Introduction to Shihad

AIC/EAZY-E · 05-23-2005, 10:53 PM

This will drop fast, but I just thought I'd like to inform you on some of my NZ buddies.

Shihad - A Quick Biography

These inventive rockers from Wellington, New Zealand, originally formed in 1988. Established by founding members Jon Toogood (b. 9 August 1971, Wellington, New Zealand; vocals/guitar), Phil Knight (b. 14 December 1972, Wellington, New Zealand; guitar/keyboards), Tom Larkin (b. 18 September 1971, Wellington, New Zealand; drums), and Hamish Laing (bass). The band's early days concentrated on honing their live sound and establishing an identity, and it was not until 1993 that they recorded their first album. Karl Kippenberger (b. 26 August 1973, Wellington, New Zealand) had replaced Laing after the recording of the band's debut EP, Devolve. Adding a distinctly industrial flavour to their hard-edged and largely tuneless fare, their debut, Churn, was produced by Killing Joke frontman Jaz Coleman and spawned the Top 5 single "I Only Said". With such a heavy reputation, the band managed to secure a variety of support slots with the likes of Pantera and Misery Loves Co.

Shihad's second album Killjoy was essentially more of the same but attracted a great deal of critical acclaim in New Zealand, giving them four major awards at the 1995 Clear Music and Entertainment Awards, including top album and a shared award for top group. With their self-titled third album they took on yet another new bass player in Karl Kippenberger (b. 26 August 1973) and underwent a major stylistic change. Stripping away the industrial bluster, they opted for a leaner, more melodic pop-edged approach, utilizing the talents of top mixer Adam Casper, best known for his work with Soundgarden and R.E.M.. The diversity of new material made the album far more accessible than previous outings and boasted mellow moments in "Missionary", alongside heavy pop punk tunes such as "Outta Phase" and "La La Land". The only acknowledgment of their heavier past was on "Yr Head Is A Rock", which nevertheless was permeated by melody. All these songs earned quite alot of airplay, yet were all ousted by their constant concert closer and considered centrepiece for the band, 'Home Again'.

A series of high-profile support slots - including a stint with Silverchair - ensured that the newly streamlined Shihad received maximum exposure after the overhaul. The quartet returned to the studio almost immediately to record their third album, which was distributed in America by the Noise Records label. Their fourth album, 1999's The General Electric, was given a rapturous welcome by rock critics in Australasia and Europe. It boasted such hits as 'The General Electric' 'My Mind's Sedate' 'Sport And Religion' and 'Pacifier'. Looking to translate this success into the American market, Shihad decamped to Los Angeles to begin recording material for their next album. Following the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, the band was pushed into changing their name (which means "peace" in Maori) to Pacifier, after their American label complained that it sounded too much like Jihad (the Mohammedan holy war against infidels). The band's self-titled debut as Pacifier was released onto the Australian market the following August. It was a rather polished, mainstream affair and features such songs as 'Comfort Me', 'Run' and 'Everything'. Critics had mixed opinions, the same with hardcore fans of the Shihad of old. The name change wasn't welcomed in New Zealand with open arms, and alienated a large part of their fanbase with their new fully mainstream rock sound. After continuous touring in America and Europe finding limited success

, the boys returned at BDO 2005 as their old moniker Shihad and played an energetic array of old and new songs, which displayed a new sign of agressiveness reminiscent of 'Churn' and 'Killjoy' but kept their trademark melody shown in albums 'Shihad' and 'The General Electric'. This resulted in the already largely successful album, 'Love is the New Hate' released early this month. John was sporting his old gritty locks, and the band seemed to carry the aura of their heyday in their live performances.This is shown in such hit songs as 'Alive' and their new single 'All The Young Fascists' which has spent 5 weeks at Number 1 in New Zealand with no signs of dropping. As a New Zealander, I am very proud to call these guys some of our own.

Its hard to find good quality downloads of NZ bands on the internet, so heres some crappy ripped ones off the radio, blocked out swearing and all

All The Young Fascists :
http://s23.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=0ON63CVCT2I4H1CAC0OFFXM2TV
Alive :
http://s23.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=1YGAQWQZ1GFSJ36F1N3Z2INUH9

acefrehleyjendell · 05-23-2005, 10:56 PM

Introduction to shihad? I've seen them live about 30 times, even when they were Pacifier, but i'm glad they changed their name back to Shihad because Pacifier sucks

Moses · 05-23-2005, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AIC/EAZY-E

I'd post a song, but I don't know how.

Go to www.yousendit.com and click the browse button find the song and send it through email to yourself, on the next page compy and paste the link they give you onto this page.

yuck fou · 05-23-2005, 11:09 PM

lmao wen did they change back to shihad? pacifier was a pretty lame name but

AIC/EAZY-E · 05-23-2005, 11:26 PM

Well Shihad themselves were pressured into the name change. They never wanted to change their name in the first place, and now all that 9/11 stuff has slowly passed over, they could change it back. Their American label was dumb for changing it in the first place, who's not going to buy a record because it sounds like Jihad? Patriotic fatasses? I wouldn't want those guys buying my record in the first place. Too bad that's the majority of America

05-24-2005, 12:00 AM

Shihad are an amazing band!

New stuff is awesome as well. All the young fascists and Alive both seem good singles.

My favourite songs-General Electric, My Mind Sedate, Pacifer and
-Trademark

rhcp pman · 05-24-2005, 01:28 AM

Yeah, I like Shihad. I'm living in Whangarei (in NZ) myself, so I have a lot more exposure to them.

kevinbala · 05-24-2005, 01:37 AM

i will post this in a separate thread aswell... got this in an email from the band...

SHIHAD exclusive Album pre-release instore performance.

UTOPIA records in Sydney are holding a special PRE-RELEASE of the the New SHIHAD
album ?LOVE IS THE NEW HATE? on Saturday the 28th of MAY from 6-7pm.

Address is Lower Level
505-525 George Street
(Hoyts Cinema Complex)
SYDNEY, NSW
AUSTRALIA

SHIHAD will be playing live instore and to get access all you have to do is pre
order or purchase the album.

This means that alongside the Draw to win a Maton and the chance to buy the
album 2 days in advance ? you get a free show to go with it and get yr album
signed by the band.

Cannonball Jake · 05-24-2005, 02:00 AM

Yeah man Shihad are cool. The best album is Killjoy with You Again and Envy. Plus songs like Lala Land and My Mind's Sedate are awesome. They have done some stink songs at times though especially on the album when they were called Pacifier. They sold out big time.

AIC/EAZY-E · 05-25-2005, 05:32 AM

/Bumped out of self pity

05-23-2005, 10:53 PM	#1
AIC/EAZY-E It's a Family Affair. Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: new zealand Posts: 690	Introduction to Shihad This will drop fast, but I just thought I'd like to inform you on some of my NZ buddies. Shihad - A Quick Biography These inventive rockers from Wellington, New Zealand, originally formed in 1988. Established by founding members Jon Toogood (b. 9 August 1971, Wellington, New Zealand; vocals/guitar), Phil Knight (b. 14 December 1972, Wellington, New Zealand; guitar/keyboards), Tom Larkin (b. 18 September 1971, Wellington, New Zealand; drums), and Hamish Laing (bass). The band's early days concentrated on honing their live sound and establishing an identity, and it was not until 1993 that they recorded their first album. Karl Kippenberger (b. 26 August 1973, Wellington, New Zealand) had replaced Laing after the recording of the band's debut EP, Devolve. Adding a distinctly industrial flavour to their hard-edged and largely tuneless fare, their debut, Churn, was produced by Killing Joke frontman Jaz Coleman and spawned the Top 5 single "I Only Said". With such a heavy reputation, the band managed to secure a variety of support slots with the likes of Pantera and Misery Loves Co. Shihad's second album Killjoy was essentially more of the same but attracted a great deal of critical acclaim in New Zealand, giving them four major awards at the 1995 Clear Music and Entertainment Awards, including top album and a shared award for top group. With their self-titled third album they took on yet another new bass player in Karl Kippenberger (b. 26 August 1973) and underwent a major stylistic change. Stripping away the industrial bluster, they opted for a leaner, more melodic pop-edged approach, utilizing the talents of top mixer Adam Casper, best known for his work with Soundgarden and R.E.M.. The diversity of new material made the album far more accessible than previous outings and boasted mellow moments in "Missionary", alongside heavy pop punk tunes such as "Outta Phase" and "La La Land". The only acknowledgment of their heavier past was on "Yr Head Is A Rock", which nevertheless was permeated by melody. All these songs earned quite alot of airplay, yet were all ousted by their constant concert closer and considered centrepiece for the band, 'Home Again'. A series of high-profile support slots - including a stint with Silverchair - ensured that the newly streamlined Shihad received maximum exposure after the overhaul. The quartet returned to the studio almost immediately to record their third album, which was distributed in America by the Noise Records label. Their fourth album, 1999's The General Electric, was given a rapturous welcome by rock critics in Australasia and Europe. It boasted such hits as 'The General Electric' 'My Mind's Sedate' 'Sport And Religion' and 'Pacifier'. Looking to translate this success into the American market, Shihad decamped to Los Angeles to begin recording material for their next album. Following the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, the band was pushed into changing their name (which means "peace" in Maori) to Pacifier, after their American label complained that it sounded too much like Jihad (the Mohammedan holy war against infidels). The band's self-titled debut as Pacifier was released onto the Australian market the following August. It was a rather polished, mainstream affair and features such songs as 'Comfort Me', 'Run' and 'Everything'. Critics had mixed opinions, the same with hardcore fans of the Shihad of old. The name change wasn't welcomed in New Zealand with open arms, and alienated a large part of their fanbase with their new fully mainstream rock sound. After continuous touring in America and Europe finding limited success , the boys returned at BDO 2005 as their old moniker Shihad and played an energetic array of old and new songs, which displayed a new sign of agressiveness reminiscent of 'Churn' and 'Killjoy' but kept their trademark melody shown in albums 'Shihad' and 'The General Electric'. This resulted in the already largely successful album, 'Love is the New Hate' released early this month. John was sporting his old gritty locks, and the band seemed to carry the aura of their heyday in their live performances.This is shown in such hit songs as 'Alive' and their new single 'All The Young Fascists' which has spent 5 weeks at Number 1 in New Zealand with no signs of dropping. As a New Zealander, I am very proud to call these guys some of our own. Its hard to find good quality downloads of NZ bands on the internet, so heres some crappy ripped ones off the radio, blocked out swearing and all All The Young Fascists : http://s23.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=0ON63CVCT2I4H1CAC0OFFXM2TV Alive : http://s23.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=1YGAQWQZ1GFSJ36F1N3Z2INUH9 Last edited by AIC/EAZY-E; 05-23-2005 at 11:30 PM.

05-23-2005, 11:26 PM	#5
AIC/EAZY-E It's a Family Affair. Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: new zealand Posts: 690	Well Shihad themselves were pressured into the name change. They never wanted to change their name in the first place, and now all that 9/11 stuff has slowly passed over, they could change it back. Their American label was dumb for changing it in the first place, who's not going to buy a record because it sounds like Jihad? Patriotic fatasses? I wouldn't want those guys buying my record in the first place. Too bad that's the majority of America Last edited by AIC/EAZY-E; 05-23-2005 at 11:28 PM.

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05-23-2005, 10:56 PM	#2
acefrehleyjendell i pwn you Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Melbourne, Posts: 577	Introduction to shihad? I've seen them live about 30 times, even when they were Pacifier, but i'm glad they changed their name back to Shihad because Pacifier sucks

05-23-2005, 11:09 PM	#4
yuck fou do it to it lars Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 65	lmao wen did they change back to shihad? pacifier was a pretty lame name but

05-24-2005, 12:00 AM	#6
Macdaddy Guest Posts: n/a	Shihad are an amazing band! New stuff is awesome as well. All the young fascists and Alive both seem good singles. My favourite songs-General Electric, My Mind Sedate, Pacifer and -Trademark

05-24-2005, 01:28 AM	#7
rhcp pman Starless Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Born in Sydney, living in New Zealand Posts: 783	Yeah, I like Shihad. I'm living in Whangarei (in NZ) myself, so I have a lot more exposure to them.

05-24-2005, 01:37 AM	#8
kevinbala \m/ brOwn-sOund \m/ Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: sydney Posts: 132	i will post this in a separate thread aswell... got this in an email from the band... SHIHAD exclusive Album pre-release instore performance. UTOPIA records in Sydney are holding a special PRE-RELEASE of the the New SHIHAD album ?LOVE IS THE NEW HATE? on Saturday the 28th of MAY from 6-7pm. Address is Lower Level 505-525 George Street (Hoyts Cinema Complex) SYDNEY, NSW AUSTRALIA SHIHAD will be playing live instore and to get access all you have to do is pre order or purchase the album. This means that alongside the Draw to win a Maton and the chance to buy the album 2 days in advance ? you get a free show to go with it and get yr album signed by the band.

05-24-2005, 02:00 AM	#9
Cannonball Jake My own worst enema Join Date: May 2005 Location: Outer orbit Posts: 368	Yeah man Shihad are cool. The best album is Killjoy with You Again and Envy. Plus songs like Lala Land and My Mind's Sedate are awesome. They have done some stink songs at times though especially on the album when they were called Pacifier. They sold out big time.

05-25-2005, 05:32 AM	#10
AIC/EAZY-E It's a Family Affair. Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: new zealand Posts: 690	/Bumped out of self pity