Dr. Acula

The Story of Dr. Acula begins back in 2005 when Bill Graffeo, lead guitarist and only remaining original member, corralled a few of his friends and started making music. The late Mitch Hedberg, a prominent cult comedian, is credited with the inspiration for the moniker “Dr. Acula” after making the joke “Man. I went to the doctor the other day. All this guy did was suck blood out of my neck. Never go to see Dr. Acula.” Surely you don’t want to follow his advice, at least when it comes to the band.

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The 7-piece known as Dr. Acula consists of vocalists Casey Carrano and Tyler Guida, guitarists Bill Graffeo and Ricky Ostolaza, bassist Kevin Graffeo, drummer Jesse Ciapa, and keyboardist Joey Simpson. With many different musical backgrounds in grindcore, hardcore, metal and hip-hop, Dr. Acula’s party metal-core style is both unique and diverse, reaching a virtually untapped market. Dr. Acula received the attention of Victory Records CEO Tony Brummel early in 2010. Brummel called the band to request a meeting at his Chicago headquarters…the following hour. Being in Iowa at the time was not going to stop the band, and they drove the 200 mile difference through a thunderstorm to seal their position as part of the Victory Records family.

The band’s first official release on Victory Records, titled Slander, was released on February 15, 2011 and the band couldn’t be more thrilled about it. “This release is our best effort yet. We’re hoping this record brings us to the next level and opens many new doors. We put our hearts and souls into it,” says drummer Jesse Ciappa. While it may be hard to believe that Dr. Acula have only been around for half a decade given all that they have accomplished-including sharing the stage with such bands as A Day To Remember, Attack! Attack!, Devil Wears Prada, and Emmure- they have no doubt carved out an undeniable niche for themselves in the hardcore scene. What started out as an excuse to simply have fun with their friends has become a nation wide party for both Dr. Acula and their growing legion of fans.