Speedealer

Speedealer originally formed in 1994 in Lubbock, TX, beneath the name REO Speedealer. When REO Speedwagon offered the music group a cease-and-desist purchase on the moniker, they shortened their name to Speedealer. In 1998, the music group released their debut, self-titled recording on Royalty Information. The following 12 months, the hard rocking foursome — comprised of vocalist/guitarist Jeff Hirshberg, bassist Rodney Skelton, drummer Harden Harrison, and guitarist Eric Schmidt — released their follow-up record, Right here Comes Death, on a single label. Royalty Information went bankrupt immediately after the band’s second launch, leaving Speedealer with their personal devices for publicity. Label-less and musically powered, they performed 309 displays in 1999 in which to stay the public vision, pairing up with such like-minded, intense rockers as Zeke, Fu Manchu, Neurosis, and GWAR. Speedealer’s attempts finally paid when Palm Information A&R guy Michael Alago (who authorized Metallica to Elektra and White colored Zombie to Geffen) contracted the music group to his label. Hand Records re-released Right here Comes Loss of life in 2000, and Second View in 2002.