Diamonds in the Rough 11.14.08: Mudvayne

Posted by Leo Rivera on 11.14.2008

Kids put your parents to bed, this isn't for the weak of heart...



A lot has been said and a lot has been written about Mudvayne. "There a math metal band, their just a gimmick, they're a Slipknot wannabe" etc., etc. Well everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but one thing that is undeniably true about Mudvayne is that they are uniquely talented and artistic individuals that together are one of the most formidable and impactful hard rock bands today.



Originally formed in 1996, Mudvayne have not only stood the test of time, they have evolved with the times. Seamlessly morphing from a hardcore heavy metal band to a melodic based hard rock mainstream act and garnering certified gold albums and critical acclaim along the way. They have survived and thrived long enough to spit right square in the face of all of their doubters and critics. They have sold over 3 million albums worldwide, played on the biggest festivals with the biggest bands in the world and have been featured in countless horror movie soundtracks. But did you know that it all started with rap-metal?

Chad Gray (Vocals), Gregg Tribbet (Guitar), Matthew McDonough (drums), and Shawn Barclay (Bass) initially formed in Peoria, Illinois in 1996 to spit rhythms and drop "hot beats" (Ala Fred Durst). In essence, Mudvayne were a product of the Nu-Metal era of terror that permeated throughout the music industry in the late ‘90's and the early part of the 2000's. Sensing that the rock/rap hybrid was just a flavor of the week (ok it was a lot longer than a week) that would be milked by a desperate industry for every last drop of sweet stuff, Mudvayne wisely decided to ditch rapping. In its place came a pulsating, precision pushing nerve rattling form of metal. Never to leave anyone out of a category, music industry pundits pegged this form of metal mastery, "Math Metal" (a term that Metallica was associated with briefly during the 80's). This new sound was set in stone by the addition of bass player Ryan Martinie (who replaced Shawn Barclay in 1998). Martinies' emphasize on precision and thundering bottom bass sound became a heavy influence on the bands new found sound, and helped set them apart from the Nu-Metal pack.



Another thing that helped the band standout from the backward Yankee cap wearing and fur coat fedora hat stone pimps (Kid Rock and Fred Durst), was Mudvayne's bizarre stage make up and stage presentation. They even came equipped with stage names: Chad was Kud, Gregg: Gurrg, Ryan: RyKnow and Matthew was Spag. Many who were unfamiliar with the band simply wrote them off as cheap imitations of Slipknot, Mushroom head, and even Gwar. But once you stopped to listen to their music, it was safe to say that Mudvayne were more than just a gimmick and they were definitely not imitators. Sony certainly took note of Mudvayne's raw and untapped talent and signed them to Epic Records in late 1998.

Armed with the financial backing of a major record label, Mudvayne set out to take a chunk of the Nu-Metal pie and carve their place in the scene. They came out of the gate like a bat out of hell with their debut album L.D. 50 (Lethal Dosage of 50 milligrams). Debuting at # 85 of the Billboard 200 charts, L.D. 50 was a straight to the point all up in your face heavy metal record. Featuring songs like "Death Blooms" and "Nothing to Gein" it was obvious Mudvayne were made of a different breed all together. But the song that truly set them apart was "Dig" (any math metal fans' wet dream). The lead single for L.D. 50, "Dig" was an in your face sledge hammer of a song that sounded like nothing that was out at the time. The video was also quite the visual, with just a white background it was still intense just looking at the characters that were Mudvayne.

Following their initial success (L.D. 50 sold over 500,000 copies) the band returned to the studio to record their sophomore effort. The result was The End of All Things to Come which was released in 2002. Along with their new album came the second chapter in the ongoing evolution of Mudvayne. The band changed their presentation from mutli-colored face paint and blood splatter to dressing up as aliens. The names changed too, they were now: Chudd, Guug, Rud, and Spug. But the most important part of their evolution was their music. While still a very heavy record ("Severity", "Not Falling"), The End of All Things to Come showed Mudvayne begin to lean towards a more melodic sound. The perfect example of this can be found in "A World So Cold." Probably their heaviest song up until the point (in terms of meaning) Chad Gray (Chudd) proved that he can get a message across just as strongly without the need to use his signature growl. This new direction proved to be successful, as radio began to pick them up more thanks to their more palatable sound, but new fans were not the only ones who were impressed by Mudvayne, turns out Metal icons Metallica were paying attention too. Mudvayne were handpicked to have the opening slot on Metallica's massive Summer Sanitarium 2003 stadium tour, a tour that also featured Limp Bizkit, Linkin
Park and the Deftones.



Just prior to the Summer Sanitarium tour Mudvayne shot the video for "World So Cold" (which was their second single) in the video the band decided to do something unprecedented in their career. They appeared without makeup to drive home the seriousness of the song. They decided that they weren't too ugly and actually liked not having to put on makeup for hours at a time, so the new look stuck and they ditched the make-up for good on the summer tour. Mudvayne continued to tour through 2004 before returning to the studio to record their third studio album Lost and Found.


For Lost and Found (released in 2005) Mudvayne holed up in the studio with producer Dave Fortman (Evanescence) to put together what would become their most commercially successful album to date. Lost and Found was sonically superior to anything they had ever done before and packed with catchy choruses and uplifting lyrics yet the integrity of what Mudvayne is all about (a hard ass metal band) was not compromised an inch kicked off with a bang, with "Determined" were Chad Gray proclaimed "You better get ready because we're going to take it). The album featured many songs that crossed over into mainstream popular culture. "Determined" was featured on the Need for Speed: Underground 2 video game soundtrack (talk about a demolition derby). Perhaps the most commercially successful song for Mudvayne was the lead single "Happy?" which captured the integrity of Mudvayne in 3 and a half minutes better than any of their previous work. "Happy?" was featured in a WWE pay per view and in MX vs. ATV video game. Around this time Mudvayne also appeared in an episode of HBO"s hit series The Sopranos. Their second single "Forget to Remember" was featured in the movie SAW II. The album also featured the spacey and harrowing "Fall in to Space." Lost and Found went on to sell over 2 million copies.

Due to their overwhelming success, Mudvayne was once again asked to play on Ozzfest in the summer of 2005, but this time as one of the headliners on the main stage. During the tour Mudvayne went back to having customs, albeit quite different ones. Chad Gray wore a black gorilla suit without a head (in the sweltering summer heat mind you), had fake blood splattered face and carried a baseball bat around stage (talk about making a statement).



After touring behind Lost and Found for two years the band went on hiatus. In the meantime Chad and Guitarist Greg Tribbet proved to be badass enough to convince legendary Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul to return to the music industry and jam with them. He said yes and of course the rest as they say is history "Hell Yeah!!" (All pun intended). While on Hiatus, Mudvayne managed to release By the People for the People in 2007. A compilation of demo/live versions of their songs (chosen by the fans). It included two new song's one was a cover of the Police song (of all bands) "King of Pain." The other was "Dull Boy" which was sure to satisfy the appetite of those Mudvayne fans that were craving new material from the band. "Dull Boy" is the epitome of a Mudvayne song a lethal combination of melody meets mayhem.



Mudvayne have been an important part of modern metal history throughout the past decade and their influence continues to grow with every new album that they put out. The latest chapter in the evolution of Mudvayne begins this coming Tuesday, November 18th when the band releases its fourth studio album the appropriately titled: The New Game, The lead single "Do What You Do" shows the band delving deeper into their melodic side, but the chorus still shows that Chad Gray can still shriek with the best of them. Mudvayne are currently on a headlining tour with Ten Years and the returning Snot (featuring Sonny Mayo whoot whoot!) as supporting acts.