Mykel Nitro
Mykel Nitro - January 2018. Mykel Nitro, born Michael Bellanca on May 19, 1991, is an Alternative Rock musician from Greece, New York. He is currently a solo artist, but has been involved in the Rochester Music Scene since September 2004 when he formed the band "Worm". Nitro is perhaps best known for being the vocalist and in-studio drummer for the band Intrinsic from June 2006 - June 2016.
He has recently found some success as a solo artist following the release of his 2021 studio album "Evolutionary War". Mykel Nitro has also owned and operates his own independent record label "New Riot Records", formerly "XTM Records", since 2005. The roster consists of himself, along with past and presesnt artists and bands: The Bygone Few, Comedown, Goron, Intrinsic, Sean Jacoby, The Lucifer Device, Lupis, Taduya, Travelator, and more.
Mykel Nitro began his first band, The Wormen, in April 2004; they would changed the name to "Worm" that July. At the time, he went by the stage name "Ace Howlett", a name which was a derived combination of Ace, a character from the animated series "The Power Puff Girls", and the birthname of fictional Marvel character Wolverine / James Howlett. Nitro left the band upon the release of their first and only album "Kielbasa Nova" in September 2005 due to a broken leg.
During the fall season of 2005 to the spring season of 2006, Nitro began playing music with his brother, Alex Bellanca. The duo would form their band Intrinsic that June. After forming Intrinsic in June 2006, brothers Alex and Michael "Mykel Nitro" Bellanca recruited friends Kevin Hannon and Vince Rodeo on rhythm guitar and bass respectively, and in October, Jeremia Shannon on vocals.
This line-up would release the EP "Curl Your Toes" (2006) and the LP "Glass Monkey" (2007) and performed several times together until July 2007, when they would part ways with Shannon and Rodeo. As a three piece, the band would play several shows and release the EP "The Forgotten" (2008). That summer, they recruited Justin "J-Snap" Russell on bass, and record their third EP "Just A Kick-Ass Demo" (2008) in September; the EP would be released that Halloween, one month after Kevin's departure.
After nearly a year of performing as this new version of Intrinsic, the band would release their first studio album, "Ultraviolence", on July 22, 2009. They would continue performing around the Western New York to Upstate New York area until J-Snap's first depature in November. Intrinsic would carry on with Andreas Meyris filling in on bass, until J-Snap's return to the group in August 2010. They released their second album "The Shoebox" (2011) upon J-Snap's second departure in February 2011.
That May, Skyler Smith joined them on bass and in October, they would release their fourth EP "Just Another Kick-Ass Demo (2011), which was recorded at Watchmen Studios. Upon it's release, the EP would find minor success with the song "December Rose", which was featured on many college radio stations throughout the east coast.
The Line-up of Mykel Nitro on drums and vocals, Alex Bellanca on guitar and backing vocals, and Skyler Smith on bass and backing vocals would last until live-drummer Phil Tharp joined the group in November 2011, allowing Nitro to become the lead singer. At this time, Nitro would join Comedown and become their drummer. Skyler Smith was replaced by Kevin Spicer on bass in April 2012, and this version of Intrinsic would release their third album "Escape From Instinct" (2012) that November.
In January 2013, they released their fifth EP "Yet Another Kick-Ass Demo" (2013) and the release of the fist Comedown album "BE" (2013). The following month, Kevin Spicer departed Intrinsic as they began work on their fourth studio album. For live performances, Andreas Meyris would fill in on bass for a second. That May, Intrinsic released their second LP "Songs From The Post Apocalyptic Generation" (2013), followed by their fourth studio album "Artificial Intelligence" (2013) that October.
Following the release of the album, Intrinsic would perform throughout the northern east coast with this lineup, until recruiting "Spaz" Spaziani on bass in January 2014. January would also see the release of "The Birthday album" (2014), the second studio album from Comedown. Ryan Hurley would join Intrinsic the following month, making them a five piece for the first time in nearly seven years.
Throughout 2014, Intrinsic would continue to perform around New York, while Comedown would begin to perform around the northern east coast. Mykel Nitro and Alex Bellanca would join Ryan Hurley's band, The Bygone Few, an established band with his wife Alicia and cousin Keith Wallak, in August 2014.
Comedown would release their second EP "Vol. 2" (2014) that November, while both Intrinsic and The Bygone Few began work on their respective albums. 2015 saw the release of the sixth Intrinsic EP "Not Another Kick-Ass Demo" (2015) in January, along with the third Comedown EP "Vol. 3" (2015) in April, the self-titled, debut studio album from The Bygone Few in June, and the fifth studio album "Spaghetti Queen" (2015) by Intrinsic in July. Nitro's independant label "XTM Records" released the compilation album "Subvert: It's Complicated" (2015) in August.
It featured songs by The Bygone Few, Comedown, Intrinsic, Sean Jacoby, Lupis, and Travelator. Due to a potential law-suit, he had to change the name of his label to "XTM Records & Distribution". Mykel Nitro departed from Comedown in January 2016, and released his first EP as a solo artist in March titled "Residual Meltdown: The Plan To Eradicate All Human Existance" (2016). He was joined by Phil Tharp on guitar, Eric Pinales on lead guitar, Michael Pinales on Bass, and Spaz Spaziani on Drums.
Intrinsic played what would be their final show in June 2006, which was also their ten year anniversary; they have been on hiatus since. The Bygone Few also disbanded later that year after releasing their first and only EP "Live EP" (2016) that August. The following year, Nitro released his fist studio album as a solo artist in April 2017 titled "The New Riot Act" (2017). That August, his label released the first full length album from Lupis titled "From The Redwood Forest" (2017).
Upon the release of the Lupis album, the label was sent a cease and desist letter, which forced Nitro to change the name of his label once again; this time, he rebranded the label as "New Riot Records" and has remained that way since. The first release on the newly branded label came in April 2018 and was Nitro's second solo EP "Ghostf*cker" (2018).
He then released the Sean Jacoby album "Dead Frets" (2018) that June, followed by the 10 Year Anniversary re-release of Travelator's "Superior Inferior" (2008) album in August 2018. As of July 2023, Mykel Nitro has released over 30 recordings between 6 musical groups. This includes full length studio albums (FL), EP's, and LP's. As Mykel Nitro Residual Meltdown...
(EP) Released: March 2016 New Riot Act (FL) Released: April 2017 Ghostf*cker (EP) Released: April 2018 Obliterate The Masses (FL) Released: August 2019 Burning (FL) Released: May 2020 Evolutionary War (FL) Released: November 2021 The Lion, The Witch... And The Nitro!!
(EP) Released: July 2022 Something From Nothing (FL) Released: July 2023 1991 (EP) Released: December 2023 With Worm Kielbosa Nova (LP) Released: September 2005 With Intrinsic Below The Surface (EP) Released: November 2006 Glass Monkey (LP) Released: May 2007 The Forgotten (EP) Released: February 2008 Just A Kick-Ass Demo (EP) Released: October 2008 Ultraviolence (FL) Released: July 2009 Blood Canvas (FL) Released: February 2011 Just Another Kick-Ass Demo (EP) Released: October 2011 Escape From Instinct (FL) Released: November 2012 Yet Another Kick-Ass Demo (EP) Released: January 2013 Songs From The Post-Apocalyptic Generation (LP) Released: May 2013 Artificial Intelligence (FL) Released: October 2013 Not Another Kick-Ass Demo (EP) Released: January 2015 Spaghetti Queen (FL) Released: July 2015 The Inglorious Sounds of Intrinsic Released: January 2017 Just The Return of A Kick-Ass Demo
(EP) Upcoming: 2024 With Comedown Minesolation (LP) Released: March 2012 Be (FL) Released: January 2013 The Birthday Album (FL) Released: January 2014 Vol. 2 (EP) Released: November 2014 Vol.
3 (EP) Released: April 2015 With The Bygone Few The Bygone Few (EP) Released: June 2015 Live EP (EP) Released: April 2016 With The Lucifer Device The Lucifer Device (FL) Released: June 2021 With Sean Jacoby Dead On Arrival (FL) Released: September 2022 Current Members Mykel Nitro - Vocals (2015-Present), Studio Drums (2015-2023) Skyler Smith - Bass (2019-2020, 2024-Present) Kyle Worgo - Guitars (2021, 2024-Present) Past Members Phil Tharp - Guitars (2015-2018) Eric Pinales - Guitars (2015-2016) Michael Pinales - Bass (2015-2019) Jon Bishop - Drums (2015-2016) Dan Nordquist - Guitars (2016-2018) Alex Bellanca - Guitars (2016-2017) Spaz Spaziani - Drums (2016-2021) Justin Russell - Guitars (2018) Matt Westphal - Guitars (2019-2021) Sean Jacoby - Bass (2020-2021) Will Luciano - Guitars (2021)