Rod Laver (band)

Background

Rod Laver kicked things off with their debut album, The Essence of the Game, in 1999 on Screaming Giant Records. The whole thing was recorded just three weeks after they signed, which left the band feeling it was both hurried and short on cash. One critic described their style as "hardcore rap," noting it was tough to pin down, while another claimed the record "singlehandedly made the label live up to its name." Sonically, the album drew comparisons to Korn. That year, the band hit the road for around 150 shows, sharing bills with Pillar and their labelmates Tasty Snax.

After that album dropped, drummer Joe Sidoti left the group. His replacement was Joey Marchiano, who came over from Fold Zandura. Marchiano brought a hip-hop background instead of a rock one, which shifted the band's sound. Working with producer Steve Russell, they dialed back the anger and aggression to put more focus on the music itself. That change in mindset is even hinted at in the title of their second album, Trying Not to Try. Frontman Rudy Nielson told HM magazine in 2000, "We thought we had to fit some sort of image... We're not trying to be anything anymore." The band spent six months writing Trying. One reviewer said the album felt tighter and more musically focused, but added that it failed "to reach the listener at the deeper emotional and intellectual level" with its lyrics.

Rod Laver kept up a heavy touring schedule, averaging about 200 shows a year. To promote Trying, they went on a national tour with Slick Shoes, Ace Troubleshooter, and Calibretto 13, playing both secular and religious venues. Their third album, No Toques El Toro (Spanish for "don't touch the bull"), carried on the same musical path as Trying. Nielson had been a youth pastor before forming the band, and the group was known for a "strong commitment to ministry." He told HM, "I don't say 'Jesus' and 'God' in the lyrics a lot... It's not overly preachy, and it's not overly praise and worship oriented." One of their aims was to break into the mainstream like P.O.D. had done. After three albums on Screaming Giant, they moved over to BEC Records.