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Stuck Mojo is a rap metal group from Atlanta, Georgia. They were formed in 1989 by guitarist Rich Ward and original bassist Dwayne Fowler. Lead vocalist Bonz joined later in the year. Together with the likes of Rage Against the Machine and Urban Dance Squad, they are considered by many, to be one of the key bands in the creation of rap metal. Stuck Mojo is currently signed to Napalm Records.
History
Early years
The band was formed in 1989 when bassist Dwane Fowler invited guitarist and friend Rich Ward to come over and jam with his drummer Richard Farmer. The band cycled through a number of vocalists before settling on rapper Bonz. Each member of the band came from a different musical background; Fowler was best described by guitarist Ward as being 'P-Funk All-Stars meets Burning Spear'. Ward himself was influenced by the early works of Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne. Bonz came from a rap and hip hop background, being heavily influenced by the early works of RUN-DMC and Faith No More.
The band recorded and released their first untitled demo in 1991, followed by a 3-song demo the next year. Around this time, Farmer left the group and the band went through a number of drummers before settling on Benjamin Reed. With Reed, the band recorded and released The Mojo Seven demo in 1992.
After acquiring management, the band started playing in dozens of clubs around the west coast which eventually earned the band a fan following. Before the tour, the band decided to fire drummer Benjamin Reed for his many personal commitments would only slow the band down.[citation needed]The band replaced Reed with drummer Brent Payne for their first independent tour.
In 1993, under the guidance of their new management team of Mark Willis and Nancy Camp, Stuck Mojo went on the road hitting dozens of cities such as Chicago, Tampa , Charlotte, Columbia, South Carolina , Macon, Georgia, and Tallahassee.[1]
Century Media Records (1995 - 2000)
The band recorded their fourth demo, a three-song record that they sent to different record labels. The record eventually attracted the attention of Century Media Records who signed the band in 1994.
The band released their first album, Snappin' Necks, in March 1995, with Century Media Records. The album was followed with a three month tour opening for Machine Head. Following the tour, both Fowler and Payne left the band amidst the rigors of touring and tensions in the band.
In 1996 they released the Pigwalk alongside new bassist Corey Lowery and drummer Frank "Bud" Fontseré. This album was supported by the band's first tour of Europe in the "Crossover 2000 Tour" and tours opening for Life of Agony, Testament and Type O Negative. The same year the band released a Europe only EP called Violated.
1997 was highlighted by tours with Type O Negative, Life of Agony, Testament and a second tour of Europe. For the third consecutive year, Stuck Mojo performed over 250 shows.
In late 1997 through early 1998, the band was in the studio with producer Andy Sneap to recording sessions for their third release Rising. The band's enjoyment of professional wrestling was exhibited through this album, as World Championship Wrestling's United States Heavyweight Championship belt was prominently featured on the cover. Also, the video for the song "Rising" featured then-WCW stars Diamond Dallas Page, Raven, and The Flock. The video was also directed by Page.
Thanks to the airing of the "Rising" video on MTV and WCW Monday Nitro on the eve of the album's release, Mojo experienced their highest sales to date and become the first Century Media band to hit the Billboard charts. A headlining tour of Europe then followed in June and ended with another appearance on the main stage at Dynamo.[citation needed]
In 1999 Mojo headlined a six month tour with the last date being at their home venue, the Masquerade in Atlanta. During this performance the band recorded a live album. Titled HVY1, the album also featured two new studio tracks. Released in September, the band followed up with a headlining tour to support it.[citation needed]
In 2000 Mojo released Declaration Of A Headhunter, their final studio album. Despite critical praise and good sales of their albums, Stuck Mojo broke up later that year but continued to perform New Year's Eve reunion shows every year at the Masquerade Club in Atlanta. Bonz started the band 420 Monks and later Dead Gospel. Ward, Fontseré, and former bassist Dan Dryden, together with (World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) wrestler) Chris Jericho, formed the band Fozzy and another band called Sick Speed, and Corey Lowery joined Life of Agony, started Stereomud, and later Dark New Day. Ward released a solo album entitled My Kung Foo Is Good, under the name "The Duke" on May 3, 2005.
Hiatus (2001 - 2004)
In 2001, in order to fulfill lingering contractual obligations and prevent Century Media from being able to exercise any ownership rights over future recorded materials, Ward agreed to enter the studio once more. Recording two new tracks taken from his archive of unused material, the songs were added to an album of rarities and B-sides titled Violate This. However, Bonz did not participate in the sessions.
By 2004, the fans' demand for new material had not faded with the passage of time. In response to this demand, Ward collaborated with Ed Aborn of Intersonic Multimedia to compile the comprehensive DVD titled Inside the Monster: The Evilution of Stuck Mojo. Vol. 1.
Reunion (2005 - present)
In 2005, Stuck Mojo reunited, with Bonz, Ward, and Fontseré back in the lineup, with new bassist Sean Delson replacing Dan Dryden.[2] The reunion was short lived, however, as Stuck Mojo released their new album Southern Born Killers without Fontseré and Bonz, opting newcomers Rodney Beaubouef (from Dead Gospel) on drums and Lord Nelson on vocals. Their song "Open Season" brought the band into the public spotlight.[citation needed]
In 2006, new tracks from the upcoming album Southern Born Killers were made available on the bands MySpace page and the full album was madeavailable for download from their website, for free. If downloaded for free, each song was introduced by Ward, if purchased, there were no song intros from Ward.
In 2007, Mike Martin was made an official member of Stuck Mojo making the band a 5 piece which ruined the band.
In 2008, Beaubouef left the band. The band went on a European tour and a tour of the U.K. in February 2008 with Ektomorf. Steve "Nailz" Underwood (formerly of Sandfrog) took over as drummer for the tour. The band then signed to Napalm Records and re-released the album Southern Born Killers with 3 bonus tracks on March 4, 2008 in the U.S. and February 29, internationally.
Musical style
During the 1990s, Stuck Mojo's sound was based around guitarist Ward's heavily distorted and bass-enhanced guitar tone and former lead vocalist Bonz's aggressive rap style.
Stuck Mojo's a crossover band they take funk,metal,raggae,blues,jazz basically any genre out there and throw it into one band the back-bone has always been metal with other elements tossed into the mix.
Discography
Demos
Studio albums
Live albums
EPs
DVDs
- Inside the Monster: The Evilution of Stuck Mojo Vol. I (DVD, 2004)
Current band members
- Lord Nelson - Vocals (2006 - present)
- Rich Ward - Guitar and Backup Vocals (1989 - present)
- Mike Martin - Guitar (2007 - present)
- Sean Delson - Bass (2004 - present)
- Steve Underwood - (2008 - present)
Former band members
- Bonz - Vocals (1989 - 2000, 2005 - 2006)
- Richard Farmer (1989 - 1990)
- Benjamin Reed - Drums (1990 - 1993)
- Brent Payne - Drums (1993 - 1995)
- Corey Lowery - Bass/Backing Vocals (1996 - 1998)
- Frank "Bud" Fontsere - Drums (1993, 1996 - 2005: currently playing in Love Said No)
- Dan Dryden - Bass (1998 - 2001)
- Eric Sanders - Drums (2005)
- Dwayne Fowler - Bass (1989 - 1995)
- Will Hunt - Drums (1996 [European tour for Pigwalk])
- Rodney Beaubouef - Drums (2006 - 2008)
Notes
External links
Members websites
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Stuck Mojo |
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| Lord Nelson · Rich Ward · Sean Delson · Rodney Beaubouef · Mike Martin · Bonz · Richard Farmer · Benjamin Reed · Brent Payne · Corey Lowery · Frank "Bud" Fontsere · Dan Dryden · Eric Sanders · Dwayne Fowler · Will Hunt · Rodney Beaubouef |
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| Videos |
Inside the Monster: The Evilution of Stuck Mojo Vol. I
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