Adema
Adema - Nu-Metal Riders
California Nu-Metal
The Formation
As the band gained momentum through their demos and live performances in the local circuit, a rush to sign the band made the record labels literally fight over them. Finally they signed with Arista Records - then headed by the maverick Clive Davis.
The band started a lengthy recording session with producer Tobi Miller and Bill Appleberry. The self-titled album "Adema" was unleashed in Aug 2001. The two lead singles "Giving In" and "The Way You Like it" received significant radio airplay. It was the first single which also garnered speculation that it was about drugs. The accompanying video of Chavezbeing moved around as if on a conveyor belt was a hit on MTV. The album was a hit peaking at No. 27 and being certified Gold. The band received a spot on the main stage at Ozzfest which was an astonishing achievement considering they had released only 1 album
The Sophomore
During the recording of the second album, there were constant confrontations about the musical direction of the album. The effort was released in Aug 2003; "Unstable" was a commercial and critical flop. The album lacked in cohesiveness and song structures were poor. The hard core emotional lyric writing was gone. The band wanting to shrug off the "Nu Metal" tag wanted to be taken as serious rockers. Going in for raw improvisations rather then the atmospheric production of the first album, as a result Chavez and Ransom left the band after bitter disputes. It left the rest of band in complete disarray. However as part of the contractual obligations the band did tour on the back of the album.
The problems got much worse in 2003 as their record label Arista went through a huge shake-up. The label decided to drop Adema.
The Three Left Behind
Released in 2005, "Planet" was not a commercial hit as their fans could not relate to the new vocalist despite his obvious talent. The band also covered Metallica's "The Things That Should Not Be"
A high point for the band wad the media praise which they got as they played for the US marines in the Middle East.
In 2006, a new vocalist Bobby Reeves joined the band after Carracioli left. They also had a new contract with Immortal Records.
In 2007, they released "Kill the Headlights"which was poorly received and did not even chart. It was obvious that the band was missing Chavez.
The Future
Did you know that...
- ...Adema has played for US marines stationed in Iraq, Afghanistan and other places in the Persian Gulf
- ...one-time Adema lead singer Mark Chavez is half brother of Korn's lead singer Jonathan Davis
- ...Adema recorded a song for rock superstar Jon Bon Jovi's 2005 movie Cry Wolf
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