Ryan McCombs (born July 16, 1974) is an American singer. From 1997 to 2004, he was the lead singer of rock band

Soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former ...

. McCombs has also served as the vocalist for rock band Drowning Pool from 2005 until his departure in 2011. The same year, McCombs reunited with Soil.

Career

Soil (1997–2004)

McCombs was discovered by Soil through a compilation CD of unsigned bands. He joined the band as lead vocalist in mid-1997. Soil released three albums (''

Throttle Junkies ''Throttle Junkies'' is the first studio album by American rock band SOiL. It was released on May 18, 1999 via MIA Records. It included tracks previously released on the band's EPs '' Soil'' and '' El Chupacabra''. While it did not chart in th ...

'', '' Scars'' and '' Redefine)'' and two EPs ( ''Soil'' and ''El Chupacabra'') during his time in the group. With heavy anthems like "

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" and "Unreal", the band gained commercial recognition and international status with their second album, ''Scars'', in 2001. Their 2004 follow-up would continue Soil's significant exposure. While touring for their latest album, McCombs suddenly decided to leave the band, which caused the cancelation of many scheduled performances alongside acts like

Sevendust Sevendust is an American rock band from Atlanta, Georgia, formed in 1994 by bassist Vince Hornsby, drummer Morgan Rose and rhythm guitarist John Connolly. After their first demo, lead vocalist Lajon Witherspoon and lead guitarist Clint Lo ...

and Damageplan.

Drowning Pool (2005–2011)

After his departure, McCombs took a one-year hiatus from the music business. By the time he returned to music, Soil had already found a new lead singer, A.J. Cavalier. Around this time, Drowning Pool's second singer, Jason Jones, left to join A.M. Conspiracy. Amidst rumors spreading about who would be Drowning Pool's next singer, the band confirmed the new vocalist's identity at

Ozzfest Ozzfest is an annual music festival tour of the United States and sometimes Europe and later Japan, featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Sharon Osbourne and her husband Ozzy Osbourne, both ...

in Dallas, Texas on August 25, 2005, to be McCombs. The first Drowning Pool song released with McCombs as the singer was a remake of their song "Rise Up", originally performed with Jason Jones as lead singer. The song was titled "Rise Up 2006" and featured as a bonus downloadable track on ''

WWE Wreckless Intent ''WWE Wreckless Intent'' is a compilation album released by WWE on May 23, 2006. The album is the sequel to the previously released ''WWF Forceable Entry'', and like its predecessor it featured rock and metal artists performing versions of the wr ...

'', and was the theme for ''

WWE SmackDown ''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes sim ...

'' until 2008. The soundtrack to the film ''

Saw III ''Saw III'' is a 2006 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman from a screenplay by Leigh Whannell and a story by Whannell and James Wan. It is the third installment in the ''Saw'' film series and sequel to 2005's ''Saw II''. The film star ...

'' contains a demo version of "No More", the second track released with McCombs on vocals. Drowning Pool recorded their third studio album, '' Full Circle'', released on August 7, 2007. It featured the hit single "

37 Stitches "37 Stitches" is a song by American rock band Drowning Pool and the third single from their third studio album '' Full Circle''. It was Drowning Pool's first-ever top 5 hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and was available ...

". "

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", which was released as the album's last single, was featured in the ''Saw IV'' soundtrack. Drowning Pool at Fort Wainwright 2010 Ryan McCombs 3

In 2010, the band released their fourth album, '' Drowning Pool''. It once again features McCombs as vocalist, thus being the first Drowning Pool album not to feature a new lead singer. In November 2011, it was announced that McCombs and Drowning Pool would be parting ways, and that he would once again be the permanent vocalist for Soil.

Return to Soil (2011–present)

In 2011, McCombs rejoined Soil. The band played various venues throughout the UK including

Download Festival Download Festival is a British-created rock festival created by Terrance Gough, held annually at the Donington Park motorsport circuit in Leicestershire, England (since 2003); in Paris, France (since 2016); at Parramatta Park, Sydney (since 2 ...

at which it played a live acoustic set for the first time. The band released their new album '' Whole'' on August 16, 2013 (worldwide) and August 20, 2013 (North America).

Personal life

McCombs has three children. He married his second wife in 2017. McCombs suffered a

stroke A stroke is a disease, medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemorr ...

in 2014 a couple of days after playing at The Bierkeller in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...

Discography

Soil

*''

'' (EP, 1997) *'' El Chupacabra!'' (EP, 1998) *''

'' (1999) *'' Scars'' (2001) *'' Redefine'' (2004) *'' Whole'' (2013) *'' Play It Forward'' (2022)

Drowning Pool

*'' Full Circle'' (2007) *'' Loudest Common Denominator'' (live album, 2009) *'' Drowning Pool'' (2010)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCombs, Ryan 1974 births American heavy metal guitarists American heavy metal singers American male singers Drowning Pool members Living people Singers from Indiana Nu metal singers Place of birth missing (living people) Guitarists from Indiana American male guitarists 21st-century American singers