Lifer (band)
| Lifer | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Strangers with Candy, Driver |
| Origin | Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Genres | Alternative metal,nu metal |
| Years active |
|
| Labels | Universal Music Group/Republic |
| Associated acts | Breaking Benjamin, Cold, The Drama Club, myDownfall, Stardog Champion |
Lifer was an American nu metal and alternative metal band from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. They were active from 1999 to 2002, releasing their sole full-length album through the major label Universal/Republic Records.
The group originally formed as Strangers with Candy in 1999, performing covers of modern metal acts such as Deftones, Korn, Limp Bizkit and Tool. In 2000, Strangers with Candy entered MTV's Ultimate Band Contest, quickly becoming a fan-favorite with covers of "Take On Me" (by A-ha), "Guerilla Radio" (by Rage Against the Machine) and "Nookie" (by Limp Bizkit). The MTV exposure helped the band gain fans all over the United States, and also caught the attention of the music industry. Shortly afterwards, they signed a six-record contract with Universal/Republic Records. Vocalist Nick Coyle claimed in 2001 that the band's success on the series was not the sole reason they landed a major label deal, recalling "We sold a lot regionally. Some record labels saw us and were like 'who is this band selling all these CDs' and they picked us up." The band went on to change their name to Lifer, as to avoid legal complications with the Comedy Central series of the same name.
In late 2000, Alex Lifeson (of progressive rock pioneers Rush) agreed to produce the band's debut. Regarding their choice of producer, guitarist Aaron Fink said in November 2000 "We wanted a player rather than just a standard producer." Following the August 14, 2001 release of their self-titled debut, Lifer toured with like-minded acts such as Cold and Dope. By 2002, Lifer had disbanded due to internal disagreements and the self-titled record's lack of success. Fink recalled in 2003 "We got a small deal on Universal and they are so huge. They're like the biggest company. Their roster is so huge. We weren't a band that had a lot of hits so, there were obviously more important things for the label to do. They kinda caught wind that there were problems in the band so they didn't want to push it, I think. It's hard. Our first single didn't hit. LA was very hit oriented. If you didn't have a hit - we couldn't even get our manager on the phone and you know that's a bad sign. So Mark [James Kelpaski - the bass player] quit." Kelpaski and Fink went on to co-found the popular Hollywood Records rock act Breaking Benjamin. Allmusic claims they are "far from a carbon copy of Lifer -- instead, they favored a radio-friendly post-grunge approach that was aggressive and forceful yet melodic." Coyle has gone on to play in several bands as both a vocalist and guitarist, such as myDownfall, The Drama Club, Stardog Champion and, most recently, Cold.
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