ESP Company, Limited (株式会社イーエスピー, Kabushiki Gaisha Ī Esu Pī^?), located in North Hollywood, California, is an American-based, Japanese-owned manufacturer of electric guitars and basses.

In 1975, Hisatake Shibuya opened a shop called Electric Sound Products (ESP) in Tokyo. It provided custom replacement parts for guitars. In 1976, ESP gained a reputation as a provider of high-quality replacement parts. At this time, ESP also began crafting guitars under the ESP and Navigator brand in the Japanese market.^{[citation needed]}

ESP replacement parts were first introduced into the US in 1983. ESP began crafting custom instruments for local New York artists between 1984 and 1985. Among these artists were Page Hamilton (Helmet), Vernon Reid (Living Colour), Vinnie Vincent & Bruce Kulick (KISS), and Ronnie Wood (The Rolling Stones). At this time, ESP also introduced the 400 Series as the first production line distributed in the US.

During this same period of time, ESP began making the bodies and necks for Kramer Guitars. Other manufacturers using ESP as an OEM were Robin Guitars, Schecter Guitar Research and DiMarzio. Many traits of the Kramer line are still visible including neck construction and body bevels. ESP tooled up for Tom Anderson's shaved bolt on neck heel on the Schecter bodies, and has since become a feature of their house brand.

Dio was an American heavy metal band. Formed in 1982 and led by vocalist Ronnie James Dio, after he left Black Sabbath with intentions to form a new band with fellow former Black Sabbath member, drummer Vinny Appice. Naming the band Dio made sense from a commercial standpoint, as the name was already well-known at that time. Dio in Italian means "God".

The band released ten studio albums and had numerous line-up changes over the years with Ronnie James Dio having been the only constant member. Guitarists have included Craig Goldy (most recent guitarist), Doug Aldrich, Vivian Campbell, Tracy G, Jake E. Lee and Rowan Robertson.

In 1982, disagreements originating over the mixing of Black Sabbath's Live Evil resulted in the departure of Ronnie James Dio and Vinny Appice from the band. Wanting to continue together as a band, the two formed Dio in October 1982 in the United States. The following May, the band released their debut album, Holy Diver. It featured two hit singles, "Rainbow in the Dark" and "Holy Diver", which gained popularity from MTV. Ronnie James Dio and Jimmy Bain played keyboards in the studio, but recruited keyboardist Claude Schnell for live shows in 1983 prior to the Holy Diver tour. Schnell played to the side of the stage on the first two tours before coming out front in 1985. Dio had this to say of the band's origins:

Ben Weinman (born in 1975) is an American musician, who is most notable for being the lead guitarist for the band The Dillinger Escape Plan. He is the founder and only original member remaining in the band.

Weinman attended Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison, New Jersey where he received a degree in psychology. He then went on to study corporate communications at Fairleigh Dickinson University. Weinman, Chris Pennie, Dimitri Minakakis and Adam Doll began The Dillinger Escape Plan in 1997. Weinman is also reported to be teetotal.

Weinman has been involved in the production of all the band's releases since their self-titled debut EP, as well as various other musical works. Ben Weinman has self-managed or has been involved with the management of The Dillinger Escape Plan since the band’s inception. Known for his outspoken views on the music industry he has contributed to various publications and has spoken at Universities and conferences on the subjects of music production and the music business.

Joseph Poole, better known as Wednesday 13 (born August 12, 1976), is a rock musician from Charlotte, North Carolina. He is most famous for his role as the frontman of the Murderdolls. He has also played in several other bands, including Frankenstein Drag Queens from Planet 13, Wednesday 13, Bourbon Crow and most recently Gunfire 76.

Poole currently resides in Los Angeles. Poole is a fan of campy horror movie parodies and mildly macabre TV shows such as The Munsters and The Addams Family (the latter being the source of his "Wednesday" moniker), which influence his tongue-in-cheek lyrics. He also created a set of cartoon characters with his ex-wife called the Thirteen Dead Kids, which was released as a clothing line. A book was supposed to be released, though this was halted due to Poole's touring schedule and the lack of publisher.

Poole's musical career began in 1992 when he played guitar in the band Mizery which later became Psycho Opera which featured guitarist Abby Normal, drummer Jeff Washam, bassist Michael Patrick and lead vocalist Todd Cage. Poole left the band to form Maniac Spider Trash as lead vocalist alongside Abby Normal (again on guitar) and Michael Patrick (also filling his earlier role as bassist), they were joined by Sicko Zero on drums. Poole fronted the band from 1992 through 1996. The band released one EP entitled Dumpster Mummies on Dead Hell Records in 1994. This was followed by an album titled Murder Happy Fairytales in 1995 which remains unreleased. The band then disbanded. Dumpster Mummies EP will be re-issued October 5, 2010.

Robert Caggiano (born November 7, 1976) is an American guitarist and producer best known as the lead guitarist of the Heavy Metal band Anthrax. His first professional band was Boiler Room that formed in 1996. The band caught the attention of Roadrunner Records after an opening slot for the band Orgy in 1999. After several delays, the band eventually got Tommy Boy Records to release their debut album 'Can't Breathe'. Soon after the release, the band broke up in summer 2001.

He initially played with Anthrax from 2001 until 2005, exiting when their Among the Living lineup reunited, and later returning in 2007 following the end of that reunion. He appears on the albums We've Come for You All and Worship Music, as well as the Greater of Two Evils compilation (a live-in-the-studio recording of older material) and the live album Music of Mass Destruction. Rob was also part of "The Big 4" tour recently^[when?] which featured Anthrax, Slayer, Megadeth and Metallica. The Bulgaria show was streamed and broadcasted to movie theaters all over the world and the entire "Big 4" show (Anthrax, Megadeth, Slayer and Metallica) came out on DVD Nov. 2, 2010. Rob Caggiano is also known as a record producer/mixer under the alias of Scrap 60 Productions most notably for producing Cradle of Filth, Anthrax, and Jesse Malin along with many other prominent metal/hard rock bands. Rob is also the guitarist/songwriter for a band called The Damned Things along with Scott Ian (Anthrax), Joe Trohman and Andy Hurley (Fall Out Boy), and Keith Buckley (Everytime I Die). The debut album for The Damned Things which was also produced and recorded by Rob Caggiano was released through Island Records on December 13, 2010.