Swollen Members

Swollen Members
Origin Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Genres Alternative Hip-Hop
Years active 1992–present
Labels Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
Associated acts Rock Steady Crew
Moka Only
Dilated Peoples
La Coka Nostra
Website swollenmembers.com
Members Madchild (1996-present)
Prevail (1992-present)
Rob The Viking (2002-present)
Past members Moka Only (1992–1996, 2002–2005)
Easy Roc (1996–1998)
Zodak (1996–1999)

Swollen Members is a Canadian hip hop group from Vancouver, British Columbia, consisting mainly of the duo Madchild and Prevail. Frequent collaborators include vocalist Moka Only (who was actually a member of the group for a short period of time in the mid-1990s when the group was formed, and then again from 2002 to 2005) along with the other former members Easy Roc & Zodak who were only in the group for a few years and producer Rob the Viking, an official group member since 2002. Swollen Members has released nine studio albums, one greatest hits album and 2 compilations, as well as numerous other singles.

History

Foundation and single releases

Swollen Members was founded in 1992 by Vancouverites Madchild (Shane Bunting), Prevail (Kiley Hendriks), and Moka Only (Daniel Denton). Having begun a solo career while living in San Francisco, California, Madchild returned to Vancouver to work. There he met Prevail and Moka Only, who had been working together. They joined together. The group had to decide on a name so Madchild suggested Swollen Members as a joke and it stuck.

In 1996, Madchild and Prevail went to the B-Boy Summit in San Diego, California, where Madchild won several rap battles and was initiated into the Rock Steady Crew. Swollen Members is one of only three rap groups affiliated with Rock Steady, Others include Dilated Peoples and The Arsonists.

The group began testing the international hip-hop waters by releasing four 12-inch singles on Battleaxe, Records initially distributed by New York-based Fat Beats; the singles sold approximately 10,000 copies.

1999-2000: Debut album

In 1999, they released their debut album Balance. Balance received wide critical acclaim and has since sold over 41,000 copies in Canada. Featuring collaborations with artists such as Everlast, Divine Styler, and Dilated Peoples, the re-issued album received the 2001 Juno Award for Best Rap Recording.

2001-2002: Second album and mainstream success

Following Balance, Swollen Members recorded and released Bad Dreams, released on November 13, 2001, and featuring guests such as Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, Son Doobie, Joey Chavez, and former member Moka Only. It appealed to both underground and mainstream audiences, reaching platinum status in Canada. The album earned Swollen Members their second Juno Award and four MuchMusic Video Awards including best rap video, best director and best independent video.[1]

2002-2003: Monsters in the Closet

2002's Monsters in the Closet, their third release, brought official group membership for Moka Only and Rob The Viking to Swollen Members. Monsters in the Closet was a collection of B-sides and outtakes along with three new songs, "Breathe" which featured British Columbian pop singer, Nelly Furtado. Production credits include Evidence from Dilated Peoples.

2003-2004: Heavy

In 2003, the band released Heavy. In the same year the songs "All Night" and "Deep End (Utah Saints Remix)" were featured in the videogame SSX3. In 2004, the Swollen Members song "Bottom Line" was featured in the videogames WWE Day of Reckoning and WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw.

2005-2006: Solo career and Black Magic

In 2005, Moka Only decided to break off from the group for a second time and continue work on his solo career. The following year, Swollen Members released their fifth full album, Black Magic. It is understood that Madchild and Prevail made an attempt to return to their previously critically acclaimed style and method. Their previous album Heavy was unlisted on their official site discography. A single from the album, "Put Me On (feat. Everlast)", was released in August 2006. Later that year, Nettwerk Management dropped the group due to Madchild's affiliation with the Hell's Angels.[2]

2009-2010: Armed to the Teeth

Armed to the Teeth was released October 27, 2009 through Swollen's new label Suburban Noize Records. Featured artists on the album include La Coka Nostra, Talib Kweli, Tech N9ne, Tre Nyce, and a return of Moka Only on the previously released track, "Red Dragon". This release was followed by a North American tour with Australian Hip-Hop group Bliss 'n' Eso.

2011-2012: Dagger Mouth

Swollen Members scheduled the release of a studio album, Dagger Mouth, for April 2011, under Suburban Noize. Its first single is "Mr. Impossible".[3] The second single released off Dagger Mouth is "Bring Me Down" which features rapper Saigon. A compilation album titled Monsters 2 was released August 2, 2011.

2013: Beautiful Death Machine

On March 19, 2013, their tenth studio album, Beautiful Death Machine was released, and had debuted at number 3 on the Canadian Albums Chart, making it the group's highest charting album in Canada to date.

2014: Brand New Day

June 17, 2014 brought their 11th studio album Brand New Day to store shelves across the world.

2015: KOTD Black Out 5

In mid February 2015, Madchild was listed on the KOTD BO5 card against the battle rapper by the stage name of Daylyt. Footage of his trailer for this event can be found on the KOTD Entertainment channel on YouTube.[4] The footage of the battle can be seen bootleg.[5] The release of this battle on the KOTD channel is TBA.

Group members

Current members
  • Madchild – (1996–present)
  • Prevail – (1992–present)
  • Rob the Viking – (2002–present)
Former members
  • Moka Only – (1992–1996, 2002–2005)
  • Easy Roc - (1996–1998)
  • Zodak - (1996–1999)

Discography

Studio albums

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions and certifications
Title Album details Peak chart positions
CAN U.S. U.S. Heat U.S. Independent
Balance
  • Released: May 31, 1999
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
 – – – –
Bad Dreams
  • Released: November 13, 2001
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
 – – – –
Monsters In the Closet
  • Released: November 12, 2002
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
 7 – – –
Heavy
  • Released: November 18, 2003
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
 14 – – –
Black Magic
  • Released: September 12, 2006
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
 22 – 19 21
Armed to the Teeth
  • Released: October 27, 2009
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
 19 146 5 23
Dagger Mouth
  • Released: April 12, 2011
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
 15 – 3 41
Beautiful Death Machine
  • Released: March 19, 2013
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
 3 167 3 26
Brand New Day
  • Released: June 17, 2014
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
 8 – 7 –

Singles

Year Single Peak chart
positions		 Album
CAN
[6]
1999 "Front Street" — Balance
"Strength" —
2000 "Camouflage" —
"Lady Venom" —
2001 "Take It Back" — Bad Dreams
"Fuel Injected" —
2002 "Bring It Home" 3
"Steppin Thru" — Monsters in the Closet
"Breath" (featuring Nelly Furtado) —
"Fuel Injected (Remix)" (featuring Saukrates) —
2003 "Watch This" — Heavy
2006 "Black Magic" (featuring DJ Swamp) — Black Magic
"Too Hot" (featuring DJ Babu) —
"Put Me On" (featuring Everlast and Moka Only) —
"Pressure" —
2009 "Warrior" (featuring Tre Nyce and Young Kash) 94 Black Magic
"Red Dragon" —
"Bollywood Chick" (featuring Tech N9ne and Tre Nyce) —
2010 "Pornstar" (featuring Tre Nyce) —
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Compilations

List of compilation albums, with selected chart positions and certifications
Title Album details Peak chart positions
CAN U.S. U.S. Heat U.S. Independent
Greatest Hits: Ten Years of Turmoil
  • Released: March 16, 2010
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
 – – – –
Monsters II
  • Released: August 2, 2011
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
 – – – –
1997
  • Released: December 6, 2011
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
 – – – –

Guest appearances

List of non-single guest appearances, with other performing artists, showing year released and album name
Title Year Other artist(s) Album
"S and M On the Rocks" 1999 N/A Blazing the Crop
"Artillery" 2007 Infected Mushroom Vicious Delicious
"Lost In the Music" 2012 Insane Clown Posse Mike E. Clark's Extra Pop Emporium
"Falling Down" 2013 Twiztid A New Nightmare

Music Videos

Year Song Director(s) Album
2000 "Lady Venom" Trevor Cornish Balance
2001 "Take It Back" Wendy Morgan Bad Dreams
"Deep End" Jason Goldwatch
2002 "Bring It Home" Wendy Morgan Monsters In The Closet
"Fuel Injected" Wendy Morgan Bad Dreams
"Steppin Thru" Wendy Morgan Monsters In The Closet
"Breath" (feat. Nelly Furtado) Todd McFarlane
2003 "Watch This" Heavy
2006 "Too Hot" Black Magic
"Put Me On" (feat. Everlast) Margaret Malandruccolo
"Pressure"
2009 "Warrior" (feat. Young Kazh) Chad Archibald & Philip Carrer Armed To The Teeth
"Bollywood Chick" (feat. Tech N9ne)
2010 "Pornstar" Chad Archibald & Philip Carrer
2011 "Mr. Impossible" Mr. Invisible Dagger Mouth
"Bring Me Down (Swollen Mix)" (feat. Saigon) Mr. Invisible
"Night Vision"
"Do Or Die"
2013 "King of Diamonds" D-Shot Beautiful Death Machine
"Mercenary" D-Shot
"Inception" D-Shot
"Almost Famous" D-Shot
"BAX WAR" D-Shot
"Death Warrant" D-Shot
"Fear" (feat. Snak The Ripper) D-Shot
"Juggernaut"
2014 "Power" Brand New Day
"Brand New Day" Dale Resteghini

Awards and recognition

Juno Awards

MuchMusic Video Awards

Additional awards

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Swollen Members Clean Up At MuchMusic Awards" Billboard June 2002
  2. ↑ Woo, Andrea. "Conversations: Swollen Members", "Exclaim!" November 2009.
  3. ↑ "Swollen Members - Mr Impossible - Listen/Watch Now". MusicRemedy/. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  4. ↑ KOTD - #BLACKOUT5 - ANNOUNCEMENT #10. YouTube. 18 December 2014. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  5. ↑ "Pat Stay vs Charron, Daylyt vs Madchild, Con vs Dumbfoundead, Serius vs Head Ice + More [Blackout 5]". Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  6. ↑ "Swollen Members". Allmusic. Retrieved November 20, 2013.

External links