Nonpoint, SOiL, und Sumo Cyco

Regulars within the For Lauderdale metal scene, Rob Rivera and Elias Soriano formed Nonpoint in 1997. Their intention was to ride the wave of nu metal experimentation coming out of their corner of Florida. Determined to put some material out into the world, the band self-released their first album “Separate Yourself” in 1998. The work picked up some buzz and ultimately won the band representation from MCA Records.

Nonpoint’s first album on the MCA Records label was 2010 release “Statement”. The band aggressively toured the album throughout the US and promoted their tracks through festivals such as Ozzfest. The constant promotion finally paid off as sales of their album peaked and the album placed in the US Billboard Hot 200 chart and single “What a Day” hit the number 24 spot in the US Mainstream Rock chart.

With the momentum and fan base the band’s constant touring and promotion had won, Nonpoint released “Development” in 2002 and the album charted over a hundred spots higher on the US charts than its predecessor. With this success under their belts and the fresh influences of a new label at their disposal, the band released the 2004 album “Recoil”, where single “The Truth” earned the band its highest chart placement yet reaching the number 22 spot on the US Mainstream Rock Charts.

The band continued to pick up fans through constant touring and album releases between 2005 and 2014, all of which paved the way for the release of their most successful work to date: “The Return”. This 2014 album climbed to the number 39 spot on the US charts after the band generated excitement around its release via social networking sites such as Facebook.

The group emerged in 1997 originally as a side project to the death metal band Oppressor. The three members to come from that act were Tim King, Tom Schofield, and Adam Zadel. Additionally they recruited the bassist from Broken Hope, Shaun Glass ,and vocalist Ryan McCombs.

In 1997 the members put out their debut self-titled EP (often referred to as “the worm disc”), which came out through Century Media. Their 2nd EP “El Chupacabra”, an album named after a mythical Puerto Rican beast, was issued on 24 November 1998 this time through the label, MIA. They also put out their debut album “Throttle Junkies” through this label; however, MIA folded shortly after it’s release. The album hit the shelves on 18 May 1999 and was produced by legendary sound engineer Steve Albini (Big Black, Rapeman, and Shellac). None of these early releases managed to break into commercial ubiquity, but at this point the group had enough material to showcase to major labels.

Their single “Halo”, which received extensive airplay caught the attention of many labels, including J Records who eventually went on to sign a recording contract with the band. By this stage the members decided to leave their previous groups and focus on SOiL full time.

On 11 September 2001 SOiL released their 2nd studio album “Scars” and their 1st through a major label. This album garnered much acclaim and commercial attention, seeing them frequently appear on MTV and winning accolades such as Metal Edge magazine’s 2001 “Readers’ Choice Award for Next Big Thing”. To support the album the band participated in the Mayhem tour alongside Ozzy Osbourne, Rob Zombie, and Mudvayne and later started a US tour with Soulfly, Static-X, and Onesidezero.

2004 saw the release of their 3rd studio album “Redefine”, which debuted at No. 78 on the US Billboard 200. Following this release singer McCombs left the band on the basis of wanting to spend more time with his family; however, just a year later it was announced that he would be Drowning Pool’s lead singer.

Despite this crucial change in line up the band continued outputting material, releasing their 4th studio album “True Self” in 2006 with AJ Cavalier assuming the role of lead vocalist. The group’s next album “Picture Perfect” came out in 2009 and was produced by Johnny K (Disturbed, Staind) and Ulrich Wild (Deftones and Incubus). By the time the band put out their 6th studio album “Whole” (2013), they reverted back to their core line up featuring McCombs as their lead singer.