Dog Eat Dog (band)

Dog Eat Dog
Dog Eat Dog performing at the 2016 Reload Festival in Sulingen, Germany
Background information
Origin	Bergen County, New Jersey, USA
Genres	Hardcore punk, rapcore, rap metal, funk metal
Years active	1990–present
Labels	Roadrunner, Wanted
Associated acts	All Boro Kings, Mucky Pup, Nastasee, Murphy's Law
Website	www.dogeatdog.nl
Members	Dave Neabore John Connor Brandon Finley Roger Haemmerli
Past members	Sean Kilkenny Mark De Backer Dan Nastasi Scott Mueller Kevin Reilly Dave Maltby Mark Marri Brett John Milnes
Notable instruments
Saxophone

Dog Eat Dog is an American band founded in Bergen County, New Jersey. Considered one of the earliest bands to fuse hardcore punk and rap music, Dog Eat Dog has achieved commercial success with singles such as "No Fronts", "Expect the Unexpected" and "Who's the King". Since their first album, the band's sound has evolved to incorporate elements of funk, ska and hip hop. As of 2009, the lineup of the band consists of Dave Neabore (bass), John Connor (vocals), Brandon Finley (drums) and Roger Haemmerli (guitar).

Bassist Dave Neabore had joined Bergenfield, New Jersey band Mucky Pup before the recording of Mucky Pup's second album, A Boy In A Man's World. Soon after the album's 1988 release, guitarist Dan Nastasi quit Mucky Pup to help form the band Non-Fiction with former members of the band Hades and to briefly join Murphy's Law. Sean Kilkenny was a friend of Mucky Pup's who would occasionally play guitar with the band at social gatherings. His friendship and experience with the band led to his being hired as Nastasi's replacement. Kilkenny performed with the band for several New Jersey area shows before joining them on a European tour, as well.

Neabore and Kilkenny began writing music together for Mucky Pup. When the music didn't quite fit Mucky Pup's style, the two friends decided to form their own band. It wasn't long before friend and former Mucky Pup crew member, John Connor joined the duo on vocals. Connor had already been a vocalist for several local bands and together, the trio wrote songs like "Funnel King", "Strip Song", and "Psychorama." After a long search, the band also found a drummer named Brett. Brett brought life to the songs that the trio had been playing acoustically for weeks. After several rehearsals, they held their first "official" performance in Neabore's basement on April 1, 1990. The band packed fifty people into Neabore's basement and held a toga party. Kevin Reilly, a band friend, was invited to perform with the band on saxophone.

On April 22, 1990, Neabore and Kilkenny performed their final show with Mucky Pup. Shortly after their departure, Nastasi rejoined Mucky Pup and went on to record Now, which featured Marc DeBacker replacing Neabore on bass.