The Workhorse Movement was an American

alternative metal Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music Heavy metal (or simply metal) is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the United Kingdom and United States. With r ...

band from Mount Pleasant,

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

History

The Workhorse Movement was formed in August 1994 by singer Myron (born Matt Kozuch-Rea), guitarist Freedom (Jeff Piper), bassist Jay Vondoloski, and drummer Joe Mackie, who were all attending

Central Michigan University Central Michigan University (CMU) is a public research university in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. Established in 1892 as the Central Michigan Normal School and Business Institute, the private normal school became a state institution and renamed Cen ...

(CMU). The band took its name from a section in

Tom Wolfe Thomas Kennerly Wolfe Jr. (March 2, 1930 – May 14, 2018)Some sources say 1931; ''The New York Times'' and Reuters both initially reported 1931 in their obituaries before changing to 1930. See and was an American author and journalist widely ...

's ''

The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test ''The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test'' is a 1968 nonfiction book by Tom Wolfe. The book is a popular example of the New Journalism literary style. Wolfe presents a firsthand account of the experiences of Ken Kesey and his band of Merry Pranksters, ...

'' (1968). After performing several local shows, the band released their self-financed debut album, ''Dopamine'', in 1995. The band relocated to

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

soon after at the urging of Joe Mackie, so they could pursue the band seriously. After touring with the likes of

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 Lowery ...

Skinlab Skinlab is an American heavy metal band formed in 1994 in San Francisco, California by vocalist/bassist Steev Esquivel (who used to sing in the Bay Area thrash metal band Defiance), guitarist Mike Roberts (now with San Francisco Bay Area's R ...

and

Vanilla Ice Robert Matthew Van Winkle (born October 31, 1967), known professionally as Vanilla Ice, is an American rapper, actor, and television host. Born in South Dallas, and raised in Texas and South Florida, Ice released his debut album, ''Hooked'', ...

, The Workhorse Movement recruited a second vocalist, Cornbread (Chris Sparks), and signed with the local Detroit label Overcore Records. The label issued the band's only EP, ''Rhythm and Soul Cartel'', in 1998. Following additional touring for the EP, the Workhorse Movement came to the attention of

Roadrunner Records Roadrunner Records is an American record label focused on heavy metal and hard rock bands. Founded in the Netherlands in 1980, it is now a division of Warner Music Group and is based in New York City. History The label was launched in 1980 in t ...

. After signing to the label, the band replaced the recently departed Jay Vondoloski (who had moved back to CMU) with Grady (Jeff Wright). The band's Roadrunner debut album, ''

Sons of the Pioneers The Sons of the Pioneers are one of the United States' earliest Western singing groups. Known for their vocal performances, their musicianship, and their songwriting, they produced innovative recordings that have inspired many Western music perf ...

'' (2000), was recorded and produced by Overcore Records owner Scott Santos. It was finished by October 1999. Before the release of the album, the Workhorse Movement were featured on British music magazine ''

Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British weekly magazine devoted to rock, punk and heavy metal music, currently published by Wasted Talent (the same company that owns electronic music publication ''Mixmag''). It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one- ...

'' "Hot 100" list for 2000. Leading up to the album's release, the band toured the United States with

Kittie Kittie is a Canadian Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in London, Ontario in 1996. All of their material has been released through independent record labels, which to date includes six studio albums, one video album, four extended plays ...

and

Fishbone Fishbone is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1979, that plays a fusion of ska, punk, funk, metal, reggae, and soul. AllMusic has described the group as "one of the most distinctive and eclectic alternative rock bands of the late ' ...

. Although the album garnered little attention in the United States, ''Sons of the Pioneers'' was well received by the British music press, and appeared on the best-of year lists for ''Kerrang!'', ''

Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...

'' and ''

Rock Sound ''Rock Sound'' is a British magazine that covers rock music. The magazine aims at being more "underground" and less commercial, while also giving coverage to better-known acts. It generally focuses on pop punk, post-hardcore, metalcore, punk, e ...

''. The band gained further attention in the United Kingdom while touring as a supporting act for

Pitchshifter Pitchshifter are an English industrial rock band from Nottingham, formed in 1989. The band was started by lead guitarist and programmer Johnny A. Carter, and bassist and vocalist Mark Clayden. The band’s early material was characterized for ...

. In late December 2000, Myron announced that The Workhorse Movement had disbanded, citing a lack of promotional and touring support from Roadrunner in the United States and their lack of enthusiasm for a third album. The band performed their last show on December 23, 2000, at the

Harpos Concert Theatre Harpos Concert Theatre is a music venue located at 14238 Harper Avenue, Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is known as a venue for heavy metal and industrial rock. History It was built in 1939 for the Wisper and Westman circuit as the ''Harpe ...

in Detroit. Myron, Freedom and Pete soon joined up with drummer Jeremiah Pillbean to form the

Dirty Americans The Dirty Americans were a Detroit-based rock band that released one album and EP. History The band was formed by previous members of The Workhorse Movement, who had brief success in the UK and toured with Pitchshifter, as well as touring the U ...

in April 2001.

Musical style and influences

The Workhorse Movement have been described as

rap metal Rap metal is a subgenre of rap rock and alternative metal music which combines hip hop with heavy metal. It usually consists of heavy metal guitar riffs, funk metal elements, rapped vocals and sometimes turntables. History Origins and early ...

funk rock Funk rock is a fusion genre that mixes elements of funk and rock. James Brown and others declared that Little Richard and his mid-1950s road band, The Upsetters, were the first to put the funk in the rock and roll beat, with a biographer sta ...

and

stoner rock Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Kyuss and Sleep. ...

. ''Kerrang!'' described the band's sound as "stoner rap". The band was heavily influenced by the works of

The Doors The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...

Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer Boats * Santana 20, an American sailboat design by W. D. Sch ...

and

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

Band members

Final lineup * Myron – vocals (1994–2000) * Cornbread – vocals (1995–2000) * Freedom – guitar (1994–2000) * Pete Bever – bass (1999–2000) * Joe Mackie – drums (1994–2000) Former members * Jay Vondoloski – bass (1994–1997) * Grady – bass (1997–1999) Timeline

Discography

Studio Albums EPs * ''Rhythm and Soul Cartel'' (1998) Singles * "Keep the Sabbath Dream Alive" (2000) (

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

: #196)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Workhorse Movement, The Musical groups established in 1994 Musical groups disestablished in 2000 Roadrunner Records artists Musical groups from Michigan