Northeast heavy, 1999–2007 — "inventively angry music in an angrily inventive way," from Enduro to Small Stone Records.
Great Day For Up took their name from a Dr. Seuss book and then spent eight years contradicting it — one contemporary critic landed on 'inventively angry music in an angrily inventive way,' and that stands as the band's best epitaph. Formed in Albany in 1999, GDFU was a cross-pollination of Northeast heavy-scene veterans: founding guitarist Mike Vitali arrived via Boston's Ajna Chakra and a brief involvement with the Helmet offshoot Handsome, which AllMusic heard all over the band's early minimalist attack. The discography maps a working band moving through the independent heavy ecosystem of the early 2000s: the self-titled EP and 'Ready Rock' on Enduro, 'Godlovesasinner' on Curve of the Earth — the record Lollipop called 'what I thought Danzig's metal move was gonna be' — the split with New Jersey's Solace on Underdogma, and finally 'Flores De Sangre' on Small Stone, where AllMusic heard 'riffs upon riffs, compacted into layers so dense and sludgy they could level city blocks.' Lineups shifted around the Vitali core; the songbook kept tightening. 'Crash Landing,' 'Ghost Cycle,' and 'Hit' were road-tested on the EP before being re-cut for the album — this was a band that revised like a writer. In 2007 the core — Vitali, Brendan Slater, Jim Feck — folded directly into Ironweed, making GDFU the load-bearing middle span of the lineage: Ajna Chakra before it, Ironweed after, American Record Company carrying the masters forward now. The estate vault holds the WAVs; the PENNY vault is where they are headed.
The history and the records, pressed into one column — read it, hear it, own it, in the order it happened.
Named after a Dr. Seuss book, formed 1999 in Albany from NYC/Boston/Albany heavy-scene veterans — Vitali arriving via Ajna Chakra and the Helmet offshoot Handsome. The middle span of the lineage: after Boston, before Ironweed.
The debut EP — Enduro Records, 2001. Verified on Discogs and Metal Archives. Five tracks that seeded the songbook: 'Crash Landing', 'Ghost Cycle', and 'Hit' all resurface on 'Ready Rock'.
First released via Enduro Records, 2001
'Ready Rock' released on Enduro Records — eleven tracks, three of them ('Crash Landing,' 'Ghost Cycle,' 'Hit') rebuilt from the debut EP. The songbook was already being revised on the move.
Enduro Records, 2002 — eleven tracks, verified on Discogs with the full track list. From 'My Ex-Girlfriend' to 'Future Shock', the driving, furious Northeast heavy statement.
First released via Enduro Records, 2002
“Clear, tight, bolted-down and butted-together tension/release rock with breathing room and a touch of melodic flavor. This is what I thought Danzig's 'metal move' was gonna be.” Lollipop Magazine · 2004 · verified at lollipopmagazine.com
'Godlovesasinner' released on Curve of the Earth — seven tracks from 'Golden Arms' to the nine-minute 'Siempre,' with an official video for 'Below.' Master WAVs preserved in the estate vault.
Curve of the Earth, December 19, 2003 (cote 751) — verified on Discogs with full credits. Official styling runs the titles together ('Goldenarms', 'Hanginonarope'); timings here come from the estate master WAVs. An official video existed for 'Below'. Lollipop: 'Clear, tight, bolted-down and butted-together tension/release rock... This is what I thought Danzig's metal move was gonna be.'
First released via Curve of the Earth (cote 751), 2003
Underdogma ur015, 2004 — a.k.a. 'Blackmarket / Hammerhead'. GDFU side recorded at New Alliance Audio. Verified on Discogs; Solace's side includes covers of Rarebird and Link Wray.
First released via Underdogma Records (ur015), 2004
“A wide-bellied gut punch hard rock record born of kick ass alt/punk listening habits jammed into quality metal's 'thing.'” Lollipop Magazine · 2006 · verified at lollipopmagazine.com
'Flores De Sangre' released on Small Stone Records (SS-057) — recorded at New Alliance in Boston, mixed by Bob Pantella at The Laundry Room. The record that put GDFU on the same shelf as the label's stoner-rock heavyweights.
Small Stone SS-057, September 2005 — recorded at New Alliance, Boston. Verified on Discogs and the official Small Stone catalog. AllMusic (Rivadavia): 'the sound of riffs upon riffs, compacted into layers so dense and sludgy they could level city blocks.' StonerRock.com called it 'one hell of an album.' Twelve tracks, 'Sinner Takes All' through the title cut.
First released via Small Stone Records (SS-057), 2005
GDFU winds down; Vitali, Slater, and Feck walk straight into Ironweed the same year. Nothing ended — the lineage changed names.
“This is the sound of riffs upon riffs, compacted into layers so dense and sludgy they could level city blocks.” AllMusic (Eduardo Rivadavia) · 2005 · Flores de Sangre review · verified at heavyplanet.net
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