Godhead

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Godhead
General information
origin Washington, DC , United States
Genre (s) Alternative rock , alternative metal
founding In the early 1990s as a blind
Website http://www.godhead.com/
Current occupation
Jason C. Miller
Electric guitar
 Mike Miller
Ulrich "The Method" Hepperlin
Ty Smith
former members
Drums
 Dwayne Reid
Drums
 John Pettit
Electric bass
 Bruce Brandstatter
Drums
 Tom Z
Drums
 Ken Jay
Drums
 James O'Connor
Drums
 Glendon Crain
Drums
 Nathan Camfiord
Electric guitar
 Danny Reibez

Godhead is an American rock band from Washington, DC , which was founded under this name in the early 1990s, renamed itself Blind and reverted to its original name.

history

The band was founded in the early 1990s by guitarist and singer Jason C. Miller and drummer Nathan Camfiord under the name Godhead. The latter wanted to be renamed Blind, but was soon eliminated. He was replaced by Dwayne Reid, and Bruce Brandstatter was added as bassist. The group made their first appearance in April 1992. For a demo , which Drew Mazurek produced, John Pettit came as a drummer to fill. For over a year the band held gigs in the United States. The band then signed a contract with Marlboro Music . In March 1994 the band went into the studio with producer Warren Croyle to record songs for the America Now sampler . The musicians had to find out that there was already a German band called "Blind", whereupon they reactivated their name "Godhead".

Further appearances in the USA and in Germany followed under a new name. The self-titled debut album followed in 1995 and was advertised on the Foundations Forum . The album had already been recorded the year before. Ahead of an upcoming European tour, Marlboro Music introduced Danny Reibez to the cast as guitarist, so Miller could concentrate solely on the vocals. For the tour through Europe, which was held in 1996 with Ugly Mus-Tard , Mike Miller was added as the second guitarist. Then the band signed a record deal with Sol 3 Records , while Brandstatter was replaced by Ulrich "The Method" Hepperlin. The album Nothingness was released on this label in 1997 . The next album, Power Tool Stigmata , which was produced by Richard Gotterhrer , followed in 1998 . Then James O'Connor can be heard as the drummer. After that, the group toured with Christian Death while looking for a new label. Godhead supported Marilyn Manson in his US appearances on his Guns, God and Government Tour. He signed the band first with his label Posthuman Records . Manson and Twiggy Ramirez and Reeves Gabrels made guest contributions to the 2001 album 2000 Years of Human Error , produced by Danny Saber and mixed by John X Volaitis . Around 100,000 copies of the album were sold. This includes a cover version of the Beatles song Eleanor Rigby , as well as a revised version of Power Tool Stigmata . Eleanor Rigby and the song The Reckoning were broadcast on MTV and various radio stations. Eleanor Rigby has also been remixed several times by various artists. The band was able to increase its notoriety significantly by appearing on the soundtracks for Blair Witch 2 , Wes Craven presents Dracula and Queen of the Damned . There were also concerts with Static-X , Rammstein , Mudvayne and Disturbed . In 2001 the band took part in the Ozzfest . In November and December, the new drummer Tom Z followed suit with Pigface and Gravity Kills .

In July 2003 the album Evolver was released , which was produced by Warren Croyle and Joe Floy . Guest musicians include Reeves Gabrels and Wayne Static . About 100,000 pieces of the album also sold. In the same year, the single The Hate in Me was released from this album , which was mainly played on MTV2 . The song Far Too Long was featured on NFL Today on CBS . After the recordings for the album, the former Static X drummer Ken Jay joined the cast as a new member. The new line-up should make their first appearances on Paradise Lost's European tour . However, the group had to cancel their participation because Jay fell ill. In 2004 the band wrote new material with former Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody. After the band had been quiet for a while, the album The Shadow Line was released in 2006 . Glendon Crain is included as a drummer. Trapped in Your Lies was released as a single . After an acoustic DVD was recorded in Hollywood , American Head Charge went on a US tour. At the end of 2007 the EP Unplugged followed, which was only released digitally on ITunes , Napster , Rhapsody , EMusic and Amazon.com . The album At the Edge of the World followed in October 2008 via Driven Music Group . Thereupon a new drummer is included with Ty Smith. During their career, the band also performed with GWAR and Genitorturers, among others . In 2014 The Shadow Realigned was released via Warrior Records , which includes 14 remixes from 14 different producers. In addition, three previously unreleased songs were finished and placed on the phonogram: The Heal , a cover version of the Depeche Mode song Never Let Me Down Again and God of Thunder , originally by Kiss .

style

laut.de was that the band alternative rock with a bit of gothic rock and industrial - samples mixed. On Nothingness the music tends more towards Gothic Rock. The Shadow Line is more mainstream, which makes the groupsoundmore like a rock band . The music on the album is comparable to that of alternative rock bands such as Stabbing Westward and Stone The Crow . At the Edge of the World is similarly catchy, but less inventive. According to Allmusic's Kerry L. Smith, the band plays a mix of aggressive industrial and gothic rock. On 2000 Years of Human Error , the band thematize their religious and social dissatisfaction. In his book = The Next Generation of Rock & Punk Nu-Metal, Joel McIver drewa comparison with Fear Factory , which previously had also successfullybroken metal rules by using strong electronic elements that were not typical of the genre. A strong influence for the band was David Bowie , especially his album Earthling . Christian Graf wrote in his Nu Metal and Crossover Lexicon that the bandcombine "sampled guitars and electronics"like Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson. In addition, the members would be considered "radical programming talents with an occasional penchant for the common metal platitudes". The cover by Eleanor Rigby offers a predictable "interplay between martial eruptions, quiet moments or between Gothic and Industrial".

The Metal Hammer wrote about the debut album that the band played a mixture of punk , metal and gothic rock on it. The band is not interested in a mix of styles, "but rather snottiness, punch and the necessary portion of Weltschmerz ". One issue later, Matthias Mineur wrote in his review of the self-titled album that Jason Miller called his music "Dark Modern Rock". The music will be underlaid with alternative rock in the style of Alice in Chains . In addition, influences from grunge and folk-rock are processed in the style of REM , Live or the Crash Test Dummies . The album comes up with “pulsating drums and the sharp-edged guitar”. One issue later, Wolf Kohl wrote in his report on the Foundations Forum that the band played a dark, elegiac mixture of Gothic and Alternative Rock. Miller's appearance and gestures are a mixture of Robert Smith and Marilyn Manson. His voice is classically trained and easily extends over four octaves. In the same issue, Markus Kavka reviewed Miller, who stated that he was heavily influenced by Gothic Rock of the early 1980s. In addition, he again led the self-created term "Dark Modern Rock". Five years later, Thorsten Zahn reviewed the Blair Witch 2 sampler . Godhead's contribution The Reckoning is a mixture of pounding Gothic Rock and Industrial. A year later, Zahn interviewed Jason Miller, describing the band as "electro-metallers" and noted a sonic similarity to Marilyn Manson in 2000 Years of Human Error . Miller stated that the album title should be a bit socially critical: The title refers to the Bible and, "that everyone misinterprets the Bible and does not pay attention to the fact that this book can be a great life guide." According to Zahn Miller mixed in the Texts intimate interior views with personal short stories, so that it is not just about topics such as gun violence, church and state. In the same issue, Zahn reviewed the album and stated that, unlike its predecessors, the rock elements faded into the background and electronic arrangements would dominate instead. Samples, beats and keyboards would be reminiscent of the 1980s and evoke memories of Skinny Puppy , Joy Division and The Cure . In 2003 Matthias Weckmann discussed the album Evolver . It's a logical development from its predecessor, offering organic rock with industrial rock and new rock influences. He described the music as a mixture of Zeromancer , the then current Cold and occasionally Faith No More , but is now less spontaneous and anarchic . In the next issue, Henning Richter reviewed Jason Miller. According to Richter, the band initially played a mixture of Gothic Rock and Punk and are now increasingly incorporating electronic influences. Miller noted that you're automatically influenced by bands you're touring with. Most of all, they were influenced by Wayne Static and Reeves Gabrels. Matthias Weckmann wrote about The Shadow Line that there was “Electro Metal” to be heard on it and that it was “not quite as eccentric as Marilyn Manson, more melodic than Static-X and rockier than Gravity Kills ”. In addition, the album has a strong tendency towards alternative rock. The band still relies on creaking guitars, while electronic elements play a subordinate role. 30 Seconds to Mars went through a similar development on their album A Beautiful Lie . In his review of At the Edge of the World , Tobias Gerber, also from Metal Hammer , wrote that the band on its predecessor was still in the border areas between New Rock and Industrial Rock. The songs are now less dynamic and hardly varied, mostly in the medium speed range and less hard. Electronic influences have disappeared. Overall, the songs are more radio-friendly.

Marcus Schleutermann said in Rock Hard that the style consists of metal, grunge and gothic components. The basis is a “songwriting philosophy” that is committed to pop music . Even if Marilyn Manson gets involved, the result is more suitable for fans of Nine Inch Nails, Stabbing Westward and KMFDM than Marilyn Manson.

Discography

Studio albums

Other albums

  • 2004: Non-Stop Ride (compilation, Cleopatra Records )
  • 2009: The Early Years (compilation, self-published)
  • 2014: The Shadow Realigned (Remix album, Warrior Records )

EPs

  • 1995: The Club Tracks (Marlboro Music)
  • 2007: Unplugged (self-published)

Singles

  • 1995: There You Go - The Answer (Marlboro Music)
  • 1995: I Am (Marlboro Music)
  • 2000: The Reckoning / Break You Down + Remixes (Posthuman Records / Priority Records )
  • 2000: Break You Down (Posthuman Records)
  • 2000: The Reckoning (Posthuman Records)
  • 2001: Eleanor Rigby (Posthuman Records)
  • 2001: Eleanor Rigby Remixed (Priority Records)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Marcus Schleutermann: Godhead. The Voice of Generation X . In: Rock Hard . No. 104 , January 1996, p. 136 .
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k Biography. (No longer available online.) Rockdetector.com, archived from the original on March 15, 2016 ; accessed on October 2, 2016 .
  3. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Godhead. laut.de , accessed on October 3, 2016 .
  4. ↑ a b c Kerry L. Smith: Godhead. Allmusic , accessed October 3, 2016 .
  5. ^ A b Henning Richter: Godhead . German-friendly. In: Metal Hammer . October 2003, p. 80 .
  6. ↑ a b c d e BIO. godhead.com, accessed October 3, 2016 .
  7. ↑ a b Matthias Weckmann: Godhead . The Shadow Line. In: Metal Hammer . February 2007, p. 96 .
  8. ^ Joel McIver: The Next Generation of Rock & Punk Nu-Metal . Omnibus Press, 2002, ISBN 0-7119-9209-6 , p. 57 f .
  9. ^ Christian Graf: Nu Metal and Crossover Lexicon . Lexikon Imprint Verlag, 2002, ISBN 3-89602-515-5 , p. 112 f .
  10. ↑ Godhead . In: Metal Hammer . September 1995, p. 19 .
  11. ^ Matthias Mineur: Godhead . Godhead. In: Metal Hammer . October 1995, p. 55 .
  12. ↑ Wolf Kohl: Foundations Forum '95 . The revolution took place in the dark. In: Metal Hammer . November 1995, p. 28 ff .
  13. ^ Markus Kavka : Godhead . Hair off the side and eyes boxed in. In: Metal Hammer . November 1995, p. 126 .
  14. ↑ Thorsten Zahn: VA Blair Witch 2 - Book of Shadows. In: Metal Hammer . December 2000, p. 92 .
  15. ↑ Thorsten Zahn: Godhead . Bible-firm gods. In: Metal Hammer . March 2001, p. 52 f .
  16. ↑ Thorsten Zahn: Godhead . 2000 Years of Human Error. In: Metal Hammer . March 2001, p. 92 .
  17. ^ Matthias Weckmann: Godhead . Evolver. In: Metal Hammer . September 2003, p. 104 .
  18. ↑ Tobias Gerbder: Godhead . At the Edge of the World. In: Metal Hammer . March 2009, p. 100 .
  19. ^ Marcus Schleutermann: Godhead. 2000 Years of Human Error . In: Rock Hard . No. 166 , March 2001, p. 87 .