Rickie Palmstruch

Jan Richard Mattias Palmstruch (born May 1, 1974) is a Finnish-American-Canadian musician and singer-songwriter. He is best known as the current bassist and backing vocalist of the Canadian funk metal band Zammboney, and is also a member of Derek De Vriendt's solo band and Animalization.

Palmstruch is known for performing in face and body paint, prosthetic makeup and uniforms, usually representing anthropomorphic dogs, specifically the English Bull Terrier. When he joined Animalization in 2018, he took on the name "Rickie the Wonder Dog".

Early life
Palmstruch was born to a Swedo-Finnish father and African-American mother in,. His mother emigrated to Finland as a war resister to the Vietnam War, and met his father in the. Palmstruch holds multiple citizenship with Finland, the United States and Canada.

In 1979, Palmstruch relocated with his parents to, where they remained for a year until they obtained a U.S. visa. His parents chose to move to his mother's hometown of, where they lived in the neighborhood on. His father worked at a Swedish restaurant in Huntsville until Palmstruch was 17, when they relocated to when his father got a job as a security guard for the Finnish embassy. Although he began schooling at in Huntsville, Rickie completed his schooling at. As a result of his time spent in, Palmstruch speaks with a noticeable southern African-American accent.

Palmstruch's interest in R&B music, especially the new jack swing genre, piqued when he heard 's hit song "Every Little Step" on the radio one evening. He later recalled "And one night this song comes on the radio, and it's this ex- member singin' a song that goes "Every little step I take, you will be there, every little step I make, we'll be together!", and I never heard this type of R&B before. I wanted to try it out sometime."

Zammboney
While attending The American School in London, Palmstruch met Zack van Egmond, a Canadian student. Together in 1997, they formed a duo named Zammboney, playing the club scene together. The two relocated to, , in 1999 at the advice of a friend who had taken notice of bands from the Toronto music scene such as.

Personal life
Palmstruch lives in with his partner Liza Degner, the vocalist for Seek the Fate.

When asked if he was a furry, Palmstruch replied "Yes. I've always been a sort of "furry", always wishing I could be, you know, a dog." Palmstruch had attended his first furry convention when he was 20, where he first had the idea for his modern-day onstage appearance.