Machine Head (group)

Biography

Foundation of the group

Machine Head was founded in 1992 by the guitarist Robert Flynn (ex- Vio-lence) and the bass player Adam Duce. The first album, Burn My Eyes (1994), mixed by Hake Richardson, is often regarded as having contributed to the kind metal in a way as important as Reign in Blood of Slayer and Master off Puppets of Metallica. This album will immediately be worth success near the public to them metal of the old continent. That will allow them, after having spent several weeks on the roads in company of Slayer on the two sides of the Atlantic, to at the head assemble their own European round of poster as of spring 1995 (with in opening Swedes of Meshuggah and Mary Beats Jane, training of the future singer of The Haunted Peter Dolving). It is during this round that the group will make a service noticed with the Open Dynamo Air, larger festival metal of the time, before a concert in August with the Monsters Of Rock'n'roll of Castle-Donington where a temporary beater replaces Chris Kontos. Consequently, the tensions go up between Kontos, hitherto nearly exclusive representative of the formation near the press, and the remainder of the group.

Experimentation (1997-2001)

After the departure of Chris Kontos (left to play with Will), it is Dave McClain (which officiated before in Sacred Reich which taken the changing as a beater of the group. The group left shortly after the album The More Things Change into 1997, after which the guitarist Logan Mader left suddenly the group in spring 1998 to join Rob Zombie then Soulfly. It was then replaced by Ahrue Luster (from now on member of Ill Niño) which worked on the third album The Burning Red (1999). This album was a sign of change for Machine Head, the group deciding to test rather than to keep the style defined with Burn My Eyes . Robb uses voices Rap on this album in addition to usual sound “growl”. The title Devil With The Kings Card is based on the departure of Logan Mader of the group.

The album was badly accepted by certain fans who did not appreciate the change of style. Some showed the group to be “sold” and to follow the modes (the Naked-metal and the rap metal were indeed becoming popular towards 1999).

Although Burn My Eyes exerted more influence on the scene metal in general, The Burning Red was sold almost as much in 3 years (1999 - 2002) that Burn My Eyes in 8 years (1994 - 2002). In 2000, groups like Head Machine and Slipknot made to the object of a placement of product in the series the Soprano. A.J. Soprano, played by Robert Iler, often wore clothing Roadrunner Records, for example the Tee-shirt of individual the Year off the Dragon of Head Machine.

Machine Head left Supercharger in 2001, album which did not have a great success, mainly because of its date of setting on sale, shortly after the September 11th, 2001. After having sold on the whole more than 1,3 million albums with their precedents opus, Machine Head will run out only 250.000 specimens of Supercharger. The clip of the song Crashing Around You was not diffused by MTV because it comprised images of buildings crumbling. The album accepted the same kind of criticisms as The Burning Red . Once the finished round, Roadrunner Records does not renew the contract of the group, which arrives at its end and the group is found without label.

Decline (2002-2003)

In 2002, Ahrue Luster left the group because of musical divergences. Phil Demmel, which played in Vio-lence with Flynn replaced it for some festivals. At the conclusion of this mini-round, it was officially committed in the group. In optics to canvass the labels, Flynn writes texts, which will end in a demonstration of some titles, of which Pins and Needles , formatted for the radio diffusion. But these efforts will be vain, since Machine Head will not convince any label by this canvassing. Roadrunner International (Europe and rest of the world, not including all in all by the United States) will end up proposing a contract with the group.

Revival (as from 2003)

The years 2003 and 2004 to some extent saw the return in form of the group, initially marked by the live exit of the album Hellalive in 2003 (recording in one concert to the Brixton Academy of London).

To the autumn 2003, Machine Head left its fifth album studio, Through The Ashes Of Empires , to Europe. At the beginning of 2004, they signed again with Roadrunner Records with the the United States and then left Through The Ashes Of Empires to the USA with an additional title recorded after the remainder the album, Seasons Wither . Through The Ashes Of Empires returns to a style closer to that of Burn My Eyes , and made speak about him thanks to the success of the title Imperium and of what was regarded by the fans as a large return in form - musicalement and on the level of the texts, and a return to the sources. Machine Head held the head of poster of the scene “true metal” of the festival Wacken Open Air in 2005 front 40.000 fans - their larger concert to date (they had made an appearance with the Open Dynamo Air festival at their beginnings but not at the head of poster). Through The Ashes Of Empires started with the 88e place of American Billboard - a good performance for a group considered as dead and buried by some a few years earlier.

October 11th, 2005, Machine Head left its first DVD: Elegies . This one contains image filmeds in concert in Brixton Academy in December 2004, 3 clips ( The Blood, The Sweat, The Tears drawn from Hellalive like Imperium and Days Turn Blue To Gray drawn from Through The Ashes Of Empires ). The DVD contains also documentary on the group, showing it close stopping and describing how he survived the pressure of the recording companies, the beginning of Ahrue Luster and the criticism of the fans. At the time of its first week of setting on sale, Elegies reached the 13th place in the United States and 6th in the United Kingdom with the classification of the musical DVD.

This same October 11th, 2005, Roadrunner Records on sale put an album to commemorate the 25 years of the label. This project brings together many artists of the label. Four of the titles of this album, Roadrunner United: The AlStar Sessions , were written by Robert Flynn. Phil Demmel and Dave McClain contributed to the album.

Machine Head also took again Battery of Metallica for the British magazine Kerrang within the framework of Remastered , a homage to the album Master off Puppets 20 years after its exit.

In 2006, the group prepared its sixth album studio, entitled The Blackening . The album, produced by Robert Flynn and mixed by Richardson Hake, left on March 26th, 2007. The songs Halation , Aesthetics Off Haste , The Beautiful Mourning , Now I Lay Thee Down had been announced as of April 2006 by Robb Flynn on the newspaper of the group. In the line of Through The Ashes Off Empires , the album was well accommodated by the critic and the public, since it is assembled to the 54e place of the sales of albums to the United States, whereas the group had never yet reached this position.

Members

Current

Robert Flynn (Song and Guitar)
Phil Demmel (Guitar)
Adam Duce (low and Song}
Dave McClain (battery)

Old

Ahrue Luster (Guitar) (1998-2002)
Logan Mader (Guitar) (1992-1998)
Chris Kontos (battery) (1994-1996)
Tony Costanza (battery) (1992-1994)

Discography

Albums

Notes:

Hellalive is an album live. The recording took place at the time of the concert in Brixton Academy, of London on December 8th, 2001, except for two pieces recorded in Germany during the edition 2002 of With Full Force Festival.
the album The Blackening left on March 28th to the United States whereas it had been available everywhere else for two days.

Individual and EP

Clips

DVD

Elegies (October 11th 2005)

Anecdotes

the Clip of the song Davidian , extracted from Burn my Eyes, was interdict of diffusion on the chain MTV because it left shortly after the tragedy Waco and that the words (“ Let freedom boxing ring/with has shotgun blast ”) there referred probably.
the relations of the group with Slayer were very variable with the wire of time. So at its beginnings the group has Pu to profit from the parainnage of their elder (one finds even Robb Flynn and Chris Kontos on scene with dimensions of Slayer on a resumption of the " Witching Hour" of Venom in video Live Intrusion), Kerry King will attack the group, and more particularly Robb Flynn at the exit of Supercharger, in 2001. Mutually showing itself to have lost their credibility (Head Machine being itself saying is lowered to make rap-metal, Kerry King being misled by taking part in a clip of Sum 41), the two men will exchange some kindnesses by interposed press. Following a discussion between the two men with Metal Hammer Awards of June 2007, Robb Flynn will announce that this quarrel belongs from now on to the past.
Disney made pressure on the turner Live Nation to make off cancel a concert envisaged on September 17th, 2007 with the House Blues of Anaheim, located within the Disneyland Resort. The called upon reasons are the violent image conveyed by the group and of the disgrâcieuses words.

The concert was moved in the room The Glass House of Pomona. Announces published on the official site of the group on September 6th, 2007

Disney Forces Machine Head Cancellation

In has stunning last-minute move, Walt Disney Properties cuts pressured promoter Live Nation into canceling Machine Head' S performance tomorrow night At the House off Blues come in Anaheim (one to their Disneyland property). Citing violate imagery, undesirable fans and inflammatory lyrics ace the reason, the diversity-impaired corporation began pressuring the promoter one Saturday to chancel all upcoming heavy metal concerts, placing Machine Head under year internal " review process" that took 5 days before bothering to convey to their alarming decision to the band late yesterday - less than 48 hours before to their Black Tyranny Turn was to kick off At House off Anaheim Blues one Friday night.

While the enactment off this new blanket rule applies to all upcoming heavy metal shows At the House Off Blues Anaheim (with nap metal bands having been banned from performing one name alone), Machine Head is the first band to actually cuts tickets go one salts, and remain one salts for 2 months, before intense presses and off vague threats liability from the Corporation left the promoter with No choice drank to remove the show from the come.

As has result, Live Nation' S honourable Paul McGuigan did the thing and incredibly, one one days note, managed to salvage the tour' S opening night by moving the first date off The Black Tyranny turn (featuring Machine Head, Arch Enemy, Throwdown, and Sanctity) to The Glass House in Pomona, CA (located At 200 W. Second Street). All existing tickets will Be redeemable for entry At The Knell House, and all Will Cal pickups will now Be available for pickup At the new come. Any fans unable to make the 70-mile trip to The Glass House ace has result off this ridiculous turn off vents will Be whitebait to cuts to their money refunded in full. Strangely, all other Black Tyranny dates At House Off Blues come one Disney property will remain unaffected.

One behalf off all furnace bands one the bill, Machine Head wish to extend to their gratitude to promoter Paul McGuigan and Live Nation for finding year alternate come for tomorrow night' S show one such shorts note.

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