"We were definitely out of control on our first tour, Ozzfest 2001," Mr. Banks admits. "It wasn't enough to just play our music; we also had to fire shotguns on stage and throw pigheads at the crowd. Chalk it up to a desperate bid for attention." The Head Charge rap sheet - which also includes getting into bloody brawls with their fans, smashing equipment they couldn't afford to replace, reacquainting themselves with hard drugs and occasionally being locked up by the enraged fuzz - has served to obscure the fact that these free spirits play the shit out of their instruments and make brutally powerful music of uncommon distinction.
But this distorted (though hardly inaccurate) perception of the band will likely change with the release of The Feeding, a seething mass of avant metal, nightmare grindcore and moshpit rock that alternates between pummeling ferocity and passages of all-out grandeur. It's a stunning display of primally extreme music that's guaranteed to scare the hell out of your parents.
The album had its genesis during the limbo in which AHC found themselves after touring intensively behind their acclaimed 2001 debut, The War of Art, two years of prolonged exile from the road and ongoing internal tumult that found several band members in a virtual death match with their personal demons. Three guys in the band jumped into the chemical deep end and two of them went back to rehab, guitarist Bryan Ottoson ruefully recounts. "It got so bad I was nearly checked into a psychiatric unit for suicidal behavior."
Inevitably, their struggles begat rage, and that could've paralyzed them. But what sets Head Charge apart is an almost alchemical ability to transform their rage - at the world, each other and (perhaps most of all) themselves - into dark art. Hence, the worse their situation got, the more inspired they became, as singer Cock and bassist/guitarist Mr. Banks - now collaborating with Ottoson and keyboard manipulator Justin Fowler - stirred up a cauldron of new songs and brought them to seething life with drummer Christopher Emery. While the band's old label turned a deaf ear to their bold sonic forays, emerging producer Greg Fidelman, who'd engineered the Rick Rubin-produced first album, embraced the band's new material. The band managed to get out of their deal, and sign with Nitrus/DRT. "Rick Rubin was gracious enough to let us leave American Recordings without hassle. It could have been a litigious nightmare" adds Mr. Banks.
With Fidelman at the helm, Head Charge spent four months on the album, and it evidences an unlikely, previously dormant self-discipline. Tellingly, whereas the sprawling The War of Art ran well over an hour, as if they could barely control their wild-eyed impulses, The Feeding clocks in at a dense 41 minutes, the compression serving to intensify their fury. The opener and first single "Loyalty" sets the record's brutal tone, as Cock spews recriminations with frightful conviction while also revealing a scarred humanity in his natural voice, a captivating tenor that sounds like the troubled emanations of some fallen angel. "Dirty" would be an infectious, balls-out rocker were it not for Cock's Satanic howling, which transforms it into the soundtrack to an exorcism. "Walk Away" delivers a hyper-melodic, gloriously anthemic chorus, then proceeds to hack it to pieces in characteristically deranged fashion. Easy listening this ain't. And yet the closing "To Be Me" achieves something close to serenity, like the eerie calm after a thunderstorm - or a nuclear holocaust. "It's almost hopeful" Mr. Banks acknowledges, sounding like he can hardly believe it himself.
There's a line in "Walk Away" that perfectly encapsulates this tormented but inspired band: "We're dirty and hungry and bitter and tired and broke and bruised and battered," Cock shrieks in agony and defiance, adding, with all due irony, "so happy." Although Cock is the band's primary lyricist, it was Mr. Banks who came up with the words (he admits, quite unnecessarily, that he was in a bad state at the time). Mr. Banks recited the line his partner, who knew right away that it would drop right into the hole he was looking to fill in the song's crucial bridge section. "For a while," Mr. Banks says, "that's what we wanted to call the album - with no spaces between the words. It just says it all."
Also in the cosmic coincidence department is the filigreed, intertwined guitar figure that opens and closes the boldly provocative "Ridiculed," The Feeding's roiling centerpiece. The part is actually two guitars, and the parts were conjured up simultaneously by Ottoson and Cock - in two separate parts of the studio, out of hearing of each other. At the same moment, each of them entered the main room eager to play their new creations to the other band members and Fidelman. Only then did everyone realize that the two parts magically interlocked. Divine intervention. With this crew, that's highly unlikely - unless God has a truly twisted sense of humor (and with AHC there's plenty of circumstantial evidence to support that hypothesis).
Mr. Banks describes his band's dynamic as "a constant battle between Order and Chaos," and that's an apt description of the corrosive yet savagely beautiful sonic onslaught AHC delivers on The Feeding. In the end, Order prevails - if just barely - which is a good thing for American Head Charge and their ever-growing legion of fans. If Chaos had come out on top, this dangerously self-destructive but supremely talented band would've surely imploded, leaving nothing but wrecked gear, lost souls and mangled body parts. Instead, with all their limbs still attached and pulsing with the endorphins of catharsis, AHC will spend 2005 on the road - and this time, hopefully, not the road to perdition.
Bryan Ottoson passed away on April 19th, 2005 in his sleep on the band's tour bus while supporting Mudvayne. Many reports concluded it to be the result of an accidental prescription drug overdose. After being diagnosed with a severe case of strep throat, he was prescribed penicillin and an unknown pain killer. He, unknowingly, developed pneumonia and the strep throat got worse. He was found in his bunk after members of the band attempted to wake him before a performance.
Also, Christopher Emery was fired from American Head Charge onstage on the 11th of February 2006. So who is to say that Chaos isn't prevailing in the long run?
On April 3rd, 2007 American Head Charge will release a CD/DVD combo titled "Can't Stop The Machine". The DVD will feature a complete retrospective of the bands career from the early days signing to Rick Rubin's American recordings, interviews with all band member, performing live on Ozzfest 2001, worldwide tours with Slipknot, Mudvayne, Static-X, and more.
Also a look behind the scene at making both "The War of Art" and "The Feeding" Albums. It will also include all of the bands videos and a special tribute to late guitarist Bryan Daniel Ottoson. The CD will feature live recordings, remixes, and other unreleased material.
Unfortunately, due to lead singer Cameron Heacock's “inability to continue on a musical career path,” the band disbanded August 11th, 2009.
In June 2011 There were tweets on bassist Chad Hanks' twitter regarding American Head Charge reforming with a new drummer. Hanks also stated that there is a new Facebook page called American Head Charge (Official).
Pushing the Envelope
American Head Charge Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Of chaos brings you to your knees
Impurities make me the way that I am
The dirt in my veins
The games on my thoughts
The stains on your face
They break it apart
Motherfucking
Life sets me off
Pushing the envelope
Hate gets me off
Motherfucking
Pushing the envelope
Gets me off
Pushing the envelope
Your face it sets me off
I'm curled up inside myself so
I won't imagine the pictures
If I had prosthetic eyes I still
Think that Id see the same
Satisfy retribution inside
Subsequent afternoons turning out seared
Bothered by fallacies everyone's scared
Motherfucking
Pushing the envelope
Life sets me off
Pushing the envelope
Hate gets me off
Motherfucking
Pushing the envelope
Gets me off
Pushing the envelope
Your face it sets me off
Your face it sets me off
Killing myself like a tool in wrong
Disquieting changes in direction
Just keep on pushing
Motherfucker
The lyrics to American Head Charge's song "Pushing the Envelope" depict a sense of overwhelming chaos and impurities that shape the singer's identity. The line, "An overwhelming understanding of chaos brings you to your knees," portrays the sense of dread and despair that one can face when confronted with the turbulent nature of existence. The mention of "dirt in my veins" and "stains on your face" suggests a raw, gritty experience of life, with all its flaws and imperfections.
The chorus lyric "Pushing the envelope" can be interpreted several ways, with the phrase itself meaning to test the limits or boundaries of what is acceptable or possible. The repetition of the line "Life sets me off, Hate gets me off," highlights the singer's feelings of being constantly incited or provoked by the world around them. The verse "I'm curled up inside myself so, I won't imagine the pictures" tells of the singer seeking refuge from the disturbing images in their own mind.
The final line "Just keep on pushing, Motherfucker," is a call to action, urging the listener to persevere despite the challenges and difficulties of life.
Line by Line Meaning
An overwhelming understanding
A profound comprehension
Of chaos brings you to your knees
Chaos makes you feel powerless and overwhelmed
Impurities make me the way that I am
My flaws and imperfections have shaped who I am
The dirt in my veins
My blood is tainted with filth
The games on my thoughts
My mind is constantly playing games and manipulating me
The stains on your face
The visible marks of your pain and suffering
They break it apart
These things tear apart our reality and understanding of the world
Motherfucking Pushing the envelope
Taking things to the extreme and pushing boundaries
Life sets me off
I'm triggered by events in life
Hate gets me off
I find pleasure in feelings of anger and hatred
Gets me off
It excites me and provides a rush
Your face it sets me off
Your presence and the way you look triggers me
I'm curled up inside myself so
I'm withdrawing and isolating myself in fear
I won't imagine the pictures
I'm avoiding vivid and disturbing thoughts
If I had prosthetic eyes I still
Even with new eyes, my perspective would remain the same
Think that Id see the same
I expect things to stay the same regardless of changes
Satisfy retribution inside
Finding satisfaction in revenge or payback
Subsequent afternoons turning out seared
Days are full of painful memories and experiences
Bothered by fallacies everyone's scared
I'm troubled by people's false beliefs and insecurities
Just keep on pushing
Keep going and don't give up or slow down
Motherfucker
An exclamation for emphasis or intensity
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
J ę d í
Probably my fav Head Charge song. Always revvs me up
Raging Dane
This perfectly decribes how i feel about the world to be honest.
Thomas Dall
Criminally underrated. Head Charge Forever!
James Adam Gleason
This is one of the best industrial metal albums of all time. Crazy all their other stuff sux, this album just came together perfectly!
NECROMETER
Sick album. This is one of the heavier ones on there.
sloppyy
found this album through PODKast, the last part of this song has such a groove
Willie Poe
In 2001 this was it!!
Pirate Aleks
Awesome for running 👍
Timothy Acker
55515