Southern California's Alien Ant Farm forged an unrestrained mix of nu-metal, post-grunge, and punk-pop that brought widespread attention when their eccentric, turbocharged take on Michael Jackson's "Smooth Criminal" reached the top of the Billboard Alternative Songs chart in 2001. Throughout the following decade the quartet sustained consistent airplay by issuing a series of releases such as Anthology, truANT, and Up in the Attic, works that drew more heavily from alt-metal eccentrics than most contemporaries attempted. Extended breaks from recording arose due to side projects, lineup shifts, and interference from major labels, finally concluding with the arrival of Always and Forever in 2015. Listeners then faced yet another extended interval before the band delivered its sixth studio album, 2024's Mantras.
The group originated in Riverside, California, during 1996 when singer/songwriter Dryden Mitchell, guitarist Terry Corso, bassist Tye Zamora, and drummer Mike Cosgrove came together. Dissatisfied with routine employment, the four sought an outlet that would free them from conventional office life. Music provided that unrestricted channel and cemented their bond. Near the close of the decade they self-released a debut effort bearing the playful title Greatest Hits; the resulting buzz, highlighted by their 1999 L.A. Music Awards win for Best Independent Album, led Papa Roach's Dreamworks subsidiary New Noize to sign them.
Two years afterward the band issued its major-label debut ANThology. The opening track, a funk-infused metallic reworking of Michael Jackson's original "Smooth Criminal," featured in the successful movie American Pie 2, climbed to number one on the modern-rock tally, and helped drive the album to platinum status. The following year, amid European touring, the members returned to the studio. "Bug Bites" landed on the soundtrack for Sam Raimi's blockbuster Spider-Man in May 2002. While en route from Spain to a Portuguese concert that same month, the tour bus struck a truck, fatally injuring the driver. Band members and crew sustained multiple injuries, with Mitchell suffering the most severe harm: a fractured C2 vertebra. Following surgery he regained the ability to walk, though nerve damage left him with reduced mobility.
Determined to resume activity, Alien Ant Farm entered the studio for its next album. truANT arrived in May 2003 just as Dreamworks folded, limiting its domestic chart impact even though the single "These Days" reached the Top 30. Corso departed and was succeeded by Joe Hill; Zamora exited after tracking the group's fourth record to pursue studies. Up in the Attic surfaced in July 2006 on New Door Records with hardcore veteran Alex Barreto (Chain of Strength, Inside Out) handling bass. Poor sales ushered in uncertainty. Zamora briefly returned with Corso in 2008 after Barreto's initial tenure, yet momentum stalled as solo endeavors took precedence until live performances resumed in 2009, the year their first concert album, Alien Ant Farm: Live in Germany, appeared.
The classic lineup reconvened in 2010 and maintained regular gigs for the next three years. During sessions for fresh material Zamora stepped away once more; Tim Peugh took over on bass, enabling completion of Always and Forever, released in 2015. Subsequent activity included continued touring and sporadic singles, notably a robust rendition of Wham!'s "Everything She Wants" in 2020. That track closed out the U.K.-charting sixth album Mantras in 2024.
