Filter (band)

Filter

Filter (commonly typeset as FILTER, to fit their logo) is a rock group formed in 1993 in Cleveland, Ohio by Richard Patrick and guitarist/programmer Brian Liesegang.

History

Short Bus

Their first album, Short Bus, was released in 1995. The album was commercially successful, and included the hit single "Hey Man, Nice Shot". The song was somewhat controversial, as it was seen as capitalizing on the public suicide of Budd Dwyer. Kurt Cobain's suicide was widely rumored to have inspired the song, but the band refuted this. In need of a live band to tour the album, Patrick and Liesegang recruited Geno Lenardo on guitar, Frank Cavanagh on bass, and Matt Walker on drums. They would all later be featured in the video for the album's second single, "Dose".

"The Soundtrack EP"

Between Filter's first and second albums, the band became known for their soundtrack contributions, which many fans on the Filter messageboards have dubbed "The Soundtrack EP". The first of these tracks, "Thanks Bro", landed on the Songs In The Key Of X: Music From And Inspired By The X-Files album. Patrick is a fan of the show, and furthermore, his brother, Robert Patrick (of Terminator 2 fame, who can be seen wearing a leather jacket with a Nine Inch Nails pin in several interviews for that movie), even went on to star in the show as John Doggett in its later seasons.

In 1996, Filter recorded and filmed the video for the song "Jurassitol", for The Crow: City of Angels soundtrack. They also released the home video Phenomenology in 1996, which showcased some of the band's live performances and music videos, as well as an interview with Patrick and Liesegang filmed in New Mexico.

Liesegang left in 1997 shortly after recording the Filter/The Crystal Method collaboration "(Can't You) Trip Like I Do" for the Spawn movie soundtrack, due to creative differences with Patrick. In 1998, for The X-Files film soundtrack, Patrick decided to keep the Filter name and recorded a cover of Harry Nilsson's "One".

Title of Record

Patrick continued with 1999's Title of Record with returning members Lenardo and Cavanagh, as well as Steve Gillis on drums, filling in the gap left by Walker after he left to work with The Smashing Pumpkins. Title of Record moved away from industrial rock somewhat, and resulted in the band's biggest hit, the mellow ballad "Take a Picture", along with other lesser-heard singles "Welcome to the Fold" and "The Best Things". The diverse assortment of tracks on the album also had some definite backstory as well. The song "Take a Picture" is about a dispute on an aircraft, when Richard Patrick drunkenly stripped down to his boxers, alarming the other passengers. Lyrics include: "I don't believe in...your privacy"; "I feel like a new-born"; and "Awake on my airplane." "Could you take my picture 'cause I won't remember?" is a popular Southern phrase and in this case possibly refers to an alcoholic blackout. The lyrics "Hey, Dad, what do you think about your son now?" refers to the theory that Patrick's father didn't believe he could make it in the recording business and tried to persuade him to pursue another direction. The song "Captain Bligh" (after Vice-Admiral William Bligh of the HMS Bounty) was written by Patrick after leaving Nine Inch Nails and was about Trent Reznor's notoriously anti-social habits. "Miss Blue" is said to have been about Smashing Pumpkins bassist D'arcy Wretzky. She can be heard on the song "Cancer", and "Take A Picture".

The Amalgamut

2002 saw the release of The Amalgamut, featuring the singles "Where Do We Go from Here?" and "American Cliché". "The Only Way (Is the Wrong Way)" was also featured in the first wave of Hummer2 commercials that year and in the 2003 movie Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life. Alan Bailey was recruited for live guitar when they set off to tour the album; however, the tour ended abruptly in a matter of weeks when Richard Patrick voluntarily checked himself into rehab. He has since tattooed his date of sobriety, September 28, 2002, on his forearm.

Side projects

Richard Patrick was part of the supergroup The Damning Well, which has only released one track on the Underworld movie soundtrack in 2003, despite an entire album's worth of recording.

Army of Anyone, a side project with drummer Ray Luzier and former Stone Temple Pilots members Robert and Dean DeLeo, released its debut album on November 14, 2006.

Former Filter members Brian Liesegang and Matt Walker played keyboards and drums (respectively) in Billy Corgan's touring band in 2005 to promote his solo album. It was heavily rumored that Geno Lenardo and Frank Cavanaugh were going to be involved with former lead singer of Adema, Mark Chavez, in a band called State of Mind. These rumors proved to be false as Chavez had a band called Midnight Panic, which didn't feature either of the two (Midnight Panic has since disbanded).

Anthems For The Damned

As Army of Anyone wound down, Patrick began working on material for a new Filter album, to eventually be titled Anthems for the Damned. Released to the public in May of 2008, it was more serious in tone than some expected and expresses more of his mixed emotions regarding the state of the world and the state of his life. So far, critical reaction has been mostly positive, and some of the anti-war / pro-troop content, such as the lead single, "Soldiers of Misfortune," is generating interest with less controversy than some may have otherwise expected.

Operation: MySpace

On March 7th 2008, Seive announced that Frank Cavanagh had reunited with Filter and would play as a live member at the operation myspace concert in Kuwait. It was confirmed at Operation MySpace that he will not be joining Filter on the full tour as he will be shipping off to Iraq in April. The only song played live during the March 10th performance by Cavanagh, now a Sergeant and Paralegal in the U.S. Army Reserve, was the band's first mainstream hit, "Hey, Man, Nice Shot".

Future Releases

When asked about the direction of his music style in an interview with Suicide Girls on September 13, 2008, Patrick said, "Actually the stuff I’m writing right now for a record that I’m going to release sometime next year is actually way more heavy industrial, more electronic. There’s probably not going to be that many live drums on it." He also announced a remix album to Anthems For the Damned on November 4th, titled Remix For the Damned.

Members

Current

• Richard Patrick – lead vocals, guitar (1993 – present)
• Mitchell Marlow – guitar (2008 – present)
• John Spiker – bass (2008 – present)
• Mika Fineo – drums, percussion (2008 – present)
• There is currently an unknown 5th person playing the programming for the band.

Former

• Brian Liesegang – guitar, programming (1993 – 1997)
• Matt Walker – drums, percussion (1995 – 1999)
• Geno Lenardo – guitar (1995 – 2002)
• Alan Bailey – guitar (2002)
• Steve Gillis – drums, percussion (1999–2002)
• Frank Cavanagh - bass (1995 - 2002, 2008)
• Charles Lee - bass (2007-2008)

Discography

Main article: Filter discography

• 1995: Short Bus
• 1999: Title of Record
• 2002: The Amalgamut
• 2008: Anthems for the Damned

See also

• List of alternative music artists
• List of number-one dance hits (United States)
• List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. Dance chart

External links

• Filter's official web site
• Template:Myspace
• Template:Last.fm
• All Music Guide entry for Filter
• Unofficial Filter Discography
• Hit, With a Bullet: Filter’s “Hey Man, Nice Shot”

Interviews

• Suicide Girls: Filter For The Damned (09/2008)
• Fabryka Industrial Rock webzine interview (03/2008)
• EmpyreLounge.com Interview with Richard Patrick (05/2008)
• Interview @ SHOUT! Music Webzine (07/2008)
• Type 3 Media interview with Richard Patrick and John Spiker (08/2008)