36 Crazyfists

Equal parts emo and metal, Portland, OR, quartet 36 Crazyfists — named after a Jackie Chan movie — comprised members Brock Lindow (vocals), Steve Holt (guitar/vocals), Mick Whitney (bass), and Thomas Noonan (drums). Originally formed in December of 1994 in Anchorage, AK, the quartet played out locally before relocating to Portland (after the death of their original bassist), opening up for the likes of System of a Down, Primus, blink-182, and NOFX, among others. The quartet eventually signed to Roadrunner in 2000, after their friends in Skinlab passed their demo on to the label. Their first album, Bitterness the Star, appeared in 2002. A Snow Capped Romance, which was produced by James Paul Wisner (Dashboard Confessional, As Friends Rust), followed two years later. They toured nonstop behind the record (playing shows with acts like Killswitch Engage and Poison the Well) through December, taking two months off before beginning work on their next album. 36 Crazyfists entered the studio with producer Sal Villaneuva (who'd worked with Thursday and Taking Back Sunday) in October 2005 to commence recording, and their resulting third album, Rest Inside the Flames, appeared in June 2006.