Opiate for the Masses
Opiate for the Masses was an American rock band from Los Angeles, California in 1999.
Opiate for the Masses | |
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Origin | Phoenix, Arizona, USA |
Genres | Alternative metal,[1] gothic metal,[1] industrial metal[1] |
Years active | 1999–2009 |
Labels | Warcon Enterprises Century Media |
Past members | Ron Underwood - vocals Dustin Lyon - Guitars Elias Mallin - Drums Ryan Head - Bass Seven Antonopoulos - drums Anna K. - bass Andy Gerald - Guitars Jim Kaufman - keyboards/guitar |
History
Opiate for the Masses was founded in 1999 by singer Ron Underwood, drummer Elias Mallin, guitarist/keyboardist Jim Kaufman, and guitarist Dustin Lyon.[2] The group's name is an alteration of Karl Marx's famous aphorism, "Religion is the opium of the people".[3] Opiate for the Masses self-released a demo album entitled New Machines and the Wasted Life in 2000. In 2005, the band signed with Warcon Enterprises and issued the album The Spore.[4] By this time the group had added Seven Antonopoulos on drums and Anna K. (of Drain STH) on bass.[2] The group played the Taste of Chaos tour and opened for Static-X, Avenged Sevenfold, My Chemical Romance, and Disturbed on tour.[5] In 2008, the group signed with Century Media and released the album Manifesto.[6][7] The group followed the release of Manifesto by touring with Filter.[8] In 2009, the group disbanded.
Original members
- Ron Underwood – vocals
- Elias Mallin – drums
- Dustin Lyon – guitars
- Ryan Head – bass
- Jim Kaufman – keyboards, guitar
Touring members
- Seven Antonopoulos – drums
- Anna K. – bass
Discography
- New Machines and the Wasted Life (Self-released, 2000)
- Seven EP (Self-released, 2001)
- Goodbye EP (Self-released, 2003)
- The Spore (Warcon Enterprises, 2005)
- Manifesto (Century Media, 2008)
Reunion
In 2010, original Opiate for the Masses members Ron Underwood, Elias Mallin, Dustin Lyon, Ryan Head, and guitarist Andy Gerold played a reunion show to a sold-out crowd in Tempe, Arizona.
References
- Monger, James Christopher. "Opiate for the Masses". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
- Opiate for the Masses biography, AllMusic
- The Spore review, Exclaim!, July 1, 2005.
- Staff Review, Punknews.org, September 27, 2005.
- OPIATE FOR THE MASSES Signs With CENTURY MEDIA RECORDS. Blabbermouth.net, February 4, 2008.
- ReviewMelodic.net, July 2008.
- Review. Pop Matters, September 9, 2008.
- OPIATE FOR THE MASSES: New Video Interview Available. Blabbermouth.net, July 1, 2008.