questlove, Rainn Wilson". Cleveland.com. Retrieved January 20, 2023.
  3. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Biography: The Offspring". AllMusic. Retrieved May 14, 2010.
  4. ^ "First established in 1994 by Dexter Holland and Greg K. of The Offspring, Nitro Records is synonymous with the Southern California punk scene". Craft Recordings. Retrieved April 15, 2024.
  5. ^ "History". Offspring.com. Archived from the original on June 23, 2011. Retrieved August 31, 2008.
  6. ^ a b The Offspring Archived July 19, 2011, at the Wayback Machine at NIPP, obtained November 10, 2007.
  7. ^ "The Offspring - Concord - Label Group". Concord. Archived from the original on June 9, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  8. ^ "Greatest Hits Bio (2005)". Offspring.com. Archived from the original on March 11, 2007. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
  9. ^ "Dexter Holland's letter to the Offspring mailing list". January 21, 2007. Archived from the original on January 21, 2007. Retrieved November 4, 2011.
  10. ^ a b Krol, Charlotte (August 30, 2019). "The Offspring are being sued by their bassist". NME. Archived from the original on August 31, 2019. Retrieved August 31, 2019. He alleges that Holland and Noodles "devised a scheme, and entered into a conspiracy with each other" in October 2018 [sic] to "seize the business, business opportunities, and assets" of their 32-year-old partnership agreement "in disregard for and in derogation of the rights, privileges, and authority of Kriesel as an equal, general partner" [...] Krisel claims that Holland and Wasserman told him last November that he was "no longer entitled to participate in any activities of the band, including (but not limited to) studio recordings and concert tours."
  11. ^ Childers, Chad (August 29, 2019). "The Offspring Members Sued by Bassist Greg Kriesel". Loudwire. Archived from the original on August 31, 2019. Retrieved August 31, 2019. The bassist states in the court documents that Holland and Wasserman sought to "seize the business, business opportunities, and assets" last October of the partnership amongst the group's founding members. Kriesel alleges that they've sought to divest him from their partnership interests and rights without fair compensation and denied his continued status as a general partner of the band.
  12. ^ Gwee, Karen (September 6, 2019). "The Offspring's remaining members deny ex-bassist's allegations, say his arguments "have no basis in fact"". NME. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
  13. ^ "GREGORY D KRIESEL VS. BRYAN HOLLAND, 30-2019-01078004-CU-BT-WJC (California State, Orange County, Superior Court)". Docket Alarm. Retrieved June 15, 2024.
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