Pushing every boundary to a breaking point, GRIDIRON will go to any extreme and then some. Their hybridization of metal, hardcore, and hip hop wouldn’t be out of place at either OZZfest 1997 or Rock for People 2026. It’s why the quintet – Matthew Karll (vocals), Will Kaelin (guitar/vocals), Xavier Wilson (guitar), Lennon Livesay (bass), and Tyler Mullen (drums) – have bulldozed their own path as a phenomenon with millions of streams and acclaim from Stereogum, Brooklyn Vegan, NO ECHO, and more.
GRIDIRON was born out of a series of COVID-era marathon Call of Duty sessions, which led to writing and recording together. Their musical pedigree spoke for itself with Will Kaelin playing also in Never Ending Game, Xavier Wilson in Simulakra, and Tyler Mullen and Lennon Livesay in Scarab. Given their individual experiences, the guys instantly locked into a creative groove.
Following the Loyalty At All Costs EP (2020) and Worldwide Brotherhood EP (2021), they dropped their first full-length, No Good At Goodbyes (2022). The title track reeled in over 850K Spotify streams. Along the way, they also shared stages with everyone from Missing Link to Trapped Under Ice. Now, GRIDIRON continue to smash through walls on their second full-length album, Poetry From Pain.