Chimaira
| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1998, Cleveland, Ohio, United States |
| Genres | Metalcore, Nu Metal, Groove Metal |
| Labels | East Coast Empire Records, Roadrunner Records, Ferret Music, Nuclear Blast Records, eOne, White Cobra Records |
| Years active | 1998-2014, 2017, 2022-present |
| Website | https://www.chimaira.com/ |
Line-up (members)
- Mark Hunter : Vocals (1998-2014, 2017, 2022-present)
- Rob Arnold : Lead Guitars (1998-2011, 2017, 2022-present)
- Matt DeVries : Guitars (2002-2011, 2017, 2022-present)
- Jim LaMarca : Bass (2000-2010, 2017, 2022-present)
- Austin D'Amond : Drums (2011-2014, 2017, 2022-present)
- Chris Spicuzza : Keyboards, Backing Vocals (2000-2011, 2017, 2022-present)
Former members
- Andrew "AE" Ermlick : Bass (1998-1999)
- Andols Herrick : Drums (1998-2003, 2006-2010, 2017)
- Jason Genaro : Drums (1998)
- Jason Hager : Lead Guitars (1998-1999), Rhythm Guitars (1999-2002)
- Rob Lesniak : Bass (2000)
- Ricky Evensand : Drums (2003-2004)
- Kevin Talley : Drums (2004-2006)
- Emil Werstler : Bass (2011-2012), Guitars (2012-2014)
- Jeremy Creamer : Bass (2011-2014)
- Matt Szlachta : Guitars (2011-2014)
- Sean Zatorsky : Keyboards, Electronics, Programming, Backing Vocals (2011-2014)
Chimaira Discography
| Album title | Lyrics | Type | Released | Rating | Votes | Reviews | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demo I (1999) | Demo | 1999 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Demo II (1999) | Demo | 1999-09 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Chimaira (1999) |  |
 |
EP | 1999-10 | - | 0 | 0 | ||
| This Present Darkness (2000) | |
|
EP | 2000-01-11 | - | 0 | 0 | ||
| Pass Out of Existence Promo (2001) | Demo | 2001 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Coming Alive (2001) | |
|
Video | 2001-08-07 | - | 0 | 0 | ||
 |
Pass Out of Existence (2001) | |
|
Studio | 2001-09-21 | - | 0 | 0 | |
| The Impossibility of Reason (2003) | Single | 2003 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
 |
The Impossibility of Reason (2003) | |
|
Studio | 2003-05-13 | - | 0 | 0 | |
| Born in Blood (2003) | Single | 2003-09-23 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Road Rage Tour 2004 - Metal Radio EP (2004) | |
|
Split | 2004 | - | 0 | 0 | ||
| The Dehumanizing Process (2004) | |
|
Video | 2004-11-01 | - | 0 | 0 | ||
 |
Chimaira (2005) | |
|
Studio | 2005-08-09 | - | 0 | 0 | |
| Resurrection (2007) | Single | 2007 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
 |
Resurrection (2007) | |
|
Studio | 2007-03-06 | - | 0 | 0 | |
| Secrets of the Dead (2009) | Single | 2009-04-03 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
| The Infection (2009) | |
|
EP | 2009-04-21 | - | 0 | 0 | ||
| Wild Thing (2011) | |
|
Live | 2011-03-06 | - | 0 | 0 | ||
| Trigger Finger (2011) | Single | 2011-06-17 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
 |
The Age of Hell (2011) | |
|
Studio | 2011-08-16 | - | 0 | 0 | |
| The Age of Remix Hell (2011) | |
|
EP | 2011-12-25 | - | 0 | 0 | ||
| All That's Left Is Blood (2013) | Single | 2013-05-15 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
| No Mercy (2013) | Single | 2013-06-18 | - | 0 | 0 | ||||
 |
Crown of Phantoms (2013) | |
|
Studio | 2013-07-30 | - | 0 | 0 |
Additional notes
Chimaira's name is derived from the monster in Ancient Greek mythology, the 'Chimaera'. Comprised of three lethal parts (the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a dragon), the Chimaera breathed fire and fear into the hearts of many. There have been suggestions by fans that the band's name is misspelled, however in actuality there are many alternate spellings of the word; "chimaira" being one of many. Other proposed names for the band at the time included "Sphere", "Rupture", and "Blood for Nine".
Chimaira started primarily playing nu metal, but later shifted their sound to a more groove metal-oriented style, as first heard evident on their second album, The Impossibility of Reason. Vocalist Mark Hunter hated the band being labeled as "nu metal/rap metal" with the statement "People were comparing us to Korn, but we never came from anywhere like that... we grew up on Slayer, Machine Head, Metallica, In Flames... we basically grew up listening to true metal and never really liked any of that nu-metal stuff..."
In 2011, all members except Hunter left the band. Hunter recovered the band by forming an all-new lineup around the Chimaira name, which consisted of most Dååth members. However, this occurrence happened a second time when all members except Hunter quit (again) on September 4, 2014; at this point, he chose to end the band.
In 2017, Chimaira reformed with their "classic lineup" for a one-off Christmas show on December 30th, 2017, in Cleveland, the band's hometown. They were planning another reunion show, Chimaira Christmas 2020, which was put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
They reunited again in late 2022 to play two reunion shows to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their second album, "The Impossibility of Reason", in 2023. Since then, the band has been semi-active, with two performances in 2024.
Chimaira has had their music featured in several video games, including:
- "Let Go" on Evolution Snowboarding (2002)
- "Cleansation" on Backyard Wrestling: Don't Try This at Home (2003)
- "Power Trip" and "Nothing Remains" on Infected (2004)
- "Pure Hatred" on Backyard Wrestling 2: There Goes the Neighborhood (2004)
- "Pure Hatred", "The Dehumanizing Process" & "Stigmurder" on Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel (2004)
- "Eyes of a Criminal" on Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Lockdown (2005)
- "Resurrection" on Saints Row 2 (2008)
- "On Broken Glass" available as downloadable content for Guitar Hero: World Tour (2008)
Chimaira started primarily playing nu metal, but later shifted their sound to a more groove metal-oriented style, as first heard evident on their second album, The Impossibility of Reason. Vocalist Mark Hunter hated the band being labeled as "nu metal/rap metal" with the statement "People were comparing us to Korn, but we never came from anywhere like that... we grew up on Slayer, Machine Head, Metallica, In Flames... we basically grew up listening to true metal and never really liked any of that nu-metal stuff..."
In 2011, all members except Hunter left the band. Hunter recovered the band by forming an all-new lineup around the Chimaira name, which consisted of most Dååth members. However, this occurrence happened a second time when all members except Hunter quit (again) on September 4, 2014; at this point, he chose to end the band.
In 2017, Chimaira reformed with their "classic lineup" for a one-off Christmas show on December 30th, 2017, in Cleveland, the band's hometown. They were planning another reunion show, Chimaira Christmas 2020, which was put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
They reunited again in late 2022 to play two reunion shows to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their second album, "The Impossibility of Reason", in 2023. Since then, the band has been semi-active, with two performances in 2024.
Chimaira has had their music featured in several video games, including:
- "Let Go" on Evolution Snowboarding (2002)
- "Cleansation" on Backyard Wrestling: Don't Try This at Home (2003)
- "Power Trip" and "Nothing Remains" on Infected (2004)
- "Pure Hatred" on Backyard Wrestling 2: There Goes the Neighborhood (2004)
- "Pure Hatred", "The Dehumanizing Process" & "Stigmurder" on Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel (2004)
- "Eyes of a Criminal" on Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Lockdown (2005)
- "Resurrection" on Saints Row 2 (2008)
- "On Broken Glass" available as downloadable content for Guitar Hero: World Tour (2008)