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Trouble (band)
Encyclopedia
Trouble is an American doom metal
band noted as one of the pioneers of their genre, alongside bands such as Candlemass
and Saint Vitus
. The band created a distinct style taking influences of the British heavy metal bands Black Sabbath
and Judas Priest
, and psychedelic rock
of the 1970s. A critically acclaimed group, their first two albums, Psalm 9 and The Skull
are cited as landmarks of doom metal, and their early 1990s releases on Def American would take a more stoner metal oriented direction. After six studio albums and tours throughout the U.S. and Europe, Trouble disbanded in 1996, but reformed six years later to release its seventh studio album on Escapi Music.
The nucleus of the band have been vocalist Eric Wagner
(replaced as of late by Kory Clarke), guitarists Rick Wartell and Bruce Franklin
, and drummer Jeff Olson
. The band is also noted for the spiritual nature of their early lyrics; their first record label, Metal Blade Records
, marketed the band as "white metal
" (in contrast to the rising black metal
movement) in the 1980s.
, guitarists Bruce Franklin
and Rick Wartell, bassist Ian Brown (not to be confused with lead singer
of English band The Stone Roses
; replaced by Sean McAllister in 1983), and drummer Jeff Olson
. Drawing from Black Sabbath for inspiration (with occasional nods to the psychedelic sounds of the late 1960s), the band used gloomy down-tuned riffs and spiritual, often openly Bible-inspired lyrics, which led Metal Blade to market the band as "white metal" as opposed to black metal. "I was brought up Catholic", vocalist and primary lyric writer Wagner explains in the liner notes of Psalm 9 re-issue (2006), "but you have to remember, back in the early 1980s, all the metal was kind of satanic, and I did not get into that vibe." Wagner has implied that Metal Blade actually came up with the term in the first place, which the band rejected: "I think it was more like Metal Blade trying to be cute or something, with everything [satanic metal] being called black metal, why not call us white metal, which is a bunch of crap."
The band toured throughout the Midwest during the early 1980s before signing with Metal Blade Records and releasing their eponymous debut (later referred to as Psalm 9) in 1984. The Skull
followed in 1985 and reflected singer Wagner's struggles with substance abuse as well as growing turmoil within the group. This led to the replacement of bassist McAllister with Ron Holzner. Drummer Jeff Olson
also departed. Reports suggested that Olson had left the band to become a preacher, but he had actually decided to pursue studies at the Berklee School of Music in Boston. Dennis Lesh was drafted as his replacement for 1987's Run to the Light
. In comparison to earlier recordings, the critics thought Run to the Light was "disappointing". Ted Kirkpatrick
played drums during the Run to the Light tour before he went to form his own band, Tourniquet
in 1989.
A three year hiatus occurred before the band was snapped up by Rick Rubin
's Def American Records for whom they recorded a second self-titled album (Trouble
) in 1990 with Rubin producing. More experimental than previous efforts, the album (featuring new drummer Barry Stern
, formerly of Zoetrope
) expanded upon the group's tentative psychedelic notions within its traditional use of power chords.
The group embarked on a year-long tour before returning to the studio. In 1992 Manic Frustration
was released, delving into Beatlesque psychedelia and featuring some of Trouble's most aggressive, energetic performances ever. But after the album failed to connect with a wider audience, the band was ultimately dropped by their record company, which was experiencing financial problems.
The band issued Plastic Green Head
through the Music for Nations label in 1995 with the return of founding drummer Jeff Olson
.
In February 2004, Dave Grohl
of Nirvana
and the Foo Fighters
released a tribute album that paid homage to his metal roots. Entitled Probot
, the disc featured various vocalists, including Eric Wagner, who sang on the track "My Tortured Soul". In the album's liner notes, Grohl wrote that buying Psalm 9 was like buying Sgt. Peppers.
Holzner left the band soon after, to be replaced by Chuck Robinson, who played on the band's newest studio album, Simple Mind Condition
, which was released in Europe on April 3, 2007 by Escapi Music. The band toured internationally in support of its release, but were not able to secure a U.S. release date for the album until over two years later. An unplugged album was later released through the band's website and, more recently, Escapi Music.
In May, 2008, it was announced that Eric Wagner
has left the band and had been replaced by Kory Clarke of Warrior Soul
. Jeff Olson
also announced his departure from the band in July 2008 to continue with his own band, Retro Grave
. Olson's last show with Trouble was, coincidentally, at a rock club called, "The End" in Memphis, Tenn. Olson was replaced by Wet Animal's Mark Lira for the band's upcoming U.S. East Coast tour.
In a September 2008 interview with Rock N Roll Experience, guitarist Rick Wartell mentioned that Trouble has written "eight or nine songs" for their next album, and would begin recording it after touring. When asked which direction is the new music going in, Wartell replied, "I know people have said this a million times and I know you've heard this a million times, but it's pretty fucking heavy, let's put it that way! The music end of it that Bruce [Franklin, guitar] and I are writing is getting heavier and heavier...it's getting heavier and then we want Kory to incorporate his style to what we are doing, that's basically all that we really want out of this."
On November 18, 2008, Trouble announced, via their website, that they were in the process of writing songs for an album that would likely be released in the summer of 2009. A live bootleg recording featuring the new line-up was released via the band's website in 2008, then worldwide by Escapi Music about one year later. On March 4, 2009, Trouble revealed on their website that the new album would tentatively be called The Dark Riff. On September 9, 2010, the band announced that they are "getting ready for the studio now. [We] have been making preliminary recordings and working out things in order to bring the best possible Trouble release."
Bruce Franklin later said in a 2009 interview that "The Dark Riff' would not be the title of the forthcoming album.
Trouble's music lies with a traditional doom metal style, although their later albums showcase a more stoner-metal oriented style. Band members have cited influences by the early heavy rock bands of the 1970s such as Deep Purple
, Led Zeppelin
, Budgie
, and Black Sabbath, Trouble have also incorporated elements of psychedelic rock to their style. Their music has been some of the slowest tempos being written at a time when NWOBHM and thrash metal
bands were playing at increasingly faster speeds; Trouble songs generally move as fast as one of the slower Black Sabbath songs, like "Iron Man," "Lord of this World," or "Into the Void." While most slow songs by Iron Maiden
or Saxon
border into the area of ballads, all of the tracks on The Skull are as heavy as they are slow, with a distinctive fuzzy distortion and melodic, integral (rather than superfluous or ostentatious) guitar solos. The band could best be described as combining the riffs and tempos of Black Sabbath with the twin guitar attack of Judas Priest
.
Eric Wagner's lyrics deal with different themes, but the early Trouble albums are known for biblical references, especially because such themes were relatively uncommon in mainstream metal music of the 1980s. Some songs contain Bible quotes that were expressed in an oppressive way, such as "Psalm 9" from the 1984 album, causing the metal historian Ian Christe
to describe Trouble's music as "majestic doom preaching". Other songs deal with social issues; "Bastards Will Pay," for instance, criticises politicians as hypocritical ("You tell us not to steal/ You tell us not to kill/ Then you tell us to fight for your country/ That's tell us to die"). Wagner's lyrics sometimes include a tinge of the hippie
movement's melancholy and ideologies, with the term "peace and love" appearing on occasion. From Manic Frustration onwards, more references have been made to psychedelia, drugs, and hallucinations; "Hello Strawberry Skies" and "Mr. White" stand out as two examples.
Unlike other metal acts of the 1980s, Trouble's members dressed in ripped jeans, tight t-shirts, and wore round sunglasses and had fringes
and outfit accessories more characteristic of the hippie movement such as bandanas and knee patches. The band's live performances aren't overly concerned with visual interest; effects such as flash bulbs or pyrotechnics are absent, and movement on stage is kept to a minimum.
Trouble's first two albums were critically acclaimed and are respected in the metal scene. The following album Run to the Light, however, was said to be "disappointing," but a different direction was taken during the Def American era, when Rick Rubin helped the band to develop a new, unique style. The self-titled album gained "magnificent reviews in all the major heavy metal rags" and the psychedelic Manic Frustration was "critically lauded, cult-raved heavy metal masterpiece" The 1995's Plastic Green Head received good reviews, and "the album's songs also exuded a palpable sense of wary acceptance." However, Trouble was never thought of as a completely unique group; some critiques dismissed the band as a "poor man's Black Sabbath". Nevertheless, Trouble's influence on the metal movement is unquestioned.
Doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme form of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other metal genres...
band noted as one of the pioneers of their genre, alongside bands such as Candlemass
Candlemass
Candlemass are an influential Swedish doom metal band established in 1984 by Leif Edling , their leader and songwriter. The band is originally from Stockholm. After releasing five full-length albums and touring extensively throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Candlemass disbanded in 1994, but...
and Saint Vitus
Saint Vitus (band)
Saint Vitus is an American doom metal band from Los Angeles, formed in 1978. They consist of founding members Dave Chandler and Mark Adams , alongside sporadic singer Scott Weinrich and recently added drummer Henry Vasquez...
. The band created a distinct style taking influences of the British heavy metal bands Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
and Judas Priest
Judas Priest
Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1969. The current line-up consists of lead vocalist Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis. The band has gone through several drummers over the years,...
, and psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
of the 1970s. A critically acclaimed group, their first two albums, Psalm 9 and The Skull
The Skull (album)
The Skull is the second album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released in 1985. It was the follow-up to their 1984 classic debut Psalm 9....
are cited as landmarks of doom metal, and their early 1990s releases on Def American would take a more stoner metal oriented direction. After six studio albums and tours throughout the U.S. and Europe, Trouble disbanded in 1996, but reformed six years later to release its seventh studio album on Escapi Music.
The nucleus of the band have been vocalist Eric Wagner
Eric Wagner
Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002...
(replaced as of late by Kory Clarke), guitarists Rick Wartell and Bruce Franklin
Bruce Franklin (guitarist)
Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy...
, and drummer Jeff Olson
Jeff Olson (Musician)
Jeff Olson is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, radio show host, and the original drummer for the legendary doom/rock band, Trouble...
. The band is also noted for the spiritual nature of their early lyrics; their first record label, Metal Blade Records
Metal Blade Records
Metal Blade Records is a record label which was founded by Brian Slagel in 1982. The U.S. corporate office for Metal Blade is located in Agoura Hills, California. It also has offices in Arizona, Germany, Japan, Canada, and the UK. The label is distributed in the U.S. by Sony BMG Music...
, marketed the band as "white metal
Unblack metal
Unblack metal is a term used to describe musically black metal sounding artists whose lyrics and imagery promote Christianity. Such artists are controversial, mainly because black metal's pioneers, especially those of the Second Wave, intended to encourage hostility towards Christianity...
" (in contrast to the rising black metal
Black metal
Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, raw recording, and unconventional song structure....
movement) in the 1980s.
Formation and Metal Blade years (1979-1988)
Trouble was formed in 1979 by vocalist Eric WagnerEric Wagner
Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002...
, guitarists Bruce Franklin
Bruce Franklin (guitarist)
Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy...
and Rick Wartell, bassist Ian Brown (not to be confused with lead singer
Ian Brown
Ian George Brown is an English musician, best known as the lead singer of the alternative rock band The Stone Roses, which broke up in 1996 but are confirmed to reunite in 2012. Since the break-up of the Stone Roses he has pursued a solo career...
of English band The Stone Roses
The Stone Roses
The Stone Roses are an English alternative rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. They were one of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement that was active during the late 1980s and early 1990s...
; replaced by Sean McAllister in 1983), and drummer Jeff Olson
Jeff Olson (Musician)
Jeff Olson is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, radio show host, and the original drummer for the legendary doom/rock band, Trouble...
. Drawing from Black Sabbath for inspiration (with occasional nods to the psychedelic sounds of the late 1960s), the band used gloomy down-tuned riffs and spiritual, often openly Bible-inspired lyrics, which led Metal Blade to market the band as "white metal" as opposed to black metal. "I was brought up Catholic", vocalist and primary lyric writer Wagner explains in the liner notes of Psalm 9 re-issue (2006), "but you have to remember, back in the early 1980s, all the metal was kind of satanic, and I did not get into that vibe." Wagner has implied that Metal Blade actually came up with the term in the first place, which the band rejected: "I think it was more like Metal Blade trying to be cute or something, with everything [satanic metal] being called black metal, why not call us white metal, which is a bunch of crap."
The band toured throughout the Midwest during the early 1980s before signing with Metal Blade Records and releasing their eponymous debut (later referred to as Psalm 9) in 1984. The Skull
The Skull (album)
The Skull is the second album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released in 1985. It was the follow-up to their 1984 classic debut Psalm 9....
followed in 1985 and reflected singer Wagner's struggles with substance abuse as well as growing turmoil within the group. This led to the replacement of bassist McAllister with Ron Holzner. Drummer Jeff Olson
Jeff Olson (Musician)
Jeff Olson is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, radio show host, and the original drummer for the legendary doom/rock band, Trouble...
also departed. Reports suggested that Olson had left the band to become a preacher, but he had actually decided to pursue studies at the Berklee School of Music in Boston. Dennis Lesh was drafted as his replacement for 1987's Run to the Light
Run to the Light
Run to the Light was the third album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released on July 15, 1987. It was the band's last release on Metal Blade before signing to Def American for their follow-up, the 1990 self-titled release.-Track listing:...
. In comparison to earlier recordings, the critics thought Run to the Light was "disappointing". Ted Kirkpatrick
Ted Kirkpatrick
Ted Kirkpatrick is an American heavy metal drummer best known for his work with the American Christian metal band Tourniquet.-Biography:...
played drums during the Run to the Light tour before he went to form his own band, Tourniquet
Tourniquet (band)
Tourniquet is a Christian thrash / heavy metal band that was formed in 1989 by Ted Kirkpatrick, Guy Ritter and Gary Lenaire in Los Angeles, California, USA. They are known for incorporating elements of thrash, neo-classical and progressive metal into their music...
in 1989.
Rise to popularity and hiatus (1989-2001)
Rick Rubin
Frederick Jay "Rick" Rubin is an American record producer and the co-president of Columbia Records. Along with Russell Simmons, Rubin was the co-founder of Def Jam Records and also established American Recordings...
's Def American Records for whom they recorded a second self-titled album (Trouble
Trouble (ST 1990 album)
Trouble is the fourth album by the American doom metal band of the same title, released in 1990. It was the band's first release on Def American...
) in 1990 with Rubin producing. More experimental than previous efforts, the album (featuring new drummer Barry Stern
Barry Stern
Barry Stern was a heavy metal drummer from Chicago, Illinois. From 1976 until 1988, Barry drummed for Zoetrope, for whom he also served as vocalist and songwriter. After recording two LPs with that band, Barry joined Trouble in 1989. He appeared on two LPs with the band, 1990's Trouble and 1992's...
, formerly of Zoetrope
Zoetrope (band)
Zoetrope was an American heavy metal band from Chicago, Illinois. Although their sound was akin to thrash metal, the group described themselves as "Street Metal" . The group was formed in 1976 by teenage friends Barry Stern , Kevin Michael Rasofsky, aka Kevin Michael, , and Calvin "Willis"...
) expanded upon the group's tentative psychedelic notions within its traditional use of power chords.
The group embarked on a year-long tour before returning to the studio. In 1992 Manic Frustration
Manic Frustration
Manic Frustration is the fifth album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released in 1992. The album marked a change in style for Trouble, featuring a faster-paced, psychedelic sound...
was released, delving into Beatlesque psychedelia and featuring some of Trouble's most aggressive, energetic performances ever. But after the album failed to connect with a wider audience, the band was ultimately dropped by their record company, which was experiencing financial problems.
The band issued Plastic Green Head
Plastic Green Head
Plastic Green Head was the sixth album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released in 1995. First released on the Music for Nations label in Europe, it was distributed in the U.S. by Century Media Records. Soon after the release of this album, Trouble went on an extended hiatus after their...
through the Music for Nations label in 1995 with the return of founding drummer Jeff Olson
Jeff Olson (Musician)
Jeff Olson is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, radio show host, and the original drummer for the legendary doom/rock band, Trouble...
.
Reunion and Simple Mind Condition (2002-2007)
Even though Trouble had gone on an extended hiatus after Wagner's departure, rumors of an eventual re-formation persisted. On January 26, 2002, Wagner, Franklin, Wartell, Holzner and Olson reunited on stage to perform a short set in Chicago. Since that time, the band has played individual gigs throughout the Chicago area and headlined metal festivals in Europe and the U.S. while working on a new album. A concert in Stockholm, Sweden in 2005 produced the live DVD Trouble - Live in Stockholm.In February 2004, Dave Grohl
Dave Grohl
David Eric "Dave" Grohl is an American rock musician, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter who is the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter for Foo Fighters; the former drummer for Nirvana and Scream; and the current drummer for Them Crooked Vultures...
of Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
and the Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters is an American alternative rock band originally formed in 1994 by Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of his previous band. The band got its name from the UFOs and various aerial phenomena that were reported by Allied aircraft pilots in World War...
released a tribute album that paid homage to his metal roots. Entitled Probot
Probot
Probot was a heavy metal side project of ex-Nirvana drummer and Foo Fighters rhythm guitarist and lead-singer Dave Grohl. An album was recorded out of the material and released in February 2004...
, the disc featured various vocalists, including Eric Wagner, who sang on the track "My Tortured Soul". In the album's liner notes, Grohl wrote that buying Psalm 9 was like buying Sgt. Peppers.
Holzner left the band soon after, to be replaced by Chuck Robinson, who played on the band's newest studio album, Simple Mind Condition
Simple Mind Condition
Simple Mind Condition is Trouble's seventh studio album. It was the band's first full-length studio release in twelve years, the longest gap between Trouble's studio albums to date...
, which was released in Europe on April 3, 2007 by Escapi Music. The band toured internationally in support of its release, but were not able to secure a U.S. release date for the album until over two years later. An unplugged album was later released through the band's website and, more recently, Escapi Music.
New singer and next album (2008-present)
Eric Wagner
Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002...
has left the band and had been replaced by Kory Clarke of Warrior Soul
Warrior Soul
Warrior Soul is an American hard rock band formed by lead singer Kory Clarke, guitarist Cliff St. Croix , later replaced by John Ricco, later replaced by Alex, a Scotsman living in New York City , and guitarist Chris Moffett. Then Peter Jay Tsudis...
. Jeff Olson
Jeff Olson (Musician)
Jeff Olson is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, radio show host, and the original drummer for the legendary doom/rock band, Trouble...
also announced his departure from the band in July 2008 to continue with his own band, Retro Grave
Retro Grave
Retro Grave is an American heavy metal band formed in 2006 by Jeff Olson, original drummer from the internationally acclaimed doom metal band Trouble.-Biography:In 2006, Jeff Olson formed Retro Grave while still the drummer for Trouble...
. Olson's last show with Trouble was, coincidentally, at a rock club called, "The End" in Memphis, Tenn. Olson was replaced by Wet Animal's Mark Lira for the band's upcoming U.S. East Coast tour.
In a September 2008 interview with Rock N Roll Experience, guitarist Rick Wartell mentioned that Trouble has written "eight or nine songs" for their next album, and would begin recording it after touring. When asked which direction is the new music going in, Wartell replied, "I know people have said this a million times and I know you've heard this a million times, but it's pretty fucking heavy, let's put it that way! The music end of it that Bruce [Franklin, guitar] and I are writing is getting heavier and heavier...it's getting heavier and then we want Kory to incorporate his style to what we are doing, that's basically all that we really want out of this."
On November 18, 2008, Trouble announced, via their website, that they were in the process of writing songs for an album that would likely be released in the summer of 2009. A live bootleg recording featuring the new line-up was released via the band's website in 2008, then worldwide by Escapi Music about one year later. On March 4, 2009, Trouble revealed on their website that the new album would tentatively be called The Dark Riff. On September 9, 2010, the band announced that they are "getting ready for the studio now. [We] have been making preliminary recordings and working out things in order to bring the best possible Trouble release."
Bruce Franklin later said in a 2009 interview that "The Dark Riff' would not be the title of the forthcoming album.
Music and image
Deep Purple
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968. Along with Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock, although some band members believe that their music cannot be categorised as belonging to any one genre...
, Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
, Budgie
Budgie (band)
Budgie is a Welsh Hard Rock/Heavy Metal band from Cardiff. They are widely considered as one of the first heavy metal bands and a seminal influence to many acts of that scene, with fast, heavy rock being played as early as 1971. The band has been noted as "among the heaviest metal of its day"...
, and Black Sabbath, Trouble have also incorporated elements of psychedelic rock to their style. Their music has been some of the slowest tempos being written at a time when NWOBHM and thrash metal
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...
bands were playing at increasingly faster speeds; Trouble songs generally move as fast as one of the slower Black Sabbath songs, like "Iron Man," "Lord of this World," or "Into the Void." While most slow songs by Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in east London, formed in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. Since their inception, the band's discography has grown to include a total of thirty-six albums: fifteen studio albums; eleven live albums; four EPs; and six...
or Saxon
Saxon (band)
Saxon are an English heavy metal band, formed in 1976 in Barnsley, Yorkshire. As front-runners of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, they had 8 UK Top 40 albums in the 1980s including 4 UK Top 10 albums. Saxon also had numerous singles in the Top 20 singles chart...
border into the area of ballads, all of the tracks on The Skull are as heavy as they are slow, with a distinctive fuzzy distortion and melodic, integral (rather than superfluous or ostentatious) guitar solos. The band could best be described as combining the riffs and tempos of Black Sabbath with the twin guitar attack of Judas Priest
Judas Priest
Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1969. The current line-up consists of lead vocalist Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis. The band has gone through several drummers over the years,...
.
Eric Wagner's lyrics deal with different themes, but the early Trouble albums are known for biblical references, especially because such themes were relatively uncommon in mainstream metal music of the 1980s. Some songs contain Bible quotes that were expressed in an oppressive way, such as "Psalm 9" from the 1984 album, causing the metal historian Ian Christe
Ian Christe
Ian Christe is an author, disc jockey and publisher. He attended The Clarkson School's Bridging Year and Indiana University....
to describe Trouble's music as "majestic doom preaching". Other songs deal with social issues; "Bastards Will Pay," for instance, criticises politicians as hypocritical ("You tell us not to steal/ You tell us not to kill/ Then you tell us to fight for your country/ That's tell us to die"). Wagner's lyrics sometimes include a tinge of the hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
movement's melancholy and ideologies, with the term "peace and love" appearing on occasion. From Manic Frustration onwards, more references have been made to psychedelia, drugs, and hallucinations; "Hello Strawberry Skies" and "Mr. White" stand out as two examples.
Unlike other metal acts of the 1980s, Trouble's members dressed in ripped jeans, tight t-shirts, and wore round sunglasses and had fringes
Fringe (hair)
Fringe are a shaped cutting of the front part of the hair so that it is combed forward and hangs or curls over the forehead. A classic fringe is cut fairly straight at or above the eyebrows, but fringes can also be ragged or ruffled, spiked up with hair gel, swept to one side or the other, and...
and outfit accessories more characteristic of the hippie movement such as bandanas and knee patches. The band's live performances aren't overly concerned with visual interest; effects such as flash bulbs or pyrotechnics are absent, and movement on stage is kept to a minimum.
Reception
Problems with both the Metal Blade and Def American labels made it impossible for Trouble to achieve large commercial success. Even though their music videos were aired on MTV in both the U.S. and Europe, Manic Frustration was the only album that sold close to 100,000 copies. However, Eduardo Rivadavia of Allmusic wrote that "their preservation efforts nevertheless rescued metal's original blueprint from disuse, and carved it in granite for subsequent exploration by each new generation of doom bands that followed." It was said that Trouble took up where Black Sabbath had left off after their split with vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. Psalm 9 and The Skull are often cited as the cornerstones of doom metal. as well influencing other bands of the uprising metal movement during the mid-1980s. A famous story states that James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett from Metallica entered Trouble's stage after a concert, trying to figure out how their amplifiers were set to produce their unique sound.Trouble's first two albums were critically acclaimed and are respected in the metal scene. The following album Run to the Light, however, was said to be "disappointing," but a different direction was taken during the Def American era, when Rick Rubin helped the band to develop a new, unique style. The self-titled album gained "magnificent reviews in all the major heavy metal rags" and the psychedelic Manic Frustration was "critically lauded, cult-raved heavy metal masterpiece" The 1995's Plastic Green Head received good reviews, and "the album's songs also exuded a palpable sense of wary acceptance." However, Trouble was never thought of as a completely unique group; some critiques dismissed the band as a "poor man's Black Sabbath". Nevertheless, Trouble's influence on the metal movement is unquestioned.
Lineup
Trouble has had numerous lineup changes, and Bruce Franklin and Rick Wartell have been the only constant members.| (1979–1983) |
|
|---|---|
| (1983–1986) |
Eric Wagner Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002... - vocals Bruce Franklin (guitarist) Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy... - guitars Sean McAllister Sean Brian McAllister is an English footballer who plays for Shrewsbury Town. He plays primarily as a central midfielder, but is a lively 'box-to-box' player who likes to cover ground and battle with opposition players.-Early career:... - bass Jeff Olson (Musician) Jeff Olson is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, radio show host, and the original drummer for the legendary doom/rock band, Trouble... - drums |
| (1986–1987) |
Eric Wagner Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002... - vocals Bruce Franklin (guitarist) Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy... - guitars |
| Run to the Light Run to the Light Run to the Light was the third album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released on July 15, 1987. It was the band's last release on Metal Blade before signing to Def American for their follow-up, the 1990 self-titled release.-Track listing:... tour lineup (1987–1989) |
Eric Wagner Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002... - vocals Bruce Franklin (guitarist) Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy... - guitars Ted Kirkpatrick Ted Kirkpatrick is an American heavy metal drummer best known for his work with the American Christian metal band Tourniquet.-Biography:... - drums |
| (1989–1993) |
Eric Wagner Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002... - vocals Bruce Franklin (guitarist) Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy... - guitars Barry Stern Barry Stern was a heavy metal drummer from Chicago, Illinois. From 1976 until 1988, Barry drummed for Zoetrope, for whom he also served as vocalist and songwriter. After recording two LPs with that band, Barry joined Trouble in 1989. He appeared on two LPs with the band, 1990's Trouble and 1992's... - drums |
| (1993–1996) |
Eric Wagner Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002... - vocals Bruce Franklin (guitarist) Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy... - guitars Jeff Olson (Musician) Jeff Olson is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, radio show host, and the original drummer for the legendary doom/rock band, Trouble... - drums |
| (1996–2002) |
|
| Reunion lineup (2002) |
Eric Wagner Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002... - vocals Bruce Franklin (guitarist) Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy... - guitars Jeff Olson (Musician) Jeff Olson is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, radio show host, and the original drummer for the legendary doom/rock band, Trouble... - drums |
| (2002–2008) |
Eric Wagner Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002... - vocals Bruce Franklin (guitarist) Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy... - guitars Jeff Olson (Musician) Jeff Olson is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, radio show host, and the original drummer for the legendary doom/rock band, Trouble... - drums |
| (2008–2009) |
Bruce Franklin (guitarist) Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy... - guitars |
| (2009–present) |
Bruce Franklin (guitarist) Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy... - guitars |
| Role | Year | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979–1983 | 1983–1986 | 1986–1987 | 1987–1989 | 1989–1993 | 1993–1996 | 2002 | 2002–2008 | 2008–2009 | 2009–Present | |
| Vocals | Eric Wagner Eric Wagner Eric Wagner is an American heavy metal singer who is best known for his work with doom metal band Trouble. He briefly left Trouble in the mid-nineties and formed Lid with guitarist Danny Cavanagh, resulting in 1997's In The Mushroom. Wagner returned to Trouble in 2002... |
Kory Clarke | ||||||||
| Guitar | Bruce Franklin Bruce Franklin (guitarist) Bruce Franklin is a metal guitarist. He is the guitarist for the band Trouble. He is also in the band Supershine featuring King's X frontman Doug Pinnick and longtime Trouble drummer, Jeff Olson. Franklin appeared as a guest lead guitarist on Tourniquet's 2003 album Where Moth and Rust Destroy... |
|||||||||
| Guitar | Rick Wartell | |||||||||
| Bass | Ian Brown | Sean McAllister Sean McAllister Sean Brian McAllister is an English footballer who plays for Shrewsbury Town. He plays primarily as a central midfielder, but is a lively 'box-to-box' player who likes to cover ground and battle with opposition players.-Early career:... |
Ron Holzner | Chuck Robinson | Shane Pasqualla | |||||
| Drums | Jeff Olson Jeff Olson (Musician) Jeff Olson is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, radio show host, and the original drummer for the legendary doom/rock band, Trouble... |
Dennis Lesh | Ted Kirkpatrick Ted Kirkpatrick Ted Kirkpatrick is an American heavy metal drummer best known for his work with the American Christian metal band Tourniquet.-Biography:... |
Barry Stern Barry Stern Barry Stern was a heavy metal drummer from Chicago, Illinois. From 1976 until 1988, Barry drummed for Zoetrope, for whom he also served as vocalist and songwriter. After recording two LPs with that band, Barry joined Trouble in 1989. He appeared on two LPs with the band, 1990's Trouble and 1992's... |
Jeff Olson | Mark Lira | ||||
- Note: (During this time period TROUBLE only played 4 "public" gigs. KYLE THOMAS from FLOODGATE/EXHORDER was the vocalist at these shows)
Studio releases
| Title | Year of Release | Label |
| Psalm 9 (formerly 'Trouble') | 1984 | Metal Blade Metal Blade Records Metal Blade Records is a record label which was founded by Brian Slagel in 1982. The U.S. corporate office for Metal Blade is located in Agoura Hills, California. It also has offices in Arizona, Germany, Japan, Canada, and the UK. The label is distributed in the U.S. by Sony BMG Music... |
| The Skull The Skull (album) The Skull is the second album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released in 1985. It was the follow-up to their 1984 classic debut Psalm 9.... |
1985 | Metal Blade Metal Blade Records Metal Blade Records is a record label which was founded by Brian Slagel in 1982. The U.S. corporate office for Metal Blade is located in Agoura Hills, California. It also has offices in Arizona, Germany, Japan, Canada, and the UK. The label is distributed in the U.S. by Sony BMG Music... |
| Run to the Light Run to the Light Run to the Light was the third album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released on July 15, 1987. It was the band's last release on Metal Blade before signing to Def American for their follow-up, the 1990 self-titled release.-Track listing:... |
1987 | Metal Blade Metal Blade Records Metal Blade Records is a record label which was founded by Brian Slagel in 1982. The U.S. corporate office for Metal Blade is located in Agoura Hills, California. It also has offices in Arizona, Germany, Japan, Canada, and the UK. The label is distributed in the U.S. by Sony BMG Music... |
| Trouble Trouble (ST 1990 album) Trouble is the fourth album by the American doom metal band of the same title, released in 1990. It was the band's first release on Def American... |
1990 | Def American |
| Manic Frustration Manic Frustration Manic Frustration is the fifth album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released in 1992. The album marked a change in style for Trouble, featuring a faster-paced, psychedelic sound... |
1992 | Def American |
| Plastic Green Head Plastic Green Head Plastic Green Head was the sixth album by the American doom metal band Trouble, released in 1995. First released on the Music for Nations label in Europe, it was distributed in the U.S. by Century Media Records. Soon after the release of this album, Trouble went on an extended hiatus after their... |
1995 | Century Media Century Media Records Century Media Records is an Independent record label with offices in the United States, Germany, Australia, France, Italy, Sweden, Finland, and the United Kingdom.- Background :... |
| Simple Mind Condition Simple Mind Condition Simple Mind Condition is Trouble's seventh studio album. It was the band's first full-length studio release in twelve years, the longest gap between Trouble's studio albums to date... |
2007 | Escapi Music |
| Unplugged | 2008 | Escapi Music |
| The Dark Riff (tentative) | TBA | Unknown |
Compilation and live releases
- Trouble Live (1983, a live cassette sold by the band before being signed to Metal Blade RecordsMetal Blade RecordsMetal Blade Records is a record label which was founded by Brian Slagel in 1982. The U.S. corporate office for Metal Blade is located in Agoura Hills, California. It also has offices in Arizona, Germany, Japan, Canada, and the UK. The label is distributed in the U.S. by Sony BMG Music...
, available on CDR through the band's website) - Trouble Live Dallas Bootleg (1990, a live concert originally broadcast by radio during the band's tour for the self-titled album on Def American, available on CDR through the band's website)