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Flobots is an
experimental An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when a ...
rap rock Rap rock is a fusion genre that fuses vocal and instrumental elements of hip hop with various forms of rock. Rap rock's most popular subgenres include rap metal and rapcore, which include heavy metal and hardcore punk-oriented influences, res ...
band from
Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
, formed in 2005 by Jamie Laurie. The band's origins date back 5 years earlier to a similar project by Laurie. Flobots found mainstream success with their major label debut ''
Fight with Tools ''Fight with Tools'' is the debut album by Flobots, originally released in October 2007 and re-released on May 20, 2008. The album was recorded in 2007 around the band's home state of Colorado. ''Fight with Tools'' received a mildly positive rece ...
'' (2007), featuring the single " Handlebars", which became a popular hit on Modern Rock radio in April 2008. The band has released four studio albums and one EP, with their latest ''
Noenemies ''Noenemies'' is the fourth full-length studio album by alternative hip-hop band Flobots, released May 5, 2017. Background In 2015 it was announced that Flobots were working on a new music project called ''No Enemies,'' which will focus on issue ...
'' being released in May 2017.


History


Origins (1996–2005)

The Flobots project started in the mid 1990s, with two albums self-released on cassette tape in 1996 and 1998, respectively. The personnel and aliases varied between the albums, but by the second album James Laurie was using the alias "Johnny Five". In 2000 James Laurie, now going by "Jonny 5", teamed up with producer Farhad Ebrahimi, a.k.a. Yahktoe (who had contributed to the previous Flobots cassette as musician, producer and cover designer). Together they released ''
Onomatopoeia Onomatopoeia is the process of creating a word that phonetically imitates, resembles, or suggests the sound that it describes. Such a word itself is also called an onomatopoeia. Common onomatopoeias include animal noises such as ''oink'', ''m ...
'' in 2001 under the alias "Jonny 5 + Yak", and the title track ended up in a compilation by the
MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the m ...
Songwriting Club at Yahktoe's alma mater. In that compilation the band was still credited as "Flobots" (and as "Flobots (a.k.a. Jonny5 and Yak)" in the liner notes). The title track featured guitar player David Gralow,
cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, ...
player Terrence Favors, and bass player Jaymz Haynes.


''Platypus'' and ''Fight with Tools'' (2005–2008)

Flobots in 2009. After the release of ''Onomatopoeia'', the project went on a hiatus. In 2005, Laurie reformed the project under the name The Flobots. Joining Laurie was MC/vocalist Stephen "Brer Rabbit" Brackett, bassist Jesse Walker, guitarist Andy Guerrero, trumpet player Joe Ferrone, viola player Mackenzie Gault, and drummer Kenny Ortiz. Guerrero and Ferrone were previously in the band Bop Skizzum together. With a revamped lineup, Flobots released their debut EP under the new name ''Flobots Present...Platypus'', which went on to sell more than 3,000 copies over the next two years. After the release of ''Platypus'', Flobots began work on their next album. After a year of writing and producing, the Flobots released their proper debut album ''
Fight with Tools ''Fight with Tools'' is the debut album by Flobots, originally released in October 2007 and re-released on May 20, 2008. The album was recorded in 2007 around the band's home state of Colorado. ''Fight with Tools'' received a mildly positive rece ...
'' and sold out their CD release show at the Gothic Theatre in
Englewood, Colorado The City of Englewood is a home rule municipality located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 33,659 at the 2020 United States Census. Englewood is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Stat ...
. A
Denver Post ''The Denver Post'' is a daily newspaper and website published in Denver, Colorado. As of June 2022, it has an average print circulation of 57,265. In 2016, its website received roughly six million monthly unique visitors generating more than 1 ...
survey of music critics ranked Flobots the 51st best independent band in all of Colorado in late 2007. Flobots entered a contest held by Denver radio station 93.3 (
KTCL KTCL (93.3 FM) is a radio station licensed to Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Owned by iHeartMedia, it broadcasts an alternative rock format targeting the Denver metro area. Its studios are located alongside iHeartMedia's other Denver stations at 46 ...
), called Hometown for the Holidays, which allowed fans to vote for their favorite songs from 35 local bands. Flobots subsequently won both the radio portion of the contest as well as the live performance award. As a result, the station put "Handlebars" into full rotation at the end of January due to the immense popularity of the song during the contest. In February 2008, Flobots held a show at the Gothic Theatre in Englewood called "The Heart Attack" featuring local bands The Hot IQs and Paper Bird. It was after this show that the group was approached by and subsequently signed to
Universal Republic Republic Records is a New York City–based American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). It was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially an ...
on a two CD major label deal. On March 31, the band announced that they would be playing
Tucson , "(at the) base of the black ill , nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town" , image_map = , mapsize = 260px , map_caption = Interactive map ...
, Arizona's major alternative rock festival,
KFMA KFMA (102.1 FM) is commercial radio station located in Tucson, Arizona, broadcasting to the Tucson, Arizona area. KFMA airs an active rock music format. It runs the week day jumpstart with Riley week mornings. KFMA has an ERP of 100,000 watts. ...
Day, with
Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
,
Apocalyptica Apocalyptica is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Helsinki, formed in 1993. The band is composed of classically trained cellists Eicca Toppinen, Paavo Lötjönen, and Perttu Kivilaakso, and jazz drummer Mikko Sirén. Originally a classical- ...
,
Chiodos Chiodos (, ) was an American post-hardcore band from Davison, Michigan. Formed in 2001, the group was originally known as “The Light-hearted Carpet Knights” before changing their name to "The Chiodos Bros," the band's name was a tribute to fi ...
, and
Scars on Broadway Daron Malakian and Scars on Broadway (previously known as just Scars on Broadway) is an American rock band founded by Daron Malakian of the metal band System of a Down. The band's self-titled debut album was released in July 2008. In late 200 ...
on May 16. Flobots were also part of the sixteenth annual
KROQ KROQ-FM (106.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Pasadena, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by Audacy, Inc., it broadcasts an alternative rock format known as "The World Famous KROQ" (pronounced "kay-rock"). The st ...
Weenie Roast on May 17, along with
Atreyu Atreyu is an American metalcore band from Yorba Linda, California, formed in 1998. The band currently consists of clean vocalist Brandon Saller, guitarists Dan Jacobs and Travis Miguel, bassist and unclean vocalist Marc "Porter" McKnight, and ...
,
Bad Religion Bad Religion is an American punk rock band that formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1980. The band's lyrics cover topics related to religion, politics, society, the media and science. Musically, they are noted for their melodic sensibilitie ...
,
Flogging Molly Flogging Molly is an Irish-American seven-piece Celtic punk bandLife Is Good Out Now
Floggingmolly.c ...
,
Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
,
The Offspring The Offspring is an American rock band from Garden Grove, California, formed in 1984. Originally formed under the name Manic Subsidal, the band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Bryan "Dexter" Holland, lead guit ...
, Pennywise,
The Raconteurs The Raconteurs (, also known as The Saboteurs in Australia) is an American rock band from Detroit, Michigan, formed in 2005. The band consists of Jack White (vocals, guitar), Brendan Benson (vocals, guitar), Jack Lawrence (bass guitar), and ...
,
Rise Against Rise Against is an American punk rock band from Chicago, formed in 1999. The group's current line-up comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist Tim McIlrath, lead guitarist Zach Blair, bassist Joe Principe and drummer Brandon Barnes. Rooted in hardc ...
,
Scars on Broadway Daron Malakian and Scars on Broadway (previously known as just Scars on Broadway) is an American rock band founded by Daron Malakian of the metal band System of a Down. The band's self-titled debut album was released in July 2008. In late 200 ...
and
Seether Seether are a South African rock band founded in 1999 in Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa. The band originally performed under the name Saron Gas until 2002, when they moved to the United States and changed it to Seether to avoid confusion wi ...
. On July 20, 2008, Flobots played at the Mile High Music Festival in Commerce City, Colorado with headliners Dave Matthews Band and John Mayer. On July 26, 2008, Flobots played 93.3's Big Gig at Coors Amphitheater in Greenwood Village, Colorado with Offspring. On September 1, 2008 they performed at
Bumbershoot Bumbershoot is an annual international music and arts festival held in Seattle, Washington. One of North America's largest such festivals, it takes place every Labor Day weekend (leading up to and including the first Monday of September) at the ...
Music and Arts Festival in Seattle, Washington. The single " Handlebars" became popular on alternative rock radio in April 2008 and peaked at No. 3 on Billboard's
Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...
chart. ''Fight With Tools'' peaked at #15 on the Billboard charts, the band's highest charting album to date. They made their television debut on
Last Call with Carson Daly ''Last Call with Carson Daly'' is an American late-night television series that was broadcast by NBC from 2002 to 2019. Hosted by former MTV personality Carson Daly, the series was initially formatted as a late-night talk show in line with ''T ...
on May 20, 2008. Also on May 20, Flobots spent two hours with Dr. Drew and
Stryker The Stryker is a family of eight-wheeled armored fighting vehicles derived from the Canadian LAV III. Stryker vehicles are produced by General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada (GDLS-C) for the United States Army in a plant in London, Ontario. I ...
answering sex questions on Loveline and re-released their album ''Fight With Tools'' to a wider audience after their newfound success. Flobots also appeared on ''
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that first aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009. It resumed production on March 1, 2010 and ended on February 6, 2014. The fourth incarnation of the ...
'' on June 5, 2008 with their song " Handlebars". They performed their second single "
Rise Rise or RISE may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * '' Rise: The Vieneo Province'', an internet-based virtual world * Rise FM, a fictional radio station in the video game ''Grand Theft Auto 3'' * Rise Kujikawa, a vide ...
" on ''
Late Night with Conan O'Brien ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien. NBC aired 2,725 episodes from September 13, 1993, to February 20, 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and music ...
'' on October 13, 2008.


''Survival Story'' and ''The Circle in the Square'' (2009–2014)

On February 17, 2009, the Flobots announced in a MySpace blog entry that they were "working really hard on their next album and plan to have it completed soon." In September 2009, the band finished recording their second album. The band announced on
YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
that the album was to be titled '' Survival Story''. The album was released on March 16, 2010. The key single from that album is the song "White Flag Warrior", featuring
Tim McIlrath Timothy James McIlrath (born November 3, 1978) is an American rock musician. He is the lead singer, rhythm guitarist, songwriter and co-founder of the punk rock band Rise Against. He is vegan and straight edge. Early and personal life McIlra ...
of
Rise Against Rise Against is an American punk rock band from Chicago, formed in 1999. The group's current line-up comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist Tim McIlrath, lead guitarist Zach Blair, bassist Joe Principe and drummer Brandon Barnes. Rooted in hardc ...
. The album was produced by
Mario Caldato, Jr. Mario Caldato Jr. (born February 24, 1961), also known as Mario C., is a Brazilian-born record producer and studio engineer best known for his work with Beastie Boys, Jack Johnson (musician), Jack Johnson in the US, Marcelo D2 and Seu Jorge in ...
, best known for his work with
The Beastie Boys ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
. In December 2010, the band parted ways with Universal Republic Records. Brer Rabbit mentioned that the split was a mutual decision between the band and the label. In the summer of 2011, lead guitarist Andy "Rok" Guerrero left the group due to "creative differences" and to focus on his previous project, Bop Skizzum. On September 17, 2011 while performing at the Gallogly Events Center, UCCS, Colorado Springs, the Flobots announced that "they will be releasing an album in 2012 so they might as well name it ''Stop The Apocalypse''." They also performed a brand new song off the album titled '' The Circle in the Square''. It was revealed via their official website on June 15, 2012, that the album would not be titled ''Stop the Apocalypse'', but will be called ''The Circle in the Square'' and will be released on August 28, 2012. On June 20, the band posted a video for the title song ''The Circle in the Square'' on their YouTube channel. On August 28, 2012, their album ''The Circle in the Square'' was released. In 2013 and 2014, The Flobots performed a free concert for high school students in
Jefferson County, Colorado Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 582,910, making it the fourth-most populous county in Colorado. The county seat is Golden, and the most populous city is Lakewood. ...
for the annual A Day Without Hate rally. In an interview with
Standley Lake High School Standley Lake High School is a Public school (government funded), public secondary school operated by Jefferson County School District R-1 in Westminster, Colorado, United States. The school is located near 104th Avenue and Wadsworth Boulevard an ...
's news magazine ''The Lake'', Jamie Laurie mentioned how he believed A Day Without Hate was "really inspiring." On May 7, 2013, the band released video for a previously unreleased song called "Rockmine."


''Noenemies'' (2015–present)

In 2015 it was announced that they were working on a new music project called ''Noenemies,'' which will focus on issues such as climate change and immigration reform. The band raised funds via
Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...
to record two albums. On November 8, 2016, Flobots have released a new track from the upcoming album on their official SoundCloud, "Rattle the Cage". The song was premiered earlier than planned in response to the
2016 US Presidential election The 2016 United States presidential election was the 58th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana governor Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticket ...
, with the band saying "Wounds are raw. The pain is real. We wanted to share something a little earlier than planned. This is a song for all of us". On January 20, 2017, they released another new song, the politically charged "Pray", released on the same day as the
Inauguration of Donald Trump The inauguration of Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States marked the commencement of Donald Trump's term as president and Mike Pence as vice president. An estimated 300,000 to 600,000 people attended the public ceremony ...
. In March 2017, Flobots teamed up with Wonderbound to create a "Hip-hop ballet" set to Flobots music. Flobots performing live in Lawrence, KS in June 2017 On May 5, 2017, "Noenemies" was officially released. The album was influenced by the works of
Vincent Harding Vincent Gordon Harding (July 25, 1931 – May 19, 2014) was an African-American pastor, historian, and scholar of various topics with a focus on American religion and society. A social activist, he was perhaps best known for his work with and wri ...
, who was a mentor to the band. The group describes the album as "a body of protest songs that speak to the urgency of the current moment." The band intends to release a follow up album soon afterwards, with new songs already debuted live.


Webcomics


''Rise of the Flobots''

The webcomic series created by
D.J. Coffman D.J. Coffman (born January 17, 1976) is an American cartoonist. He is best known as the creator of the ''Hero by Night'' comic book series and the webcomic ''Yirmumah''. Coffman also has done work on the Monkey Man comic series with writer Brian Ly ...
(13) ''Rise of the Flobots: Architects of Change'' launched on June 9, 2008 a
flobots.net
and features stories inspired by fans and the music of the Flobots along in a science fiction context.


Band members

Current members *Jamie "Jonny 5" Laurie – lead vocals (2005–present) *Stephen "Brer Rabbit" Brackett – lead vocals (2005–present) *Kenny "KennyO" Ortiz – drums (2005–present) *Andy "Rok" Guerrero – guitar, vocals (2005–2011, 2018, 2020–present) Former members *Jesse Walker – bass guitar (2005–2014, 2018) *Mackenzie (née Roberts) Gault –
viola ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...
, vocals (2005–2016, 2018) Session members *Joe Ferrone – trumpet *Gabriel Otto – bass, keyboards *Serafin Sanchez – saxophone, keyboards *Tad Lusk – guitar *Tom Hagerman – violin *Evan Orman – cello *Charlie Mertens – bass *Spirit of Grace (Shamae Matthews, Tonicia London, Christin Grant, C. Larea Edwards)- vocals Touring members *Sean Blanchard – bass *Kris Becker – guitar, keyboards *Sarah Hubbard – vioin, theremin *Serafin Sanchez – saxophone *Spirit of Grace – backing vocals *David Ochoa – guitar


Discography


Studio albums

*''
Fight with Tools ''Fight with Tools'' is the debut album by Flobots, originally released in October 2007 and re-released on May 20, 2008. The album was recorded in 2007 around the band's home state of Colorado. ''Fight with Tools'' received a mildly positive rece ...
'' (2007; re-released in 2008) – US No. 15 266,867 copies sold in the US, UK No. 52 *'' Survival Story'' (2010) US No. 44 *'' The Circle in the Square'' (2012) US No. 198 *''
Noenemies ''Noenemies'' is the fourth full-length studio album by alternative hip-hop band Flobots, released May 5, 2017. Background In 2015 it was announced that Flobots were working on a new music project called ''No Enemies,'' which will focus on issue ...
'' (2017)


Extended plays

*''Flobots Present...Platypus'' (2005) *''Live at the House of Blues – Anaheim, CA'' (2009)


Singles


Music videos

* "Handlebars" (2008) * "Rise" (2008) * "White Flag Warrior" (2010) * "The Circle In The Square" (2012) * "Pray" (2017) * "Quarantine" (2017) * "Rattled Pt. 1" (2017) * "Handle Your Bars" (2017) * "Duel Lingo" (2018) * "Carousel" (2018)


Appearances in compilations

*''MIT Songwriting Club – Songs From the Institute, Vol. 1'' (2001) rack 16: ''Onomatopoeia'', credited to Flobots*''They appeared as part of the
Audition An audition is a sample performance by an actor, singer, musician, dancer or other performer. It typically involves the performer displaying their talent through a previously memorized and rehearsed solo piece or by performing a work or piece giv ...
computer video game soundtrack compilation as a playable song with Handlebars *Their song "Rise" was included in the
Winter Dew Tour The Dew Tour is an extreme sports circuit organized by the Adventure Sports Group, a subsidiary of American Media, LLC. History The tour was announced in late 2004, and made its debut in Louisville, KY in June 2005. The tour then made stops i ...
Soundtrack 2009 after performing a concert for the tour's stop at
Mount Snow Mount Snow (previously known as Mount Pisgah) is a mountain and ski resort in southern Vermont located in the Green Mountains. It is Vermont's southernmost big mountain, and therefore, closest to many Northeast metropolitan areas. In Septemb ...
. *Their song "Stand Up" was included in the "Dear New Orleans" compilation album in 2010 marking the 5th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.


Notes


References


External links


Official website
{{Authority control 2000 establishments in Colorado Alternative hip hop groups Alternative rock groups from Colorado American hip hop groups Musical groups established in 2000 Musical groups from Denver Rap rock groups Universal Records artists