It is debatable whether or not they are technically "dead," but nonetheless, Long Island's Glassjaw are good example of how detrimental lack of structure can be to a band. The group, which constisted of only 4 members at a time, has had no less than 19 different people go in and out of its revolving doors over the course of their existence. Glassjaw began in 1993, when vocalist Daryl Palumbo and Justin Beck met at summer camp. Both had been playing in straight-edge hardcore bands, and decided to join forces to scale the NYHC scene. These two were the only constant members of the band until they released their first EP, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, on 2 Cents a Pop Records in 1997.
Although they were already huge in New York, Glassjaw still had practically no national exposure when they signed with Roadrunner Records in 1999. They were, for some reason, matched up with renowned butt-rock producer Ross Robinson (Korn, Limp Bizkit). Despite this bizarre choice, the resulting product was the stunning full-length, Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Silence. This is often cited as being a landmark post-hardcore album.
On EYEWTKAS, the band expanded the genre's typical loud/soft dynamic, with unusual time signatures and pummeling guitar riffs. However, the real focal point of the band was Palumbo, whose maniacal vocals sounded like an even more schizophrenic Mike Patton. His lyrics were unabashedly misogynistic, giving his ferocious screaming added bite with such lines as, "I only beat you when I'm drunk / You're only pretty when you're crying." However, this onstage persona directly reflected the fragile state of Palumbo's real life, due to his suffering from Crohn's disease. This pain was a major theme for the album, so much so that his daily pill box was the image on the cover.
Despite the critical success of their first album, Roadrunner Records failed to market it enough for them to gain any mainstream exposure. In 2001, they secretly recorded their follow up with Ross Robinson. Having lost two members on their previous tour, the band used studio musicians to create Worship & Tribute, which they eventually sold to Warner Bros. Records. This album displayed the band's versatility with songs like "Ape Dos Mil" and "The Gillette Cavalcade of Sports," which were considerably less venomous than their previous work, yet no less engaging. They toured extensively with this album, joining Ozzfest, Warped, and the Snocore Tour, before announcing their hiatus in 2004.
Glassjaw have not released an album since Worship & Tribute, but have been discussing the possibility of a 3rd LP off-and-on for the past few years, with no mention of who exactly would be involved. After the hiatus, Palumbo quickly began work on a side project with legendary hip-hop producer Dan the Automator (Gorillaz, Deltron 3030), to make the strictly pop group Head Automatica. After Automator moved onto other things, Palumbo recruited a full band to maintain the project, which has since seen greater commercial success than Glassjaw ever did. He also recently released an LP with United Nations, a metalcore group featuring Thursday vocalist, Geoff Rickley, as well as members of Converge and Made Out of Babies. Glassjaw have played several assorted shows with little advance notice since 2007, but have never fully regrouped. Until this next album materializes, it is relatively safe to say that Glassjaw is still a dead band.
Check out the music video for "Cosmopolitan Bloodloss" from Worship & Tribute, in which the entire band is murdered by Vincent Gallo, here:
Although they were already huge in New York, Glassjaw still had practically no national exposure when they signed with Roadrunner Records in 1999. They were, for some reason, matched up with renowned butt-rock producer Ross Robinson (Korn, Limp Bizkit). Despite this bizarre choice, the resulting product was the stunning full-length, Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Silence. This is often cited as being a landmark post-hardcore album.
On EYEWTKAS, the band expanded the genre's typical loud/soft dynamic, with unusual time signatures and pummeling guitar riffs. However, the real focal point of the band was Palumbo, whose maniacal vocals sounded like an even more schizophrenic Mike Patton. His lyrics were unabashedly misogynistic, giving his ferocious screaming added bite with such lines as, "I only beat you when I'm drunk / You're only pretty when you're crying." However, this onstage persona directly reflected the fragile state of Palumbo's real life, due to his suffering from Crohn's disease. This pain was a major theme for the album, so much so that his daily pill box was the image on the cover.
Despite the critical success of their first album, Roadrunner Records failed to market it enough for them to gain any mainstream exposure. In 2001, they secretly recorded their follow up with Ross Robinson. Having lost two members on their previous tour, the band used studio musicians to create Worship & Tribute, which they eventually sold to Warner Bros. Records. This album displayed the band's versatility with songs like "Ape Dos Mil" and "The Gillette Cavalcade of Sports," which were considerably less venomous than their previous work, yet no less engaging. They toured extensively with this album, joining Ozzfest, Warped, and the Snocore Tour, before announcing their hiatus in 2004.
Glassjaw have not released an album since Worship & Tribute, but have been discussing the possibility of a 3rd LP off-and-on for the past few years, with no mention of who exactly would be involved. After the hiatus, Palumbo quickly began work on a side project with legendary hip-hop producer Dan the Automator (Gorillaz, Deltron 3030), to make the strictly pop group Head Automatica. After Automator moved onto other things, Palumbo recruited a full band to maintain the project, which has since seen greater commercial success than Glassjaw ever did. He also recently released an LP with United Nations, a metalcore group featuring Thursday vocalist, Geoff Rickley, as well as members of Converge and Made Out of Babies. Glassjaw have played several assorted shows with little advance notice since 2007, but have never fully regrouped. Until this next album materializes, it is relatively safe to say that Glassjaw is still a dead band.
Check out the music video for "Cosmopolitan Bloodloss" from Worship & Tribute, in which the entire band is murdered by Vincent Gallo, here:
2 comments:
When you wrote about Sunny Day Real Estate I thought 'oh my gosh, i totally forgot about them,' but Glassjaw, man, I think lovebites and razorlines is engraved in my subconscious or something. I couldn't remember the words, but thinking about it definitely took me back to, what, middle school/early high and how i found out about them, and definitely the screaming, loud, abrasive introduction into young adulthood. Thanks Chuck!
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