A Course of Action

A Course of Action
A Course of Action
	File:A Course of Action performing a live concert in 2014.jpg A Course of Action performing live in 2014.
Background information
Also known as	Hybrid (2000–2006) ACOA (abbreviated);
Origin	Connelly Springs, North Carolina, United States
Genres	Alternative rock, post-grunge, hard rock, garage rock
Years active	2000–2016
Labels	Spire Records (2004-2014) Star 1 Records (2015-2016); Universal Music Group (2016);
Website	http://acourseofaction.com/
Members	John Culberson; J. T. Silvestri;
Past members	Jonathan Byrd; Wes Johnson; Tony Hawkins; Greg Lucy; Okey Parsons;

A Course of Action was an American rock band founded by Copperhead bandmates Jonathan Byrd and Tony Hawkins from Connelly Springs, North Carolina.^[1] The band was originally known as "Hybrid" but after a lineup change in 2006 the remaining members decided to overhaul the band's name and image, thus choosing "A Course of Action" as the new name.^[2]

Background

A Course of Action was formed in 2000 by lead guitarist Jonathan Byrd and original bassist Tony Hawkins after the breakup of their southern rock band from Morganton, North Carolina, Copperhead fronted by singer Neil Carswell.

Originally named Hybrid, Bryd and Hawkins recruited spent three years recruiting a vocalist and drummer which resulted in the eventual additions of lead singer John Culberson, who also had regional success in his former band True To One and lastly drummer Okey Parsons in 2003.^[3]^[4]

Hybrid years (2000-2006)

In 2004 A Course of Action (still-then named Hybrid) launched their own independent record label known as Spire Records and released their self-titled debut album Hybrid that November.^[5]^{[better source needed]}

Their second release with their independent label Spire Records was their January 2006 four song EP titled "Now You See."^[6] However, not long after the EP's release drummer Okey Parsons left the band. Even though Hybrid, achieved exceptional regional success from 2003 into 2006, with the advent of social marketing the band decided the name "Hybrid" became too broad to brand, and replacing Okey Parsons with new drummer Greg Lucy, the band decided to change their name to "A Course of Action" in late 2006.^[7]^[8]

Name change to A Course of Action, new lineup (2006-2009)

Still releasing music under their own independent label Spire Records, the band's first release under their new name was the single titled "Move On" in November 2006.^[9]

In 2009 drummer Greg Lucy exited the band leading to another search for a new drummer, but quickly replaced him with J. T. Silvestri and immediately began work on their new album with producer Eric Greedy.^[10]^[11]

Dark Before the Dawn and departure of Tony Hawkins (2010-2013)

After two years of occasional performing local gigs while writing, recording, and posting demos to their ReverbNation page, in March 2011 the band announced their new album "Dark Before the Dawn" would be released independently on May 1, 2011.

The album spawned a single titled "Never There" that charted on Untapped Radio's Top 10 for several months, hitting a peak at the #2 position.^[12]^[13]

In December 2011 bassist and founding member Taylor Hawkins announced he would be retiring from the music industry therefore he would be leaving the band, leaving Bryd as the only founding member remaining in the band.^[14]

After some downtime and the search for a bass player to replace Hawkins, in 2012 announced the addition of new bassist Wes Johnson and began touring more heavily in various local establishments,^[15] serving as support the opening act for bands like Winger, Eye Empire, Halestorm, Super Bob, and co-headlined the Rockin’ Kids First Benefit in Charlotte, NC, in conjunction with Kids First of the Carolinas.

The group began work on new music in late 2012 throughout 2013, collaborating with music producer, Beau Hill to produce the new album with the goal of releasing their second album sometime the next year.^[16]

National successful, Treason (2013-2015)

In early 2014 the band uploaded a demo of a new song titled "Who We Are" to their ReverbNation profile which went viral and gained national as well as foreign exposure,^[17] prompting them to release a music video for the demo in May 2014 and uploaded it to their YouTube and ReverbNation channels.^[18]

After gaining global exposure with "Who We Are" the summer of 2014 brought the band a significant amount of exposure, getting booked to large music festivals like Rocklahoma, which prompted the band to release an EP titled "Rocklahoma" on May 22, 2014.^[19] The EP featured four new, previously unreleased songs to capitalize on the national recognition resulting from their performance at the 2014 festival.^[20]

2014 seen the band participating in more well-known music festivals such as Carolina Rebellion and on the Wolfman Jack Stage at the Buffalo Chip at the Sturgis Bike Rally in Sturgis, South Dakota, opening for Sevendust and Buckcherry.^[21]^[22]

Throughout 2014 the band continued to gain national recognition for their song "Who We Are" that resulted in A Course of Action being nominated for "Best Rock Band" in the 2014 Carolina Music Awards ceremony.^[23] For their nomination, the Carolina Music Awards included the band's hit-song "Who We Are" on their compilation album that featured music by the artists and bands who received a nomination for that years awards ceremony.^[24]

In a summer 2014 interview, singer John Culberson stated during an interview that the group would finish out 2014 touring, providing support and opening for the bands Saving Abel, Tantric, Something Clever, Saliva, Hed PE, and Nothing More.^[25]^{[better source needed]} On January 21, 2015, the band revealed they signed a record deal with Star 1 Records, with distribution by INgrooves and owned by Universal Music Group.^[26]

In April 2015 the band announced the first single from their second album would be titled "Beautiful" and posted the demo version to their ReverbNation page for fans to stream for free. During a live concert opening for Puddle of Mudd in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on April 17, 2015, the band announced during their show that their new single was officially sent to radio stations as their new single.^[27]

In May 2015 the band announced their new album "Treason" would be released on June 8, 2015.^[28]^[29] With the announcement the band also announced a series of tour dates to promote the album and its new singles, which included performing at the 2015 Rocklahoma music festival^[30] and the 2015 Carolina Summer Craft Beer and Music Festival Tantric at the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds on June 13, 2015.^[31]^[32]

A music video for "Beautiful" premiered on the band's official YouTube channel on August 14, 2015.^[33]

Treason spawned three singles in total which were "107", "Beautiful", and "Who We Are" the ladder being the band's biggest hit.^[34]

Departure of Jon Bryd, Wes Johnson and indefinite hiatus (2016-present)

On April 27, 2016, it was announced lead guitarist and founding member Jonathan Byrd and bas player Wes Johnson would be leaving the band, opting to retire from the music industry or release solo material.^[35]^{[better source needed]} However, in a Facebook post in the following hours and days after the announcement lead singer John Culberson and drummer J. T. Silvestri stated they will keep the band going and will be searching for new bandmates. As of 2025 (9 years after the initial announcement) the band has been totally inactive and their social media pages has not been posted from since May 2016, indicating the band is on an indefinite hiatus.^[36]^[37]^{[better source needed]}

Musical style

The band's sound blends elements of hard rock, post-grunge, and alternative rock. They are known for strong melodic hooks, harmonized guitars, and emotive lyrics. Influences include classic and modern rock acts such as Alice in Chains, Tool, Sevendust, and Alter Bridge.^[38]

Band members

Current members

John Culberson – lead singer, rhythm guitar (2003–2016)^[39]
J. T. Silvestri – drums (2009–2016)^[40]

Former members

Jonathan Byrd – lead guitar (2000–2016)^[41]
Wes Johnson – bass guitar (2012–2016)^[42]
Tony Hawkins – bass guitar (2000–2011)^[43]
Greg Lucy - drums (2006–2009)^[44]
Okey Parsons - drums (2003–2006)^[45]

Discography

Albums

As Hybrid

Hybrid (2004)^[46]