During the European tour, Marty O'Brien replaced Kmak until he was able to tour again. Kmak skipped the European trek of the tour, but he did perform with the band on January 11 at Disturbed's show in Chicago. He took the fire escape to exit the building while the elevator was being used to move their equipment downstairs. Before joining Marilyn Manson's 2001 European tour, bassist Steve Kmak was unable to play with the band due to a shattered ankle, caused by falling out of a fire escape outside Disturbed's rehearsal hall in Chicago. The album peaked at number 20 on the Billboard 200, and it has sold over four million copies in the United States since its release. In 2000, the band released its debut album, titled The Sickness, which launched the band into stardom. The band eventually signed with Giant Records in August 1999 and opened for Ministry at Chicago's Riviera Theatre around the same time. The artwork was composed of the band's newly-created mascot, The Guy.
The level of conformity that people are forced into was disturbing to us and we were just trying to push the envelope and the name just sorta made sense." The Sickness (1997–2000)Īfter renaming the band, Disturbed went on to record two three-track demo tapes, the first containing demos for "The Game", " Down with the Sickness", and "Meaning of Life", while the second had demos for "Want", " Stupify", and "Droppin' Plates". It just seems to symbolize everything we were feeling at the time. When asked in an interview why he suggested to name the band "Disturbed", Draiman said, "It had been a name I have been contemplating for a band for years. I'm like, 'There is something here.'" As drummer Mike Wengren commented, "We clicked right off the bat." Draiman then joined the band in 1996 and the band was renamed Disturbed. We'll, you know, discuss it.' But I was so psyched. With regard to Draiman being the singer for the band, Donegan said, "After a minute or two, he just starts banging out these melodies that were huge.I'm playing my guitar and I'm grinning from ear to ear, trying not to give it away that I like this guy, you know, because I don't want to, you know. And that impressed me, just to attempt that". Guitarist Dan Donegan commented on Draiman: "You know, out of all the singers that we had talked to or auditioned, he was the only singer who was ready to go with originals. Draiman answered the advertisement after going to twenty other auditions that month. They posted an advertisement in the local music publication in Chicago, Illinois, called the "Illinois Entertainer". Awalt left the band shortly after the recording of a demo tape the other three members advertised for a singer. Before changing their name to " Brawl", however, Donegan mentioned in the band's DVD, Decade of Disturbed, that the name was originally going to be "Crawl" they switched it to "Brawl", due to the name already being used by another band.
History Early years (1994–1996)īefore David Draiman joined Disturbed, guitarist Dan Donegan, drummer Mike Wengren and bassist Steve "Fuzz" Kmak were in a band called Brawl with vocalist Erich Awalt. With over 17 million records sold worldwide, Disturbed ranks alongside Slipknot and Godsmack as one of the most successful rock bands of the 21st century. They also released two live albums, Music as a Weapon II in February 2004 and Disturbed: Live at Red Rocks in November 2016. Disturbed went into hiatus in October 2011, during which the band's members focused on various side projects, and returned in June 2015, releasing their first album in four years, Immortalized in August 2015. The band has released seven studio albums, five of which have consecutively debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. Donegan and Wengren have been involved in the band since its inception, with Moyer replacing former bassist Steve "Fuzz" Kmak and Draiman replacing original lead vocalist Erich Awalt. The band includes vocalist David Draiman, guitarist/keyboardist Dan Donegan, bassist John Moyer, and drummer Mike Wengren. Disturbed is an American heavy metal band from Chicago, formed in 1994.