Chimaira

Formed during 1998 in Cleveland, Ohio, the six-piece hardcore outfit Chimaira brought together vocalist Mark Hunter, guitarists Rob Arnold and Matt DeVries—the latter having taken Jason Hager’s spot midway through 2001—bassist Jim LaMarca, drummer Andols Herrick, and electronics specialist Chris Spicuzza. Their blend of hardcore, metal, and electronic textures quickly caught on locally, allowing the independent EP This Present Darkness to move 10,000 copies and earn the group a slot on the short-lived USA Network program Farmclub. Early support slots alongside Soulfly, Hatebreed, Spineshank, and Snapcase paved the way for a Roadrunner Records contract, which yielded the fourteen-track debut album Pass Out of Existence in August 2001. Roadrunner issued the follow-up The Impossibility of Reason in May 2003, after which the band logged extensive road time, including a run with In Flames and multiple Ozzfest 2003 performances. The 2004 DVD set The Dehumanization Process coincided with the arrival of drummer Kevin Talley, formerly of Misery Index, and the group delivered its self-titled third album the next year. Post-release tensions both inside the band and with the label nearly caused a split, yet Chimaira endured; by autumn 2006 they had exited Roadrunner, signed with Ferret, and begun writing again, while also reinstating original drummer Andols Herrick. The more collaborative Resurrection emerged in early March 2007, and the band promoted it on tour with Killswitch Engage and Dragonforce. Their fifth release, The Infection, arrived in 2009 and reached number 30 on the Billboard chart, though bassist Jim LaMarca announced his departure the following year to concentrate on family life. In 2011 Dååth’s Emil Werstler, who had already toured with Chimaira as a guitarist, took over bass duties. That same year saw both Spicuzza and Herrick exit, with Sean Zatorsky and Austin D’Amond stepping in, yet the lineup upheaval did not prevent the band from issuing Age of Hell before 2011 ended.