Biography
Unlike conventional rock groups assembled by a frontman and guitarist rounding up peers after high school to develop grassroots support, Mad at Gravity coalesced through atypical channels. Its members were largely college graduates possessing formal training; the ensemble secured a label deal after only a handful of performances; and the drummer originated the project. Jake Fowler, born in Kalamazoo, MI, and raised in Orange County, CA, began performing in bands following high school yet still completed a biology degree at the University of California at Santa Barbara. After several short-lived groups, one of which nearly secured major-label interest, Fowler connected with bassist Ben Froehlich, whom he had encountered when their prior bands shared a bill. Froehlich, likewise raised in Orange County, prioritized soccer over music while selecting St. Mary’s in Moraga, CA, for its athletic program and simultaneously pursued art studies; he began playing bass after his brother took up guitar. Through that brother he met guitarist Anthony “Bosco” Boscarini, another soccer enthusiast. Boscarini, born in Oxnard, CA, and raised in San Juan Capistrano, received childhood piano instruction before adding formally studied guitar. He enrolled at the University of Southern California as an economics major and served as kicker on the football team.
Once Fowler, Froehlich, and Boscarini were established, Fowler ran an advertisement in The Recycler seeking a second guitarist and a vocalist. James Lee Barlow, an Orange County resident who answered, had begun playing guitar at age 14 and had studied professional audio at community college; at the time he was performing technical work such as recording demos for Alien Ant Farm, and he passed the audition to join Mad at Gravity. The final member, vocalist J. Lynn Johnston, born in Sunnyvale, CA, in Silicon Valley to an Apple employee, composed poetry during his teenage years, changed majors at Azusa Pacific University from music to English, and ultimately graduated in communications while working at the campus radio station, recording as a backup singer, and interning at record labels before responding to Fowler’s notice.
Mad at Gravity, named after the title of one of Johnston’s early poems, officially formed on July 3, 2001. The musicians leveraged mailing lists from earlier projects to promote the new band and uploaded acoustic renditions of three songs to an MP3 site, generating additional attention that attracted label interest. They signed with ARTISTdirect Records and recorded their sole album, Resonance, issued in July 2002. Two tracks also appeared on the soundtrack for the summer 2002 film Reign of Fire, and the group secured a national Locobazooka tour supporting Sevendust and Filter. Live performance remained the area in which they possessed the least collective experience; by May 2002 they had completed only ten shows. The following year Mad at Gravity dissolved after vocalist Johnston departed and the remaining members proved unable to find a replacement.
Once Fowler, Froehlich, and Boscarini were established, Fowler ran an advertisement in The Recycler seeking a second guitarist and a vocalist. James Lee Barlow, an Orange County resident who answered, had begun playing guitar at age 14 and had studied professional audio at community college; at the time he was performing technical work such as recording demos for Alien Ant Farm, and he passed the audition to join Mad at Gravity. The final member, vocalist J. Lynn Johnston, born in Sunnyvale, CA, in Silicon Valley to an Apple employee, composed poetry during his teenage years, changed majors at Azusa Pacific University from music to English, and ultimately graduated in communications while working at the campus radio station, recording as a backup singer, and interning at record labels before responding to Fowler’s notice.
Mad at Gravity, named after the title of one of Johnston’s early poems, officially formed on July 3, 2001. The musicians leveraged mailing lists from earlier projects to promote the new band and uploaded acoustic renditions of three songs to an MP3 site, generating additional attention that attracted label interest. They signed with ARTISTdirect Records and recorded their sole album, Resonance, issued in July 2002. Two tracks also appeared on the soundtrack for the summer 2002 film Reign of Fire, and the group secured a national Locobazooka tour supporting Sevendust and Filter. Live performance remained the area in which they possessed the least collective experience; by May 2002 they had completed only ten shows. The following year Mad at Gravity dissolved after vocalist Johnston departed and the remaining members proved unable to find a replacement.
Albums
