History

Lead singer Jacob Bunton first formed the group under the name Wish in Birmingham in 1995. They signed with Atlantic Records

Atlantic Records

Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

 in 1997 and recorded an album, but Atlantic dropped them before releasing any of their material. In 1999, legendary A&R guru John Kalodner

John Kalodner

John David Kalodner is a retired American A&R executive. His achievements included signing Foreigner, AC/DC, Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins to Atlantic Records in the seventies....

 signed the band to Columbia

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...

 and released their debut record Beautiful Something in February 2000. The band consisted of Bunton on lead vocals, guitarist Michael Swann (later replaced by Chris Simons), Bassist Carl Ray Hopper, and drummer Matt Finn. The group toured with Stone Temple Pilots

Stone Temple Pilots

Stone Temple Pilots is an American rock band from San Diego, California that consists of Scott Weiland , brothers Robert DeLeo and Dean DeLeo , and Eric Kretz ....

, Mötley Crüe

Mötley Crüe

Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...

, Live, 3 Doors Down, Nickelback, Vertical Horizon, Alice Cooper and Papa Roach following the album's release.

Mars Electric broke up at the end of 2000, and Bunton put together a group called Lynam

Lynam (band)

-History:Formed in Alabama in 2001 after the breakup of Jacob Bunton's major-label band Mars Electric, Lynam is often aligned with the retro metal movement of the mid-2000s generation. Led by frontman and principal songwriter Jacob Bunton, the band is heavily influenced by Def Leppard and has drawn...

, which would go on to have its own major-label contract a few years later. However, in 2003, Magnus Soderkvist of Swedish label Atenzia Records learned the group had recorded a second album which was never released, and offered to put it out on his label. The result was Fame Among the Vulgar, released in May 2003. By this time, Lynam had become Bunton's primary concern, and Simmons went on to play with Leon Russell

Leon Russell

Claude Russell Bridges , known professionally as Leon Russell, is an American musician and songwriter, who has recorded as a session musician, sideman, and maintained a solo career in music....

 later in the decade.

Members

• Jacob Bunton - vocals, guitar
• Chris Simmons - guitar
• Carl Hopper - bass
• Matt Finn - drums

Discography

• Beautiful Something (Portrait
  Portrait Records
  Portrait Records was a sister label of Epic Records and later of Columbia Records. Cyndi Lauper and Sade signed with Portrait, but their contracts were absorbed by Epic after that incarnation of the label was shuttered....
  
  /Columbia
  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...
  
  , 2000)
• Fame Among the Vulgar (Atenzia Records, 2003)