| Pop Evil | |
|---|---|
Lead vocalist Leigh Kakaty in Fort Wayne, Indiana in February 2010. |
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Muskegon, Michigan, United States |
| Genres | Hard rock, alternative metal, post-grunge |
| Years active | 2001–present |
| Labels | E1 music, Universal, Pazzo |
| Members | |
| Leigh Kakaty Dylan Allison Dave Grahs Tony Greve Matt DiRito |
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| Past members | |
| Jamie Nummer | |
Pop Evil is an American rock band that was formed in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 2001 by Leigh Kakaty, Dave Grahs, Jamie Nummer, and Dylan Allison. Lead guitarist Tony Greve was originally added as a temporary studio musician for the band but was invited to become a full-time member in early 2007. Around that time, bassist Jamie Nummer left the band for personal reasons and was replaced by Matt DiRito, formerly of Archangel and Before the Fire.
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The band was formed from pieces of other Michigan bands in 2001, originally known as TenFive.
They then released the 3–song EP Ready or Not featuring the concert favorite "Somebody Like You". They also have filmed a music video of the single released in 2006 starring Rossi Morreale and Britt Koth.
In November 2007, Pop Evil signed a management deal with G&G Entertainment.
Pop Evil's debut studio album, Lipstick on the Mirror, was released August 12, 2008, and it features radio favorites "Hero", "Somebody Like You", "100 in a 55", and "Stepping Stone." The album was released on independent label Pazzo Music that is distributed by Universal Music Group subsidiary, Fontana Distribution. The band distributed a special edition of the album free of charge to their devoted local fans at a concert at the Intersection in Grand Rapids, MI, on May 29, 2008.
The band worked with producer Al Sutton (Kid Rock) from Rust Belt Studios in Royal Oak, MI and Chuck Alkazian of Pearl Sound in Canton, MI on Lipstick on the Mirror.
In April 2008, Pazzo Music released their first national radio single "Hero" which peaked inside the top 25 at Active Rock radio.
In November 2008, Pazzo Music released "100 in a 55" to rock radio.
On March 6, 2009, it was announced at the live show in Cedar Rapids, IA, that Pop Evil signed with Universal Records on March 5 and will go back into the studio to re-release "Lipstick on the Mirror", Re-Mixed and Re-Mastered with a new song "Rolling Stone" and an acoustic version of 100 in a 55 produced by Michael Crittenden (Drew Nelson, Kimber Cleveland) at Mackinaw Harvest Music Studios in Grand Rapids, MI.
In April 2009 Pop Evil officially inked a deal with Cherry Lane Publishing.
On May 2, 2009 it was announced that Pop Evil will be supporting Judas Priest on the Judas Priest, British Steel (album) 30th Anniversary North American tour starting on June 29, 2009.
In May 2009 the band officially released the Remixed/Mastered "Lipstick on the Mirror" through major label Universal Republic Records. The Republic release was Engineered/Mixed by Chuck Alkazian & mastered by Chris Bellman of Bernie Grundman Mastering.
In May 2009 "100 in a 55" peaked at on the Active Rock charts at #8 making it one of the longest standing singles at Active Rock in 2009. The song was on the chart for 30 weeks.
A "Pop Edit" version of "100 in a 55" has been released to Mainstream/Top 40 radio. The vocals are mixed louder in this version while the guitars and drums are less intense.
In July 2009 the band gave the fans the chance to pick their next single. After the voting had concluded, "Breathe" was announced as the new single after winning the vote.
In January 2010, the band announced that they are heading back into the studio to record a new album, which is titled War of Angels, scheduled to be released in 2011.[1] In June 2010, the band announced that Johnny K would be the producer of the album. The name of the album signifies the struggle people experience when trying to leave their pasts behind.
In September 2010, the band debuted the first single from War Of Angels, "Last Man Standing," in an exclusive video with UFC fighter Frank Mir.
In April 2011, the band played 'Monster You Made' live acoustically on the Bubba the Love Sponge Show and stated it was a song the band hoped might be an album single.
War of Angels was originally expected to be released February 8, 2011 but in a press release on February 1, 2011, the band announced that War of Angels would be delayed due to "conflicts out of the bands control." [2] The album is now scheduled to be released on July 5, 2011, with a Deluxe edition (including two bonus tracks) available only through iTunes.
Their single "Last Man Standing" was featured on the NHL Network for the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals. Their single "Last Man Standing" was also on the July 8th 2011, episode of ESPN 2 Friday Night Fights.
They were on tour with Drowning Pool, Trust Company, and Anew Revolution in March and April. Pop Evil will be the special guests on the Raid the Nation tour, which will be headlined by Papa Roach. Also, the tour will feature Finger Eleven and Escape the Fate.
Being noted fans of the Michigan Wolverines football team,[3] Pop Evil released "In the Big House", a single that appropriates many of the lyrics from the University of Michigan fight song, "The Victors". The song title refers to an unofficial name for Michigan Stadium, "The Big House", itself referring to its status as the largest stadium in the United States and the third largest stadium in the world. The song was released to Amazon.com and the iTunes Store on August 30, 2011 with an accompanying YouTube video showing highlights from current and former Michigan football teams.[4] The song has played in the Big House itself as a pump-up song for the team and fans during home football games.
| Year | Album details | US | US Heat. [5] |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Lipstick on the Mirror
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— | 12 | |
| 2011 | War of Angels[6]
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43 | — | |
| "—" denotes a release that did not chart. | ||||
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Alt. [7] |
US Main. [8] |
US Rock [8] |
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| 2008 | "Hero" | — | 24 | — | Lipstick on the Mirror |
| "100 in a 55" | 32 | 8 | 27 | ||
| 2009 | "Breathe" | — | 29 | — | |
| "Stepping Stone" | — | — | — | ||
| 2010 | "Last Man Standing" | 35 | 7 | 26 | War of Angels |
| 2011 | "Monster You Made" | — | 6 | 22 | |
| "In the Big House" | — | — | — | Non-album single | |
| 2012 | "Boss's Daughter" | — | — | — | War of Angels |
| "—" denotes a release that did not chart. | |||||
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