John LeCompt
John LeCompt (born March 10, 1973 in Little Rock, Arkansas) has been co-guitarist in Evanescence since 2002 when, after signing with Wind-up Records, Amy, Ben and David turned to some old friends (John, Rocky and Will included) from Little Rock to help with the writing process for Fallen and the live tour production. John's aid with Evanescence traces back to 2000, where he is mentioned in the booklet for Origin, credited/thanked as "the sexiest man alive" by Amy and Ben. Fans also agree, noting that John is "the hottest member of Evanescence that isn't Amy."
Credited for co-writing Forever You, Taking Over Me and All That I'm Living For. Performs Paul McCoy’s part in Bring Me to Life during live shows. John also has programming credits on Call Me When You're Sober and All That I'm Living For.
His immediate family includes wife Shelly, daughter Bethanie, and a new son named John Charles LeCompt II (J.C.). He also has a brother, Jimmy LeCompt, whom he collaborated with in a project called Burnt Offerings. The song they are known for doing together is called Free But Hollow. Jimmy has been known to make apperances on the message boards in the past.
Beyond Evanescence
Mindrage
His first commercial effort was a band called Mindrage. Pulling double duty as lead vocalist and lead guitarist, he enlisted Nick Williams (bass) and Chad Wilburn (drums) to form the Christian Metal trio. In June of 1998, Mindrage recorded the album Sown In Weakness, Raised In Power - a full album consisting of 11 tracks. For their second album, (a collaboration with the band Nailed Promise) Justin Carder (now with Hap Hazard and Chasing The Fall) took over on drums, replacing Chad Wilburn for the four track feature.
Kill System
Later, John joined forces with then-Living Sacrifice guitarist Rocky Gray to form what would be known as Kill System, along with Chad Moore (Soul Embraced) on bass, Allen Robson (Between the Second, Becoming Saints) and former Living Sacrifice drummer Lance Garvin on drums. Unfortunately, the Kill System project never had an official distribution deal despite their commendable effort. Despite John's heavier musical history, Kill System proved to be much more melodic, making the project a big fan favorite.
Soul Embraced
Continuing with their seemingly endless collaborations, John joined Rocky once again for work with Soul Embraced. John features as a vocalist on the track entitled, "Seems Like Forever" on the 2003 album Immune.
Mourningside
During Evanescence's creative hiatus, John (on guitar / background vocals) formulated what would later be known as Mourningside. Members include Jack Wiese (ex-lead of the.5th.element) providing lead vocals, fellow Evanescence member Rocky Gray on drums, Jeff Bowie (Becoming Saints) on bass and Devin Castle (Eva Braun / Ashes of Augustine) on guitar. They have since played shows in St. Louis, Missouri, as well as in Little Rock, Arkansas, gaining not only a strong fanbase in the States, but among Evanescence fans all around the world.
Like Kill System, Mourningside has yet to gain an official distribution deal but has released a collective 7 track EP. Their debut song, "Painting The Eyes," was featured on a multi-band promotional CD distributed at Dirty Elf Fest 2005 in St. Louis, Missouri.
Machina
In 2005, John began collaborating with ex-Future Leaders of the World lead Phil Tayler. They are currently working on new material and plan on touring with hopes of releasing an album in late 2006. As a band, Machina includes Phil Tayler (vocals), John LeCompt (guitars), Jack Wiese (guitars), Thad Ables (bass) and Rocky Gray (drums). With new material and new members, the band decided to change their title from "Future Leaders Of the World" to "Machina" in Spring / Summer 2006.
Contrary to popular belief, this particular "Machina" is pronounced "mah-shee-nah" and not "mah-kee-nah" as generally spoken.
Tools of the Trade
Hardware
John uses ESP/LTD guitars.
He has many different models, including the F-300FM, EC-1000, Viper-301, H-301 and H-307 seven-string.
As for amplification, he has stated he a uses Mesa Stilletto Deuce. [1]
EC-1000
Set mahogany neck with 24-3/4" scale, topped with a rosewood fretboard adorned with abalone flags plus the model name at the 12th fret. TonePros locking bridge and tailpiece keep tuning rock-solid. The black and cherry models feature a pair of EMG-81 pickups, while the amber sunburst model (the particular model used by John) sports a Seymour Duncan JB/59 setup.
Guitar Effects
In an interview John answered:
"The only effects that I use are some delay and reverb... sometimes a little tremolo and wah. I only use it on my clean channel. My metal channel is all metal, all the time. No stinking effects there."
Links
- JohnLeCompt.com - John LeCompt Fan Site
- Evanescence - Official Evanescence Site
- Mourningside
- Mourningside - Mourningside's MySpace Page
- Machina - Machina's MySpace Page
- ESP Guitars
