Byron Stroud

Byron Stroud (born February 12, 1969 in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada) is the former bassist for metal band Fear Factory and Strapping Young Lad. and current bassist for metal bands City of Fire and Zimmers Hole, and studio bassist for 3 Inches of Blood.

Biography

Byron Stroud has been involved in the Vancouver heavy music scene since the 1980s. His first serious band was Caustic Thought, who were formed in 1987, when he was only eighteen years old. The band also featured Jed Simon and Devin Townsend. Following Caustic Thought he made his way to Front Line Assembly, joining them on the Hard Wired tour as a drum tech. Then he enrolled himself in the lineup for Strapping Young Lad. [1]

Although he was a staple member of Strapping Young Lad at the time, he joined Fear Factory as a full-time member in 2004. He made his Fear Factory debut on their 2004 album Archetype (note: Byron does not play on the album as all bass tracks were recorded by guitarist Christian Olde Wolbers). Byron insisted his allegiance remained with both bands, as well as with Zimmers Hole, a somewhat comedic band he plays in with fellow Strapping Young Lad musician Jed Simon amongst others. Strapping Young Lad disbanded in 2007, allowing him to concentrate more on Fear Factory until his departure in 2012. Throughout his time in Fear Factory he did not record on any of their albums, possibly due to either contractual reasons or other commitments.

Byron was also part of Unit:187 along with John Morgan. He is a co-founding member of Zimmers Hole and he also featured on Devin Townsend's punk parody project Punky Brüster. [2]

Byron is also involved with Jed Simon's Tenet project.

In early 2011 3 Inches of Blood asked Byron to become their new manager. In January 2012 he joined them as their new bass player. In February 2012 Byron left Fear Factory as Bassist and was replaced by former Chimaira rhythm guitarist Matt DeVries.

Previous bands

• Caustic Thought
• Front Line Assembly (Drum Tech – Hard Wired tour)
• Punky Brüster
• Unit:187
• Devin Townsend (Physicist project)
• Strapping Young Lad
• Fear Factory

Current bands

• City of Fire
• Zimmers Hole
• Ani Kyd
• Tenet

Discography

• 1994 – Caustic Thought – Caustic Thought
• 1996 – Punky Brüster – Cooked on Phonics
• 2000 – Devin Townsend – Physicist
• 2005 – Ani Kyd – Evil Needs Candy Too

Fear Factory

• Archetype (2004) (Stroud is listed as a band member even though guitarist and ex-bassist Christian Olde Wolbers recorded the bass tracks.)
• Transgression (2005) (Again, listed as a band member but did not record due to Christian handling not only the guitar, but also the bass on the record)
• Mechanize (2010) (Dino Cazares recorded all bass tracks)

Strapping Young Lad

• City (1997)
• No Sleep Till Bedtime (1998)
• Strapping Young Lad (2003)
• Alien (2005)
• The New Black (2006)

Unit 187

• Unit 187 (1995)
• Loaded (1998)

Zimmers Hole

• Bound By Fire (1997)
• Legion of Flames (2001)
• When You Were Shouting at the Devil...We Were in League With Satan (2008)

Guest appearances

• Terror Syndrome (Terror Syndrome, 2008)

Influences

AC/DC, Deep Purple, Nazareth, Van Halen, Slayer, Metallica, Kyuss, U2, Queen, The Cars, SOD, Black Sabbath, Dio, Aphex Twin, Beastie Boys, Bob Marley, Claw Hammer, Bullet LaVolta, Frank Zappa, David Bowie, Johnny Cash, Iron Maiden, Jane's Addiction, Voivod, ZZ Top, At The Gates, Entombed, Ted Nugent, Sepultura, Soundgarden, The Police, The Cult, Rush, Dayglo Abortions, Ozzy, Morbid Angel, The Melvins, Nirvana, Led Zeppelin, KISS, Weezer, Judas Priest, & GBR.

Gear

Fender Custom Shop 5 String Basses, Fender Heartfield 5 String Bass, Fernandes Tremour Basses, ESP Horizon 5 String Basses, Fender Strings, DR Strings, EMG pick ups, Bill Laurence pick ups, Ampeg 1968 SVT, Ampeg SVT 2pro, Ampeg SVT 4pro, Ampeg BSP pre amp, Mesa/Boogie M-Pulse 600, Ampeg 8x10 classic speaker cabinets, Mesa/Boogie 8x10 speaker cabinets, Tech 21 Sans Amp-Bass Driver DI, Line 6 Bass Pod Pro, DigiTech effects pedals

Byron has recently signed a deal with Ashdown Amps for equipment of the ABM range.