Chris Kontos (born June 25, 1968) is an American drummer, born in New York City. As a former drummer of the heavy metal band

Machine Head A machine head (also referred to as a tuning machine, tuner, or gear head) is a geared apparatus for tuning stringed musical instruments by adjusting string tension. Machine heads are used on mandolins, guitars, double basses, and others, and ...

, he performed on their first album, 1994's ''

Burn My Eyes ''Burn My Eyes'' is the debut studio album by American heavy metal band Machine Head, released on August 9, 1994, by Roadrunner Records. The album's themes generally tie into the social disorder and corresponding inner tension that the band was ...

''. He and the band parted ways in 1995, before their second album. He played in many bands and projects before and after that period of time, including

Testament A testament is a document that the author has sworn to be true. In law it usually means last will and testament. Testament or The Testament can also refer to: Books * ''Testament'' (comic book), a 2005 comic book * ''Testament'', a thriller no ...

Konkhra Konkhra is a Danish death metal/extreme metal band formed in Køge in 1989. Initially named Vicious Circle, they changed their name to Konkhra in 1990. Konkhra's back catalog blends death metal, groove metal, mid-tempo, and thrash. The name "Kon ...

, Attitude Adjustment,

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...

Death Angel Death Angel is an American thrash metal band from Daly City, California, initially active from 1982 to 1991 and again since 2001. They have released nine studio albums, two demo tapes, one box set and three live albums. The band has gone thr ...

, and

Verbal Abuse Verbal abuse (also known as verbal aggression, verbal attack, verbal violence, verbal assault, psychic aggression, or psychic violence) is a type of Psychological abuse, psychological/mental abuse that involves the use of Oral language, oral or w ...

. Kontos is recognized by his peers for his performance on songs—notably in " Davidian"—which are "considered by many as classic pieces of metal drumming". Kontos performed with Machine Head for the first time in 24 years with a tour celebrating the 25th anniversary of the release of ''Burn My Eyes'' in 2019, though, he never officially rejoined the band. On April 19, 2023, Kontos was announced as the drummer for the reactivated band Forbidden. Kontos currently uses

Ddrum ddrum ( ) is an American-based Sweden, Swedish company, currently a division of Armadillo Enterprises, Inc. that manufactures Drum kit, acoustic drum sets, Electronic drum, electronic drum sets, and Electronic Triggers. Ddrum was originally a br ...

drums, Soultone cymbals,

Vic Firth Everett Joseph "Vic" Firth (June 2, 1930 – July 26, 2015) was an American musician and the founder of Vic Firth Company (formerly Vic Firth, Inc.), a company that makes percussion sticks and mallets. He was also known for his association ...

drumsticks, and Czarcie Kopyto pedals.

Discography

* Attitude Adjustment, ''Dead Serious'' demo (1985) * Attitude Adjustment, ''American Paranoia'' (1986) * Attitude Adjustment, ''No More Mr. Nice Guy'' EP (1988) *

– Passport, ''Verbal Abuse of America'' (1989) * Attitude Adjustment, ''Out of Hand'' (1991) * Grinch, ''The Blacking Factory'' (1992) *

, ''

'' (1994) * Verbal Abuse, ''Red, White and Violent'' (1995) *

, ''Weed Out The Weak'' (1997) * The Servants, ''Mostly Monsters'' (2002) * Anti-Trust, ''Guilty as Charged'' (2005) * Various Artists, ''A Tribute to Judas Priest: Legends of Metal'' (plays with Testament on "Rapid Fire") * Sangre Eterna demo (2006) * Spiralarms EP (2007) * Attitude Adjustment, "No Way Back" (2010) * Anti-Trust, "Guilty" (2021) * The Boneless Ones, "Back to the Grind" (2022)

References

External links

Spiralarms on MySpace

Former Machine Head Drummer Chris Kontos Officially Joins Spiralarms
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kontos, Chris Living people American heavy metal drummers 1968 births Machine Head (band) members 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians