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Life of Agony is an American
alternative metal Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music that combines heavy metal with influences from alternative rock and other genres not normally associated with metal. Alternative metal bands are often characterized by ...
band from
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
, New York City, formed in 1989 by singer
Keith Caputo Keith Caputo (born December 4, 1973) is an American singer who is lead vocalist and a founding member of New York City alternative metal band Life of Agony. Formed in 1989, Life of Agony has released six studio albums, the latest of which, ''T ...
, bassist
Alan Robert Alan Robert (born 1971) is an American musician and comic book creator. He is known as the bassist for the alternative metal band Life of Agony, his work on his graphic novels ''Wire Hangers'', '' Crawl to Me'' and ''Killogy'', as well as his ho ...
and guitarist Joey Z. The band has released six studio albums to date, most notably their 1993 debut ''
River Runs Red ''River Runs Red'' is the debut studio album by American alternative metal band Life of Agony, released on October 12, 1993, by Roadrunner Records. It is a concept album, telling the story of a teenager, from a troubled household, who ultimately ...
'', named by
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
as one of the Greatest Metal Albums of All Time.


History


Formation and ''River Runs Red'' (1989–1994)

The band was formed in the summer of 1989 by singer
Keith Caputo Keith Caputo (born December 4, 1973) is an American singer who is lead vocalist and a founding member of New York City alternative metal band Life of Agony. Formed in 1989, Life of Agony has released six studio albums, the latest of which, ''T ...
, bassist
Alan Robert Alan Robert (born 1971) is an American musician and comic book creator. He is known as the bassist for the alternative metal band Life of Agony, his work on his graphic novels ''Wire Hangers'', '' Crawl to Me'' and ''Killogy'', as well as his ho ...
, and guitarist Joey Zampella (who used Joey Z. as an alias). The group recorded a handful of demos produced by
Josh Silver Josh Silver (born November 14, 1962) is an American retired musician who is the former keyboardist, producer and backing vocalist of gothic metal band Type O Negative. He joined the band at frontman Peter Steele's request. He played for Typ ...
of
Type O Negative Type O Negative was an American gothic/doom metal band formed in Brooklyn, New York City in 1989 by Peter Steele (bass, lead vocals), Kenny Hickey (guitar, co-lead vocals), Josh Silver (keyboards, backing vocals), and Sal Abruscato (drums ...
. Their initial drummer was Kenny Pedersen, who was replaced by Eric Chan in the latter half of 1990. Chan was then replaced by Mike Palmeri in 1991. Life of Agony performed up and down the East Coast, developing a loyal fan base. The band eventually signed to
Roadrunner Records Roadrunner Records is a Dutch–American record label focused on Heavy metal music, heavy metal and hard rock music. Founded in the Netherlands in 1980, it is now a division of Warner Music Group and is based in New York City. Formerly seen as ...
, and Palmeri was replaced by Type O Negative drummer
Sal Abruscato Sal Abruscato (born July 18, 1970) is an American drummer, guitarist and singer, best known as the original drummer for Brooklyn metal bands Type O Negative and Life of Agony.Hart, Josh (2011)Interview: Sal Abruscato and Matt Brown of A Pale Ho ...
to solidify the lineup. Roadrunner released their debut album ''
River Runs Red ''River Runs Red'' is the debut studio album by American alternative metal band Life of Agony, released on October 12, 1993, by Roadrunner Records. It is a concept album, telling the story of a teenager, from a troubled household, who ultimately ...
'' in 1993. The following year, Life of Agony continued to build a following, and toured with the likes of
Carcass Carcass or Carcase (both pronounced ) may refer to: * Dressed carcass, the body of a livestock animal ready for butchery, after removal of skin, visceral organs, head, feet etc. *Carrion, the decaying dead body of an animal or human being, also c ...
,
Pro-Pain Pro-Pain is an American heavy metal band based in New York City, formed in 1991 by vocalist and bassist Gary Meskil and drummer Dan Richardson, both former members of Crumbsuckers.Strong, Martin C. (2001) ''The Great Metal Discography'', MOJO ...
,
God Lives Underwater God Lives Underwater was an American rock band, formed during 1993 in Perkiomenville, Pennsylvania by vocalist/programmer David Reilly and guitarist/programmer Jeff Turzo. They were later joined by guitarist Andrew McGee and drummer Adam Kar ...
,
KMFDM KMFDM (originally Kein Mehrheit Für Die Mitleid, loosely translated by the band as "no pity for the majority") is a multinational industrial rock band from Hamburg led by Sascha Konietzko, who founded the band in 1984 as a performance art proje ...
,
Korn Korn (stylized as KoЯn) is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, originally formed in 1993 by James Shaffer, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald Arvizu, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu and David Silveria, who were members of the band ...
, and more. Music videos and promotional singles would be released for the songs "This Time" and "Through and Through". The music video for "This Time" would be featured in an episode of ''
Beavis and Butt-Head ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' is an American Adult animation, adult animated Animated sitcom, sitcom created by Mike Judge. The series follows Beavis and Butt-Head, both voiced by Judge, a pair of teenage slackers characterized by their apathy, Stupi ...
'', while both videos would find occasional airplay on ''
Headbangers Ball ''Headbangers Ball'' is a music television program that consists of heavy metal music videos airing on MTV and its global affiliates. The show began on MTV on April 18, 1987, playing heavy metal music videos from both well-known and more obsc ...
'', which gave the band early exposure.


''Ugly'' (1995–1996)

''River Runs Red'' was followed by the more emotional '' Ugly'' album in 1995. It was produced by Steve Thompson, who would become a
Grammy The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...
winner in later years. The album peaked at No. 153 on the Billboard 200, the band's first appearance on a Billboard chart. "Lost At 22" and "Let's Pretend" were both released as singles, but did not chart. While touring in 1995 in support of their album, a fan died after falling from the stage while apparently trying to stage-dive. A security guard and, to a lesser extent, the band were implicated in a lawsuit which was eventually dropped with no charges filed. At subsequent concerts the band were mindful of the potential for fans to injure themselves, often trying to cool down the mosh pit between songs if things were rough. An example of this would be seen on the ''River Runs Again'' DVD, in which Caputo is heard saying "Everybody watch over each other out in the pit, we already lost a life." and "No lives lost, right?" Drummer Abruscato left Life of Agony after the accompanying tour. His successor was ex-
Pro-Pain Pro-Pain is an American heavy metal band based in New York City, formed in 1991 by vocalist and bassist Gary Meskil and drummer Dan Richardson, both former members of Crumbsuckers.Strong, Martin C. (2001) ''The Great Metal Discography'', MOJO ...
and ex-
Crumbsuckers Crumbsuckers were an American crossover thrash band formed by bass player Gary Meskil in 1982 in Baldwin, Nassau County, New York. Crumbsuckers combined Thrash metal, thrash and hardcore punk sounds and themes, making an impact on the scene w ...
drummer Dan Richardson.


''Soul Searching Sun'', Caputo's departure, and breakup (1997–2002)

Life of Agony released their third album ''
Soul Searching Sun ''Soul Searching Sun'' is the third album released by Life of Agony in 1997 through Roadrunner Records. The album was co-produced and co-mixed by Life of Agony and Phil Nicolo of the Butcher Brothers at Studio 4 Recording in Conshohocken, Penns ...
'' in September 1997. It marked a slight change of style for the band. The album charted at No. 157 on the Billboard 200, slightly lower than the band's previous effort; however, the lead single "Weeds" peaked at No. 27 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, and lingered on the chart for over 3 months. The second single, "Tangerine", would peak at No. 37 on the same chart. Despite the growing success of "Weeds" and the band's mainstream attention, Caputo departed the band shortly after the release of ''Soul Searching Sun'' in September 1997. Caputo was struggling with internalised
gender dysphoria Gender dysphoria (GD) is the distress a person experiences due to inconsistency between their gender identitytheir personal sense of their own genderand their sex assigned at birth. The term replaced the previous diagnostic label of gender i ...
and was becoming disillusioned with the masculine image of herself she was faking at the time. "What good is my success if I can't even enjoy my fucking soul and my body?' I wanted to
come out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...
then, but failed miserably and didn't have the courage or the knowhow. I didn't know what to do." Caputo decided to distance herself from the band completely; "It took me to quit the band because I wasn't being true to myself. I had to get away from my band, the label, everyone I worked with." At the time, the band did not understand Caputo's reasons for wanting to quit the band, with
Alan Robert Alan Robert (born 1971) is an American musician and comic book creator. He is known as the bassist for the alternative metal band Life of Agony, his work on his graphic novels ''Wire Hangers'', '' Crawl to Me'' and ''Killogy'', as well as his ho ...
saying, "She just
old the band Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...
she was in too much pain to continue." The band then toured with ex-
Ugly Kid Joe Ugly Kid Joe is an American hard rock band from Isla Vista, California, formed in 1989. The band's name spoofs the glam metal band Pretty Boy Floyd's name. To date, Ugly Kid Joe have released five full-length albums, two compilation albums and ...
singer
Whitfield Crane William Whitfield Crane IV (born January 19, 1968) is an American singer and founding member and lead vocalist of the rock band Ugly Kid Joe, which was formed in 1989. He has also worked in music outside his band, from performing guest vocals on ...
, went back into the studio, and kicked Crane out of the band in the span of one year. They contemplated moving Robert to vocals and guitar and adding former
Stuck Mojo Stuck Mojo is an American rap metal band from Atlanta, formed in 1989 by bassist Dwayne Fowler. The band is considered to be one of the pioneers of rap metal. They have toured alongside bands such as Machine Head and Slapshot. Stuck Mojo's most ...
bassist
Corey Lowery Corey French Lowery is an American musician, songwriter, record producer and engineer. He is the guitarist and backing vocalist for South African rock band Seether, and a former member of Saint Asonia, Stuck Mojo, Stereomud, Eye Empire, and Dark ...
, but decided they did not want to continue under the Life of Agony banner without Caputo; thus, they decided to split in 1999. Robert started Among Thieves with former members of
Biohazard A biological hazard, or biohazard, is a biological substance that poses a threat (or is a hazard) to the health of living organisms, primarily humans. This could include a sample of a microorganism, virus or toxin that can adversely affect huma ...
and the rest of the band started
Stereomud Stereomud was an American nu metal band from New York City and Georgia. They were active from years 1999 to 2003 before breaking up, releasing two albums—'' Perfect Self'' and '' Every Given Moment''. History Stereomud released their first al ...
with
Erik Rogers Stereomud was an American nu metal band from New York City and Georgia. They were active from years 1999 to 2003 before breaking up, releasing two albums—''Perfect Self'' and ''Every Given Moment''. History Stereomud released their first albu ...
on vocals, both not straying far from Life of Agony's style. A live CD with the band's unplugged performance at the Dutch
Lowlands Festival A Campingflight to Lowlands Paradise (commonly called Lowlands or Lowlands Festival), is an annual three-day music and performing arts festival, held in the Netherlands. The festival is held east of Amsterdam in Biddinghuizen, at Spijk en Breme ...
from 1997 was released in 2000.


First reunion and ''Broken Valley'' (2003–2011)

On January 3 and 4, 2003, the original lineup reunited for two sold-out shows at New York's
Irving Plaza Irving Plaza (known through sponsorship as Irving Plaza, powered by Verizon 5G and formerly known as the Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza) is a ballroom-style music venue located within the Union Square neighborhood of Manhattan in New York ...
. Both shows were recorded and released on CD/DVD later that same year. The reunion resulted in several more shows and appearances on European festivals, as well as the recording of 2005's ''
Broken Valley ''Broken Valley'' is the fourth studio album by American alternative metal band Life of Agony. The album was released in the US on June 14, 2005, through Epic Records and in the UK on October 17, 2005, through Hassel Records. It is the band's fi ...
'',"Life of Agony's 'A Place Where There's No More Pain': Exclusive Premiere"
''Billboard'', March 2, 2017, by Christa Titus
the band's first new studio album since 1997 and their first on the
Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...
-owned
Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...
. The original album contained a controversial copy protection method that would later be seen in court. ''Broken Valley'' was a commercial disappointment for Epic despite reaching No. 147 on the Billboard 200, the band's highest position yet. The album's lead single, "Love to Let You Down", peaked at No. 25 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. At the end of 2005, the label and the band parted ways. Caputo later stated "That experience killed this band in a lot of ways. The label didn't understand who this band was and continually tried to mold us into something we weren't. Not to mention the illegal spyware they put on our album without our knowledge to try and prevent piracy, and the class-action lawsuit they lost because of it. The court forced them to pull all of our records off the shelf just three months after it was released! The whole thing was a nightmare. We didn't want to make new music for a long time after that." Life of Agony went on to tour with
Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist and guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal—alo ...
,
Dream Theater Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 in Boston, Massachusetts. The band comprises John Petrucci (guitar), John Myung (bass), Mike Portnoy (drums), James LaBrie (vocals) and Jordan Rudess (keyboards). Dream Theat ...
, and numerous other metal bands during 2005's
Gigantour Gigantour was a sporadically organized traveling heavy metal music festival organized by Dave Mustaine of Megadeth. The tour was founded in 2005 with dates across North America (see also Gigantour 2005), and the 2006 and 2007 line-ups also trav ...
. Three years after their tour in 2005, Life of Agony released a CD/DVD set for ''River Runs Red'' with bonus tracks and videos from their early career. Caputo was featured on the 2007 track "
What Have You Done "What Have You Done" is the first single from Dutch symphonic metal band Within Temptation's fourth studio album ''The Heart of Everything'' (2007). The song features guest vocals from Life of Agony's lead singer Keith Caputo and it was released ...
" from the band
Within Temptation Within Temptation is a Dutch symphonic metal band founded in April 1996 by vocalist Sharon den Adel and guitarist Robert Westerholt. They have been classified by critics as gothic metal and symphonic metal, although each album contains other infl ...
. The song had been a minor hit all around the world. Life of Agony performing at the 2009 Damnation Festival During a December 2010 appearance on
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
's ''
Headbangers Ball ''Headbangers Ball'' is a music television program that consists of heavy metal music videos airing on MTV and its global affiliates. The show began on MTV on April 18, 1987, playing heavy metal music videos from both well-known and more obsc ...
'', Life of Agony announced they were writing new material. Abruscato stated in the interview that they were "Going to start with one song and see if there is a good enough spark to continue writing. This is something special for the fans for their patience." By the summer of 2011, the band attempted to write new material, only to feel it was being forced and not natural. In between, Abruscato created
A Pale Horse Named Death A Pale Horse Named Death is an American gothic metal/doom metal band from Brooklyn, New York. The band was formed in 2010 by Sal Abruscato (a former drummer for Type O Negative and Life of Agony) and produced/engineered by Matt Brown of Seventh ...
, Joey Z. was still running his New York-based Method of Groove Studio, Caputo would focus on various solo projects, and Robert was working on his second comic for IDW and a film of his first comic called Wire Hangers.


Second split (2012–2013)

In a February 2012 interview, Abruscato confirmed that Life of Agony was disbanded. He explained "We're not gonna play nymore We moved out of our studio. We all kind of feel like we're at the end. We're never gonna make another record, because of those kinds of problems I was talking about arlier in the interview– we can't agree on writing a song. And eithCaputo (vocals) wants to pursue islifestyle. And that's pretty much the reason why also I've moved on and I'm doing my own thing...to just keep going; I didn't want my career to stop with Life of Agony. Life of Agony doesn't tour, Life of Agony doesn't do much. And so we were at a point where it was like...we did the last three shows in July 011and then we moved out of our studio, and that's it. I don't foresee anything in the future; I highly doubt it. I don't know how that would happen." In a July 2012 interview with
Revolver Magazine ''Revolver'' is an American heavy metal music and hard rock magazine, published by Project M Group. It was originally launched under Harris Publications in the spring of 2000 by Tom Beaujour and Brad Tolinski, who envisioned it as an American ...
, Robert described his attitude towards the state of the band, and said "I actually don't think eiths transition is the ultimate reason the band isn't active right now. We'd been doing a lot less touring over the last bunch of years, way before eannounced ispersonal news. I can only speak for myself, but I can say that starting a family has definitely made me want to tour and travel a lot less in general. For that reason in particular, I'm much happier being home working on my comics and film projects. It fulfills my creative needs and allows me to live the life I want to at this stage."


Second reunion (2014–present)

On March 22, 2014, Life of Agony confirmed on their official website that they were active again, and performed their first show since Caputo's gender confirmation at the Alcatraz Hard Rock & Metal Festival in Kortrijk, Belgium on August 8. On January 12, 2016, Life of Agony announced that they were signed to
Napalm Records Napalm Records is an Austrian independent record label focused on heavy metal, hard rock and folk/folk rock/folk metal. Originally, Napalm focused on black metal bands, such as Abigor and Summoning, and folk metal bands, such as Falkenbach a ...
, and released ''
A Place Where There's No More Pain ''A Place Where There's No More Pain'' is the fifth studio album by American alternative metal band Life of Agony. The album, the band's first studio release since 2005's ''Broken Valley'', was released on April 28, 2017 through Napalm Records. ...
'', their first studio album in 12 years, on April 28, 2017. In December of that same year, drummer Abruscato would leave the band for the second time, and was replaced by Veronica Bellino. While no official reason has been disclosed, Keith Caputo has accused Abruscato of
transphobia Transphobia consists of negative attitudes, feelings, or actions towards transgender or transsexual people, or transness in general. Transphobia can include fear, aversion, hatred, violence or anger towards people who do not conform to socia ...
and
gaslighting Gaslighting is the manipulation of someone into questioning their perception of reality. The term derives from the 1944 film ''Gaslight (1944 film), Gaslight'' and became popular in the mid-2010s. Some mental health experts have expressed c ...
as the reason he was kicked out, though he has disputed these claims. The band announced the release, in October 2019, of its sixth studio album '' The Sound of Scars'' on Napalm Records again, which was being billed as "Chapter Two" to their debut ''River Runs Red''. The concept album, hailed by
Loudwire ''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive i ...
as one of the year's "Most Anticipated Hard Rock & Metal Albums" was produced and mixed by Grammy Award-winning producer
Sylvia Massy Sylvia Lenore Massy is an American record producer, mixer, and engineer. Her first major breakthrough occurred with 1993's ''Undertow (Tool album), Undertow'', the full-length triple platinum-selling debut for Los Angeles alternative metal band ...
and co-produced by the band's guitarist Joey Z, while engineer Howie Weinberg handled mastering duties. On August 9, 2019, the lead single "Scars" premiered on Billboard. ''The Sound of Scars'' would ultimately peak at No. 3 on Billboard's
Heatseekers Albums The Heatseekers charts were "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales b ...
and No. 7 on Billboard's
Independent Albums The Independent Albums chart (previously titled Top Independent Albums) ranks the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays (EPs) in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by '' Billboard'' mag ...
. The album received critical acclaim and was named Album of the Year by The Aquarian. A documentary film, also titled ''The Sound of Scars'', is set to be released by Cinedigm in association with Raven Banner Entertainment in 2022. The film is directed by Leigh Brooks and will include interviews with the band members and their families. The film will also include archival footage, photographs, lost interviews, and go over various points of the band's history, including
Keith Caputo Keith Caputo (born December 4, 1973) is an American singer who is lead vocalist and a founding member of New York City alternative metal band Life of Agony. Formed in 1989, Life of Agony has released six studio albums, the latest of which, ''T ...
's gender transition. A portion of ticket sales from the film's Director's Cut Screening were donated to the
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline in the United States, or Suicide Crisis Helpline in Canada, and formerly known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, is a suicide prevention and crisis help line to a network of a large number of crisis ce ...
and All Out. A documentary chronicling the relationships within the band, titled '' The Sound of Scars'', is set to be released by Cinedigm in association with Raven Banner Entertainment in March 2022. The film was featured by
The British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...
'
BFI Flare Festival
By December 2022, Life of Agony had begun working on new material for the follow-up to ''The Sound of Scars''. The band also celebrated the 30th anniversary of their first album ''
River Runs Red ''River Runs Red'' is the debut studio album by American alternative metal band Life of Agony, released on October 12, 1993, by Roadrunner Records. It is a concept album, telling the story of a teenager, from a troubled household, who ultimately ...
'' in 2023 with a world tour.


Musical style and influences

Life of Agony has mostly been described as
alternative metal Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music that combines heavy metal with influences from alternative rock and other genres not normally associated with metal. Alternative metal bands are often characterized by ...
, but also as
grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock Music genre, genre and subculture that emerged during the in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, particularly in Seattle and Music of Olympia, Washington, O ...
,
hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...
, heavy metal and
nu metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, with a metal umlaut) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop music, hip hop, funk, industrial music, industrial, and grunge. Nu ...
, and has incorporated elements of
hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...
into its sound. ''Rivers Run Red'' was an alternative metal album with influences from grunge and
New York hardcore New York hardcore (also known as NYHC) is both the hardcore punk music created in New York City and the subculture and lifestyle (sociology), lifestyle associated with that music. The scene established many aspects that are fixtures of hardcore ...
. Starting with ''Soul Searching Sun'', the band moved to an
alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
-oriented style. According to the group members themselves, they were influenced by bands such as
Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon-on-Thames, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band members are Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Gre ...
,
Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and 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 ...
,
Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...
,
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
,
Stone Temple Pilots Stone Temple Pilots, commonly abbreviated as STP, is an American Rock music, rock band formed in San Diego, California, in 1989. Originally consisting of lead vocalist Scott Weiland, guitarist Dean DeLeo, bassist Robert DeLeo, and drummer :Songs ...
,
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler, and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. After adopting the Black Sabbath name in 1969 (the band ...
, and
Social Distortion Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. It consists of Mike Ness (vocals, guitar), Jonny Wickersham (guitar), Brent Harding (bass), David Hidalgo Jr. (drums), and David Kalish (keyboards). Emerg ...
. Robert wrote the majority of the music and lyrics and Caputo wrote select ballads, mostly about her parents and homelife, particularly her mother. Perhaps the most striking difference between the ''River Runs Red'' and ''Ugly'' albums of the mid-90s and 2005's ''Broken Valley'' is the change in Caputo's vocal style, which gradually changed from a Danzig-esque baritone to a lighter, more conventional rock style later in the band's career.


Side projects

The band continues to perform and make music together as well as pursuing individual projects. Caputo recorded several solo records with European musicians and has toured overseas to support those albums. Robert, Life of Agony's primary songwriter, started Spoiler NYC in 2006. The group recorded an album called ''Grease Fire in Hell's Kitchen'' and filmed videos for the singles "Suicide Hotel" and "Ruined". Many reviewers praised the old-school approach to their
street punk Street punk (sometimes alternatively spelled streetpunk) is an urban working class-based subgenre of punk rock, which emerged as a rebellion against the perceived artistic pretensions of the first wave of British punk. The earliest street pun ...
sound. He later established himself as a horror comics author and illustrator, releasing several critically acclaimed series for IDW Publishing. His creator-owned titles include ''Wire Hangers'', ''Crawl to Me'' and ''Killogy''. His horror-themed adult coloring book series '' The Beauty of Horror'' has a worldwide following and the title is currently being developed into an animated television series. Joey Z. created his own recording studio, Method of Groove, in Brooklyn, New York City, which was opened in February 2011; the studio and its equipment were completely destroyed during
Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as Superstorm Sandy) was an extremely large and devastating tropical cyclone which ravaged the Caribbean and the coastal Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States in late ...
in October 2012.


Band members

Mina Caputo – Elbriot 2014 06.jpg, Keith (as Mina) Caputo Life Of Agony With Full Force 2018 06.jpg, Joey Z Life Of Agony With Full Force 2018 03.jpg, Alan Robert Life Of Agony With Full Force 2018 09.jpg, Veronica Bellino Current members *
Keith Caputo Keith Caputo (born December 4, 1973) is an American singer who is lead vocalist and a founding member of New York City alternative metal band Life of Agony. Formed in 1989, Life of Agony has released six studio albums, the latest of which, ''T ...
– lead vocals (1989–1997, 2002–2012, 2014–present) *
Alan Robert Alan Robert (born 1971) is an American musician and comic book creator. He is known as the bassist for the alternative metal band Life of Agony, his work on his graphic novels ''Wire Hangers'', '' Crawl to Me'' and ''Killogy'', as well as his ho ...
– bass guitar (1989–1999, 2002–2012, 2014–present) * Joey "Z." Zampella – guitars (1989–1999, 2002–2012, 2014–present) * Veronica Bellino – drums (2018–present) Former members *
Sal Abruscato Sal Abruscato (born July 18, 1970) is an American drummer, guitarist and singer, best known as the original drummer for Brooklyn metal bands Type O Negative and Life of Agony.Hart, Josh (2011)Interview: Sal Abruscato and Matt Brown of A Pale Ho ...
– drums (1992–1996, 2002–2012, 2014–2017) * Dan Richardson – drums (1996–1999) *
Whitfield Crane William Whitfield Crane IV (born January 19, 1968) is an American singer and founding member and lead vocalist of the rock band Ugly Kid Joe, which was formed in 1989. He has also worked in music outside his band, from performing guest vocals on ...
– lead vocals (1997–1998) * Mike Palmeri – drums (1991–1992) * Eric Chan – drums (1990–1991) * Kenny Pedersen – drums (1989–1990) Timeline


Discography

* ''
River Runs Red ''River Runs Red'' is the debut studio album by American alternative metal band Life of Agony, released on October 12, 1993, by Roadrunner Records. It is a concept album, telling the story of a teenager, from a troubled household, who ultimately ...
'' (1993) * '' Ugly'' (1995) * ''
Soul Searching Sun ''Soul Searching Sun'' is the third album released by Life of Agony in 1997 through Roadrunner Records. The album was co-produced and co-mixed by Life of Agony and Phil Nicolo of the Butcher Brothers at Studio 4 Recording in Conshohocken, Penns ...
'' (1997) * ''
Broken Valley ''Broken Valley'' is the fourth studio album by American alternative metal band Life of Agony. The album was released in the US on June 14, 2005, through Epic Records and in the UK on October 17, 2005, through Hassel Records. It is the band's fi ...
'' (2005) * ''
A Place Where There's No More Pain ''A Place Where There's No More Pain'' is the fifth studio album by American alternative metal band Life of Agony. The album, the band's first studio release since 2005's ''Broken Valley'', was released on April 28, 2017 through Napalm Records. ...
'' (2017) * '' The Sound of Scars'' (2019)


Notes


References


External links

* *
Interview with Dan Nelson and Joey Z
{{DEFAULTSORT:Life Of Agony Heavy metal musical groups from New York (state) Musical groups from Brooklyn Musical groups established in 1989 Musical groups disestablished in 1999 Musical groups reestablished in 2002 Musical groups disestablished in 2012 Musical groups reestablished in 2014 Roadrunner Records artists American alternative metal musical groups Musical quartets from New York (state) 1989 establishments in New York City