Lightning Bolt

Lightning Bolt is the American noise rock duo of bassist Brian Gibson and drummer Brian Chippendale, formed in Providence, Rhode Island in 1994. Playing at extreme volume and speed, they developed a ferocious live practice, performing on the floor among audiences rather than on raised stages — collapsing the distance between band and crowd and generating a physical intensity rarely matched in rock music. Their recordings distil this energy into dense, overwhelming compositions drawing equally from punk, free jazz, thrash metal, and electronic noise. Albums including Wonderful Rainbow (2003) and Hypermagic Mountain (2005) established them as a defining force in American noise rock.