The Ground Beneath: Bio

The Ground Beneath

The Ground Beneath is the premiere touring three-piece southern metal band from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Brutal drumming, soaring melodies and crunchy guitar riffs all come together in a massively catchy power groove. Being the hardest working band in the state is no picnic, however. TGB is constantly on the road out of state and recently opened for Army of Anyone in front of 800 rabid rockers and Hellyeah in front of 1,200 vicious metalheads. OK maybe it is a picnic. The debut album from The Ground Beneath got picked up for distribution and is available on iTunes, Amazon.com, BestBuy.com, Borders.com, Target.com, CDBaby.com and more. The Ground Beneath came together in July 2004 and played their first show two days later. Following that was a full color picture with article in the local newspaper along with hundreds of local gigs in just a few short years, and now TGB is one of the most well known local acts in their hometown of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and the entire Southwest region of the USA. "I'd be lying if I didn't tell you these twenty-somethings weren't residents of talent city", proclaimed local columnist, Simon McCormack of “The Albuquerque Alibi”. After being included on the nationally distributed "Rock Outside the Box Vol. 2" Compilation CD set, The Ground Beneath released their own debut self-titled LP and the CD immediately skyrocketed on the sales charts for Amazon.com. Armed with a lineup, complete with Steve Civerolo on guitar and vocals, new drummer Brandon Gifford and bassist Toby Martinez, TGB tore into the national scene. The Ground Beneath has been getting nothing but the highest acclaim for their regional shows and musical talent, and recently they played a sold-out show in their hometown at The Launchpad. Their unforgettable stage presence leaves many an old fan's jaw on the floor and brings them new fans and friends by the hordes. Their debut recording has sold out regularly on CdBaby.com and sells nicely on iTunes. Recently they released a live album that has already received more distribution than the first one. Following that release, Dirtbag Music signed them to a development deal. The Ground Beneath will continue to tour and turn a profit on its own. The high demand of out of state crowds keeps them on the road for most of the year. There is no question who the hardest working and most popular band out of Albuquerque is. Record label interest from Dirtbag Music has reps working with the band towards an album deal that would extend distribution into Europe and beyond. More recently, The Ground Beneath landed opening slots for several metal favorites including Trainwreck, Nick Oliveri, Soilwork, Slough Feg, Darkane, Warbringer, and Swallow the Sun as well as going on the road with Black Stone Cherry, The Damned Things, Drowning Pool and Powerman 5000 and headlining sold-out weekend shows on invitation at the world famous Viper Room in Hollywood. A new album is slated to begin production in late 2011, and legendary Guns N' Roses/Faith No More producer Mike Clink has offered his services in Hollywood, CA. TGB is currently tracking a new album in their hometown and plan to mix the record on the coast with Evan Rodaniche of Powerman 5000/Cage9 fame. Averaging over 80 shows a year, The Ground Beneath has garnered much stage and road experience, effectively conquering 13 states surrounding New Mexico and playing three show cases at Hyperfest two years in a row and playing the SXSW festival unofficially four times.

Steve Beneath - Guitarist/Vocalist

Steve Beneath was born on June 10, 1983, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Right from the beginning he was reared to the soundtrack of eighties metal bands such as Van Halen, Dokken, Def Leppard & Bon Jovi. Steve's dad also taught his two sons a respect for the classics such as Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Kiss, Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, The Who, Dio, The Scorpions, U2 and Pink Floyd. Steve's dad, Paul, had just come off the road w/his own band splitting up in 1982. Guitars, amps, pedals and vinyls were in no short supply around the Civerolo household. Steve was five years old when he was taken to his first concert in the late eighties by his dad. It was Whitesnake. Seeing Tommy Aldridge, David Coverdale, Steve Vai and Vivian Campbell in action is a memory that he still referrences to this day. Being brought up in a private school was a breeding ground for a natural leader and a rebel and Steve soon learned how to turn heads with outrageous behavior. Steve received his first guitar (an acoustic half-size Gremlin brand) for Christmas in 1993 from his dad and Aunt Lynda. At 10 years old Steve began to seek out all knowledge for his new found instrument. Although he had played piano already for several years, the guitar held a new ease of expression and it would only be a matter of months before he had formed a band and saved up for an electric guitar rig of his own. Steve was drawn to 90's grunge bands and attended a church service on the day Kurt Cobain's body was found and continued to follow the Seattle bands from that scene. These bands not only featured guitar parts that were easy to learn but also vocals that Steve could teach himself, espcially once he had his own car to practice in while driving. Several high school bands ended up morphing into a 6 piece band that, after a summer of successful gigs, parted ways shortly before Steve graduated high school. A few years later, some of those members would re-unite and start gigging again only to be plagued by problems with substance abuse. That split up coupled with several upcoming gigs prompted Steve to form The Ground Beneath in the summer of 2004. Remembering the soap opera like drama of his previous six piece band, Steve opted for a three piece setup to keep things simple. After a year of being together, Steve financed The Ground Beneath's first album in 2005 and had more than 200 people paying at the door of the CD Release show at the Launchpad on Decemeber 23, 2005.

Toby Beneath - Bassist/Vocalist

from silver city ...and raised by wolves! i think... i don't know we should probably put something better here

Brandon Beneath - Drummer

from Los Lunas... former pirate on the high seas... man we need to write these new bios already