Adema
Encyclopedia
2003–2004: Unstable, Mark Chavez's and Mike Ransom's departure
Adema's second album, UnstableUnstable (album)
-DVD:*"Unstable" *"Giving In" *"The Way You Like It" *"Immortal" *Behind-The-Scenes Footage*Photo Gallery*Weblinks*& More!-Credits:Adema* Mark Chavez: vocals* Tim Fluckey: guitar* Mike Ransom: guitar* Dave DeRoo: bass...
, was released by Arista in August 2003. It was produced by Howard Benson
Howard Benson
Howard Benson is a two-time Grammy-nominated music producer and aerospace engineer.-Biography:Howard Benson has a degree in materials engineering from Drexel University and studied composition at the Philadelphia College for Performing Arts. Later he worked for Garrett AiResearch, where he worked...
, whose credits also include producing albums with P.O.D.
P.O.D.
Payable on Death is an American Christian metal band formed in 1992. The band's line-up consists of vocalist Sonny Sandoval, drummer Wuv Bernardo, guitarist Marcos Curiel, and bassist Traa Daniels. Their Christian faith is an important part of their music.They have released seven studio albums and...
, Hoobastank
Hoobastank
Hoobastank is an American rock band, best known for their 2004 hit "The Reason" and other hits "Crawling in the Dark" and "Running Away". They formed in 1994 in Agoura Hills, California, with singer Doug Robb, guitarist Dan Estrin, drummer Chris Hesse, and original bassist Markku Lappalainen. They...
and Cold
Cold (band)
Cold is an American post-grunge band, formed in 1996 in Jacksonville, Florida. With two gold-albums Cold has sold over 1.2 million records in the US alone. On November 17, 2006, Ward announced on MySpace that, after a period of uncertainty since that February, the group had decided to disband. In...
.
The band has vigorously fought the label "nu metal
Nu metal
Nu metal is a subgenre of heavy metal. It is a fusion genre which combines elements of heavy metal with other genres, including grunge and hip hop...
," preferring to be classified as traditional rock. While Unstable was not a significant break from their earlier sound, Chavez compared it to the rawness of Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
, and bassist DeRoo hoped that Chavez’s stronger voice (the result of voice lessons) would result in a more mainstream sound. "We don't go onstage and nu metal," said drummer Kohls. "We're sick of that phrase. ROCK – it's such a broad word that it doesn't categorize you."
As it turned out, the album was named "Unstable" for a reason: Chavez and guitarist Ransom had a bitter rivalry that ended when first Ransom, then Chavez, left the band. The rest of the band has blamed Chavez for "personal problems" that held the band back musically, but Chavez claimed that it was differences in the direction of the music. The feud with Ransom put the rest of the band in the middle.
During 2003, when the band released and toured for Unstable, Chavez and Ransom didn’t speak to one another. The band claimed that the split was no surprise. Ransom left in September, while the remaining four members finished touring.
Amidst this conflict, Unstable sold over 66% less than the band's debut album. In December, the band learned that Arista was dropping them during a label merger. A large number of Arista's staff was fired in a management shakeup by its parent company, Sony. L.A. Reid, who originally signed the band, had left the label a week earlier. The band has blamed low sales of Unstable on being dropped.
The band continued to write, but in February 2004, Chavez started to lose interest. He quit the band in September.
With regards to the split with Adema, Adema blamed the split on Chavez's disinterest in the band. However, Chavez acknowledged personal problems and claimed that "it takes two to tango," and that his decision precipitated from an argument with drummer Kohls over the direction of the band. Chavez would form the band Midnight Panic with his cousin and old bandmates Cesareo Garasa and Mike Montano, which released the self-titled Midnight Panic EP before dissolving.
2004–2005: Planets with Luke Caraccioli
The remaining three Adema members regrouped to write new music and auditioned for a new lead singer. After Kohls heard a demo from Rewind Yesterday, another Bakersfield band, he was impressed by the group's lead singer, Luke Caraccioli. Adema asked Caraccioli to front the band. Caraccioli accepted a few months later in January 2005.Adema signed to metal label Earache Records
Earache Records
Earache Records is a heavy metal-oriented record label based in Nottingham, UK and New York, USA. It helped to pioneer extreme metal by releasing many of the earliest grindcore and death metal records in the period 1988-1994.-History:...
in Spring 2004 when its manager, Al Dawson, heard them at a show. Under their new label, the band gained more control over their direction than they had when signed with Arista. Adema lauded Earache for allowing "bands to express themselves creatively."
On April 5, 2005, the band would deliver their next album, Planets
Planets (album)
Note: International edition of Planets doesn't contain Bad Triangle, Lift Us Up or The Thing That Should Not Be.-Credits:Adema* Luke Caraccioli - Vocals* Tim Fluckey - Guitars, Piano* Dave DeRoo - Bass* Kris Kohls - DrumsAdditional Musician:...
produced by Nick Forcillo. They released the album's first single, "Tornado," back on February 18, 2005.
Planets, as an album, was musically, a significant break from Adema's two earlier albums; it was much closer to rock than Adema's nu metal history. Kohls said that the band relied on influences from classic rock, and that the band proved that they were "so much more than" a nu metal band. The writing for the album was shared between the four members with Tim recording all of the guitar portions of the album.
As a former marine, Caraccioli played his first show with Adema in the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
in April 2005. They performed for American troops stationed in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
and the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
for the Armed Forces Entertainment
Armed Forces Entertainment
Armed Forces Entertainment is the official United States Department of Defense agency for providing entertainment to U.S. military personnel overseas. Armed Forces Entertainment hosts over 1,200 shows around the world each year, reaching over 500,000 personnel at 355 military installations...
. Though the Iraq War was still raging, the band stressed that the tour was apolitical. Adema then promoted the release by touring with Brides of Destruction
Brides of Destruction
Brides of Destruction were an American hard rock supergroup from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2002. The band's last lineup consisted of singer London LeGrand , Tracii Guns and Scot Coogan...
, a band that Kohls had briefly been involved in. Though proud of their identity change, the band noted that they had a mixture of fans from both the "old" and "new" Adema at live shows.
In September of that year, the band released a second single from the album, "Planets." The music video for the single was featured in the film, Cry Wolf
Cry Wolf
Cry_Wolf is a 2005 American horror/slasher murder mystery directed by Jeff Wadlow after he won $1,000,000 at the 2002 Chrysler Million Dollar Film Festival.-Plot:...
.
In October 2005, Luke Caraccioli left the band, citing personal reasons. Following his departure, the band got in touch with Mark Chavez and according to the band, both parties were back on good terms. Both parties even had talks about Chavez singing for Adema again and even wrote some new songs together, nothing transpired from these events.
2006–2009: Kill The Headlights With Bobby Reeves and hiatus
In March 2006, Adema announced a new vocalist, Bobby Reeves a former member of the band LEVEL. In August, the band recruited guitarist Ed Faris, also a former member of LEVEL. With their new lineup, the band signed onto Immortal RecordsImmortal Records
Immortal Records is an independent record label out of Los Angeles, California. Founded by Happy Walters in 1994, the label had helped launched the careers of such influential acts as Korn, 30 Seconds to Mars, and Incubus over the years. The label had also released soundtracks, including Judgment...
in February 2007. They released Kill the Headlights
Kill the Headlights
Kill the Headlights is the fourth studio album by Adema, released on August 21, 2007.The album is the only to feature vocalist Bobby Reeves, and guitarist Ed Faris, from the Los Angeles band LEVEL....
, produced by Marshall Altman (Marc Broussard
Marc Broussard
Marc Broussard is an American singer/songwriter. His style is best described as "Bayou Soul," a mix of funk, blues, R&B, rock, and pop, matched with distinct Southern roots...
, Zebrahead
Zebrahead
Zebrahead is an American punk rock band from Orange County, California, which fuses elements of Rapcore, Pop Punk, Alternative Rock, Alternative Metal, and Funk Metal.-1996–98: Formation:...
) in August 2007. The first single, "Cold and Jaded," was released in July. The Reeves incarnation of the group also appeared in the comic book series Koni Waves from Arcana Studio
Arcana Studio
Arcana Studio is a Canadian comic book publisher and art studio founded by former Coquitlam, British Columbia school teacher Sean O'Reilly in 2004.-Overview:...
.
In early 2008 Dave Deroo announced the band has decided to go on a "hiatus" to regroup, take a break, and assured fans they have not broken up.
In July 2009, the band announced intentions on releasing a DVD containing footage from the band's original line-up. It has yet to be released.
2009–2011: Reunion and departure of original lineup
On August 13, 2009, Mark Chavez stated that he had returned to Adema.
...the original band has not sat in a room together in 5 years, however we have all been in touch and are excited to reform THE REAL ADEMA. First comes a DVD full of Adema shows, backstage mayhem, and rare experiences found nowhere else.. Next we write a great record and hopefully tour before we drop the new record...
It was later confirmed that both Mark Chavez and original guitarist Mike Ransom were back in the band. A second blog from the band's Myspace
Myspace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
stated that both Bobby Reeves and Ed Faris had agreed to leave the band and that this was the right thing to do for Adema and their fans, the blog went on to say, "This SURE won't be the last you see of Bobby or Ed, and we wanted to take the time to thank them for their service in the line of duty..."
The original members of Adema played their first show together in over 5 years on January 14, 2010, at Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California. The band played another show the next day at Brick by Brick in San Diego, California.
Mike Ransom showed extreme minimal participation in the 2010 tour and left once again in 2010 and joined the band Black Heart Vacancy. Following Ransom's departure, Mark Chavez abruptly left Adema once again before the start of the 2011 tour. Guitarist Tim Fluckey and Bassist David DeRoo have since taken over lead vocals.
In January 2011 bassist David DeRoo was arrested just prior to performing a concert in Connecticut, and was charged with being a fugitive of the law. A warrant for his arrest was issued in July 2010 for violating his probation issued from a prior DUI
DUI
DUI is a three letter acronym that may stand for:* Driving under the influence * Democratic Union for Integration — the largest ethnic Albanian party in the Republic of Macedonia* Data Use Identifier...
incident in November 2008. DeRoo's bond was set at US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1 million. Being contractually obligated to fulfill their already scheduled 2011 tour dates, Tim Fluckey, Kris Kohls and touring fill-in Marc DeLeon expect to perform as Adema in the absence of DeRoo.
Upon the return of Dave DeRoo it was announced that touring bassist Marc DeLeon would become an official guitarist for the band, replacing Mike Ransom
On their official MySpace page, the band announced on July 19th, 2011, "We're going in the studio this week! New music coming soon!".
Current members
- Dave DeRoo — bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, lead vocalsLead vocalistThe lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually considered to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in, often the...
(2000–present) - Tim Fluckey — guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
s, lead vocals (2000–present) - Kris KohlsKris KohlsKris Kohls is an american rock drummer known as member of the band Adema.In his early life Kris joined several bands , a five piece set drummer, Kris develop many skills of drumming during the 90's. He and other 4 other musicians made the band Adema in the early 2000 who was quickly signed with...
— drumDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
s (2000–present) - Marc DeLeon — guitarRhythm guitarRhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
s, backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
(2011–present)
Former members
- Mark Chavez — lead vocals (2000–2004, 2009–2011)
- Mike Ransom — guitars, backing vocals (2000–2003, 2009–2010)
- Bobby Reeves — lead vocals (2006–2009)
- Ed Faris — guitars, synthesizerSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
s (2006–2009) - Luke Caraccioli — lead vocals (2005)
Discography
- AdemaAdema (album)Adema is the eponymous debut album by Adema. After its release in 2001, it has sold over 600,000 copies, peaking at number 27 on the Billboard 200. Adema eventually become certified Gold in the US and sold over 1 million worldwide. The major singles from this album were "The Way You Like It" and...
(2001) - UnstableUnstable (album)-DVD:*"Unstable" *"Giving In" *"The Way You Like It" *"Immortal" *Behind-The-Scenes Footage*Photo Gallery*Weblinks*& More!-Credits:Adema* Mark Chavez: vocals* Tim Fluckey: guitar* Mike Ransom: guitar* Dave DeRoo: bass...
(2003) - PlanetsPlanets (album)Note: International edition of Planets doesn't contain Bad Triangle, Lift Us Up or The Thing That Should Not Be.-Credits:Adema* Luke Caraccioli - Vocals* Tim Fluckey - Guitars, Piano* Dave DeRoo - Bass* Kris Kohls - DrumsAdditional Musician:...
(2005) - Kill the HeadlightsKill the HeadlightsKill the Headlights is the fourth studio album by Adema, released on August 21, 2007.The album is the only to feature vocalist Bobby Reeves, and guitarist Ed Faris, from the Los Angeles band LEVEL....
(2007)