Leeway

Leeway is an American crossover thrash band formed in Astoria, New York, USA in 1984 by guitarist A.J. Novello and vocalist Eddie Sutton under the name The Unruled. They played alongside groups such as Crumbsuckers, Prong, Ludichrist, Bad Brains, and Sick of It All at the predominantly hardcore punk-oriented CBGB venue, and had metal influences from the start. For their tight fusion of hardcore, punk, heavy metal, thrash, hip-hop and even reggae, Leeway are often credited as being one of the most influential and exploratory bands to emerge from the NYHC scene. Guitarist and songwriter A.J. Novello said: We might have helped open up a can of worms by bringing suburban metalheads to shows. Years later, it kind of ruined things in the scene, but I can't say I have any regrets. The fact that the band experimented with sound, had two guitarists riffing and solo-ing between them and the singer dressed in skeleton outfits and Yankees uniforms also set them out from the rest of the hardcore punk scene. In November, 1987 they entered the Normandy Sound studio in Warren, Rhode Island and recorded their first album, Born to Expire. However, due to delays and postponements, the album was not released until January, 1989. Guitarist Michael Gibbons said about working Profile Records: The label did no promotion. They also had no proper, accessible distribution of the album. Not to mention they didn't give us tour support and they had really low recording budgets. It was just a horrible record label, unless you were Run-D.M.C. or Rob Base. It was a rap label that experimented with signing three hardcore bands [Cro-Mags, Murphy's Law and Leeway] and a metal band called Wargasm, then did nothing for any of us. So, how in the world were their artists supposed to generate income for the company, let alone themselves? Three follow-up albums ensued – Desperate Measures, Adult Crash, and Open Mouth Kiss – before the band split in 1996. There was a short lived reunion in 2006 which saw the band playing again,most notably with the Bad Brains, at CBGB and a European Festival tour, which was the last time the band performed live. As of January 2018, Leeway is active again.Their song "Enforcer" was featured on the playlist of the radio show "L.C.H.C" in the game Grand Theft Auto IV in 2008.