Alexandria Safe-Zone
Rick Grimes and the Survivors, later known as just The Survivors, and the Alexandria Safe-Zoners even later, was an emo-rock band from King County, Georgia. It was started in 2010 by frontman Rick Grimes, a former sheriff's deputy, who retired after being shot and comatosed in the line of duty. Throughout the years, the band has gone through many changes in its lineup. The longest serving members include Daryl Dixon, Carol Peletier, and Maggie Greene. Since its conception and their debut album Escape from Atlanta in 2010, the band has released eleven studio albums, along with a handful of EPs.
The original name for the band was the Ricky Dicky Doo-Dah Grimes Band, before being shortened to just Rick and the Gang. After talks of whether the public would think that they were an actual gang, it was again changed to what it is today. 'Survivors' was chosen due to all the current members at the time having to deal with Andrea's bullshit for three years.
History[edit]
Formation[edit]
The band was formed in October 2010, when after waking up from his coma, Rick Grimes left the police department along with partner and best friend Shane Walsh. Rick stated that this was because he didn't want to get shot again, or even worse, getting shot and waking up from the coma amid a zombie apocalypse.[1] The first iteration of the band consisted of Grimes, Walsh, Carl Grimes (Rick's son), and Lori Grimes (Rick's wife). After playing a few gigs, in which their set was only cover songs, and getting mostly negative feedback, Rick started to write original songs. It was Carl, now going by the stage name Coral, who suggested that the band expand its lineup, since the old four-man lineup was growing stale and that it never works.
Daryl, Carol, Dale Horvath and T-Dog were bought in, making the four piece now an eight piece band. Later that month, their first album, Escape from Atlanta, was released to positive reviews, along with the band gaining a cult following to male listeners aged 18-49.
Time behind bars[edit]
After the entire band were arrested for mass murder, citing that those that they killed deserved it for being "walkers", Rick and the band recorded their third album inside the West Georgia Correctional Facility during their lunchtimes.
Rick's departure[edit]
After the death of Carl Grimes, in which his house was filled with gas after he forgot to turn the stove off and it exploded, Rick left the band. His second wife, Michonne, and adopted daughter Judith stayed, however, due to wanting a stable source of income. A year later, Michonne also left the band so she could go on a treasure hunt looking for Rick, who had gone missing after his helicopter crashed in Pennsylvania.
Despite the band having his name in the band name, the other Survivors decided to keep their full title as Rick Grimes and the Survivers, but now just shortened to The Surivivers, or RGATS (pronounced 'Regrets', due to telling Carl to stay inside the fucking house). "It's just so we could remember him," new frontman Daryl Dixon stated. "We all miss him. When you think about it, Rick Grimes is what makes Rick Grimes and the Survivers a band. Without him, we are nothing. We're just the walking dead..."
Break-up and solo work[edit]
In 2022, the band called it quits as many thought they were just dragging along at this point and had strayed far from their starting point. Maggie and Negan moved to New York and started the country duo the Dead City People, while Daryl and Carol also started a duo called the Daryl Dixon Book. Rick returned for one album with wife Michonne, titled The Ones Who Sing.
Controversies[edit]
Woodbury Folk Band[edit]
The Woodbury Folk Band, a bluesy-folk band led by Philip Blake, who went by the stage name of 'The Governor', caught the attention of Rick Grimes after Blake stated that he and his band were "bigger than Jesus" on national television. Grimes took offence to this. Not because he was Christian, but because Jesus was in his band and didn't want people to think that the Woobury Folk had stolen Jesus from him. In response, Grimes and the Survivors recorded their own blues record, Woodbury Blues, to prove that they could do any genre besides just emo, rock, and pop.
Negan's Saviors[edit]
In 2017, Rick's band started beef with pop-rock band Negan's Saviors, after their frontman, Negan Smith, killed former Survivor bassist Gleen Rhee, in a rap battle — in which the loser had to quit the music biz. Negan further added fuel to the fire, when he went on Twitter saying;
  · Apr 18, 2017
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| Rick the prick, I'm gonna make your son sing me a song while I play golf using his eye hole. |
This feud between the two bands caused each band to make 'diss albums' on each other. The Survivors seventh album Enemies Are Meant to Be Killed, most notably the third track, "I'm Gonna Kill You Negan", caused Negan to retaliate and release the Saviors third album Rick the Prick. Rick then responded to this with the Survivors eighth album All Out Singing, which included a 13 minute epic guitar solo called "I Just Slit Negan's Throat Under a Tree".
Afterwards, Morgan Jones, the Survivors' first drummer and stick expert, and Dwight, the Saviors' saxophone player and club sandwich maker, left their respective bands and formed the A-pop dance group known as The Fears along with John Dory and Weird Al. This band is not to be confused with the 2015 disco dance group of the same name made up of the Clark family, Victorious Strand and Dan The Man.
Whispers in the Night[edit]
After Ricks' departure, lead singer whisperer, Alpha Dee, of the quiet-jazz band The Whispers in the Night, declared a second musical war on The Survivors, hoping that they would win since they didn't have the great Rick Grimes to lead them to victory again. Her bassist, Beta Mask, a former country singer who quit after being called "ugly" a few too many times, tried to plant blue crystal meth on Daryl's brother Merle, but changed his mind after Carol baked him some beetroot cookies that were to die for. Literally. As it turned out, Carol had became a psychopath after losing her daughter Sophia, and adopted son Henry, and was out for revenge to those that didn't like the new wave sounds the Survivors' were making. By this time, Negan had left the Saviors and joined the Survivors since it was Carl's last wish, and that there would be no objection from Rick. Negan had started an affair with Alpha, and after some steamy bald sex, killed her the morning after with a cigarette. Soon after, the Whispers in the Night disbanded, and their flute player Lydia, who was also Alpha's daughter, joined the Survivors. Negan was not arrested for the murder of Alpha, since she had killed her husband and Lydia's father years before, so the police thought that this murder cancalled the other one out, and allowed Negan to go home scot-free.
The Common Band[edit]
The Common Band, whose frontwoman is the daughter of the President, whose stage name is also the Governor, and makes her bandmates wear white and red costumes, let Eugene, Daryl and Rosita from the Survivors join her band for a "bigger paycheque" according to Mr Porter.
After Pamela's death of an overdose, Milton's lead guitarist Mercer the Orange Bandit allowed the merge of the Survivors and the Common Band, now making them the biggest band in the world — with a total of over 50,000 members. They still only get ~100 monthly listeners on Spotify, however.
Members[edit]
- Main article: Past and Current Members of the Survivors
Current lineup[edit]
- Daryl Dixon - took over as the frontman after Rick left, also the bands longest serving violin player
- Carol Peletier - the bands longest serving rhythm guitarist
- Maggie Greene - the bands second, fourth, and now seventh bassist
- Judith Grimes - Rick's (adopted) daughter, and drummer
- Aaron - nicknamed the 'One-Handed Menace', Aaron plays the maraca
Notable former members[edit]
- Rick Grimes - frontman, lead guitarist and singer until 2018
- Carl Grimes - left in late 2017 to pursue a career in dreetel rap[2], former drummer
- Shane Walsh - left after the band's second album due to wanting to rename the band to 'Shane Walsh and Co.', was also the band's first bassist
- Jesus - also known as the 'God of Parkour', Jesus went by the stage name of Paul, and was the bands sixth bassist
Discography[edit]
- Escape from Atlanta - 2010
- Sounds Can Be Heard Coming from the Barn - 2012
- This Prison Can't Hold Us - 2013
- Woodbury Blues - 2014
- Hospitals and Churches Are Not Safe - 2015
- Sweet Alexandria - 2016
- Enemies Are Meant to Be Killed - 2017
- All Out Singing - 2018
- Goodbye Grimey - 2019
- What's That on Their Faces? - 2021
- Stormtrooper Looking People - 2022
References[edit]
- ↑ which Rick would later write a comic book about with the guy from My Chemical Romance
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9aM9Ch97U8
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