Biography
Hailing from Coral Springs, FL, the punk-pop band New Found Glory was formed in mid-1997 by vocalist Jordan Pundik, bassist Ian Grushka, drummer Joe Moreno (replaced by longtime drummer Cyrus Bolooki after the band's first release), and guitarists Chad Gilbert (previously the vocalist for Shai Hulud) and Steve Klein. Having recently graduated from high school, the bandmates wasted little time amassing a cult following, eventually rising to the upper tier of punk-pop music alongside Good Charlotte, Saves the Day, and other Warped Tour-affiliated bands.
Renowned for their energetic live shows, A New Found Glory toured up and down the East Coast in the late '90s, selling out the entire pressing of their 1997 debut EP It's All About the Girls along the way. (The EP was released by Fiddler Records, which later reissued Girls with new cover art in 2003.) The full-length debut effort Nothing Gold Can Stay followed in 1999 on Drive-Thru Records, and the album was reissued later that year when A New Found Glory signed a major label contract with MCA. Another EP, 2000s From the Screen to Your Stereo, found the boys tackling a number of cover songs; the disc also paved the way for the release of the band's first gold-selling album, the self-titled New Found Glory, which appeared later that year. The latter album marked the official debut of the band's new moniker, which dropped the indefinite article A from their original name. A high-profile tour with blink-182, an opening slot on the Warped Tour, and an appearance in the teen flick American Pie 2 helped increase New Found Glory's exposure, and they stepped back into the studio at the end of 2001 to work on a follow-up record.
The results of those recording sessions were released in the summer of 2002 as Sticks and Stones. Propelled by the hit single "My Friends Over You," NFG snagged a headlining spot for the 2002 Warped Tour and watched their album climb to gold certification. After the tour and its resulting hype, New Found Glory then re-entered the studio with a newfound restlessness. The result, issued in May 2004, was Catalyst, which found the band's sugary punk-pop steeped in new influences ranging from hardcore to thrash to new wave. The concert DVD This Disaster: Live in London appeared later that year, documenting the band's strength as a live act.
Catalyst peaked at number three on Billboard's Top 200 and eventually went gold, propelled in part by the success of "All Downhill from Here." Hooking up with producer Thom Panunzio (Ozzy Osbourne, Tom Petty), NFG released their matured fifth full-length, Coming Home, in September 2006. As before, they immediately hit the road in support of the album, adhering to a lengthy schedule of headlining dates throughout the U.S. and U.K. with the Early November and Cartel in tow. The second edition of From the Screen to Your Stereo arrived in 2007, featuring pop-punk covers of songs like Lisa Loeb's "Stay" and Simple Minds' "Don't You Forget About Me." The group then joined the roster at Epitaph Records and set to work on a new album, Not Without a Fight, with blink-182's Mark Hoppus in the producer's seat. ~ Jason Ankeny & Andrew Leahey, All Music Guide
