Suspect Earth - sold out show

Skidography

Vinnie Salvatore is a guitarist with the Columbus, Ohio-based hard rock band, Rat Bastard Syndicate, which also includes Steve Theado on guitar & vocals, Lennard James on bass & vocals and Keith Pickens on drums. The group actually formed in 2014 while American Dog was still in action, expanding to a quartet in 2016. Theado, Pickens and Salvatore are former members of American Dog.

It's worth mentioning here that Salvatore and Pickens were not in American Dog at the same time, although they did perform together with Theado in December 2011 at the venerable Cock n' Bull, where the group was holding its annual Christmas party. The occasion was scheduled to be Pickens' farewell concert with American Dog, but bandleader Michael Hannon did not make it to the event. Vinnie was a last-minute addition on bass and it became a free-for-all with a rotating cast of characters on vocals, a late-addition keyboardist, and even a couple of guest drummers. It marked the first time Theado, Pickens, and Salvatore performed live together.

Vinnie recorded and toured with American Dog during the final years of the band (2013 - 2015) and appears on their 7th studio album, Neanderthal (2014), as well as the 2 disk best-of / live, Unfinished Business (2017). In 2014 American Dog toured the United States with Tesla and The Vegabonds - and Europe with Blue Coupe, Lez Zeppelin and Skinny Molly. American Dog formed in1998 with Michael Hannon on vocals & bass (ex-Salty Dog and Dangerous Toys) along with Theado and Pickens, the latter replaced by Michael Harris in 2011.

From 2009 to 2013, Salvatore recorded and toured with The Godz, the American hard rock band fronted by the legendary Eric Moore. Vinnie juggled both guitar and bass guitar duties while a member of The Godz, who released a brand-new studio album, Last of the Outlaws, in 2012. Additionally, Vinnie appears on From the Vault Volumes 1 & 2 (2013). Also during 2012 and 2013, Salvatore filled in on guitar for Planet 9 to help the band meet its touring obligations while Ron Zingaro was on hiatus, including dates with American Dog and Suspect Earth.

MORE STUFF YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT
Vinnie was born and raised on planet Earth. Sometimes he eats meat, and sometimes he eats a salad. He prefers whole foods like real dairy-butter and avoids margarine, multi-vitamins, edible food-like substances (the western diet), and "anti-bacterial" soap. Some of his favorite musical artists include: Frank Zappa, Captain Beefheart, Alice Cooper, Alex Harvey,  Miles Davis, Junior Brown, Stravinsky, and Clutch. In 1995, Salvatore recorded the EP, Highway To Corn And Peanut Hell under the name "Skid Baxter" (a character created by Chirs Crickard). Thus was born The Skid Baxter Project.

As one reviewer put it, "On the album, one can hear the Zappa influence distinctly, with the vocal asides and snippets of musique-concrete." Gentle Giant and Junior Brown had become an influence on him by this time. An EP titled SBP was recorded and released in 1997, featuring some songs that would later appear on No News From America. Avid Skid Baxter fans quickly devoured it. The conceptual No News From America was released in the Spring of 1999 and features several talented guests. Among them Chris Sutton, whose soulful guitar-playing graces four cuts, three of which include drummer - Tracy Spears. No News From America was digitally re-mixed and re-mastered in 2002. Also in 2002 the word "Project" was permanently dropped from Skid Baxter.

Salvatore shared lead-guitar duties with Matt Venus in the prog-rock outfit, Logarhythm from 1999-2002, founded by multi-instrumentalist - Linda Dauwalder-Dachtyl (keys and piano); and included her husband, Cary (drums and percussion). "Raw Deal in Furniture" and "Donut Shop People" were among the Skid Baxter numbers featured in the band's setlist. Salvatore and Linda Dachtyl would later play in the Walt James Band together, albeit on different instruments.

Another Skid Baxter album, Tongue Tracks in Ice Cream was released in limited quantitiesin the fall of 2003. Once again Chris Sutton lended his guitar-wizardry and also sang lead vocals on "Too Big Dad". Matt Venus appears on three cuts including the instrumental "Frankz Furnace" on which he trades guitar-licks with Sutton.

In 2001 Salvatore recorded and engineered the album, 7 ate 9 by Chris Sutton's band, Blue Cat Sky. He also produced Sutton's Vance Lintlock album, The Return of Vance Lintlock in 2002; and played bass on the song, "Vandalia's Rising."

In January 2003 Sutton teamed up with Mark "The Harp" to form C&S Railroad in Barboursville, West Virginia; with Salvatore producing their self-titled debut album in February. The C & S Railroad album features 14 of Sutton's dynamic mountain-blues originals, in which he explores the Delta and Piedmont styles with the spirit and atmosphere of a live field-recording from the 1920s and 30s.

Mr. Baxter in Sheboygan, Wisconsin

ELSEWHERE
in 2009 Mr. Salvatore was a member of swamp-rockers, Danballah a short-lived band fronted by Johnny Weils, former lead vocalist for the southern-metal band, Alabama Thunderpussy. This followed a three-year stint as bassist for Suspect Earth that saw the release of their album, Hard To Drag in 2007 on BoFi Recordings.

Salvatore also played bass in The Walt James Band (WJB), a power-trio based in Columbus, Ohio. featuring  Walt James on guitar and vocals and Linda Dauwalder-Dachtyl (a familiar face) on drums. Walt toured and recorded two albums with UFO bassist Pete Way. He also performed and recorded with Columbus, Ohio's notorious Lollipop Factory.

The WJB recorded the much-acclaimed album - Arrival, released worldwide in 2003. In early 2005 Salvatore's evil twin brother, Trapper John, joined forces with Sukus. Recording for their debut album began in September 2005 but it was not completed. A version of the album was released on the now defunct Sukus website in 2008 entitled, "Tales From The Majic Sack."

Meanwhile, the Skid Baxter "Nowhere Space" (EP) was recorded and released in 2006, with both Chris Sutton and Tracy Spears figuring prominently in the proceedings.