by Eduardo Rivadavia Founded in 2003, New York City's provocatively named *** Slaves count bondage gear, duct tape, lesbian girls in fishnets, and the timeless sounds of old-school punk rock among their hobbies. First presented on the trio's debut effort, Nikki, this spicy recipe gained early acceptance from Japanese audiences (largely thanks to its being released by Japan's Wizzard Records) and made vocalist and guitarist Eric 13, bassist Del Cheetah, and drummer J/Bomb fast favorites among rock & roll celebrities as infamous as Gene Simmons, C.C. DeVille, and Lemmy Kilmister. Several U.S. and Japanese tours later, *** Slaves returned home to record their second effort, Bite Your Tongue, released by Radical Records in summer 2005.