Someone needed to pick up the torch for hard rock and heavy metal with real grit and gusto, no gimmick. Enter Who On Earth. The New Jersey quartet —  Coosh [vocals], Pete Rizzi [bass], Johnny James Barone [guitar], and  Howie Fallon [drums] — deliver a one-two punch of hard-hitting hooks and airtight instrumentation bolted down by pummeling grooves and piercing riffs. On their latest full-length LP, ‘It Takes the Village,’ the band continues to pay homage to rock’s past while ushering in its future.

It all gestated from a question…

“We wanted to fill in the blank of ‘Who On Earth is going to bring back good rock and metal?’,” explains Pete. “We grew up on the new wave of British heavy metal and classic rock. We went through grunge and other great metal genres. We wanted to resurrect the melodies, hooks, and guitar solos. We returned to our roots yet upgraded everything with modern production.”

The group made their bones through countless gigs across the Tri-State area, playing every dive bar and concert hall with a stage. Along the way, Coosh and Pete tore up venues as part of MadHaus, performing marathon nights of covers. During 2020, the longtime friends chose to forego covers, hunker down, and compose an original album.  The composing came easily, and in no time, the founding fathers had 10 songs ready to go.  To bring the record to life, the band hit the studio with Mike Orlando (Adrenaline Mob). Over the next year, the guys endured numerous COVID delays as they recorded with Orlando behind the board, producing, engineering, and playing “stunt” guitar. Nodding to everyone from Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Metallica to Rush, Alice In Chains, and Tool, they placed storytelling in the spotlight.

In July of 2024, after completing the recording of new music, the band lost their beloved guitarist, Bruce Gatewood, to heart disease.  Devastated by the loss, the boys emerged from a trying time and decided to forge on, making it their mission to honor Bruce’s passing by promoting the music they created together.

In March 2025, Who on Earth released the ‘Smoke & Mirrors’ EP, a six-song offering of five originals and their revitalized version of Toto’s ‘Hold the Line.’  “‘Smoke & Mirrors’ speaks to the deceptive nature of corporations (Dawgz, Voodoo), shitty people (Trash Talker), social media, and biased news reporting (Lobotomy).   What you see is, unfortunately, rarely the truth.   Yesterday's Future is our epic song, 6 minutes in length.  It's our Hallowed Be Thy Name, and you can hear the Iron Maiden influences coming through!"

In typical blue-collar fashion, the band is never idle.  In 2026, the band toured the country, playing gigs on the West Coast in January, touring with Fozzy throughout the East Coast and Midwest in May, and finishing the year touring with Trapt, Saving Abel, Tantric, and Small Town Titans.  In May of 2026, they released ‘It Takes the Village,' a 15-song offering that truly demonstrates the band's growth and diversity!

The band is currently touring, writing new material, and planning more shows for 2027!

Ultimately, Who on Earth is trying to fill a void in hard rock and heavy metal!  With stories to tell and a youthful passion for rock music, the band feels that this is merely the beginning!  

“We just tried to write good songs,” Pete leaves off. “We’ve gone back to what we grew up on. It’s still valuable and relevant. It can’t die.”