Funk, Rap, Nu-Metal, Fred Durst, Incubus and Hoobastank, All in One

There is one band that brings a consistent evolutionary quality to the composition of their music from album to album. They have gone from a California nu-metal band to a world famous, platinum selling household name of a band, Incubus. Like Incubus, many bands took to the whole nu-metal, and funk metal scene, combining rap with bits of funk and metal to create, for the most part, some pretty horrid music. Korn came from that scene, so did Limp Bizkit. To put it this way, at one point an army of sound-alike bands, Incubus included, was represented by Fred Durst.

Incubus was different though, and so was another band, Hoobastank. Yes, Hoobastank. The two bands toured together in their early years, Doug Robb's voice even had an uncanny similarity to Brandon Boyd's back in the day, although vocally they would head different directions over the years. Eventually Incubus grew up into an intelligent metal band, and as they gathered sounds from all over the spectrum, created a sound all their own, separate of metal, funk, and rap, although inspired by them all. Hoobastank landed a record deal, and were told to drop the saxophonist and lose the ska sound -- one of the major differences between early Hoobastank and early Incubus -- and thus became who they are today. Incubus has evolved into one of my all time favorite bands, if not then the all time favorite band. Hoobastank, not so much. I do however, always enjoy revisiting the early days of both bands. And incase you hadn't picked up on it yet, the same scene that produced Hoobastank and Incubus, Red Hot Chili Peppers too, although a couple years earlier.

For an example of Incubus' first demo, Closet Cultivation Demo Tape, check this link out:
Pillow Your Eyes - Incubus
That led too this, Take Me To Your Leader, a great example of Brandon Boyd's percussion skills.

Check Boyd's dreads, this is when they got the turntables in their as well, played by DJ Kilmore.

next up, they turned up the metal: New Skin - Incubus

Then came Make Your Self, which contained a few hits, namely Drive. After that, Morning View. Morning View is probably their most widely known album, besides maybe their more recent stuff. They've come out with more since then, including my favorite, A Crow Left of the Murder. They also released a greatest hits, Monuments and Melodys. The guitarist Mike Einziger actually went back to school around the same time they were putting together and releasing that greatest hits. He now has a music degree from Harvard. I am always anxiously awaiting their next move, but for now, I'm satisfied with perusing their catalog from the early rapidly spit raps of Boyd, to their more recent stuff, like Midnight Swim. 

and as for early Hoobastank, I'm a fan, but you be the judge...