Joe Principe

Joe Principe

Joe Principe is the bass guitarist and co-founder of the punk rock band Rise Against. He is known for his elaborate bass patterns in their songs. Some of the finest examples of his playing are the bass intro/outro on Like The Angel, and the bridge on Life Less Frightening. He primarily uses Fender basses, Ampeg amps and cabinets, and he uses pick-playing exclusively.

He is also a vegetarian, an animal rights advocate and actively promotes PETA with his band.

Biography

Joe's musical career began in the seminal Chicago punk band, 88 Fingers Louie. After 6 years of touring and releasing records with the band, Joe formed Rise Against with Singer\Guitarist Tim McIlrath, former 88FL Guitarist Mr. Precision, and Drummer Brandon Barnes. In 2002, Mr. Precison left and was replaced by Todd Mohney, who was replaced by Chris Chasse in 2004, who was later replaced by guitarist Zach Blair in 2007. Rise Against released their first two records (The Unraveling, and Revolutions Per Minute) on Fat Wreck Chords, and their next two (Siren Song of the Counter Culture, and The Sufferer and the Witness) on Geffen. They also plan to record new studio album, which is due for release in the summer of 2008.

In the Spring and Summer of 1994, he worked for a few months at Rotz Records, in the infamous basement warehouse. He was fired for incorrectly packaging CDs for The Offspring's third album Smash.