American Head Charge

History

Early incarnations of the band used names such as Flux, Gestapo Pussy Ranch, and Warsaw Ghetto Pussy, but these were short-lived. The name Flux was dropped because another band already had it, creating risk of copyright infringement and libel; the other two names were abandoned within six months to avoid alienating prospective label interest. Chad Hanks stated in a December 2001 ConcertLivewire.com interview that he is a fan of three-word names, and that the band name "means nothing" and has no meaning by it. Although some have speculated the name was taken from Adrian Sherwood's dub act African Head Charge, it is a coincidence; Hanks remarked before signing that there is actually a band called African Head Charge, noting the difficulty of being original. After settling on American Head Charge, the band debuted on the underground industrial metal scene with their 1999 independent self-released album Trepanation. The lineup on that album featured Heacock and Hanks (now respectively called Martin Cock and Banks) with guitarist David Rogers, drummer Peter Harmon, and keyboardist/sampler Christopher Emery. Further exposure came from two tracks on Dwell Records tribute albums honoring Ministry and Marilyn Manson. Second guitarist Wayne Kile, keyboard player Justin Fowler, and sampler/sound programmer Aaron Zilch joined in mid to late 1999; Peter Harmon left and Chris Emery took over drums. After supporting System of a Down in Des Moines, Iowa in August 1999, bassist Shavo Odadjian was impressed and told Rick Rubin about the band. Six months later, American Head Charge received a record deal with American Recordings under Columbia Records.