Depswa
Encyclopedia
Depswa are a four-piece alternative metal
Alternative metal
Alternative metal is a genre of alternative rock and heavy metal that gained popularity in the early 1990s. Most notably, alternative metal bands are characterized by heavy guitar riffs and experimental approaches to heavy music.-Origins:...

 music group originating from Modesto, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

.

History

The beginnings of Depswa came together in the mid-90's with vocalist Jeremy Penick and bassist Ryan Burchfield, under their original band name "Carcinogen". By the late 90's, Penick and Burchfield had moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

 and added guitarist Dan Noonan. The band would then rename themselves as "Depswa".

The band released their debut EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...

 in 2000 titled Faithless, and by October 2001, had added drummer Gordon Heckaman into the fold.

Depswa had generated some significant interest around a number of major record labels. Ultimately they decided to sign with Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...

.

The band went to work recording their debut album with renowned producer 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...

. A second guitarist in James Mills also joined the band at this point.

Depswa released their debut album titled Two Angels and a Dream
Two Angels and a Dream
Two Angels and a Dream is the debut album by the Californian-based alternative metal/nu metal music group Depswa. The album was released on June 3, 2003 via Geffen Records. Album sales were disappointing, selling just under 10,000 copies in the United States, almost three months into its release...

on June 3, 2003. The band was part of Ozzfest
Ozzfest
Ozzfest is an annual festival tour of the United States featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Ozzy Osbourne and his wife Sharon Osbourne, both of whom also organize each yearly tour with their son Jack Osbourne...

 2003, as a second stage act. Also, Their song, "This Time", was featured in EA Sports' NASCAR Thunder 2004 in two forms, the original with lyrics, and an instrumental version. "This Time" was also sampled by Krayzie Bone
Krayzie Bone
Anthony Henderson better known as Krayzie Bone, is an American rapper and is a former member of the rap group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony.-Solo career:Krayzie Bone recorded his solo debut, Thug Mentality 1999, in 1998...

 on the track "Don't Know Why" from the album Gemini: Good vs. Evil
Gemini: Good Vs. Evil
Gemini: Good vs. Evil is Krayzie Bone's fourth CD release . It was released on February 8, 2005. He signed a one-album deal with then newly established Ball'r Records . It was his first album in almost four years...

.

As of August 13, 2003, Depswa had sold 9,060 copies of their debut album in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 (according to Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan is an information and sales tracking system created by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett. Soundscan is the official method of tracking sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada...

). At this point, it was rumoured that the band had been dropped off the remaining part of the Ozzfest tour, due to Geffen withdrawing their tour support of the band.http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=14403 This was not completely accurate. Geffen was not in communications with the band's management and had not sent the remainder of the tour support that was needed. The band told Geffen that if they did not receive the backend support they would pull themselves off the tour. Geffen responded saying that they were going to send the funds 2 days after the band started for home. Upon returning to L.A. Depswa's attorney requested that the label let the band go to pursue other labels that might be more supportive.

On December 6, 2003, guitarist James Mills departed Depswa.http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=17193 The band was seeking a replacement guitarist, but nobody was ever hired, and have since continued as a four-piece with Penick playing second guitar and singing.

In January 2005, Depswa revealed via their 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....

 blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...

 that they were under way recording material for their second album. After working with a couple different producers, Depswa eventually decided to re-record much of the material along with several new songs. Currently, (May 2007) they are in the final stages of the recording process and are preparing to have the material mixed.

May 13, 2007 was Gordon's last show with Depswa as their drummer. They now have their good friend Steve White (formally of Turn Of The Screw) behind the kit. Steve can also do vocals so the live shows have the harmonies similar to the studio recordings. As of April 2008 they've been working hard on mixing the tracks for their next CD and hope to be wrapped up by the end of summer 2008.

On March 16, 2010 Depswa released their second studio album Distorted American Dream
Distorted American Dream
Distorted American Dream is the second studio album by Depswa, their first release since 2003's Two Angels and a Dream.-Track listing:# "Distorted American Dream" - 3:38# "Right Now" - 3:40# "Take It Back" - 3:39# "10 Kinds of Lonely" - 4:28...

.

Current

  • Jeremy Penick – Vocals, Guitar
  • Dan Noonan – Guitar
  • Ryan Burchfeild – Bass
  • Steve White – Drums, Vocals

Discography

  • Faithless [EP] (2000)

01. Charades

02. Needles

03. Faithless

04. Half Empty

05. Lonely Places

06. Tears And Smiles

07. Open Sores

08. Prom Song

09. The Path
  • Two Angels and a Dream
    Two Angels and a Dream
    Two Angels and a Dream is the debut album by the Californian-based alternative metal/nu metal music group Depswa. The album was released on June 3, 2003 via Geffen Records. Album sales were disappointing, selling just under 10,000 copies in the United States, almost three months into its release...

    (2003)

01. This Time

02. Not Responsible

03. Needles

04. Let It Go

05. Prom Song

06. Two Angels And A Dream

07. From The Inside

08. Voyeur

09. Charades

10. Silhouette

11. The Path

12. Where I've Begun

13. Traveler's Song
  • Distorted American Dream
    Distorted American Dream
    Distorted American Dream is the second studio album by Depswa, their first release since 2003's Two Angels and a Dream.-Track listing:# "Distorted American Dream" - 3:38# "Right Now" - 3:40# "Take It Back" - 3:39# "10 Kinds of Lonely" - 4:28...

    (2010)

01. Distorted American Dream

02. Right Now

03. Take It Back

04. 10 Kinds of Lonely

05. Performance After The Show

06. Would I Lie

07. The Way I Am

08. Hold On

09. Cut You Out

10. One Drop

11. Down In A Hole

12. The Biggest Part

13. Peace & Serenity

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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