L.A.'s aggressive rock four-piece U.P.O. consists of vocalist Shawn Albro, guitarist Chris Weber, bassist Ben "Crouch" Shirley, and drummer Tommy Holt. Though both Albro and Weber lived in the same city, they met at England's Reading Festival in the mid-'90s. By 1997, they had crafted a demo that attracted major-label interest and the duo needed a rhythm section; after some searching, they hooked up with Shirley, a friend of Albro's, and found Holt through an ad he placed in the newspaper. U.P.O. signed to Epic and released their debut album, No Pleasantries, in mid-2000. Their second album, Heavy, was issued four years later. ~ Heather Phares