Flotsam and Jetsam is an American thrash metal band from Phoenix, Arizona. Formed in 1981, the group originally consisted of vocalist John Eurich, guitarists Pete Mello and David Goulder, bassist Jason Newsted and drummer Kelly David-Smith. The band's current lineup includes vocalist Eric "A. K." Knutson (who first joined in 1982), guitarists Michael Gilbert (1985–1997, 1999–2000, and since 2010) and Steve Conley (since 2013), drummer Ken Mary (since 2017) and bassist Bill Bodily (since 2020).
History
1981–1991 Flotsam and Jetsam evolved from a band originally known as Paradox, which was formed in the fall of 1981 by drummer Kelly David-Smith with guitarists Pete Mello and David Goulder, bassist Jason Newsted, and vocalist John Eurich. Shortly after the group's first show in February 1982, by which time they had changed their name to Dredlox, Eurich left and the band continued as a four-piece with Newsted on vocals, replacing Mello and Goulder with Mark Vasquez and Kevin Horton. By August 1982, Eric "A. K." Knutson had joined the band as its new lead vocalist, with the name changed again shortly thereafter to Dogz. In 1983, inspired by Judas Priest's dual-lead guitar setup, the band replaced Horton with Edward Carlson, changing their name to Flotsam and Jetsam (F&J) around late 1983/early 1984. Michael Gilbert replaced Vasquez in February 1985.
With the settled lineup of Knutson, Carlson, Gilbert, Newsted and David-Smith, F&J released the demos Iron Tears and Metal Shock in 1985. The band subsequently signed with Metal Blade Records and released its full-length debut album Doomsday for the Deceiver in 1986. In October that year, Newsted left the band to take over as bassist in Metallica, following the death of Cliff Burton the month before. He played his last show with F&J on October 31, 1986. For a few shows during November, Phil Rind of Sacred Reich filled in on bass, before Michael Spencer took over on a permanent basis before the end of the year. Spencer only lasted until October the next year, however, being replaced by Troy Gregory the day after a show on October 31, 1987. Gregory performed on No Place for Disgrace in 1988 and When the Storm Comes Down in 1990.
1991–2001 In early 1991, Troy Gregory left F&J and briefly moved back to his hometown Detroit, before joining Prong a few months later. He was replaced in the spring by Jason Ward. The new lineup remained in place for six years, releasing Cuatro in 1992, Drift in 1995 and High in 1997. Around the release of High, the band lost two members — in April, before the album was out, Kelly David-Smith became the last founding member to leave; and in June, just after its release, Michael Gilbert also departed. In a 2014 interview, Kelly-Smith credited multiple issues for his departure, including disputes with the band's management, the group's departure from MCA Records, and other members' problems with drug addictions — the latter of which he also cited as part of Gilbert's reason for leaving.
Gilbert and Kelly-Smith were replaced in July 1997 by Mark Simpson and Craig Nielsen, respectively. The new lineup released Unnatural Selection in 1999, before Simpson briefly left at the end of the year to work with Lynch Mob. Gilbert stepped in for a string of live shows between October and December, and was announced as officially returning at the beginning of 2000, before Simpson returned that March. My God was released in 2001, before vocalist Eric Knutson announced his immediate departure from the band that August, blaming a lack of income for his decision to retire from the music industry. A couple of weeks later, Helstar frontman James Rivera was announced as the band's substitute vocalist for upcoming tour dates. The tour was ultimately cut short due to poor attendance, wrapping up in October with a few shows cancelled.
2001–2014 Following the vocalist's departure a few months earlier, it was announced in 2002 that Eric Knutson would return to F&J for a festival appearance that summer. Later that year, however, the band noted that it was in fact looking for a new vocalist. In May 2003, Knutson's return was officially announced for a planned show to be filmed for a live video release. After the release of Live in Phoenix, the band remained active for several years, issuing new studio albums Dreams of Death in 2005 and The Cold in 2010. In March 2010, Michael Gilbert returned to the band to replace Edward Carlson, who had "decided to no longer tour or record". By December, Carlson had returned to F&J, replacing the outgoing Mark Simpson. By the following September, Kelly David-Smith had returned on drums, marking a reunion of the band's 1991–1997 incarnation.
With their new lineup, F&J released Ugly Noise in 2012. Jason Ward was temporarily replaced by Jeff Barbaree for tour dates in January and February 2013, as he had to take time off to focus on "personal commitments". Shortly after the tour, Ward left the band for good, with former bassist Michael Spencer returning in his place. The band recorded No Place for Disgrace 2014 later that year, before Carlson left at the beginning of 2014 and was replaced by Steve Conley. The album was also the last to feature David-Smith, who left again in November 2014 to "focus on caring for his family". He was replaced the next month by Shadows Fall drummer Jason Bittner.
Since 2014 F&J released their self-titled twelfth studio album in 2016, which would prove to be Jason Bittner's only contribution to the band before leaving to join Overkill in May 2017. A couple of months later, the band announced that Ken Mary (formerly of bands including Fifth Angel, TKO and Alice Cooper) had taken over from Bittner. The End of Chaos was released in 2019, after which Spencer was replaced by Bill Bodily in November 2020, following several stand-in appearances on tour. Blood in the Water and I Am the Weapon were released in 2021 and 2024, respectively.
Members Current ImageNameYears activeInstrumentsRelease contributionsEric "A. K." Knutsonlead vocalsall Flotsam and Jetsam (F&J) releasesMichael Gilbertall F&J releases from Iron Tears (1985) to High (1997), and from Ugly Noise (2012) to presentSteve Conley2013–presentall F&J releases from No Place for Disgrace 2014 (2014) to presentKen Mary2017–presentdrumsBill Bodily2020–present
Former ImageNameYears activeInstrumentsRelease contributionsKelly David-SmithJason Newsted1981–1986Pete Mello1981–1982noneDavid GoulderJohn Eurichlead vocalsMark Vasquez1982–1985Dogz demo (1983)Kevin Horton1982–1983Edward Carlsonall F&J releases from Iron Tears (1985) to No Place for Disgrace 2014 (2014)Michael SpencerTroy Gregory1987–1991Jason Ward1991–2013all F&J releases from Cuatro (1992) to Ugly Noise (2012)Craig Nielsen1997–2011drumsall F&J releases from Unnatural Selection (1999) to The Cold (2010)Mark SimpsonJason Bittner2014–2017drumsFlotsam and Jetsam (2016)
Touring ImageNameYears activeInstrumentsDetailsPhil Rind1986Rind filled in for shows during November 1986 after Jason Newsted's recent departure to join Metallica.James Rivera2001lead vocalsRivera filled in for shows in September and October 2001 after Eric Knutson's sudden departure.Jeff Barbaree2013Barbaree filled in for shows in January and February 2013 as Jason Ward had "personal commitments".
Timeline
Lineups PeriodMembersReleasesFall 1981–early 1982(as Paradox)John Eurich — lead vocals Pete Mello — guitar, backing vocals David Goulder — guitar, backing vocals Jason Newsted — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsrowspan="2" Spring–summer 1982(as Dredlox)Jason Newsted — lead vocals, bass Mark Vasquez — guitar, backing vocals Kevin Horton — guitar, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsAugust 1982–summer 1983(as Dogz)Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Mark Vasquez — guitar, backing vocals Kevin Horton — guitar, backing vocals Jason Newsted — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsuntitled Dogz demo (1983)Summer 1983–January 1985(as Dogz until late 1983/early 1984)Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Mark Vasquez — guitar, backing vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Jason Newsted — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsFebruary 1985–October 1986Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Jason Newsted — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsIron Tears (1985) Metal Shock (1985) Doomsday for the Deceiver (1986)November 1986Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Phil Rind — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsrowspan="2" December 1986–October 1987Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Michael Spencer — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsNovember 1987–early 1991Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Troy Gregory — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsNo Place for Disgrace (1988) When the Storm Comes Down (1990)Spring 1991–April 1997Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Jason Ward — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsCuatro (1992) Drift (1995) High (1997)April—June 1997Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Jason Ward — bass, backing vocalsJuly 1997–fall 1999Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Mark Simpson — guitar, backing vocals Jason Ward — bass, backing vocals Craig Nielsen — drumsUnnatural Selection (1999)October 1999–March 2000Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Jason Ward — bass, backing vocals Craig Nielsen — drumsMarch 2000–August 2001Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Mark Simpson — guitar, backing vocals Jason Ward — bass, backing vocals Craig Nielsen — drumsMy God (2001)September–October 2001James Rivera — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Mark Simpson — guitar, backing vocals Jason Ward — bass, backing vocals Craig Nielsen — drumsBand inactive November 2001–April 2003May 2003–March 2010Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Mark Simpson — guitar, backing vocals Jason Ward — bass, backing vocals Craig Nielsen — drumsLive in Phoenix (2004) Dreams of Death (2005) Live in Japan (2006) Once in a Deathtime (2008) The Cold (2010)March–December 2010Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Mark Simpson — guitar, backing vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Jason Ward — bass, backing vocals Craig Nielsen — drumsrowspan="2" December 2010–September 2011Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Jason Ward — bass, backing vocals Craig Nielsen — drumsSeptember 2011–January 2013Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Jason Ward — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsUgly Noise (2012)January–February 2013Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Jeff Barbaree — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsSpring 2013–March 2014Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals Edward Carlson — guitar, backing vocals Michael Spencer — bass, backing vocals Kelly David-Smith — drums, backing vocalsNo Place for Disgrace 2014 (2014)March–November 2014Eric "A. K." Knutson — lead vocals Michael Gilbert — guitar, backing vocals