Expanding Man
Encyclopedia
Formed in Long Island
, New York, Expanding Man began as Aaron Lippert (vocals), Dave Wanamaker (guitar), Chris Hancock (drums) and Peter Armata (bass). In 1992, the group moved to the Boston
area, where they were joined by second guitarist, Bill Guerra. After releasing Free T.V.s on a Boston area indie label, they were signed by Sony
and recorded "Head to the Ground" with producer Mike Denneen. It was released on Columbia Records
in 1996. The single "Download (I Will)" received considerable airplay on North American radio stations, reaching #22 on Billboard
s Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and was included (as track 14) on the soundtrack
for the film The Cable Guy.
The group's first major release ended up being their last with Columbia. This was not at all due to any musical failure—the group's brand of tuneful, post-grunge, melodic rock was truly exceptional and perfectly tailored for radio play-lists, yet the group received little attention from the label despite their song-crafting and high profile support spots with the likes of '90s superstars Stone Temple Pilots.
After leaving Columbia in 1997, the band signed to Polydor (U.S.) and was joined by new drummer Mike Piehl. Working with Nick Gatfield (Polydor) and producer Matt Hyde, (Porno for Pyros, Monster Magnet) they recorded their sophomore effort entitled "Love and Disaster." The band recorded and delivered a highly polished rock album at a very precarious time in the music industry. In 1999, immediately following delivery of the album, Universal Music merged with Polygram and thinned their combined rosters. The band was dropped before the record was ever released and the label opted to keep the master recordings even though other labels were eager to sign the band and release the new album. The band dissolved soon thereafter. In 2009, 10 years later, Universal agreed to return the masters to the band and the album was subsequently released online October 2010.
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, New York, Expanding Man began as Aaron Lippert (vocals), Dave Wanamaker (guitar), Chris Hancock (drums) and Peter Armata (bass). In 1992, the group moved to the Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
area, where they were joined by second guitarist, Bill Guerra. After releasing Free T.V.s on a Boston area indie label, they were signed by Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
and recorded "Head to the Ground" with producer Mike Denneen. It was released on Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
in 1996. The single "Download (I Will)" received considerable airplay on North American radio stations, reaching #22 on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
s Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and was included (as track 14) on the soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
for the film The Cable Guy.
The group's first major release ended up being their last with Columbia. This was not at all due to any musical failure—the group's brand of tuneful, post-grunge, melodic rock was truly exceptional and perfectly tailored for radio play-lists, yet the group received little attention from the label despite their song-crafting and high profile support spots with the likes of '90s superstars Stone Temple Pilots.
After leaving Columbia in 1997, the band signed to Polydor (U.S.) and was joined by new drummer Mike Piehl. Working with Nick Gatfield (Polydor) and producer Matt Hyde, (Porno for Pyros, Monster Magnet) they recorded their sophomore effort entitled "Love and Disaster." The band recorded and delivered a highly polished rock album at a very precarious time in the music industry. In 1999, immediately following delivery of the album, Universal Music merged with Polygram and thinned their combined rosters. The band was dropped before the record was ever released and the label opted to keep the master recordings even though other labels were eager to sign the band and release the new album. The band dissolved soon thereafter. In 2009, 10 years later, Universal agreed to return the masters to the band and the album was subsequently released online October 2010.
Albums
| Album information |
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Free T.V.s
|
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Head to the Ground
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Love and Disaster
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