The band's debut album, Wisconsin Death Trip, was released March 23, 1999. Notable songs from the album include Push It, I'm With Stupid, Bled For Days, and Fix. Static-X's touring schedule in support of the album included two Ozzfest stints. The following year saw the release of the little-known EP The Death Trip Continues, and the band contributed the song "Otsegolation" to the PlayStation video game Omega Boost. Push It also appeared on the Playstation video games Street Skater 2 & Duke Nukem: Land of the Babes.
After recording their follow-up album Machine, guitarist Koichi Fukuda left the band to spend time with his family and pursue other musical opportunities. Tripp Eisen, formerly of Dope, stepped in as Fukuda's replacement. Machine was released May 22, 2001.
Static-X quickly began work on their third album Shadow Zone, this time with Eisen performing and writing on the album. Before they started recording, however, Ken Jay left the band due to "political differences." Josh Freese of A Perfect Circle was brought in to drum on the album, and Nick Oshiro, formerly of Seether, was later selected as Jay's replacement. Shadow Zone was released October 7, 2003, and July 20, 2004 saw the release of Beneath... Between... Beyond..., a collection of rarities and demos. Later that year, Wayne did guest vocals on the Skinny Puppy song Use Less.
Shortly after the release of Beneath... Between... Beyond..., the band commenced work on their fourth studio album, Start a War. In February of 2005, Tripp Eisen was arrested in a sex scandal involving minors, and was fired from Static-X shortly after. Former guitarist Koichi Fukuda, who had been mixing the new album, rejoined Static-X to fill the vacancy left by Eisen. Start a War was released June 14, 2005.
Cannibal, released on April 3, 2007, marked the studio return of their original guitarist, Koichi Fukuda. One of the new tracks called "No Submission" is available on the Saw III soundtrack. The full track has also been released on Static-X's MySpace page. "Cannibal" was released as a digital download single at iTunes. "Destroyer" was released as a lead off radio single, before the album was released. Videos for the singles were supposed to be taken at the same time.
On March 20, the upcoming album was preceded with an exclusive Destroyer EP. The video for "Destroyer" has also been produced and is available now at headbangersball.com. The album itself debuted at #36 in the U.S. with sales of over 30,000.
On May 10, 2007 it was announced that the band would be playing on the main stage at Ozzfest 2007. Additionally, in a recent interview, Wayne Static announced his side-project called "Pighammer". The chorus of the song "Destroyer" was used in an advertisement promoting the latest video game in the WWE franchise, Smackdown vs. Raw 2008.
In November 2007, Tony Campos joined legendary industrial act Ministry as a temporary touring bassist for Ministry's C U LaTour in the wake of Paul Raven's death.
The band began their sixth studio album, Cult of Static, in January 2008 after returning from the Operation Annihilation tour in Australia. In a posting at the Static-X message boards Wayne Static said that this time around he is focusing on longer buildups and break downs like in the Wisconsin Death Trip days of the band, however the album still maintains the heaviness that was present on Cannibal.
On October 14, 2008 Static-X released their much anticipated live CD/DVD, Cannibal Killers Live. On December 11, 2008 Wayne Static confirmed on the Static-X Message Board the new album's release date and name saying "I had hoped to announce it here first, but my publicist beat me to the punch! The new record is indeed entitled "Cult of Static" and will be released March 17. The "cult" part of the title is not to be taken in any religious manner, I am referring to and giving respect to the loyalty of all you good people that have supported us through the years. This record is definitely darker than Cannibal and has more synths and loops as well. And this is also the most crushing guitar tone I have ever had. There are 11 songs instead of our usual 12, and they are mostly longer and more epic than ever before." The album debut at #16 on the Billboard 200 chart, the highest a Static-X album has ever been since their second studio album, Machine. A new Static-X song called "Lunatic" appeared on soundtrack to the movie Punisher: War Zone.
In 2009, the band performed at the Download Festival. It also was the first time the band made an appearance at Rock on the Range.After finishing their final tour dates in Australia at the end of 2009, Wayne Static announced on the band's official X-Boards that he will now be focusing on his side project Pighammer. In a follow up post he was quoted "It's doubtful I will do anything with Static-X for the next couple years" leading fans to interpret that the band is still together and just on hiatus.
Later, he revealed that Tony Campos had left the band, and Campos has since joined the metal band Soulfly, taking over from Bobby Burns. Koichi Fukuda went on to join industrial metal / ambient band Drugstore Fanatics.
In 2010, Wayne Static has been confirmed for Graspop Metal Meeting 2011 as part of his 'Pighammer' solo project. He released his debut solo album "Pighammer on October 4, 2011.
In 2012 Wayne Static decided to reform Static-X, but none of the original members will join him. Instead his solo band will tour under the name Static-X.
The band's musical styles are industrial metal, alternative metal, and occasionally nu metal. But the band rejected the nu metal label and they also call their music as "evil disco". The band are influenced by metal and industrial bands like Ministry and Fear Factory.
On 1st of November 2014, news surfaced of Wayne Static's death. At this point no formal reason has been published for his passing.
Static died on November 1, 2014 in Landers, California, three days before his 49th birthday. He had consumed half of an oxycodone pill as well as alcohol that morning before going to bed with his wife Tera Wray. She woke up later that day to find that he had died in his sleep. His family issued a statement stating that rumors of his death being drug-related were false, noting that he and Wray had stopped using illicit drugs in 2009. An autopsy later confirmed that Static had died of multiple prescription drug toxicity, consisting of the painkillers oxycodone, hydromorphone, and the anti-anxiety medication alprazolam combined with alcohol, though the report also noted that years of past "chronic prescription drug and alcohol abuse" was a contributing factor.
Former Static-X members Koichi Fukuda and Tony Campos paid tribute to Static. Static was cremated in California. A memorial rock show followed in Los Angeles, and a family service followed in Illinois. In 2019 it was announced that a new Static-X album would be coming out with a new lead singer named "Xer0", who is rumored to be Edsel Dope from the band Dope.
Static-X released an album titled βProject Regeneration Vol. 1β on July 10, 2020 that features completed tracks that use demos of Wayneβs voice. The original band lineup, minus Wayne Static, contributed to this album as a tribute to Wayne. There are a few songs with the entity, Xer0, involved and one featuring Al Jourgensen from the industrial metal band Ministry. Ulrich Wild returned to produce this album along with Edsel Dope.
After multiple pushed back dates, another album called βProject Regeneration Vol. 2β was released on January 26, 2024. It features the last of Wayneβs unfinished vocal demos as well as some Xer0 original tracks. This is the final volume of Project Regeneration.
Members
Xero β vocals, lead guitar (2019-present)
Tony Campos β bass, backing vocals (1994βpresent)
Koichi Fukuda β lead guitars (1994β2000, 2005βpresent)
Ken Jay β drums, percussion (1994β2002, 2019-present)
Former
Wayne Static β lead vocals, rhythm guitars, keyboards, programming (1994β2014)
Ashes β lead guitars (2012β2014)
Brent Ashley β bass (2012β2014)
Sean Davidson β drums, percussion (2012β2014)
Tripp Eisen β lead guitars (2001β2005)
Nick Oshiro β drums, percussion (2003β2012)
Skinnyman
Static-X Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Where are you?
My fucked up world
Destroyed you
Day after day
Day after day
I get it now
I just go on without you
Six miles high
I rehearse how to
Say goodbye to you
Skinnyman
Turned into a monster
I'm a motherfucker
Wrap it up tight
Emotions are distorted
It's no surprise
Nothing alive
All hope has been aborted
Day after day
Day after day
I get it now
I just go on without you
Twisted inside
Six miles high
I rehearse how to
Say goodbye to you
Skinnyman
Turned into a monster
I'm a motherfucker
Inside I'm dead
All used up
God damn I miss her
As my skin turns yellow
I forget this hell
As the skies are bruised
And the rain comes down
As my face turns pale
Try to deal with these thoughts
At the end of it all
I still miss you
The lyrics of Static-X's Skinnyman tell a story of a grieving individual who has lost their child in a world that has been destroyed by various forms of destruction. The singer of the song refers to the lost child as "my little girl" and repeatedly expresses their grief over the devastating loss. "Day after day I get it now, I just go on without you, twisted inside six miles high, I rehearse how to say goodbye to you" expresses the singer's inability to come to terms with the loss, and how they replay their goodbyes repeatedly in their head.
The song also speaks of a haunting transformation, as the singer morphs into "Skinnyman," a monstrous and twisted version of himself. This could be seen as an externalisation of the inner turmoil that the singer is experiencing. The singer seems to have become cold and emotionless, with all hope, love, and feelings having been "aborted." The last few lines of the song speak of the singer feeling empty and dead inside, missing the lost child terribly.
Overall, Skinnyman is an emotional song about coming to terms with loss, battling monsters within oneself and living life despite the existence of pain.
Line by Line Meaning
My little girl
The singer had a daughter who they address with fondness.
Where are you?
They are grieving the loss of their daughter who is no longer with them.
My fucked up world
The singer's world and state of mind is broken and chaotic.
Destroyed you
The artist's own problems and issues caused harm to their daughter.
Day after day
The singer is haunted and tormented constantly.
I get it now
They have come to an understanding or realization about what went wrong.
I just go on without you
Despite the pain and loss, the singer has to keep living without their daughter.
Twisted inside
The artist's emotions are contorted and difficult to untangle.
Six miles high
The artist feels like they are in a high, distant place - unreachable and alone.
I rehearse how to
The artist is trying to plan and prepare for their final farewell to their daughter.
Say goodbye to you
The singer is dreading the moment when they must bid farewell to their daughter forever.
Skinnyman
A reference to the artist's alter-ego or inner demons which have taken over.
Turned into a monster
The singer feels like they have transformed into something ugly and harmful.
I'm a motherfucker
The singer acknowledges that they have made terrible mistakes and caused harm.
Wrap it up tight
The singer is trying to suppress their emotions and hide them away.
Emotions are distorted
The artist's feelings are unclear and hard to process.
It's no surprise
The singer is not shocked by the fact that they are struggling with their emotions.
Nothing alive
The singer feels like there is no life left in them after their loss.
All hope has been aborted
The singer has lost all faith and belief in a brighter future.
Inside I'm dead
The artist feels empty and lifeless deep inside.
All used up
The singer feels like they have nothing left to give and have been drained of everything.
God damn I miss her
The singer is angry at the pain they are feeling and wishes they could undo the past.
As my skin turns yellow
The singer's physical health is deteriorating as a result of their grief and pain.
I forget this hell
The artist is trying to escape the unbearable pain and memories they are experiencing.
As the skies are bruised
The singer observes the world around them and sees everything as damaged and wounded.
And the rain comes down
The singer feels like their tears are endless and will never stop.
As my face turns pale
The singer's grief is affecting their physical appearance.
Try to deal with these thoughts
The artist is struggling to manage their turbulent and painful thoughts.
At the end of it all
After everything that has happened, the artist is still grappling with their loss.
I still miss you
The singer is still consumed with longing for their deceased daughter.
Lyrics Β© Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ANTONIO CAMPOS, TRIPP EISEN, WAYNE WELLS, WAYNE R. (STATIC-X) WELLS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind