Rise Against Gives Punk Rock a Good Name
The group Rise Against has already been making waves in the punk rock scene for more than a decade. The American band hails from Chicago, Illinois.
Band Story
The birth of Rise Against began when members of Baxter and 88 Fingers Louie joined forces to first form Transistor Revolt. On lead vocals was Tim Mcllrath while Joe Principe and Mr. Precision provided backup vocals while handling bass and guitar. On drums was Toni Tintari. As an independent performer, the band was able to come up with an EP demo carrying four tracks called “Transistor Revolt.”
After the first independent EP release, Toni Tintari left the group, making the four tracks his only stint with the band. He was temporarily replaced by popular drummer Dan Lumley. After his brief inclusion, Brandon Barnes took the permanent role of drummer and still plays for the group.
After several months, the band was able to make a deal with Fat Wreck Chords. Before they released their album with this label, the band name changed to Rise Against. More than three months into 2001, the band was able to release its debut album “The Unraveling.” After this accomplishment though, Mr. Precision left the group and Todd Mohney took his place. They then moved on to their second album “Revolutions per Minute” which was released in 2003.
The band began to move towards the mainstream path when they signed a deal with Dreamworks Records in 2004. This paved the way for the release of their third album, “Siren Song of the Counter Culture” in the same year. Dreamworks was later taken in by the Universal Music Group and Rise Against moved on to Geffen Records.
More changes came in for the band after the label move. Todd Mohney left the group and was replaced by Chris Chasse. The guitarist only stayed until 2007 after the conclusion of work on the fourth Rise Against album. Zach Blair took on guitar duties for the fifth album and on further Rise Against video plans. He is still the current band guitarist.
Albums Released
After Transistor Revolt changed its name, its first album “The Unraveling” came out in 2001. The first demo tracks in their EP were made with Brandon Barnes behind the drums. In 2005, the tracks were remixed and remastered and were then subsequently released again. With Fat Wreck Chords behind the group, “Revolutions per Minute” took the fifteenth spot in the Billboard Top Independent Albums list of 2003.
When the band signed up with Dreamworks label, their third album “Siren Song of the Counter Culture” was recorded. This was considered a major release and it got some average to high feedback from fans and critics. It was their fourth album “The Sufferer the Witness” that earned high success selling over 48,000 copies in its first week of release. Critics didn’t like their latest album “Appeal to Reason” as much, but it still managed to sell more copies (64,000+) that week and peaked at number 3.
It seems future additions to the Rise Against discography will no longer be a part of the underground scene. This has led to a slew of mixed feedback from music fans. It seems though that the band is all set to take on greater challenges. A new album is slated to be recorded in autumn of 2010 and the group is scheduled to open for Green Day.