Killswitch Engage

Killswitch Engage was formed when two influential Massachusetts metalcore (a fusion genre blending elements of hardcore punk and heavy metal) bands - Overcast and Aftershock - broke up around the same time in 1998. Surviving members from each band started jamming together, and eventually decided to form their own metalcore outfit in the ashes of their former groups. Seeing this as both a sudden ending to their old projects and a prompt new musical beginning, the band - comprised of frontman Howard Jones, bassist Mike D'Antonio, drummer Justin Foley, and guitarists Joel Stroetzel and Adam Dutkiewicz, - decided to name itself Killswitch Engage. Metaphorically, a "killswitch" is an emergency off-switch, (often found in factories) and to "engage" means to resume or to begin.

The band released its first self-titled album with independent metalcore label Ferret Music in 2000. Though the album sold a disappointing number of copies - mostly due to lack of promotion - it was widely hailed in the metalcore and post-hardcore scenes, and the band landed a record deal with metal megalabel Roadrunner Records (DragonForce, Atreyu) in 2001. Their second album Alive or Just Breathing, released the same year, sold a respectable 110,000 copies. Killswitch Engage's infectious combination of brutal punk-rock shouting and melodic guitar riffs shines through on standout tracks My Last Serenade and Numbered Days.

Riding on the critical success of Alive or Just Breathing, the band toured extensively, giving stellar performances at both MTV's Headbanger's Ball and Ozzfest. The band released their third album The End of Heartache in 2004 to more commercial success than any album since - it sold over 500,000 copies. During this time the band engaged in a number of high profile projects, including separate tours with thrash metal stalwarts Anthrax and Slayer.

The band's fourth and most current album, As Daylight Dies, was released in late 2006, to much critical acclaim - singles My Curse and The Arms of Sorrow have both charted in the top three position on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Charts. While they won't release another record until 2009, Killswitch Engage plans to spend almost all of 2008 touring, alongside notably alongside Saosin and As I Lay Dying.

From Discogs:

Metalcore band from Massachusetts that formed in 1999.

From Lastfm:

Killswitch Engage are a metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, United States. Formed in 1999 after the disbandment of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Jesse Leach, bassist Mike D'Antonio, guitarists Joel Stroetzel and Adam Dutkiewicz, and drummer Justin Foley. The band's membership has changed in the decade since its founding as illness, changes in life-situation, and new interests have drawn the men in different directions. The band has released five studio albums and one DVD.

Read more about Killswitch Engage on Last.fm.

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From Wikipedia:

Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbandment of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Howard Jones, bassist Mike D'Antonio, guitarists Joel Stroetzel and Adam Dutkiewicz, and drummer Justin Foley. The band's membership has changed in the decade since its founding as illness, changes in life-situation, and new interests have drawn the men in different directions. The band has released five studio albums and one DVD.

Killswitch Engage rose to fame with its 2004 release The End of Heartache, which peaked at number 21 on the Billboard 200, and was certified gold in December 2007 for over 500,000 shipments in the United States. The title track, "The End of Heartache", was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2005, and a live DVD titled (Set This) World Ablaze was released in 2005. Killswitch Engage has performed at festivals such as Wacken Open Air, Reading and Leeds Festivals, Ozzfest, Download Festival, Rock on the Range, Rock Am Ring, Mayhem Festival, and the Australian Soundwave Festival. The band has sold over one-million records in the United States alone and have been widely reffered to as "one of the founders of metalcore."