Kevin Gruft began playing guitar at the age of 8. At the age of 17, he joined the band
LoveHateHero after a tour in New York, as the band was in search of a guitarist. After 5 years with the band and two studio albums, LoveHateHero disbanded in 2011. That year, he joined
The Dead Rabbitts, the side-project of
Escape The Fate singer,
Craig Mabbitt. In late 2013, brothers
Monte Money and Michael Money announced their departure from
Escape The Fate to focus on their new project.
Craig Mabbitt contacted Kevin to help them on the
Ungrateful tour, becoming an official member soon after.
Escape the Fate In early 2015, the band, along with Gruft, entered the studio with producer
Howard Benson to record their fifth album titled "
Hate Me". The album would release later that year and chart at No. 58 on the
Billboard 200. Gruft played a significant role in writing the album, with the band demoing around 40 songs at his apartment in
Los Angeles. As
Max Green had recently left the band, Gruft and fellow guitarist TJ Bell ended up playing bass on the album. After the release of the album, the band embarked on a headlining tour with
A Skylit Drive,
Sworn In,
Sirens and Sailors and
Myka Relocate In 2016, they covered the
My Chemical Romance song, "Dead!", for a
Rock Sound tribute of
The Black Parade. On November 3, 2017, the band released the first single, "Empire", from their new album,
I Am Human, which was set to be released on February 16, 2018, but later postponed to March 30, 2018. The band's single "
Broken Heart" peaked at No. 16 on the
Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart. On April 16, 2021, the band released
Chemical Warfare, which he co-produced with
John Feldmann, which would mark the last album before his departure to focus on production work. ==Discography==