Tommy Victor

Tommy Victor
Victor performing with Prong in 2025
Victor performing with Prong in 2025
Background information
Born
Thomas Michael Victor

September 20, 1961 or 1962 (age 64–65)
New York City, U.S.
GenresGroove metal, thrash metal, industrial metal, alternative metal, crossover thrash (early)
OccupationsMusician, singer, songwriter, record producer
InstrumentsGuitar, vocals
Years active1984–present
Member ofProng, Danzig
Formerly ofMinistry, Tapeworm

Thomas Michael Victor (born September 20, 1961/1962) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer. He is best known as the frontman of heavy metal band Prong, which he founded in New York City in 1986, and as the guitarist for heavy metal band Danzig intermittently since 1996 and full-time since 2008. He is also a former member of Ministry.

Biography

In the second half of the 1980s,Victor worked as a sound engineer at the music club CBGB in New York City. After the release of Rude Awakening in 1996, Prong disbanded and Victor moved to Los Angeles, but later revived the band to release new Prong records. He took a break from Prong during which he worked alongside rock musicians including Rob Zombie, Marilyn Manson, Trent Reznor, and Glenn Danzig.[citation needed]

With 2012's Carved into Stone, Prong became active again, releasing albums and touring regularly. The next studio album, Ruining Lives, was released in 2014, and in 2015 the band released a covers album, Songs from the Black Hole.[citation needed]

Victor is also part of the hard rock supergroup Teenage Time Killers.[citation needed]

Victor has toured and recorded with Ministry and Danzig. He also sang on one track on the Soulfly album Omen. He contributed to the Argyle Park album Misguided, and wrote the main riff for the song "Doomsayer", which he later used on the Prong song "Controller".

Influences and equipment

Victor has cited numerous bands as influences, including Die Kreuzen, Killing Joke, Bauhaus, Black Flag, Bad Brains, Parliament-Funkadelic, Yes, Jethro Tull, Deep Purple, Destruction, Celtic Frost, Slayer, Metallica, Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, the Stooges, Sex Pistols, Motörhead, Neil Young, Fugazi, Minor Threat, and Adolescents.

Victor has been endorsed by Schecter Guitar Research ever since reuniting with Prong, using both an S-1 and C-1 in early live performances. He later used their Devil guitar, which became the basis for his second signature model. In 2013, his first signature model was released, based on the newly introduced Banshee series; in 2015, his second signature model was introduced, based on the Devil series guitar.[citation needed]

Discography

Victor with Prong in Germany, 2014
Victor with Danzig at Wacken Open Air 2018

Prong

Danzig

Ministry

References

  1. ↑ "ABSENCE OF LIGHT". ASCAP. American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  2. ↑ @Prong (September 20, 2024). "September 20, we celebrate Tommy Victor on his birthday!! 🎂". Facebook. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
  3. ↑ @TheSDRShow (April 8, 2022). "Prong (Band) H For Breakfast | Full Interview | The SDR Show". YouTube. at 5:54. Archived from the original on June 9, 2022.
  4. ↑ Sickler, Linda (July 30, 2012). "Prong frontman talks real CBGB, Hilly Kristal in Savannah". Savannah Morning News. Retrieved September 23, 2026.
  5. ↑ Bellino, Emily (July 28, 2017). "Prong Frontman Tommy Victor Ranks Top 5 CBGB Sets He Worked Sound For". Decibel. Retrieved September 23, 2026.
  6. ↑ Macomber, Shawn (May 27, 2014). "Ruination & Gratitude: Prong's Tommy Victor Speaks". Decibel. Retrieved September 23, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Circle of Dust interview". HM Magazine. 2003. Retrieved November 25, 2010.
  8. ↑ "Misguided - Argyle Park". Allmusic. Retrieved November 25, 2010.
  9. ↑ "An Interview with Tommy Victor of Prong". Smells Like Infinite Sadness. April 24, 2013. Archived from the original on June 1, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2024. We were into Die Kreuzen a lot. Killing Joke of course, I was totally goth back then, I was into Bauhaus big time, and Black Flag, and [as] far as like hard-core I was really into Bad Brains…A cross-section of a lot stuff…I was into everything from Parliament Funkadelic to Yes, Jethro Tull, Deep Purple is a BIG huge influence…And then Euro-metal like Destruction and Creator and Celtic Frost…A little Slayer, I still love Slayer, I mean they are one of my favorite bands. And Metallica, a lot of the thrash bands – there was like hordes of them back them… we combined that with New York hardcore and our knowledge of bands like Killing Joke and goth stuff.
  10. ↑ "Prong". Threatening Society Fanzine. 2020. Archived from the original on June 13, 2024. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  11. ↑ Shlosman, Rafi (July 12, 2012). "INTERVIEW – TOMMY VICTOR OF PRONG". Cryptic Rock. Archived from the original on July 28, 2024. Retrieved August 16, 2024. On the other side, artists like Neil Young was (sic) a really huge influence on me along with Fugazi and Minor Threat.
  12. ↑ "Interview: Prong Frontman Tommy Victor Walks Us Through The New Album". New Noise Magazine. April 2, 2015. Archived from the original on December 2, 2024. Retrieved December 2, 2024. [Adolescents] might get forgotten at times, but this song never will. It's a classic timepiece with the goth elements, dissonance, and the snotty vocals. We didn't do a straight copy of it, though: we slowed it down and made it a lot gloomier. But a lot of the elements here were stuff I was influenced by, like the chaos guitar.
  13. ↑ Welding, Alan D (January 17, 2013). "PRONG's Tommy Victor Unveils Signature Schecter Guitar Confirms NAMM Signing and Performance". Pittsburgh Music Magazine. Archived from the original on April 2, 2023. Retrieved December 2, 2024.