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24-7 Spyz is a funk/metal band from the South Bronx, New York that formed with the original lineup of Jimi Hazel, Rick Skatore, Kindu Phibes and P. Fluid in 1986. They released their Harder Than You debut in 1988 and received notice for their cover of Kool and The Gang’s “Jungle Boogie.” “Don’t Break My Heart” is from their second album Gumbo Millenium. The album was considered their most polished and cohesive mix of funk, rock and soul up until that point. P.Fluid and Anthony Johnson left the band after their tour opening for Jane’s Addiction and were soon replaced by Jeff Brodnax and Mackie Jayson. A short stint at East West Records produced the 5-song EP This Is…24-7 Spyz and “Stuntman” increased their popularity because of the song’s appearance on “Beavis and Butt-Head.” The next full-length, Strength In Numbers followed the EP in ’92. “Break The Chains” and “Got It Going On” were two of the songs that made critics label Strength In Numbers as their creative peak because it wasn’t as hardcore. Johnson and Fluid returned to the band for the ’95 Temporarily Disconnected recording sessions only to leave again shortly after completion of the project. Heavy Metal Soul By The Pound was their sixth release of dense decibels and music industry criticism most noticeably found in the song “No Hope For Niggaz.” The fan club only If I Could EP came out in ’97 and the band wouldn’t regroup again until 2003. The band released the limited edition DVD HMS4L: The Many Lives of Walter Rattamus in 2005 and the Face The Day album in 2006. Mainstream music critics like to attribute 24-7 Spyz’s lack of commercial success to the rise of grunge rock but artists like The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jane’s Addiction, Limp Bizkit and Kid Rock among others have used similar musical formulas and achieved acclaim. 24-7 Spyz is currently playing live shows around their native New York City.
