Tony Campos | |
|---|---|
 Campos performing with Soulfly in 2012 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Antonio Campos |
| Also known as | Maldito X |
| Born | March 8, 1973 Los Angeles, California, U.S.[1] |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instrument(s) |
|
| Years active | 1994–present |
Antonio "Tony" Campos (born March 8, 1973) is an American musician. He is the current bassist for industrial metal bands Static-X and Fear Factory and the vocalist and bassist for extreme metal band Asesino. He is also a former bassist for Prong, Soulfly, Ministry and Possessed, and a former vocalist for the metal band Brujeria. Following the death of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Wayne Static and the resurrection of Static-X, Campos is the longest-serving member of the band, and the only one to appear on every studio album.
Campos was part of the original Static-X lineup, playing bass and performing backing vocals on all of the group's studio albums. Along with Wayne Static, he was one of the legal owners of the Static-X name, even though he did not participate in the band's temporary reunion from 2012 to 2013.[2]
In 2001, Campos broke his collarbone in a motorcycle accident, leaving him unable to play in the ongoing "Extreme Steel Tour", headlined by Pantera. Campos continued to sing backing vocals on the tour, and Marty O'Brien took over bass duties.[3]
In 2002, Campos became part of Mexican American metal group Asesino. His stage name, "Maldito X", is Spanish for "Damned X".[4] In the same year, he played bass with the Colombian band Agony during the Rock al Parque.
Campos has played bass for Ministry in four stints (2007–2008, 2011–2012, 2014–2016, 2017–2019), following the death of Paul Raven.[5] He has joined Ministry again for their US tour with Death Grips in Autumn 2017.[6]
From 2011 to 2012, he was a member of death metal band Possessed.[7] He also played with Possessed in 2013 at The Oakland Metro.
He also joined Soulfly in 2011 as their bassist.
In May 2015, Campos announced his departure from Soulfly, and that he would be joining Fear Factory as their bassist.[8]
In October 2018, Campos announced that he and the other two surviving original members – guitarist Koichi Fukuda and drummer Ken Jay – had reformed Static-X, who were planning to release a new album and tour in 2019 in memory of Wayne Static.[9]
Campos has cited Blasko, Cliff Burton, Dan Lilker, Jeff Hanneman, and Kerry King as influences.[10][11]
Campos tunes to ADGCF when playing in Asesino. With Static-X, he played with several tunings: CFBbEbG and BbFBbEbAb during Shadow Zone and forward.[12][13]
Campos majored in computer science before becoming a musician.[14] He's an avid video gamer[15] and considers the Doom and Halo series as his all-time favorites.[16]
|
For a more comprehensive list, see Static-X discography. |
| Year | Band | Album | Track(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Divine Heresy | Bleed the Fifth | "Rise of the Scorned" and "Closure" |
| 2011 | Otep | Atavist | "Drunk on the Blood of Saints" and "Remember to Forget" |
| 2015 | Taipan | Straight from the Underground | "Straight from the Underground" |
| 2020 | Mick Gordon | Doom Eternal soundtrack | Member of the "Heavy Metal Choir"[17] |
