Jim "Moe" Mulqueen co-founded Rotting Corpse with Walt Trachsler in 1985. The two had known each other for years already, working as roadies for Pantera in the early ‘80s when Darrell Abbott was still billed as Diamond Darrell, and had been searching for other musicians for a long time before the rest of the lineup came together. Mulqueen is also the reason the band got a drummer: he met Dave Gryder at Savvy’s in Arlington, found they liked the same records, and set up a rehearsal.
The Voice On The First Tape
Mulqueen sang lead vocals on Rotting Corpse’s debut 1986 demo — the recording that put the band on the map as one of the earliest thrash/death acts out of Texas. A retrospective review of that tape drew a direct line to a thrash legend: "I think the guy had a lot in common with Paul Baloff vocally... Check out for example the opening song of the demo, ‘Rotting Corpse,’ to notice his similarities vocal-wise to Baloff’s voice; even totally deaf people are able to hear them." Baloff, the original voice of Exodus, is about as strong a vocal comparison as thrash metal has to offer.
Passing The Mic
Trachsler took over lead vocals starting with the band’s second demo in 1987, and Mulqueen’s run as Rotting Corpse’s frontman was brief as a result — just the one tape. It’s a short discography line for the guy who started the band, but it’s the one that’s still cited by name whenever people talk about how Rotting Corpse actually sounded at the beginning.
Mulqueen has stayed connected to the band’s story since — he was there for the 2004 reunion jam alongside Trachsler and Murphy, and has shared the stage with the band again in the years since.
