1.
Seattle
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Seattle is a seaport city on the west coast of the United States and the seat of King County, Washington. With an estimated 684,451 residents as of 2015, Seattle is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region of North America. In July 2013, it was the major city in the United States. The city is situated on an isthmus between Puget Sound and Lake Washington, about 100 miles south of the Canada–United States border, a major gateway for trade with Asia, Seattle is the fourth-largest port in North America in terms of container handling as of 2015. The Seattle area was inhabited by Native Americans for at least 4,000 years before the first permanent European settlers. Arthur A. Denny and his group of travelers, subsequently known as the Denny Party, arrived from Illinois via Portland, the settlement was moved to the eastern shore of Elliott Bay and named Seattle in 1852, after Chief Siahl of the local Duwamish and Suquamish tribes. Logging was Seattles first major industry, but by the late-19th century, growth after World War II was partially due to the local Boeing company, which established Seattle as a center for aircraft manufacturing. The Seattle area developed as a technology center beginning in the 1980s, in 1994, Internet retailer Amazon was founded in Seattle. The stream of new software, biotechnology, and Internet companies led to an economic revival, Seattle has a noteworthy musical history. From 1918 to 1951, nearly two dozen jazz nightclubs existed along Jackson Street, from the current Chinatown/International District, to the Central District, the jazz scene developed the early careers of Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, Ernestine Anderson, and others. Seattle is also the birthplace of rock musician Jimi Hendrix and the alternative rock subgenre grunge, archaeological excavations suggest that Native Americans have inhabited the Seattle area for at least 4,000 years. By the time the first European settlers arrived, the people occupied at least seventeen villages in the areas around Elliott Bay, the first European to visit the Seattle area was George Vancouver, in May 1792 during his 1791–95 expedition to chart the Pacific Northwest. In 1851, a party led by Luther Collins made a location on land at the mouth of the Duwamish River. Thirteen days later, members of the Collins Party on the way to their claim passed three scouts of the Denny Party, members of the Denny Party claimed land on Alki Point on September 28,1851. The rest of the Denny Party set sail from Portland, Oregon, after a difficult winter, most of the Denny Party relocated across Elliott Bay and claimed land a second time at the site of present-day Pioneer Square, naming this new settlement Duwamps. For the next few years, New York Alki and Duwamps competed for dominance, david Swinson Doc Maynard, one of the founders of Duwamps, was the primary advocate to name the settlement after Chief Sealth of the Duwamish and Suquamish tribes. The name Seattle appears on official Washington Territory papers dated May 23,1853, in 1855, nominal land settlements were established. On January 14,1865, the Legislature of Territorial Washington incorporated the Town of Seattle with a board of managing the city
2.
Washington (state)
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It was admitted to the Union as the 42nd state in 1889. Washington is sometimes referred to as Washington State or the State of Washington to distinguish it from Washington, Washington is the 18th largest state with an area of 71,362 square miles, and the 13th most populous state with over 7 million people. Washington is the second most populous state on the West Coast and in the Western United States, Mount Rainier, an active stratovolcano, is the states highest elevation at almost 14,411 feet and is the most topographically prominent mountain in the contiguous United States. Washington is a leading lumber producer and its rugged surface is rich in stands of Douglas fir, hemlock, ponderosa pine, white pine, spruce, larch, and cedar. Manufacturing industries in Washington include aircraft and missiles, shipbuilding and other equipment, lumber, food processing, metals and metal products, chemicals. Washington has over 1,000 dams, including the Grand Coulee Dam, built for a variety of purposes including irrigation, power, flood control, the Washington Territory was named after George Washington, the first President of the United States. The area was part of a region called the Columbia District after the Columbia River. The area was renamed Washington in order to avoid confusion with the District of Columbia, Washington is the only U. S. state named after a president. To distinguish it from the U. S. capital, which is named for George Washington, Washington is sometimes referred to as Washington State, or, in more formal contexts. Washingtonians and other residents of the Pacific Northwest refer to the state simply as Washington, calling the nations capital Washington, D. C. or, often, Washington is the northwestern-most state of the contiguous United States. Washington is bordered by Oregon to the south, with the Columbia River forming the western part, to the west of Washington lies the Pacific Ocean. The high mountains of the Cascade Range run north-south, bisecting the state, from the Cascade Mountains westward, Western Washington has a mostly marine west coast climate, with mild temperatures and wet winters, autumns and springs, and relatively dry summers. The Cascade Range contains several volcanoes, which reach altitudes significantly higher than the rest of the mountains, from the north to the south, these major volcanoes are Mount Baker, Glacier Peak, Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Adams. Mount Rainier, the tallest mountain in the state, is 50 miles south of the city of Seattle and it is also covered with more glacial ice than any other peak in the contiguous 48 states. Western Washington also is home of the Olympic Mountains, far west on the Olympic Peninsula and these deep forests, such as the Hoh Rainforest, are among the only temperate rainforests in the continental United States. Eastern Washington – the part of the state east of the Cascades – has a dry climate. It includes large areas of steppe and a few truly arid deserts lying in the rain shadow of the Cascades. Farther east, the climate becomes less arid, with annual rainfall increasing as one goes east to 21.2 inches in Pullman, the Okanogan Highlands and the rugged Kettle River Range and Selkirk Mountains cover much of the northeastern quadrant of the state
3.
Alternative metal
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Alternative metal is a music genre that infuses heavy metal with influences from alternative rock and other genres not normally associated with metal. The term has been in use since the 1980s, although it came into prominence in the 1990s, other genres considered part of the alternative metal movement included rap metal and funk metal, both of which influenced another prominent subgenre, nu metal. Nu metal expands the alternative metal sound, combining its vocal stylings and downtuned riffs with elements of genres, such as hip hop, funk, hardcore. They also remarked that alternative metal was originally a style united by its nonconformist sensibility rather than any immediately classifiable sound, one of the main characteristics of alternative metal and its subgenres are heavily downtuned, mid-paced chug-like guitar riffs. However, funk metal bands use a more conventional riffing style influenced by 1980s thrash metal. Alternative metal features clean and melodic vocals, influenced by those of alternative rock, later bands frequently incorporated vocal styles that alternated between clean singing, growls and screaming. Examples include alternative metal bands associated with the nu metal movement, such as Korn and Deftones, jonathan Gold of the Los Angeles Times wrote in 1990 Just as rock has an alternative, wing-bands like the Replacements and Dinosaur Jr. -so does metal. Alternative metal is alternative music that rocks, and alternative metal these days can reach 10 times the audience of other alternative rock. Janes Addiction plays an intense brand of 70s-influenced arty metal, so does Soundgarden, in fact, the arty meanderings of Sab and the Zep themselves would be considered alternative metal. Houston Press has described the genre as being a compromise for people for whom Nirvana was not heavy enough but Metallica was too heavy. The first wave of metal bands emerged from many backgrounds, including hardcore punk, noise rock, Seattles grunge scene, stoner rock, sludge metal. These bands never formed a movement or scene, rather they were bound by their incorporation of traditional metal influences. Fudge Tunnels style of alternative metal included influences from both sludge metal and noise rock, other early bands in the genre also came from hardcore punk backgrounds. During the 1980s, alternative metal appealed mainly to rock fans. Several bands associated with the genre denied their status as metal bands, Helmet drummer John Stanier said We fell into the whole metal thing by accident, we always hated it when people mentioned metal in conjunction with us. Saby Reyes-Kulkarni of Pitchfork Media stated bands like Faith No More, Soundgarden, Primus, Helmet, the Rollins Band, and dozens more were initially marketed as quasi-metal acts. This was only possible in a climate where record labels, journalists, many established 1980s metal bands released albums in the 1990s that were described as alternative metal, including Anthrax, Metallica and Mötley Crüe. It resulted in a standardized sound among alternative metal bands, in contrast to the more eccentric
4.
Hard rock
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Hard rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music that began in the mid-1960s, with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. It is typified by a use of aggressive vocals, distorted electric guitars, bass guitar, drums. Hard rock developed into a form of popular music in the 1970s, with bands such as The Who, Led Zeppelin, Queen, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Aerosmith, AC/DC. During the 1980s, some rock bands moved away from their hard rock roots and more towards pop rock. Hard rock began losing popularity with the success of R&B, hip-hop, urban pop, grunge. Out of this movement came garage rock bands like The White Stripes, The Strokes, Interpol and, later on, in the 2000s, only a few hard rock bands from the 1970s and 1980s managed to sustain highly successful recording careers. Hard rock is a form of loud, aggressive rock music, the electric guitar is often emphasised, used with distortion and other effects, both as a rhythm instrument using repetitive riffs with a varying degree of complexity, and as a solo lead instrument. Drumming characteristically focuses on driving rhythms, strong drum and a backbeat on snare. The bass guitar works in conjunction with the drums, occasionally playing riffs, vocals are often growling, raspy, or involve screaming or wailing, sometimes in a high range, or even falsetto voice. In the late 1960s, the heavy metal was used interchangeably with hard rock. Heavy metal took on darker characteristics after Black Sabbaths breakthrough at the beginning of the 1970s, in the 1980s it developed a number of subgenres, often termed extreme metal, some of which were influenced by hardcore punk, and which further differentiated the two styles. Despite this differentiation, hard rock and heavy metal have existed side by side, with bands frequently standing on the boundary of, other antecedents include Link Wrays instrumental Rumble in 1958, and the surf rock instrumentals of Dick Dale, such as Lets Go Trippin and Misirlou. In the 1960s, American and British blues and rock bands began to rock and roll by adding harder sounds, heavier guitar riffs, bombastic drumming. From the late 1960s, it common to divide mainstream rock music that emerged from psychedelia into soft. Soft rock was often derived from rock, using acoustic instruments and putting more emphasis on melody. In contrast, hard rock was most often derived from rock and was played louder. Blues rock acts that pioneered the sound included Cream, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Cream, in songs like I Feel Free combined blues rock with pop and psychedelia, particularly in the riffs and guitar solos of Eric Clapton. Jimi Hendrix produced a form of blues-influenced psychedelic rock, which combined elements of jazz, blues and rock, from 1967 Jeff Beck brought lead guitar to new heights of technical virtuosity and moved blues rock in the direction of heavy rock with his band, The Jeff Beck Group
5.
Alice N' Chains
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Alice N Chains was an American glam metal band from Seattle, Washington formed in 1986 by former members of Sleze. Towards the end of their run as Sleze, discussions arose about changing their name to Alice in Chains, however, due to concerns over the reference to female bondage, the group ultimately chose to spell it as Alice N Chains. They performed under this moniker over about a 12-month period and recorded two demos before breaking up on friendly terms in 1987 and it would say, like, Sleze, The Welcome to Wonderland Tour. That ended up turning into a discussion - we were talking about changing the band name, and we were saying, Alice in Wonderland. How about this, how about that and we could put her in bondage stuff. I liked the ring Alice in Chains - I remember I came back to the band rehearsal. The issue was the reference to bondage, which our parents would not go for, laynes mom was very hardcore Christian. So we ended up changing it to Alice N Chains, which made it more like Alice, however, Staleys mother Nancy McCallum has said she still did not approve of this at first, I had a sense of humor about the name Sleze. But when came home and said they were changing the name to Alice N Chains, I said, Honey, that is female bondage. You dont want to choose a name like that - its going to push your female audience away, I really feel strong about this. He was adamant and I was adamant, for the first time in my life, I didnt have much of a conversation with him for about two weeks, because I was concerned, and also offended. How could my child possibly choose a name like Alice N Chains, according to Staley, the reason they chose this name because they dressed in drag and played speed metal. The band performed around the Seattle area playing Slayer and Armored Saint covers, Alice N Chains recorded two demos known primarily as Demo No.1 and Demo No. Physical copies of the cassettes are extremely rare as only 100 of Demo No.1 were made, recording for these two tracks took place at London Bridge Studio with the help of its founding engineer brother Rick and Raj Parashar. A few months later, Mitchell left the band and Bacolas rejoined as their bass player and they added one more song called Lip Lock Rock to the demo before changing their name to Alice N Chains. This band rose to fame as part of the grunge movement of the early 1990s, along with other Seattle bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam. Staley also formed the supergroup Mad Season along with Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready, following the demise of Alice N Chains, Nick Pollock formed the band My Sisters Machine, taking up mostly vocal duties as their primary lyricist. He also later formed and sang with the bands Soulbender and Tanks of Zen, bergstrom became a founding member of the band Second Coming and was later joined by Bacolas, who replaced Ron Junkeye Holt on bass
6.
My Sister's Machine
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My Sisters Machine was an American grunge band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1989. Its members were Nick Pollock, Owen Wright, Chris Ivanovich and this band recorded and released two albums, Diva and Wallflower, before they broke up in 1994. They reunited in 2010 to headline the Layne Staley Tribute and Benefit Concert that year as Pollock had previously played guitar in an incarnation of Alice in Chains that also included Staley. They recorded one album called Spin the World, which was released on CD in 2009 by Heart of Steel Records and this band did an extensive amount of touring before they broke up in 1988. Meanwhile, Nick Pollock played guitar in a metal band called Alice N Chains. The band recorded two demos and toured throughout the Seattle area for one year before they broke up on friendly terms in 1987. After the demise of their previous bands, Pollock joined Wright, since none of the other members had ever been a lead singer, Pollock got the job by default as he was also their primary lyricist. In 1990, My Sisters Machine received the Best New Band award from the Northwest Music Association and they continued to garner much interest from the major record labels but ultimately chose to sign with a smaller label Caroline Records. In 1992, they released their album, Diva to much critical acclaim. Steve Kurutz of Allmusic gave the four and a half stars. Still, Lonn Friend who did a segment called Friend at Large on Headbangers Ball on MTV. He also wore their shirt for two weeks on the show, the band later thanked Friend for his support in the liner notes of their next album Wallflower. Over the next year they did a tour with Pantera and White Zombie and they toured the United States and Europe. They did in-studio interviews on Headbangers Ball promoting their video on MTV for their single and they also co-headlined a tour with Pantera. In 1993, they moved to Chameleon a division of Elektra Entertainment and they toured the United States with Kings X. Just a couple months after releasing the album, Elektra Entertainment folded the Chameleon division dropping all bands that were signed leaving the album, after a string of bad luck, My Sisters Machine split up in 1994. Since the break-up of My Sisters Machine, Nick Pollock has fronted the bands Tanks of Zen and Soulbender, the latter also features longtime Queensrÿche guitarist Michael Wilton. Meanwhile, Wright has played guitar in a band called Old Lady Litterbug and Gohde has played drums for a band called Hot Rod Lunatics and Call for the Priest, the latter is a Judas Priest cover band
7.
Travis Bracht
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Peace and Silence was an American alternative rock group formed in Seattle, Washington in the early 1990s. Its members were singer Travis Bracht, guitarists Rich Henry and Tim Lynch, bassist Chuck Miller and they recorded many songs but only released one eight-track album titled Fathom That through Primal Records in 1993. The group broke up some time in the mid-1990s as Travis Bracht went on to front the band Second Coming, on April 30,2005, Peace and Silence reunited for a one-time show with local bands Sweety, Turn to Fall, and Draghead as their opening acts. Chuck Miller joined the band Soulbender that same year, replacing Marten van Keith on bass guitar, in May 2009, a new band called Post Modern Heroes emerged featuring all former members of Peace and Silence, except for Miller. A year later, they released their eponymous debut album Post Modern Heroes. Travis Bracht - vocals Rich Henry - guitar Tim Lynch - guitar Chuck Miller - bass Fred Kitchens - drums The albums credits and personnel can be obtained from the liner notes at Discogs
8.
Second Coming (band)
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Second Coming was an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1990. They relocated to Seattle, Washington around 1992 and released their debut album L. O. V. Evil in 1994 and this band underwent several lineup changes throughout its existence with drummer James Bergstrom being the sole constant member. He and bassist Johnny Bacolas were ostensibly the nucleus of the band as they were members who appeared on every album. Initially, this band was led by singer-guitarist Jesse Holt, nicknamed Maxi, after 1995, however, Bacolas and Bergstrom reemerged with a different lineup that included vocalist Travis Bracht from Peace and Silence and guitarist Dudley Taft from Sweet Water. In 1998, they released the eponymous Second Coming, which garnered much attention, in 2001, Taft was replaced by guitarist Eric Snyder and two years later the group released a third album 13. Second Coming started as a dance band in 1990 in Los Angeles. The original lineup consisted of Jesse Maxi Holt, his brother Ron Junkeye Holt, James Bergstrom, in 1992, they relocated to Seattle, Washington. Junkeye soon left the band and was replaced by Johnny Bacolas whilst Stamatina was replaced by percussionist and keyboard player, in 1994 Second Coming independently released their debut CD L. O. V. Evil through Red Rocket Records. The album was produced by Maxi and all songs were written by Maxi except for Its Coming After and So Wired written by Junkeye, Second Coming had several most-requested songs on Seattle radio station KISW, including M. T. Your Gun, Its Coming After, and So Beautiful, there also was a music video for the song Afraid of Love. To raise funds for this album, Second Coming moonlighted as a band called FTA. The band toured heavily with such as acts as Godsmack, Kid Rock, Lenny Kravitz, VAST, Candlebox, Fuel, the band parted ways with Capitol Records in 2001, not long after President Gary Gersh, who personally signed Second Coming, parted from the label. They also replaced Dudley Taft with guitarist Eric Snyder and once again working independently on their next album. In 2002, Layne Staley died after a battle with drugs. A few months after this occurred, Second Coming headlined what would be the first annual tribute held in Staley’s honor around his birthday in August. This first tribute also featured the band Soulbender whose vocalist at that time was former Alice N’ Chains guitarist Nick Pollock. In 2003, Second Coming released their studio album 13 along with a companion EP Acoustic on their own label Timestyle Music. In 2007, Bracht began pulling double duty fronting both Second Coming and Soulbender after Nick Pollock stepped down from the latter, meanwhile, Second Coming was also said to be working on another album that was due in 2007 but also has not been released
9.
Vancouver
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Vancouver is a coastal seaport city in Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2016 census recorded 631,486 people in the city, the Greater Vancouver area had a population of 2,463,431 in 2016, making it the third largest metropolitan area in Canada. Vancouver has the highest population density in Canada with over 5,400 people per square kilometre. With over 250,000 residents, Vancouver municipality is the fourth most densely populated city in North America behind New York City, San Francisco, and Mexico City according to the 2011 census. In that census, Vancouver was one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities in Canada, Vancouver is classed as a Beta global city. In 2014, following thirty years in California, the annual TED conference made Vancouver its indefinite home, several matches of the 2015 FIFA Womens World Cup were played in Vancouver, including the final at BC Place Stadium. From that first enterprise, other stores and some hotels quickly appeared along the waterfront to the west, Gastown became formally laid out as a registered townsite dubbed Granville, B. I. As of 2014, Port Metro Vancouver is the third largest port by tonnage in the Americas, 27th in the world, the busiest and largest in Canada, and the most diversified port in North America. While forestry remains its largest industry, Vancouver is well known as an urban centre surrounded by nature, archaeological records indicate the presence of Aboriginal people in the Vancouver area from 8,000 to 10,000 years ago. The city is located in the territories of the Squamish, Musqueam. They had villages in various parts of present-day Vancouver, such as Stanley Park, False Creek, Kitsilano, Point Grey, the city takes its name from George Vancouver, who explored the inner harbour of Burrard Inlet in 1792 and gave various places British names. The explorer and North West Company trader Simon Fraser and his became the first known Europeans to set foot on the site of the present-day city. In 1808, they travelled from the east down the Fraser River, perhaps as far as Point Grey. The Fraser Gold Rush of 1858 brought over 25,000 men, mainly from California, to nearby New Westminster on the Fraser River, on their way to the Fraser Canyon, a sawmill established at Moodyville in 1863, began the citys long relationship with logging. It was quickly followed by mills owned by Captain Edward Stamp on the shore of the inlet. This mill, known as the Hastings Mill, became the nucleus around which Vancouver formed, the mills central role in the city waned after the arrival of the Canadian Pacific Railway in the 1880s. It nevertheless remained important to the economy until it closed in the 1920s. The settlement which came to be called Gastown grew up quickly around the original makeshift tavern established by Gassy Jack Deighton in 1867 on the edge of the Hastings Mill property
10.
Michael Wilton
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Michael F. Wilton also known as The Whip, for how fast his fingers whip around the guitar fretboard, is an American guitarist for the progressive metal band Queensrÿche, which he co-founded in 1982. Wilton was born in San Francisco, California, but his family moved to Seattle, at age 8, he started practicing on the bass guitar, learning songs by bands from his fathers collections, such as The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan. At age 13, he also got a nylon string acoustic from his aunt and he convinced his father to give him the Fender Bassman and speaker cabinet Wilton inherited from an uncle who died in a motorcycle accident. He changed his mind about playing guitar, and chose to play guitar instead. At age 16, his guitar teacher said, that Wilton whipped on the guitar and he bought a Les Paul copy and a fuzzbox, and joined some garage bands with his school-mates, such as Joker, which was formed in 1978. In 1979, new sophomore Chris DeGarmo was briefly part of this band, by the end of the 1979–1980 school year, they disbanded. After high school, Wilton attended the Cornish Institute of Allied Arts in Seattle and this was a big step in his life as he began to appreciate more ethnic and improvisational music, which later gave him influences as a progressive rock musician. After studying for 1,5 years, he ran out of money, in 1980, Wilton and Rockenfield had founded a band called Cross+Fire, which DeGarmo and Jackson joined shortly thereafter. The quartet began to play at parties, by time they called themselves The Mob. In late summer of 1982, Geoff Tate was involved as vocalist to record a four-song demo, the band changed its name to Queensrÿche, and the demo was released in 1983 as the eponymous EP Queensrÿche. Wilton remains a guitarist in Queensrÿche to date, after the bands 2009 American Soldier tour, Wilton took over all of the solos. In 2002, Wilton started a side-band with former Alice N Chains guitarist and My Sisters Machine vocalist Nick Pollock and they released one album in 2004 on Rat Pak Records, following which they played various shows around the Northwest. Soulbender subsequently went on an extensive hiatus, a new album, Soulbender 2, was announced to be released in 2014, with plans to tour in 2015. In 2012, he continued making music with Wratchet Head, Wilton is an avid sports fan and guitar collector. In high school, he was known for being a star athlete in football, baseball and basketball than as a musician. He was among others in a youth baseball team that toured through Europe. Just A Taste Soulbender Stories from a Blue Room The Fire Within Coming For You Official home page
11.
Geoff Tate
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Geoff Tate is a German-born American singer and musician. He rose to fame with the metal band Queensrÿche, who had commercial success with their 1988 album Operation. Tate is ranked fourteenth on Hit Paraders list of the 100 Greatest Metal Vocalists of All Time and he was voted No.2 on That Metal Shows top 5 hard rock vocalists of the 1980s. In 2012, he won the Vegas Rocks, magazine Music Award for Voice in Progressive Heavy Metal. In 2015, he placed ninth on OC Weeklys list of the 10 Best High-Pitched Metal Singers, after his farewell tour as Queensrÿche, he renamed his band Operation, Mindcrime, after the Queensrÿche album of the same name. Tate was born in Stuttgart, which was part of West Germany. His mothers side of the family is from New Orleans, shortly after his birth, his family relocated to Tacoma, Washington. While Tate was in the band Babylon, he was asked to sing with the cover band The Mob at a rock festival. After Babylon broke up, Tate performed a few shows with The Mob, Tate then joined the progressive metal band Myth as lead vocalist and keyboardist. The band already had a set of songs, but one song was left without lyrics. Tate was asked to write lyrics to song, which would become the song The Lady Wore Black. The demo tape was widely circulated, and was released as an EP in 1982 on the 206 Records label, around this time, the name The Mob was changed to Queensrÿche, and Tate left Myth to become Queensrÿches permanent lead singer. Myth went on to record the album Arabia after Tate had left, Queensrÿche was signed to EMI in the summer of 1983, with a contract spanning 15 years and encompassing seven albums. EMI re-released the EP, Queensrÿche, to success, peaking at No.81 on the Billboard charts. With Queensrÿche, Tate had great successes, especially with the concept album Operation, Mindcrime, which was released in 1988, the band has sold over 20 million albums worldwide. On June 20,2012, it was announced that Queensrÿche had fired Tate, soon after, Tate and his wife Susan filed a lawsuit in a Washington court, saying that he was wrongfully terminated from the group. Until Tate lost the brand Queensrÿche in April 2014 to the band members. The lineup would originally feature Rudy Sarzo, Bobby Blotzer, Glen Drover, Drover left the band on November 23,2012
12.
Layne Staley
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Alice in Chains rose to international fame as part of the grunge movement of the early 1990s. The band became known for Staleys distinct vocal style, as well as the vocals between him and Cantrell. Staley was also a member of the supergroups Mad Season and Class of 99, by mid-1996, Staley was out of the public spotlight, never to perform live again. Staley struggled for much of his life with depression and a drug addiction. Layne Thomas Staley was born to Phillip Blair Phil Staley and Nancy Elizabeth Staley in Kirkland and he was seven years old when his parents divorced, after which he was raised by his mother and stepfather, Jim Elmer. He took his stepfathers name while enrolled in Meadowdale High School in Lynnwood, in late 2001, shortly before his death, he would describe the experience of witnessing his parents divorce, My world became a nightmare, there were just shadows around me. I got a call saying that my dad had died, since that call I always was wondering, Where is my dad. I felt so sad for him and I missed him and he dropped out of my life for 15 years. Staley approached music through his parents collection, listening to Black Sabbath and he began playing drums at age 12, he played in several glam bands in his early teens, but by this point, Staley had aspirations of becoming a singer. In 1984, Staley joined a group of Shorewood High students in a band called Sleze, in 1986, Sleze morphed into Alice N Chains, a band which Staley said dressed in drag and played speed metal. The new band performed around the Seattle area playing Slayer and Armored Saint covers, Staley met guitarist Jerry Cantrell while working at Music Bank rehearsal studios, and the two fast friends lived as roommates for over a year in the dilapidated rehearsal space they shared. Alice N Chains soon disbanded and Staley joined a band who at the time also required a guitarist. He asked Cantrell to join as a sideman, Cantrell agreed on condition that Staley join Cantrells band, which at the time included drummer Sean Kinney and bassist Mike Starr. Eventually the funk project broke up and in 1987 Staley joined Cantrell on a full-time basis, the band eventually took the name of Alice in Chains. Alice in Chains released their debut album Facelift on August 21,1990, the second single, Man in the Box, with lyrics written by Staley, became a huge hit. Facelift has since been certified platinum by the RIAA for sales of two million copies in the United States. The band toured in support of the album for two years before releasing the acoustic EP Sap in early 1992, in September 1992, Alice in Chains released Dirt. The critically acclaimed album, also the bands most successful, debuted at six on the Billboard 200
13.
KNAC
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In February 1998, however, KNAC was revived as an internet-based radio station. Prior to 1986, KNAC had existed in different formats, including freeform and Rock N Rhythm. The original KNAC was based in Long Beach, California and served Los Angeles, kNAC-FM had a variety of different formats. With a relatively weak signal and a small geographical area. Outside the Los Angeles area, the station gained a following from heavy metal fans across the United States. Before KNAC became popular under the heavy metal format, KNAC was branded as The Knack, KNAC was inducted into the Rock Radio Hall of Fame in the Legends of Rock Radio-Stations category in 2014. In the late 1960s through the late 1970s, the Rock format KNAC ran was referred to as freeform, a freeform radio format gives the on-air talent almost total control over what music to play, regardless of commercial concerns. During the early days of KNAC some of L. A. s diamonds in the rough were found. Most notably, Ron McCoy was not only the Program Director, frank Jolley was the first at KNAC to appear in the L. A. Arbitron with a very respectable showing. That performance brought him to the attention of Southern Pacifics KKDJ, Jolley would later become a motion picture producer and mentor chairman of the Producers Guild of America. While at KNAC Jolley produced the feature film for the infant cable TV industry. With its liberal format, however, KNAC also played album tracks or songs by the more popular rock music artists that other radio stations would generally not play. In addition, KNAC broadcast artists that received airplay on more commercial rock stations. These artists could include anyone from San Francisco Bay Area psychedelic music act Its a Beautiful Day, blues rock group Electric Flag, to progressive rock acts such as the Moody Blues. Some rhythm and blues, soul and funk artists including Sly, the stations owners during that period were Jim and Claudia Harden. By the middle of the 1970s the underground and counterculture movements of the 1960s were giving way to newer subcultures, in response, KNAC started to play more punk rock and new wave music. By the late 1970s, KNAC had begun to evolve into an alternative music station. During the first half of the 1980s, KNAC ran a music format
14.
Tool (band)
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Tool is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1990, the groups line-up includes drummer Danny Carey, guitarist Adam Jones, justin Chancellor has been the bands bassist since 1995, replacing their original bassist Paul DAmour. Tool has won three Grammy Awards, performed worldwide tours, and produced albums topping the charts in several countries. Due to Tools incorporation of visual arts and very long and complex releases, the band is described as a style-transcending act and part of progressive rock, psychedelic rock. The relationship between the band and todays industry is ambivalent, at times marked by censorship. During the 1980s, each of the members of Tool moved to Los Angeles. Both Paul DAmour and Adam Jones wanted to enter the film industry, Danny Carey and Keenan performed for Green Jellÿ, and Carey played with Carole King and Pigmy Love Circus. Keenan and Jones met through a friend in 1989. After Keenan played a recording for Jones of his previous band project. They started jamming together and were on the lookout for a drummer, Carey happened to live above Keenan and was introduced to Jones by Tom Morello, an old high school friend of Jones and former member of Electric Sheep. Carey began playing in their sessions because he felt sorry for them. Tools lineup was completed when a friend of Jones introduced them to bassist DAmour, early on, the band fabricated the story that they formed because of the pseudophilosophy lachrymology. Although lachrymology was also cited as an inspiration for the name, Keenan later explained their intentions differently, Tool is exactly what it sounds like. Your tool, use us as a catalyst in your process of finding out whatever it is you need to find out, or whatever it is youre trying to achieve. After almost two years of practicing and performing locally in the Los Angeles area, the band was approached by record companies, in March 1992, Zoo published the bands first effort, Opiate. Described by the band as slam and bang heavy music and the hardest sounding six songs they had written to that point, the bands first music video, Hush, promoted their dissenting views about the then-prominent Parents Music Resource Center and its advocacy of the censorship of music. The video featured the band members naked with their genitalia covered by parental advisory stickers and their mouths covered by duct tape. The band began touring with Rollins Band, Fishbone, and Rage Against the Machine to positive responses, which Janiss Garza of RIP Magazine summarized in September 1992 as a buzz and a strong start
15.
Marilyn Manson
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Brian Hugh Warner, better known by the stage name Marilyn Manson, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, composer, actor, painter, author and former music journalist. His stage name was formed by combining and juxtaposing the names of two American pop cultural icons, actress Marilyn Monroe and cult leader Charles Manson. In the U. S. alone, three of the albums have been awarded platinum and three more went gold, and the band has had eight releases debut in the top ten. Manson has been ranked number 44 in the Top 100 Heavy Metal Vocalists by Hit Parader, Manson made his film debut in 1997 as an actor in David Lynchs Lost Highway. Since then he has appeared in a variety of minor roles and he was interviewed in Michael Moores political documentary Bowling for Columbine, discussing possible motivations for the 1999 Columbine massacre and allegations that his music was somehow a factor. On September 13–14,2002, his first art show, The Golden Age of Grotesque, was held at the Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions center. Manson revealed a series of 20 paintings in 2010 entitled Genealogies of Pain, an exhibition showcased at Kunsthalle gallery in Vienna, Austria, which the artist collaborated on with David Lynch. Warner and guitarist Scott Daisy Berkowitz Putesky formed Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids following conversations at the Reunion Room in Fort Lauderdale, the name was later shortened to Marilyn Manson. In 1993, the band drew the attention of Trent Reznor, Reznor produced their 1994 debut album, Portrait of an American Family and released it on his Nothing Records label. The band began to develop a following, which grew larger on the Downward Spiral Tour that featured Nine Inch Nails. That EP yielded the bands first big MTV hit with Sweet Dreams, antichrist Superstar was an even greater success. In the U. S. alone, three of the albums have been awarded two platinum and three more went gold, and the band has had seven releases debut in the top ten. Manson first worked as a producer with the band Jack Off Jill and he helped name the band and produced most of the bands early recordings, and also played guitar on the song My Cat and had the band open most of his South Florida shows. Manson later wrote the notes to the bands album Humid Teenage Mediocrity 1992–1996. Manson has appeared as a guest performer on DMXs album Flesh of My Flesh, Blood of My Blood, in 2011 it was revealed that Manson was to appear on the singer Skylar Greys album Invinsible on the track entitled Cant Haunt Me. Manson released his studio album, Born Villain, in May 2012. On November 10,2014, Manson posted via his official Facebook page that his studio album, The Pale Emperor. On August 15,2015, Manson had New Orleans brass ensemble the Soul Rebels perform Beautiful People with him live in Japan at the Summer Sonic Music Festival, shooter Jennings album Countach features Manson performing guest vocals on a cover of David Bowies Cat People
16.
Alice in Chains
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Alice in Chains is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1987 by guitarist and songwriter Jerry Cantrell and original lead vocalist Layne Staley. The initial lineup was rounded out by drummer Sean Kinney and bassist Mike Starr, although widely associated with grunge music, the bands sound incorporates heavy metal elements. Since its formation, Alice in Chains has released five studio albums, the band is known for its distinctive vocal style, which often included the harmonized vocals of Staley and Cantrell. Alice in Chains rose to fame as part of the grunge movement of the early 1990s, along with other Seattle bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam. The band was one of the most successful acts of the 1990s, selling over 20 million records worldwide. In 1992 the bands album, Dirt, was released to critical acclaim and was certified quadruple platinum. Their third album, Alice in Chains, was released in 1995 and has been certified double platinum and it achieved No.1 position on the Billboard 200 chart. The band has had 14 top ten songs on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, although never officially disbanding, Alice in Chains was plagued by extended inactivity from 1996 onwards due to Staleys substance abuse, which resulted in his death in 2002. The band reunited in 2005 for a benefit show, performing with a number of guest vocalists. They toured in 2006, with William DuVall taking over as lead vocalist full-time, the new line-up released the bands fourth studio album, Black Gives Way to Blue, in 2009. The album received gold certification by the RIAA, in 2013, the band released The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here, its fifth studio album. The band has toured extensively and released videos in support of these albums. Alice in Chains is currently working on their studio album. Other members of this group at that time were guitarists Johnny Bacolas and Zoli Semanate, drummer James Bergstrom and this was prompted by a conversation that Bacolas had with a singer from another band about backstage passes. Staley met guitarist Jerry Cantrell while working with Alice N Chains at Music Bank rehearsal studios, the two struggling musicians became roommates, living in a rehearsal space they shared. Alice N Chains soon disbanded, and Staley joined a band that also required a guitarist at the time. Staley asked Cantrell to join as a sideman, Cantrell agreed on condition that Staley join Cantrells band, which at the time included drummer Sean Kinney and bassist Mike Starr. Local promoter Randy Hauser became aware of the band at a concert, however, one day before the band was due to record at the Music Bank studio in Washington, police shut down the studio during the biggest cannabis raid in the history of the state
17.
Michael Monroe
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Michael Monroe was born Matti Makke Fagerholm on 17 June 1962. His father, Pentti Fagerholm, was a well known Finnish radio personality. Monroe states in the Hanoi Rocks autobiography All Those Wasted Years that one of the first times he was exposed to rock n roll was when he saw Black Sabbaths 1970 Paris performance on television. Some other favourite bands of Monroes at the included, Alice Cooper, The New York Dolls, Led Zeppelin, Creedence Clearwater Revival. From 1976 to 1979, Monroe played in a band called Madness, during this time, while rehearsing in a basement of a church in Töölö, Monroe met guitarist Andy McCoy, McCoys band, Briard, was also rehearsing there at the time. Later, Monroe and McCoy played together for a time in a band called Bolin. Monroe then went on to play saxophone in Maukka Perusjätkäs band, Monroe auditioned as a bassist for Pelle Miljoona Oy but, even though the audition went well, they chose bassist Sami Yaffa. Hanoi Rocks was a band that Monroe and his friend, guitarist Andy McCoy had thought of, from the very first Hanoi line-up only one member remained, rhythm guitarist Nasty Suicide, who would stay in the band until 1985. Andy McCoy left Pelle Miljoona Oy and joined Hanoi Rocks in 1980, McCoy also brought bassist Sam Yaffa with him. The band later recruited drummer Gyp Casino, the band released their first album in 1981 titled Bangkok Shocks, Saigon Shakes, Hanoi Rocks, with most of the songs written by McCoy. The album was produced by Andy McCoy and Michael Monroe, who were known as The Muddy Twins, after the albums release, the band fired drummer Gyp Casino and hired Nicholas Dingley, better known as Razzle. This line-up, consisting of Michael Monroe, Andy McCoy, Nasty Suicide, Sam Yaffa and Razzle, has often cited as the classic. The band has said that Razzle revitalised them, later that year, the band released Self Destruction Blues, which had Razzle on the cover, but he didnt play on the album because it was actually a compilation of old singles. The tour for the album took the band to Asia for the first time, the next year,1983, the band released Back to Mystery City. In 1984, the band got together with legendary producer Bob Ezrin, the original title of the album was Silver Missiles and Nightingales, but this was changed before release. The album has been cited as one of the best glam rock albums, in 1984, Michael Monroe and Hanoi Rocks were among the most popular performers in the UK. The readers of the Sounds magazine voted Hanoi Rocks as the second best band in the world just after Marillion, the Hanoi Rocks single release Underwater World and the album Two Steps from the Move were voted as the fifth best single and album of the year. The televised concert which Hanoi Rocks recorded in England was voted as the second best concert video, and as stage performers, Michael Monroe was voted as The Sex Symbol of the Year
18.
Maynard James Keenan
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He is originally from Ohio, but spent his high school and college years in Michigan. After serving in the United States Army in the early 1980s, he attended Kendall College of Art and he moved to Los Angeles, California in 1988 to pursue a career in interior design and set construction. Shortly thereafter, he formed the band Tool with Adam Jones, Keenan is also the lead singer of A Perfect Circle. In 2003, he created Puscifer as a project and has subsequently released three studio albums. Since rising to fame, Keenan has been noted as being a recluse, however, in addition to his music career, he has performed improvisational sketch comedy and ventured into acting. He currently owns Merkin Vineyards and the winery, Caduceus Cellars, which are located in Arizona. James Keenan was born into a Southern Baptist family in Ravenna, Ohio, on April 17,1964, the only child of Judith Marie and Michael Loren Keenan. When his parents divorced in 1968, his father, a school wrestling coach, moved to Scottville. His mother remarried, bringing Keenan into an intolerant and unworldly household, a few years later, she persuaded Keenan to live with his father in Michigan. Keenan considers this the best move ever made, Maynard graduated in the class of 1982 at Mason County Central High School in Scottville, where he was a member of the wrestling team. His father was one of the coaches for the team and left coaching at the same time Maynard graduated in 1982, inspired by Bill Murrays performance in the 1981 comedy film Stripes, Keenan joined the United States Army, with the intention of having the G. I. Bill fund his dream of attending art school, by this point, he had lived in Ohio, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Texas. He initially served in the Army as an observer before studying at the United States Military Academy Preparatory School from 1983 to 1984. In addition to completing a rigorous math and English curriculum, he wrestled, ran on the country team. It was during his time in the military that he adopted the sobriquet Maynard on a whim, upon completing his term of enlistment, he studied art at Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In 1988, he relocated to Los Angeles where his love of animals led him to interior design for pet stores, before he was quickly fired. During the 1980s, Keenan played bass guitar for TexA. N. S. and sang for Children of the Anachronistic Dynasty, before Tool, Keenan performed in Children of the Anachronistic Dynasty for a few years, during which he formed the foundation for the song Sober. After moving to Los Angeles, Keenan met Adam Jones who had him singing on a demo in college
19.
A Perfect Circle
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A Perfect Circle is an American rock supergroup formed in 1999 by guitarist Billy Howerdel and Tool vocalist Maynard James Keenan. The latest lineup features Puscifer bassist Matt McJunkins, former The Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha, despite having a varied cast since inception, the stylistic content of the songs has remained consistent with Howerdel as composer, and Keenan penning the lyrics and melodies. A Perfect Circle has released three albums, their debut Mer de Noms in 2000, a follow up, Thirteenth Step in 2003, in late 2008, Keenan and Howerdel announced the band would reform, though the bands activity would ultimately be sporadic in the coming years. The band toured in 2011 and played live shows in 2013 to promote the release of a live album, A Perfect Circle Live, Featuring Stone and Echo. Work on new material has been alluded to by members since 2008, though progress was due to Keenans other commitments. The only new material released since the bands hiatus was the single By. In 2017, the signed a new record contract to release a fourth studio album through BMG Rights Management. A Perfect Circle was conceived by Billy Howerdel, a guitar technician for Nine Inch Nails, The Smashing Pumpkins, Fishbone. Howerdel met singer Maynard James Keenan in 1992, when Tool was opening for Fishbone, Three years later, Keenan offered Howerdel, who was looking for lodging, a room in his North Hollywood home. This provided Howerdel the opportunity to play demos of his music for Keenan, pleased with what he heard, Keenan remarked, I can hear myself singing. Although he originally desired a female vocalist, Howerdel agreed that Keenan would be a good fit and they were then joined by bassist and violinist Paz Lenchantin, former Failure guitarist Troy Van Leeuwen, and previous Primus drummer Tim Alexander. The band played their first show at LAs Viper Club Reception on August 15,1999, after playing shows in L. A. the band entered the studio to begin work on their first album. Alexander was soon replaced with drummer and member of The Vandals, Josh Freese. Alexanders performance can still be heard on the version of the song The Hollow. The bands debut album, Mer de Noms, was released on May 23,2000. The album is distinctive in that it is the highest ever debut for a band, selling over 188,000 copies in its first week. Howerdel had been working on some of the music, including tracks The Hollow and Breña, the band began touring soon after recording for the album was finished. As Keenan was well known through his band, he would often wear long wigs on his otherwise bald head when performing
20.
Van Williams
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Van Zandt Jarvis Williams was an actor best known for his leading role as Kenny Madison in both Warner Bros. television detective series Bourbon Street Beat and its sequel, Surfside 6. He teamed for one season with the late Bruce Lee as his partner Kato, in the television series The Green Hornet, Williams was born in Fort Worth, Texas, the son of Priscilla Anne and Bernard Cardwell Williams. He grew up on a ranch outside Fort Worth and later studied animal husbandry and he moved to Hawaii in 1956 after differences with his father on how the ranch should be run. A diving instructor in Hawaii in 1956, Williams was discovered there in 1957 by producer Mike Todd, who urged him to come to Hollywood to try his hand at acting. Todd, husband of Elizabeth Taylor at the time, died in a plane crash and his big break came as co-star of the ABC television series Bourbon Street Beat, set in New Orleans. The show aired during the 1959-1960 season, his co-stars were Andrew Duggan, Richard Long, Williams also starred in a television pilot called The Leathernecks that was shown as an episode of ABCs The Gallant Men. After his Warner Brothers contract lapsed in 1964, Williams worked in television commercials, in 1966, ABC-TV revived George W. Trendles famous radio character in a new series, The Green Hornet. Van Williams signed with 20th Century-Fox to portray the mysterious masked hero and his alter ego, Williams played the role straight, unlike the lampoon comedy approach of the same producers Batman show. He and co-star Bruce Lee also made three guest appearances, in character, on Batman, first in a cameo. Williams acting career faded around 1973, though he made a few television guest appearances and starred in one more series, in 1977, he appeared in the episode Devil Pack from the NBC series Quinn Martins Tales of the Unexpected. He retired from acting in 1982 to open a Santa Monica, Williams was also a longtime Reserve Deputy Sheriff with the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department and worked at the Malibu, California, substation. In 1993, Williams made a cameo in Dragon, The Bruce Lee Story as a director of The Green Hornet. In 2010, the filmmakers of the 2011 Green Hornet film adaptation had wanted him to make an appearance as a cemetery guard. Williams married his wife, Vicki Flaxman in 1959 and he has twin daughters from a previous marriage. In 1988, Williams owned houses in Sun Valley, Idaho, Fort Worth and he said it was the fruits of good investments. Pat Priest, Williams’ longtime friend and neighbor, said he was her mentor and his favorite pastime was hunting geese, duck, elk, and other animals. Producer Kevin Burns revealed on December 5,2016, that Williams died on November 28,2016 from renal failure at the age of 82 in Scottsdale, tall Story The Caretakers Dragon, The Bruce Lee Story Colt. Dwayne Kiefer Van Williams at the Internet Movie Database
21.
Nevermore
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Nevermore is an American heavy metal band from Seattle, Washington, United States. Formed in 1991, they are known to incorporate elements from various styles such as metal, modern hard rock. The band has been on hiatus since 2011, due to issues between the band members. In April 2015, lead singer Warrel Dane confirmed that Nevermore has not disbanded, two members of the band – vocalist Warrel Dane and bassist Jim Sheppard — did not agree with the change, and thus proceeded to create a project of their own, Nevermore. By the end of 1994, the band assumed a stable lineup, in 1995 Nevermore released its debut album through Century Media Records. This album received attention and specialized review, as its release was followed by a European tour with Blind Guardian. Second guitarist Pat OBrien joined the band prior to the release of the EP In Memory and also part in the recording of the subsequent album The Politics of Ecstasy. OBrien left Nevermore to play in Cannibal Corpse and Curran Murphy from Shatter Messiah was enlisted as a touring guitarist for the band until Tim Calvert was able to join the band, three years without releases followed, but in 1999, the album Dreaming Neon Black was released. The tracks of this album are varied in style, ranging from slow, a long tour followed with Nevermore sharing stages with bands such as Mercyful Fate, Arch Enemy, Iced Earth, and Opeth. After the end of the tour, in 2000, guitarist Tim Calvert announced his departure from the band, instead of finding a replacement, the band decided to continue as a quartet, hiring session guitarists for live appearances, such as Curran Murphy and Jag Panzers Chris Broderick. Nevermore proceeded to record Dead Heart in a Dead World, which was followed by tours with bands, most notably with In Flames and Shadows Fall in late 2000. The bands fifth album, Enemies of Reality, remained in production for over a year and this album faced much criticism for its production and was re-released in 2005, after being remixed by Andy Sneap. On tour, the band was joined by lead guitarist Steve Smyth, formerly of Vicious Rumors and Testament. A sixth album, This Godless Endeavor, was released in July 2005, Nevermore then toured on Dave Mustaines Gigantour during the summer of 2005. In 2006, they toured with Disturbed and also as direct support to In Flames on the leg of its North American tour. Warrel Dane had previously developed type 2 diabetes, and the band was forced to cancel their show in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on May 13,2006, due to an unspecified illness afflicting Dane. On September 12,2006, Nevermore was supposed to record its first full length DVD live at the Zeche club in Bochum and this event was to be captured by 7 cameras and the live recording was to be produced by Andy Sneap. Doctors insisted that he be kept at the hospital and the show was canceled that evening, apologetic to their fans, Nevermore agreed with the local venue to perform the show on October 11,2006
