Shaft, Roosevelt, Burgundy and Bloodpact (1993–1997) Kirkpatrick's first musical project was a punk band named Shaft in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, which also included guitarist
James Glayat. In April 1995, Roosevelt recorded four songs with producer Jeremy Staska at Studio 13 in
Deerfield Beach, Florida. After sending one of the songs to Intention Records, the band found out that Culture was the only other band to send in material, After playing many more shows throughout Florida, Roosevelt was signed to
Melbourne, Florida-based record label Boxcar Records, which quickly made plans to release the three remaining songs from the April 1995 recording session as the band's eponymous 7-inch vinyl extended play. The band, however, parted ways in October 1995, months before its second release would arrive from the pressing plant, in January 1996. The release was stuck in limbo at
Toybox Records and was never properly released until years later. In November–December 1997, Culture was booked for a month-long tour of Europe with American punk rock band
Gang Green, but was kicked off when the latter objected to playing shows with a straight-edge band. "Home Is Where the Heart Aches" was combined with four songs from the band's 1996 demo recording session to make up As Friends Rust's debut extended play,
The Fists of Time, released by
Good Life Recordings in July 1998. From April–May 1998, Culture was booked for a two-month North American tour with Shutdown, but the band's van broke down on the way to the first show and Culture was unable to continue the tour. The tour included stops to play at such festivals as More Than Music in Columbus, Ohio, Tin Can Full of Dreams in Lawrence, Massachusetts and Wilkes-Barre Festival in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. As Friends Rust returned to tour Europe and the United Kingdom from December 1998 to January 1999, accompanied by Discount and Purusam. In late 1998, As Friends Rust signed a three-record deal with record label
Doghouse Records, and in May 1999 returned to Goldentone Studios to record six songs with McGregor.
As Friends Rust was released by Doghouse Records on September 17, 1999; the European version, released earlier in July 1999, was erroneously promoted under the titles
God Hour and
6-Song CD by Good Life Recordings. As Friends Rust toured the United States in June–July 1999, accompanied by Keith Welsh. The band quickly followed up with a five-week European and British tour in July–August 1999, playing at such festivals as Good Life Midsummer Hardcore Festival in Kuurne, Belgium, Festival Hardcore in Sant Feliu De Guíxols, Spain and
Ieper Hardcore Festival in Ypres, Belgium. On June 22, 2000, Doghouse Records re-issued
The Fists of Time. As Friends Rust immediately embarked on a tour with
Strike Anywhere to promote the release, playing shows across the entire United States in June 2000. The tour included several cross-over shows with
Glasseater, Mid Carson July and The Agency (the three of which were on a separate tour together), as well as stops to play such festivals as Mixed Messages in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Pheer Festival in College Park, Maryland and
Hellfest 2K in Auburn, New York (the last of which As Friends Rust did not play due to a last-minute change in venue). In July 2000, Good Life Recordings invited As Friends Rust back to Europe for a week's worth of shows in Belgium and the Netherlands, including a performance at
Dour Festival in Dour, Belgium and another at Metropolis Festival in Rotterdam, Netherlands. However, tensions during the tour ultimately caused a much bigger change in membership. With Glayat wearing a splint, the band continued on to half a week's worth of shows in the United Kingdom, Three weeks later, Moyal suffered from laryngitis and lost his voice, leading Stewart to switch from bass guitar to lead vocals, and Bartsocas temporarily filling in as bass guitarist. Kirkpatrick next joined established Gainesville, Florida-based
art rock band Argentina in June 2001. The band also included vocalist and guitarist Alex Lopez, vocalist and bass guitarist Drew DeMaio, and keyboardist (and former drummer) Mario Lopez. Kirkpatrick also played in Gainesville-based
indie/
alternative/
country band Swayze, sporadically from 2003 to 2004. With Swayze, Kirkpatrick contributed to the band's sophomore album
A Shame Play, released by Arkain Records on March 4, 2004.''' Kirkpatrick had been recommended by record producer and
Atlantic Records A&R representative and
artist developer Brian McTernan, who was about to record with the band at his
Salad Days recording studio in Beltsville, Maryland. Shortly after changing drummers, Postcard Audio announced that the band would be officially changing its name to
Moments in Grace by the end of June 2003. The band immediately began tracking thirteen songs for its full-length album,
Moonlight Survived, over the span of two months at Salad Days with McTernan (though the total number of tracks recorded eventually increased to sixteen during production). The band then embarked on its second tour (the first with Kirkpatrick), accompanied by The Last Great Liar in August and September 2003. Unhappy with the way
Moonlight Survived sounded, the band returned to Salad Days in November 2003 to re-record some of the material, track a couple of extra songs, and fully re-mix the release. created specifically to release the band's music. The album was originally scheduled for release in May 2004, but it would ultimately be delayed by three months. The extended play was later re-issued by Atlantic Records on March 23, 2004. In promotion of the release, the band hit the road in December 2003; the trip culminating with a show at the
House of Blues in West Hollywood, California in direct support of
Thrice. The band next played a Californian mini-tour in January 2004 accompanied by
Avenged Sevenfold and
Saosin. Moments in Grace began touring full-time in support of its forthcoming Atlantic Records album,
Moonlight Survived, remaining on the road for the next ten months.
Smile Empty Soul in February–March 2004, Engine Down and
The Jealous Sound in March 2004,
Bayside and Madcap in March 2004,
From First to Last and
A Thorn for Every Heart for in April 2004, Avenged Sevenfold, My Chemical Romance,
Funeral for a Friend,
Beloved and
Noise Ratchet in April–May 2004, and Smile Empty Soul and
Steriogram in June 2004. Coinciding with their shows together, Moments in Grace and Funeral for a Friend teamed up for a
split 7-inch vinyl, co-released through Atlantic Records, Salad Days Records,
Mighty Atom Records and
Infectious Records, on April 20, 2004. On June 15, 2004, Atlantic Records and Salad Days Records released "
Stratus" as a single. The band was then invited to perform at the music showcase Millennium Music Conference in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on June 24, 2004. Moments in Grace next joined
Van's Warped Tour for a series of performances from June–July 2004. Following Van's Warped Tour, Moments in Grace filmed a music video for "Stratus" with director Laurent Briet in Los Angeles, California. The video premiered on August 12, 2004, five days before
Moonlight Survived was released. In July–August 2004, the band toured with
Finger Eleven,
Thornley and
Strata.
Moonlight Survived was finally released on August 17, 2004, through Atlantic Records and Salad Days Records. In celebration, the band played three album-release shows in Florida, accompanied by Taken From You. In September 2004, the band played a mix of headlining and co-headlining dates with
The Working Title,
Mae,
Fear Before the March of Flames, A Thorn for Every Heart,
The Kinison,
Killradio and
A Wilhelm Scream. In September–October 2004, the band toured with
Further Seems Forever,
Brandtson and
The Kicks. In October–November 2004, the band was on the road with
Hot Water Music,
Alexisonfire,
Planes Mistaken for Stars,
Silverstein and Don't Look Down, including a stop to play
The Fest 3 festival in Gainesville, Florida. In late 2004, Kirkpatrick invited his former Shaft, Roosevelt and As Friends Rust bandmate James Glayat to replace Moments in Grace's guitarist Justin Etheridge. The band then relocated to Burbank, California and embarked on tours with
Rock 'n' Roll Soldiers in January 2005, and with
June and
Zolof The Rock & Roll Destroyer in February 2005. The band's next headlining show would be Moments in Grace's final performance, on March 5, 2005, with Saosin. Following the band's split, Kirkpatrick remained in California for the next thirteen years, before moving back to Florida in 2018. Kirkpatrick then rejoined As Friends Rust in March 2008, when vocalist Damien Moyal announced that the band would reunite for a series of European and British shows scheduled for August 2008. It was further revealed that the band would be performing with its 1998–2000 line-up (referred to as "The Porch Days" line-up), also including
Joseph Simmons,
Kaleb Stewart and
James Glayat. The ''Back in Coffee Black Tour '08'' kicked off with a single American show at The Atlantic in Gainesville, Florida, The compilation was re-issued by Indonesian record label D'Kolektif on December 27, 2014, and Dutch record label Shield Recordings on April 29, 2015. On May 22, 2015, German record label Demons Run Amok Entertainment released
The Porch Days: 1998 to 2000 on 12-inch vinyl. The release compiled all of the band's studio recordings from 1998 to 2000, as well as previously unreleased live recordings of two of the three songs composed-but-never-properly-recorded by the band with that line-up. a second at
Groezrock festival in Meerhout, Belgium, In 2016, Kirkpatrick joined As Friends Rust vocalist Damien Moyal's
post-punk band
Damien Done, contributing drums to the EP
He Really Tried / And Now the Rain, released by Demons Run Amok Entertainment on July 8, 2016. The songs also featured bass guitarist Mike Hasty (formerly of
Walls of Jericho), electric guitarist Juan Montoya (formerly of
Floor,
Cavity and
Torche), in addition to Moyal on vocals and guitar. The band revealed that it would be recording and releasing a two-song extended play in mid-2019 (though this was ultimately delayed by a year), as a precursor to the band's sophomore album. Upon returning from Booze Cruise, As Friends Rust parted ways with bass guitarist Stewart, though the band did not immediately look for a replacement bass guitarist. As Friends Rust recorded two songs for its comeback extended play,
Up from the Muck, in early March 2020. The recording sessions were tracked individually at various studios in Florida and New York, then mixed by James Paul Wisner at Wisner Productions in St. Cloud, Florida. The band still working on its planned second full-length album. == References ==