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AFI (band)

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AFI

AFI is a rock band which was formed in 1991 in Ukiah, California, United States. AFI stands for A Fire Inside; before that, AFI stood for Asking For It. [1]

History

Early years (1991 - 1998)

While still in high school in Ukiah, California, Davey Havok (vocals), Mark Stopholese (guitar) and Vic Chalker (bass) formed an outfit called AFI in 1991. At the time, the band did not know how to play any instruments. Stopholese suggested his friend Adam Carson, who had a drum kit, join the band.[2] Stopholese learned guitar and Chalker learned bass, but Chalker was soon replaced by Geoff Kresge and AFI made their first EP in recording Dork (1991) with the now defunct Loose Change, which included future AFI guitarist Jade Puget.

AFI disbanded when its members attended different colleges, including UC Berkeley where members of the band lived and practiced for a time in the basement of the Delta Chi fraternity house on Channing Way. Kresge moved to New York where he played with Blanks 77. After reuniting to perform a live show, the other members decided to drop out of college to play full-time with AFI. Between 1993 and 1995 they released several vinyl EPs (Behind the Times; Eddie Picnic's All Wet; This Is Berkeley, Not West Bay; AFI/Heckle; Bombing the Bay; Fly in the Ointment;) independently. Their first full-length, Answer That and Stay Fashionable was released in 1995. In 1996, the band released their second album, Very Proud of Ya, on Nitro Records. The songs "Cruise Control" and "Love Is a Many Splendored Thing" from Very Proud of Ya were used in the 1996 independent film Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore, which was first screened in 1997 and also featured Havok in a small role.

After several tours in support of the album Very Proud of Ya, Kresge decided to leave the group. His spot was filled by Hunter Burgan for the remaining Very Proud of Ya tour dates. Burgan went on to help AFI record Shut Your Mouth and Open Your Eyes (1997) and was invited to become the full-time bassist. Future AFI guitarist Jade Puget also provided background vocals on Shut Your Mouth and Open Your Eyes, making it the first album to feature all four current members of the band.

Black Sails and Art of Drowning era (1999 - 2002)

After recording the A Fire Inside EP (1998), Stopholese left the band and was replaced by Jade Puget, his close friend. Following the A Fire Inside EP, the band recorded Black Sails in the Sunset (1999), a musical turning point which introduced AFI fans to a much darker sound.[3] On this album, their original hardcore roots were still the base of their sound, but with Dark Romantic influences (a poem by Charles Baudelaire, "De profundis clamavi," is present in the hidden track "Midnight Sun"). The influence of the Deathrock & Horrorpunk scenes was also apparent. As a result, since then AFI's genre has been often described as "Gothic punk".[4]

The All Hallows EP (1999) spawned the single "Totalimmortal," a track later covered by The Offspring for the Me, Myself and Irene soundtrack. It received a fair amount of radio play and exposed AFI to larger audiences. Offspring frontman Dexter Holland was featured as a backing vocalist on a number of Black Sails tracks. The Boy Who Destroyed The World from the All Hallows EP was featured in the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 video game.

In 2000, AFI released The Art of Drowning, which debuted on the Billboard Charts at number 174[5]. "The Days of the Phoenix" was released as a single and video in order to promote the album. "The Days of the Phoenix", like "Totalimmortal", had some moderate mainstream success, garnering the band both TV and radio airplay.

Mainstream success (2003 - present)

In 2002, AFI left Nitro Records and released Sing the Sorrow (2003) on DreamWorks Records. The songs Girl's Not Grey, The Leaving Song Pt. II, and Silver and Cold had some Billboard chart success and exposed the band to even larger audiences. They were nominated in the MTV Video Music Awards 2003 in the MTV2 award category for the video "Girl's Not Grey", which came to be the first VMA they won.

In June 2006, their newest album, Decemberunderground, was released on Interscope Records. Reviewers have noted an even progression in sound for AFI in this album, featuring ColdPop and New Wave[6] elements. The album's first single "Miss Murder" reached #1 on the Billboard Modern Rock Charts.[7] The release reflects the continually changing and growing fan base of the band, and the album debuted as No. 1 on the Billboard charts.[8] The album has been certified Gold by the RIAA for sales of over 500,000 copies of the album.[9] Also, the band's second single, "Love Like Winter", enjoyed tremendous success on MTV's Total Request Live and was retired after 40 days on the countdown.

On December 12, 2006, AFI released their first DVD I Heard a Voice, featuring a live performance shot in Long Beach, California.

On January 20, 2007, AFI played "Miss Murder" and "Love Like Winter" on Saturday Night Live. Although the band performed "Love Like Winter" according to plan, technical difficulties occurred during their set of "Miss Murder", in which Davey sounded mute during various points of the song. However, in later reairings of the episode, Davey's voice is very audible during "Miss Murder".

Though "The Missing Frame" was originally supposed to be the third single off Decemberunderground,[10] Davey Havok has confirmed in the "Ask AFI" section of the Despair Faction message boards that there will not be a video for the song.[11] It is unknown if there will be a video made for another song. Havok also confirmed on the same boards that there will be no summer tour.[12] Puget has begun writing some material for a new album.[13]

On July 7, 2007 AFI performed at the American leg of Live Earth. They performed "The Missing Frame", "Love Like Winter", "Miss Murder" and a cover of David Bowie's "Ziggy Stardust".

AFI released a live album called I Heard A Voice from Long Beach Arena. This was released on iTunes on November 13, 2007. It features all the songs from the 2006 DVD I Heard a Voice, including notable hits from past AFI records such as: "Miss Murder", "Girl's Not Grey" "The Leaving Song, Pt. II", and "The Days of the Phoenix."

A new EP was set for a December release, however, recently Havok announced through the Despair Faction forums, that it will not be available until early 2008. It will contain previously unreleased songs from the Decemberunderground and Sing the Sorrow sessions. Adam later announced more details regarding the EP, saying that some of the songs will be new and never before heard, some fans may have heard (like Carcinogen Crush), and some fans may know about but never have heard before. He also said that a release date will be announced soon.

Carcinogen Crush was made available as a downloadable song exclusively for the XBox 360 version of Guitar Hero III by obtaining a code from purchasing the official soundtrack of the game.[14]. The song was later released as a digital single on December 4th, 2007. It is also scheduled to be on an upcoming EP, due in early 2008.

In addition to the upcoming EP, the band is currently working on a new album. Recording sessions have begun at The Art of Ears, the same studio where the band recorded much of their earlier material.[15]

Band members

Former members

Discography

Main article: AFI discography

References

  1. ^ http://youtube.com/watch?v=WWmbvIHY9ac
  2. ^ More Havok : Rolling Stone
  3. ^ AFI | Official Site
  4. ^ AFI: Decemberunderground : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone
  5. ^ AFI's Billboard Album Chart History
  6. ^ Allmusic.com Decemberunderground review
  7. ^ AFI's Billboard Singles Chart History
  8. ^ Hasty, Katy-- (2006-06-14). "AFI burns brightly with #1 debut". Billboard. Retrieved 2006-07-08. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ "RIAA Certifications for Decemberuderground". Retrieved 2007-10-08.
  10. ^ FMQB: Radio Industry News, Music Industry Updates, Arbitron Ratings, Music News and more!
  11. ^ The Official AFI & DF Message Board
  12. ^ The Official AFI & DF Message Board
  13. ^ http://media.www.californiaaggie.com/media/storage/paper981/news/2007/02/28/ArtsEntertainment/Afi-To.Play.Freeborn.Hall.On.Thursday-2747867-page2.shtml
  14. ^ Cohan, Jonathan (2007-09-20). "Billboard Bits: 'Guitar Hero III,' Os Mutantes, Isis". Billboard. Retrieved 2007-09-20.
  15. ^ "Quick Hits: Sheryl Crow, My Chemical Romance, AFI". FMQB. Retrieved 2008-01-30.
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