The Used

The Used

The Used is a rock band from Orem, Utah. Their unique sound has been classified under many genres and sub genres of rock. They have achieved a Gold or Platinum status in over 6 countries worldwide.

Band biography

Previous bands and the formation

The Used officially formed in January of 2001, but the members had played in previous bands since the early 1990s which helped lead to the formation of The Used. Under the name Strange Itch in around 1994, the band consisted of Branden Steineckert on drums, Jeph Howard with the vocals, Joel Pack on bass, and Matt Brown on guitar. They put out one self titled album in 1998 and lasted under that name until Quinn Allman took over guitar and Ashton Johnson took over the bass in 1999. At this point they changed their name to Dumb Luck. In 2000, an EP called The Naked Truth was released. Dumb Luck was short-lived and not long after the release, there was another line up change as Johnson left the band, Howard took over the bass, and the band had no singer. Tryouts for singers were held in Branden's bedroom, but they weren't satisfied with anyone they heard until Quinn remembered Bert McCracken from school and called him to see if he was interested in trying out. Bert met up with the other members and liked the music they wrote, he wrote the lyrics to the songs they had and everything seemed to click perfectly. So Bert took over the vocals, and the band was renamed Used. The band's name comes from the thought of their friends that said they were being used, the band members would cash at their friends house over the years but lost contact with them when they became more involved in their band and their friends said they were being used. Although it may seem like these early bands were The Used under a different name, Jeph stated in an interview that the bands were so bad that they weren't real bands and didn't have anything to do with The Used. He did say, however, that if it weren't for them, The Used would have never formed because they learned so much about music and each other playing in those bands.

2001: The demo and getting a record label

Used wrote songs together and made a demo cd now known to fans as Demos from the Basement. Drummer Branden Steineckert sent their songs to producer John Feldmann from the pop punk group Goldfinger. After he heard "A Box Full of Sharp Objects", he wanted to get them signed because he believed this band had something no other band had and could change what's happening in the music world. John played the songs for various record executives to try and get them signed, however, the first few weren't interested and it left John discouraged because he felt this band was like no other. Throughout all of this, the band members suffered from poverty, homelessness, and substance abuse. They panhandled for change in order to buy food to stay alive while at the same time hating the Mormon town that they lived in and the people that lived there. Eventually, more people got hold of the demo and a few record companies were eager to sign them, they decided to sign with Reprise Records in 2001.

2002-2003: Debut album and Maybe Memories

In 2002, it was discovered that a Boston band had already trademarked the name "Used," so they decided to add "The" to their name, thus becoming The Used. Their self-titled debut album was released on June 25, 2002. The album received mixed reviews and featured four singles: "A Box Full of Sharp Objects", "The Taste of Ink", "Buried Myself Alive", and "Blue and Yellow", with the latter three entering the charts. The album has been certified gold. The Used would go on to play Warped Tour, Ozzfest, and Projekt Revolution, as well as Box Car Racer's first and only tour. They also got recognized when Bert McCracken dated Kelly Osbourne. This would bring them much fanfare and popularity. In July 2003, The Used released a compilation CD/DVD combo package titled Maybe Memories. The CD featured live, rare, previously unreleased tracks, and demo material. The DVD featured the history of the band, member bios, and part of a live concert. This release has been certified platinum.

2004-2006: In Love and Death, the hiatus, and a new drummer

Tragedy would strike The Used in 2004 when lead singer Bert McCracken's ex-girlfriend, who was pregnant with his child, died of a drug overdose. At around the same time his dog died after being hit by a truck. Their second studio album was thus named In Love and Death, a reference to the tragedies Bert dealt with during the recording. The song "Hard to Say," was released about Bert's ex-girlfriend, although he wrote the song years earlier, it fit the moment and Bert felt that it was the right time to release it. The album received mixed reviews and spawned three singles: "Take It Away", "All That I've Got" (which earned them their first MuchMusic Video Award nomination), and "I Caught Fire" before being re-released in 2005. The fourth single "Under Pressure" (a David Bowie and Queen cover song performed with My Chemical Romance) was featured on the 2005 re-release. The album has been certified gold. After finishing up touring the world for the album, The Used took about 7 months off to hang out and catch up with friends and family in their hometown before starting to work on their next album. Throughout the summer of 2006 rumors spread among fans that Branden was no longer a band member. Then on September 12, 2006, The Used announced and confirmed that Branden was no longer a member of the band. Fans constantly asked questions about the reason why Branden was no longer the drummer and the band responsed by saying they felt they needed to move foward without Branden and that there was a personality conflict between Branden and another band member, however they did say that they love Branden and wish him the best in whatever he does in the future. In late 2006, it was announced drummer Dan Whitesides of New Transit Direction would replace Steineckert. Branden has since joined Rancid to replace former drummer Brett Reed.

2007: Berth and Lies for the Liars

On February 6, 2007, The Used released a live CD/DVD package, Berth, which included a full live concert shot on the 2005 Taste of Chaos tour in Vancouver. It continued where Maybe Memories left off and showed what the band had been up to since they released In Love and Death. It also gave a preview of Lies for the Liars. Berth has been certified gold. The Used spent most of the early part of 2007 on the Taste of Chaos tour, before their third album, Lies for the Liars was released May 22, 2007. They also headlined the Give It A Name festival. In June, The Used played the MuchMusic Video Awards for the first time ever, and also received their second nomination for Best International Group Video, for "The Bird and the Worm". The Used were scheduled to play Warped Tour in June and July, in support of their album, but had to cancel because Bert required surgery to remove a node from his vocal cords. After Bert recovered, they played the Reading and Leeds festivals in August, and went on to tour the United States in September. Lies for the Liars charted in the top 5 in over seven countries, and there were 4 singles released: "The Bird and the Worm", "Liar Liar (Burn in Hell)", "Pretty Handsome Awkward", and "Paralyzed". Although Dan Whitesides is the new drummer, Dean Butterworth of Good Charlotte recorded the drums for this album. The recording session for this album was the longest of any The Used album, as it took them over six months to record. Lies for the Liars received mixed reviews and has 8 b-sides. The Used had considered making a double album since (an unusually large) 19 songs were recorded. However, this idea was dropped as they decided to save the songs for a future release.

2008: Shallow Believer and the fourth studio album

Before Lies for the Liars was even released The Used had planned on releasing an EP of the albums's b-sides not long after the album dropped. However, it was delayed due to problems with their label and for a time it didn't appear that it would be released at all. Finally on February 19, 2008 the long-awaited EP was released, titled Shallow Believer. It featured not only b-sides from Lies for the Liars but b-sides from all their studio albums. It was only released on digital music stores and it has charted as high as #13 on iTunes top 100 albums.

The Used have worked on demos for their fourth studio album from January to March. They were then the headline band on the inaugural "Get a Life Tour", that lasted for all of April and the first half of May. The band orginally intended to begin recording immediatelty after the tour ended, however due to the studios being booked up, they will not be able to start recording until early June. They plan to recorded the album as quickly as possible with their goal being a month or less which is hoped to give the album a raw and less produced sound. They also have one week of international dates scheduled for the last week of June. This will be their first studio album not produced by John Feldman, they are going with a different producer because they want the album to sound different from everything else that they've done in the past, a possible choice for producer is Rivers Cuomo of Weezer. They will finish recording the album in July and aim to have it released in September or October.

Genre Dispute

The Used's unique sound gives fans and reviewers alike a difficult time classifying the band's genre of music. The mix of poppy vocals and screaming have led to the band being labeled as numerous different sub genres of rock, including alternative rock, post-hardcore, emo, screamo, and pop punk. The band members have said that they don't care what genre they are or what people classify them as, as long as they make good music. However, Bert McCracken has said that they do not want to be labeled screamo, due to it being a "genre of music that is eating us alive right now" and because it is "going to fade away in a couple years". Nonetheless, they are still often classified as such. Since the band does not say what genre they are, it appears that it will always be a disputed topic amongst fans.

Band members

Current members

• Bert McCracken - Lead Vocals, Piano (2001-present)
• Quinn Allman - Guitar, Backup Vocals (2001-present)
• Jeph Howard - Bass, Backup Vocals (2001-present)
• Dan Whitesides - Drums (2007-present)

Former members

• Branden Steineckert - Drums, Backup Vocals - Kicked out of the band in August 2006. (2001-2006)

Touring members

• Greg Bester - Guitar - Played with the band on tour in early 2000s. (2001-2002)

Temporary members

• Dean Butterworth - Drums - Recorded the drums for Lies for the Liars to fill in after Branden was kicked out. (2006-2007)

Discography

Main article: The Used discography

Studio Albums

• 2002: The Used
• 2004: In Love and Death
• 2007: Lies for the Liars

External links

• Official Website
• The Used at MySpace
• The Used at imeem