Full Name: John Lionel Anderson
Stage Name: Lionel Anderson (he goes by this most of the time)
Age: 29
Birthday: 3 March 1984
Appearance: He stands about 5 foot 9 and weighs 150 lbs soaking wet. On-stage he either wears a white T-shirt or no shirt at all, with deep blue jeans and old sneakers. Offstage he has a collection of band shirts, like any normal metalhead, which he'll wear instead along with jeans.
Role: Rhythm and Lead guitar, Vocals in Sturm
Musical Style: Lionel's lead guitar playing mixes quick flashy licks with more "singable" melodies and bends inspired more by blues and hard rock than death metal. In rhythm, he tends to write the simpler, "thrashier" riffs, though he frequently links riffs with small melodic flourishes, and also writes most of the guitar harmonies. He calls this overall approach "power and texture," mostly because it sounds nice. In terms of screaming, he favors a midrange-type bark or snarl, but for emphasis will occasionally lower his voice to a more guttural sound. His favorite guitarists are Mike Sifringer, Mille Petrozza, and Glenn Tipton, and his favorite screamers are Mille Petrozza (again), Jens Kidman, and Jeff Walker.
Instruments: His Number 1 guitar up until Trap was a
white LTD V-300, his first "real" guitar after a cheap BC Rich V that he sold. Shortly before Trap's split-up, he got an
ESP Standard Series Viper, hoping the shorter scale length would work better with his bend-heavy style. Both have EMG 81/85 pickup sets. He ended up using both in Sturm for a while, with the V-300 in drop C and the Viper in D standard. On the "Unexpected Tour," he only took the Viper, and from then on used the Viper primarily.
His "signature effect" is an MXR Flanger, which gets punched on for some riff flourishes and solos. His RAT distortion forms the core of his rhythm sound. His amp is a Randall 45w head into a 4x12 cabinet.
Personality: Unlike his fellow guitarist Ted, Lionel is very gregarious and earnest, which has helped his early career in music. He also believes in the principle of "better is the enemy of good"; while he has definite standards for what is a good song, lyric, or solo, once something meets that standard he isn't going to bother with improving it except as an idle thought exercise. He has a strong Baltimore accent, much thicker than Ted's.
Biography: John Anderson grew up in Downtown Baltimore, the only son of a single father. When he was 13, his father was arrested and incarcerated for what amounted to being in the wrong place at the wrong time. John being a minor at the time, he ended up with the closest family he had, his uncle Maurice, out closer to the edge of Baltimore. Maurice was a career musician (trumpet and flugelhorn) and insisted John learn something. John chose guitar and began learning, first under Maurice's tutelage, then under a local teacher, then on his own.
When he turned 21, he moved back to the downtown area for a job as a bellhop at the Baltimore Harbor Hotel. Dissatisfied with the money, he took up music, playing with bands ranging from the insipid Maiden-worship Prowler to the surprisingly-good death metal band Blasphemme. While in Blasphemme he switched to using his middle name, Lionel, to avoid confusion with both Jon Anderson of Yes and Blasphemme's drummer, John Michaelson.
Blasphemme's downfall came, like with many bands, from conflict between vocalist/bassist Jo Garcia and guitarist Evan Caul. Lionel ended up siding with his co-guitarist, and after the demise of Blasphemme they went on to form Trap. Unfortunately, upon taking leadership of the band Caul showed his true colors, insisting on taking the lead role in composition and lyrics, as well as vocal duties. He respected Lionel enough to give him freedom to write his own solos, but that was his only concession. For a while, Lionel felt more than a little trapped (no pun intended), not liking Caul's dictatorial leadership but seeing few other options. In 2010, Trap played a show with avant-garde trio Cor Leonis. Lionel struck up a friendship with their guitarist and leader, Ted Marubini, and was invited to jam. They gelled very well, with Ted's style and Lionel's mixing and contrasting well. Trap fell apart shortly after, and Lionel officially joined Cor Leonis for about a month before they decided to change their name to Sturm.
Lionel's bandography:
Flyer (hard rock) (1999) (rhythm guitar)
Überschnell (speed metal/metalcore) (2000-2002) (rhythm guitar/backing vocals)
Death Sentence (thrash metal) (2002-2005) (guitar)
Prowler (NWOBHM worship) (2005) (lead guitar)
Hornets (Arghodeath) (July 2-9, 2005) (lead guitar)
Blasphemme (death metal) (2006-2009) (guitar/co-vocals)
Trap (thrash metal) (2009-2010) (lead guitar)
Cor Leonis (fusion/experimental metal) (September-October 2010)
Sturm (melodic death/thrash metal) (2010-present) (rhythm and lead guitar/vocals)