Stuck Mojo trail blazed the rap-rock genre by
melding their heavy metal-bred Southern heritage with a frontman who
bled hip-hop. Formed in 1989 by guitarist Rich Ward, Stuck Mojo set out
to experiment with this genre-blending musical hybrid, inspired by bands
such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Faith No More, Run DMC and Black
Sabbath. They quickly acquired a regional reputation as a band who would
beat you down, call you names, and help you back up for some more.
When Stuck Mojo's first release,
"Snappin' Necks," appeared in the mid-90's they were something
of a phenomenon to some and a question mark to others. Daring to be
different in a non-socially acceptable way, they challenged the system
musically and broke down barriers.
For years the band had been building a loyal
fan base in rock clubs all across America, but their first big tour came
in October of 95 when they were asked to join Machine Head as their
opening act on a ten-week stint of North America. That was followed by
the band's first European tour, an eleven week run hitting Germany,
France, Italy, England, Austria, Denmark, Poland, Belgium and the Czech
Republic. On the last show of the tour, STUCK MOJO performed on the main
stage at the prestigious Dynamo Festival in Eindhoven, Netherlands.
Having just been named the year's best live band by MTV Europe, many
rock journalists covering the event noted that STUCK MOJO was the
highlight of the show.
The band would go on to tour with Pantera,
Testament, Life Of Agony, Type O Negative, The 24/7 Spyz, Sevendust and
Clutch. STUCK MOJO became Century Media's biggest selling act in America
and would remain so until 2004.
In 2000, after six albums, eight world tours,
years of living out of suitcases and constant friction between the
band's management and the band's record company, Century Media,
Stuck Mojo drifted apart. Rich went on to release several records with
other band projects (Fozzy, Sick Speed) as well as a solo record and,
after a 4 year hiatus, decided to reform Stuck Mojo by testing the
waters with a 17-date tour of Europe in February 2005. Not only were the
gigs incredibly well attended but the live reviews in the press were
ecstatic, leading to 4 more tours of Europe and a 6 week tour of the
States over the next 16 months.
Aardschok Cover In March of 2006, Stuck Mojo
entered Backstage Studios with longtime producer Andy Sneap in Belper,
England and began recording their new album, “Southern Born
Killers.” Originally debuting in January of 2007, SBK was the
first non-label release from the band. Beyond being just an independent
release, the band also made a bold move by making the entire album
available, for free, via download. A full-quality version of the disc,
including the full CD booklet and a limited-time bonus DVD, was also
made available for purchase. Thankfully, the gamble paid off and
"Southern Born Killers" became one of the band's most
successful releases.
In October of 2007, Stuck Mojo began a new
partnership and signed with the Austrian Metal Label, Napalm Records.
First on the agenda: the Napalm re-release of Southern Born Killers,
with 3 new bonus tracks and all brand new artwork. Then, in the winter
of 2008, back to Europe for a 24 shows in 25 days slobber knocker in
support of Southern Born Killers.
With only enough time for a short US Summer
Tour in 2008, Stuck Mojo went back into the studio to write and record
"The Great Revival" due for release in Europe November 28th,
2008 on Napalm Records. Working with producers Rick Beato and Andy
Sneap, Stuck Mojo has crafted an album of songs that explores their
cross genre roots by blending Southern Hard Rock with Rap and Heavy
Metal elements in the way that can only be described as: Stuck Mojo.
Once again, Stuck Mojo is determined to set yet
another new standard for independent musicianship. A standard that is
defined by their own rules and demanding, creative
expectations. |
