It is not so much required to set up a musical band. The most important thing is the love of music. Many famous rock bands came out of New York. One of the brightest rock bands from Brooklyn is Life of Agony abbreviated as LoA. What was their way of birth and development? Find out more at the website brooklyn-trend.
ONE HOT SUMMER…
In the summer of 1989, a new music group appeared in Brooklyn. It was founded by vocalist Keith Caputo, bassist Alan Robert and guitarist Joey Z. The band worked a lot on formation of the final squad and recording of the debut album. They had been searching for a drummer for four years. Through trial and error, LoA found their drummer, Sal Abruscato. Then they recorded their first album, River Runs Red.
A young band that played in the genre of alternative metal, quickly advanced in the world of music. After the release of their debut album, they signed a contract with Roadrunner Records.
In 1995, the band released another album, Ugly. With two albums at their disposal, LoA went on tour.
After the tour, the drummer left the band. In order not to waste time, the team quickly found a replacement, Dan Richardson.
After the release of the third album in 1997, Caputo left the band. He decided to prove himself in a solo career. In order to go on tour in support of the third album, Caputo was replaced by Whitfield Crane. After the tour, the band realized that they no longer wanted to play under the old name. This decision was influenced by Caputo’s withdrawal. In 1999, the musicians announced the breakup of the band.
REUNION OF THE LEGEND
In January 2003, the band reunited for two days. In the original lineup, they performed at New York’s Irving Plaza. Both concerts were recorded and released on DVD. Starting with a few concerts, LoA continued at European festivals. In 2005, they even recorded a new album, Broken Valley. This was the first new material since 1997.
2005 was a successful and fruitful year for the team. In addition to the new album, they performed at several concerts and relaunched their first album with some bonus tracks. After 2005, the band’s activity subsided. Keith Caputo himself continued his solo career. He appeared in the life of the group from time to time. In 2011, Caputo announced his gender reassignment and chose the name Mina.
In 2014, the band officially announced a reunion with the original lineup, including Mina Caputo on vocals. In August of that year, they gave their first concert.
CREATIVE INFLUENCE
The band’s musicians have repeatedly stated that Pink Floyd, Metallica, Radiohead, Black Sabbath had the greatest influence on them.
Caputo and Robert were the main authors of all the band’s songs. They took turns in writing songs. Only once did they work together in co-authorship.
There is a big difference in performance between the album of the 90s and the albums of the 2000s. The reason lies in the change of Caputo’s vocal style. In the 90s, he performed with a baritone in a Danzig band style. Already in the 2000s, he switched to traditional rock vocals. This did not scare off the band’s fans, as they were changing together with the team.
The members of the band stopped focusing their attention only on LoA and tackled other projects. Caputo recorded songs with other authors, including European ones and promoted his creativity. The main author, Robert, created another band Spoiler NYC. Joey Z. performed with the band Carnivore.
In 1995, a fan died at a concert in support of the album Ugly. He fell off the stage. According to the assumptions of the police, he tried to jump off the stage into the crowd. A court proceeding was opened. There were no complaints against the artists, as well as against the security service of the concert hall.
During subsequent concerts, the band and their security service took more care about the well-being of fans. If they noticed particularly “heated” admirers, they calmed these fans down. Whenever possible, the slam was stopped. “Slam” is an organized stampede at rock concerts. They are generally safe, if the crowd is not large.
