Spineshank

Formed by frontman Jared Gomes (aka M.C.U.D (MC Underdog)) and guitarist Wes Geer, the two met amidst the Orange County, California, hardcore punk scene. The duo soon recruited the help of guitarist Chizad, bassist Mawk and drummers B.C. Caught and DJ Product © 1969 and named themselves ‘Hed’, short for Higher Education. Soon after changing their name to (Hed) P.E. for legal reasons.

Before long, the group had built a devoted following; known for their aggressive and energetic live shows, they signed with Jive Records, and released their eponymously-titled debut in 1997. The album highlighted the strong punk, metal and rap influences including the likes of the Beastie Boys, Black Sabbath and Rage Against the Machine, however the album performed poorly in the charts and led to the band owing Jive Records a considerable amount of money.

(Hed) P.E. released their second studio album “Broke” in August 2000, following an guest appearance on the Black Sabbath tribute album “Nativity in Black II” where they covered the single “Sabbra Cadabra”. Following the release (Hed) P.E. embarked on the U.S. Ozzfest tour alongside the likes of Korn and Systems of a Down. The release of the band’s subsequent album “Blackout” (2003) marked a change of label and personnel for the band, with a move away from Jive to Koch Records and welcoming guitarist Jaxon and drummer Moke to the mix.

The band’s fourth album “Only in Amerika” released in 2004 reached No. 186 on the Billboard 200, compared to No. 33 for the album’s predecessor. In 2006 (Hed) P.E. signed with Suburban Noize Records through which they release their fifth studio album “Back 2 Base X”, which focused on actual instrumentation as opposed to digital and studio enhancements. Similar to “Only in Amerika” the album’s political commentary gets lost in the overly aggressive and offensive nature of the lyrics. Subsequently the band has released the albums “Insomnia” in 2007, “The D.I.Y. Guys” in 2008, “New World Orphans” in 2009, “Truth Rising” in 2010, and “Evolution” in 2014.