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Hailing from Coral Springs, Florida, punk-pop band New Found Glory were formed in mid-1997 by vocalist Jordan Pundik, bassist Ian Grushka, drummer Joe Moreno (replaced by longtime drummer Cyrus Bolooki after the band's first release), and guitarists Chad Gilbert (previously the vocalist for Shai Hulud) and Steve Klein. Having recently graduated from high school, the bandmates wasted little time amassing a cult following, eventually rising to the upper tier of punk-pop music alongside Good Charlotte, Saves the Day, and other Warped Tour-affiliated bands.
Renowned for their energetic live shows, A New Found Glory toured up and down the East Coast in the late '90s, selling out the entire pressing of their 1997 debut EP, It's All About the Girls, along the way. (The EP was released by Fiddler Records, which later reissued Girls with new cover art in 2003.) The full-length debut effort Nothing Gold Can Stay followed in 1999 on Drive-Thru Records, and the album was reissued later that year when A New Found Glory signed a major-label contract with MCA. Another EP, 2000's From the Screen to Your Stereo, found the boys tackling a number of cover songs; the disc also paved the way for the release of the band's first gold-selling album, the self-titled New Found Glory, which appeared later that year. The latter album marked the official debut of the band's new moniker, which dropped the indefinite article A from their original name. A high-profile tour with blink-182, an opening slot on the Warped Tour, and an appearance in the teen flick American Pie 2 helped increase New Found Glory's exposure, and they stepped back into the studio at the end of 2001 to work on a follow-up record.
The results of those recording sessions were released in the summer of 2002 as Sticks and Stones. Propelled by the hit single "My Friends Over You," NFG snagged a headlining spot for the 2002 Warped Tour and watched their album climb to gold certification. After the tour and its resulting hype, New Found Glory then reentered the studio with a newfound restlessness. The result, issued in May 2004, was Catalyst, which found the band's sugary punk-pop steeped in new influences ranging from hardcore to thrash to new wave. The concert DVD This Disaster: Live in London appeared later that year, documenting the band's strength as a live act.
Catalyst peaked at number three on Billboard's Top 200 and eventually went gold, propelled in part by the success of "All Downhill from Here." Hooking up with producer Thom Panunzio (Ozzy Osbourne, Tom Petty), NFG released their matured fifth full-length, Coming Home, in September 2006. As before, they immediately hit the road in support of the album, adhering to a lengthy schedule of headlining dates throughout the U.S. and U.K. with the Early November and Cartel in tow. The second edition of From the Screen to Your Stereo arrived in 2007, featuring pop-punk covers of songs like Lisa Loeb's "Stay" and Simple Minds' "Don't You Forget About Me." The group then joined the roster at Epitaph Records and set to work on a new album, Not Without a Fight, with blink-182's Mark Hoppus in the producer's seat. Two years later, New Found Glory went back to working with producer Neal Avron, who had worked with them on Sticks and Stones and Catalyst, for their seventh album, Radiosurgery.
Wikipedia:
New Found Glory (formerly A New Found Glory) is an American rock band from Coral Springs, Florida, formed in 1997. The band's constant members have been lead vocalist Jordan Pundik, guitarists Chad Gilbert and Steve Klein, bassist Ian Grushka and drummer Cyrus Bolooki, who replaced Joe Marino after the release of their debut EP. During their fifteen-year recording career, the band have released seven studio albums, two EPs and two cover albums.
Music critics consider them a key pioneer of pop punk music. AbsolutePunk have labelled the band as the "godfathers of pop punk", while Allmusic credits them for "practically serving alongside the work of Blink-182 as the blueprint to the entire genre for the early 2000s." Also renowned for their energetic live performances, the five-some have garnered a devout following since their inception.
History [edit]
Formation and debut releases: 1997–1999 [edit]
The origins of the band date back to the summer of 1997 when Jordan Pundik (vocals) had met Stephen Klein (guitars) at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and the pair began writing music together. Pundik later stated the band name was created whilst he and Klein were working in Red Lobster together; "We came up with A New Found Glory, we wrote it on a napkin. I think we pulled some of it from "A Newfound Interest in Massachusetts" by the Get Up Kids". They recruited friend Ian Grushka on bass, who they had previously played with in a band named "Inner City Kids". "Inner City Kids" was not the name of the band for long. Practicing in his garage, they later invited Joe "Taco Joe" Marino to play drums. Shortly thereafter, Chad Gilbert (lead guitar), former vocalist of Shai Hulud, joined to complete the quintet.
The band recorded their debut EP, It's All About the Girls (1997) in a friend's apartment, and the EP was distributed by local independent label Fiddler Records. Soon after, Marino was replaced by current drummer Cyrus Bolooki after two rehearsal sessions. The band went on to tour up and down the East Coast and quickly sold out the entire pressing of the EP. The band's underground success soon caught the attention of Eulogy Recordings and the quintet subsequently signed shortly afterwards in order to increase distribution of their music.
Following the success of their EP, the band recorded their debut full length album, Nothing Gold Can Stay (1999), initially selling one-page insert copies at their shows supporting NOFX. Richard Reines, co-founder of Drive-Thru Records had also noted their devout following and held talks with the band. Drive-Thru subsequently signed the five-piece and paid Eulogy $5,000 to licence Nothing Gold Can Stay, which went on to sell more than 300,000 copies.
Rise in popularity and stardom: 2000–2005 [edit]
The five-piece signed their first proper record deal with Drive-Thru Records, and released an EP of cover songs from film soundtracks entitled From the Screen to Your Stereo in 2000. Drive-Thru's relationship with MCA Records ensured that the smaller label's more popular bands would be picked up by the major. Later that year, debut single "Hit or Miss" peaked at No. 15 on the US Modern Rock Chart, which helped propel the band to a mainstream audience. Subsequently their self-titled second album New Found Glory (2000) reached number one on the Billboard Heatseekers chart, and spent 21 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart. In a Kerrang! magazine article years later, they referred to the album as the band's Essential Purchase. They wrote, "marking one of the biggest and quickest improvements in alternative music, the major label debut hurled them to the forefront of the punk scene barely 12 months after its predecessor. Packed with infectious melodies and sing-along anthems, it would see them jostling with the likes of Blink-182 for the genre's crown." The album also marked the official debut of the band's new moniker, which dropped the indefinite article "A" from their original name due to some fans struggling to find the band's records in stores. The album was certified gold by the RIAA.
Between 2002 and 2004, the band experienced the height of their popularity with headline slots on the Warped Tour with Blink-182 and a supporting tour with Green Day. Third album and major label debut, Sticks and Stones was released on June 11, 2002 and peaked at number four on the Billboard 200 chart. The record spawned two popular singles; "My Friends Over You" and "Head on Collision". Following the success of the album, the band headlined the 2002 Warped Tour and later saw the album certified gold by the RIAA.
The lead single for their fourth album, "All Downhill from Here" reached number eleven in the Rock Chart before Catalyst (2004) peaked at a career-high number three on the Billboard 200, selling 146,000 copies in its first week. The heavier style of the record, which included some metal and new wave influences, was due to the comparisons that magazines and other media outlets would make between New Found Glory and other popular bands. Chad Gilbert stated: "Well, when Sticks and Stones came out and we were doing that Honda Civic Tour, we were getting compared to bands like Good Charlotte and Simple Plan we were angry with that. At that point, we were getting compared to more pop bands and we aren't a pop band." The band promoted the album with a supporting tour with Green Day during the fall of 2004 on the American Idiot Tour. The song, "This Disaster", was featured in EA Sports' Madden NFL 2005, and "At Least I'm Known for Something" was featured in EA's Burnout 3: Takedown. This became the band's third record to be certified gold by the RIAA.
Maturity into later albums: 2006–2009 [edit]
Demos for the next album were tracked with long term friend and studio engineer Paul Miner, before the band worked with Thom Panunzio (Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen, Ozzy Osbourne) having moved into a house together in Malibu, California called the Morning View Mansion to write and record. Gilbert took into the studio a book containing over 40 riff ideas that were written during the previous tour. Unlike their previous releases, Gilbert and Pundik also worked on lyrics alongside primary lyricist Steve Klein for the first time. The band had decided against working with Neal Avron, who had produced the band's three previous albums, as they wanted to try something different. Their fifth album titled Coming Home was released on September 19, 2006 with first single, "It's Not Your Fault" in July 2006. The release proved popular with many critics giving the album positive reviews. It was acclaimed for its "matured and nuanced songwriting", and was generally recognised as being the band's most mature work.
From the Screen to Your Stereo Part II, the band's follow-up to From the Screen to Your Stereo – a full-length album, containing 11 songs plus one bonus track for the Japanese edition and iTunes – was released on September 18, 2007 via Drive-Thru Records. The first and only single from the album was "Kiss Me" and the music video can be viewed on MySpace. In March 2008, a compilation named Hits was released. Two previously unreleased songs, "Situations" and "Constant Static," are also featured on the album. This was their last release on Drive-Thru/Geffen before going on to sign with independent labels, Bridge Nine Records and Epitaph Records. In April 2008, the band released a new EP Tip of the Iceberg on CD, 7" and through digital music outlets on Bridge 9 Records containing both new material that paid homage to their melodic hardcore influences. The CD also included an extra disc from The International Superheroes of Hardcore, named Takin' It Ova!.
Their sixth studio album, Not Without a Fight, was released on March 10, 2009, and was produced by Mark Hoppus. It was released through the band's new label, Epitaph Records. Hoppus has said that during recording, they had felt like a different band altogether. The lead single from the album was called "Listen to Your Friends". The music video for the song was filmed in Los Angeles. The single was released December 23, 2008 in the US & a day earlier in the UK, both via iTunes & AmazonMP3. Following the albums release, the quintet set out on the "Not Without a Fight Tour" with support from Set Your Goals, Bayside and Shai Hulud.
The video for second single "Don't Let Her Pull You Down" premiered on October 15, and was released on October 20 via limited orange and sky blue vinyl prints. On October 17 the band played a free show for around 120 fans packed into the studio where the band played a setlist made up of fan requests.
Radiosurgery and the future: 2010–present [edit]
A special edition re-release to celebrate the tenth anniversary of their self-titled album was released on January 26, 2010 through Geffen Records. The additional material included new liner notes, demos, b-sides, The Story So Far DVD and a remix of debut single "Hit or Miss" by the late Jerry Finn. A full tour was also confirmed where the band would play the record in its entirety, with support from Saves the Day, Hellogoodbye and Fireworks. On the 29 and 30 May New Found Glory headlined the Pop-Punk festival SlamDunk Festival held in Hatfield and Leeds. Shortly before the start of the bands commemorative tour, Gilbert visited his doctor for pneumonia. After suspicious cells were discovered in his thyroid, he underwent surgery which caused him to miss the first three dates of the new tour. Anthony Raneri of Bayside replaced him for this period. The surgery was a success. Later that year, the band headlined the Slam Dunk Festival along with Alkaline Trio and Capdown.
New Found Glory began the new year by participating in the 2011 Soundwave Festival, and were later confirmed for the Reading and Leeds Festivals in August. The band also played a full tribute set to The Ramones with Marky Ramone on drums at The Bamboozle 2011 Festival.
They returned to the studio in April to record their seventh album, titled Radiosurgery with Neal Avron the producer having also produced their second, third and fourth albums. Chad Gilbert has said that Radiosurgery "is the most upbeat, fun record we've ever recorded. Catchy but not in a fake pop sounding way. I wanted to go back to more of the roots of punk rock and pop punk and put a whole new NFG spin on it. The record goes from song to song never letting up the energy." The lead single and title track, "Radiosurgery" was released on 2 August. In March 2012, New Found Glory had announced via their website that they would be a part of the Vans Warped Tour lineup. New Found Glory will celebrate the 10th anniversary of Sticks And Stones by going on a small club tour in the fall, all around the country.
In November Pundik said that the band will take a break and won't release a new album until 2014.AbsolutePunk confirmed that the band would be releasing A Very New Found Glory Christmas via cassette tape on December 1, as well as a live album some time in 2013. The band stated at a show at The House of Blues on Friday, February 22, that they have decided not to go on hiatus and will begin recording a new album in March.
Side projects and collaborations [edit]
The International Superheroes of Hardcore is a side project of all members of the band and features Gilbert on vocals and Pundik on guitar, with the remaining members playing the same instruments they play in New Found Glory. All the members use pseudonyms for their "characters" in the band (e.g. Gilbert is known as "Captain Straightedge"). The band also recorded an internet-only music video for "Dig My Own Grave" with director Joseph Pattisall.
In April 2008 a compilation from the Punk Goes... series, called Punk Goes Crunk, was released, and features New Found Glory covering "Tennessee", originally by Arrested Development. New Found Glory had previously released another cover song, "Heaven", on Punk Goes Metal.
During "Not Without a Fight" tour, a split EP with Shai Hulud titled Not Without a Heart Once Nourished by Sticks and Stones Within Blood Ill-Tempered Misanthropy Pure Gold Can Stay was exclusively released. There were two colors limited to a total of only 500 copies and only for sale from either Shai Hulud or New Found Glory at these shows.
Dashboard Confessional were to be main support for New Found Glory's headline American tour in 2010. However, shortly before the tour was due to commence, Dashboard withdrew due to personal reasons and the tour was subsequently cancelled. A split EP, titled Swiss Army Bro-Mance had initially been due for sale on the previously cancelled tour, but was later made available online on a limited pressing of 2,500 copies. The two bands played several acoustic dates in December 2010.
Style and influences [edit]
New Found Glory are widely recognised for their fast and energetic pop punk music. While their early work was described as punk revival, they have since developed a more rounded rock sound, including alternative rock, and melodic hardcore styles. The bands traditional sound has been described as "chunky and melodic", with Rolling Stone noting their penchant for "catchy, riffy punk-rock." The bands music typically builds upon verse-chorus song structures, combining pop-influenced melodies with fast punk rock tempos, hardcore-tinged breakdowns, and often gang vocals. However, their fifth studio album Coming Home, marked a change in direction for the band. It's more layered and mid-tempo sound is regarded as their most mature work and has been described as a "somber, honest, polished and alternative record."
Critics have praised the band for their ability to write infectious hooks and the sincerity of their lyrics, often about growing up and relationships. Chad Gilbert has noted that, "if the delivery is honest and real, that's what keeps it from being the corniest thing you've ever heard before. New Found Glory is a band that people enjoy listening to not because we give off this harsh message. We write about who we are and what affects us in life and those are our relationships". Bassist Ian Grushka has stated that "all of the lyrics are based on real life experiences. A song can be created from something one of us is going through or a conversation we've had." While also adding, "We only really talk about personal things that have affected us first-hand, our songs are about emotions rather than some political agenda." Rhythm guitarist Steve Klein is the band's primary lyricist, while lead guitarist Chad Gilbert is the main composer of the songs. Although since the recording of Coming Home, Klein, Pundik and Gilbert all worked on lyrics together. They have cited hardcore bands Hatebreed and Madball, as well as fellow pop punk bands Green Day and Blink-182 as major influences on their career.
In recent years the band have been cited for their long lasting influence on contemporary pop punk music. Josh Martin, bassist for band The Wonder Years, has claimed that "Influentially, when you think about the top three pop-punk bands of all time...it’s Blink-182, New Found Glory and Green Day. At least in my brain, they’re on that level eternally." In 2009, Alternative Press included Nothing Gold Can Stay in their "Classic Albums of '99" feature. Brendan Manley wrote, "Like its title implies, Nothing Gold Can Stay is the sonic transcript of a glorious, fleeting time for NFG - and for pop-punk. But just as gold never loses its luster, it's only fitting that 10 years later, Nothing Gold Can Stay still shines". Likewise, Jason Heller of The A.V. Club reflected how their debut "snuck beneath the radar to become a massive influence on the new millennium’s eruption of pop-punk."
