Bleeding Through
Bleeding Through is an American metalcore band from Orange County, California, formed in 1999. Influenced largely by hardcore punk and Swedish melodic death metal, the band was established by lead vocalist Brandan Schieppati as a personal project after leaving Throwdown. Schieppati, who also was a member of Eighteen Visions, originally balanced playing with Eighteen Visions and Bleeding Through, recording the independent albums Dust to Ashes and Portrait of the Goddess before departing Eighteen Visions to focus on Bleeding Through. The remainder of the band today comprises drummer Derek Youngsma, keyboardist Marta Demmel, and guitarists John Arnold and Brandon Richter. As of 2024, the band have sold more than 400,000 albums worldwide.
In 2003, Bleeding Through signed with Trustkill Records and released their breakthrough album, This Is Love, This Is Murderous. Shortly after the album's release, the band receceived considerable media attention outside of the heavy metal community for their involvement in a van crash accidentally filmed on live television in December 2003. This Love was critically lauded and was followed by The Truth and Declaration, both through Trustkill.
The release of Declaration was marred by financial hardship and conflicts with Trustkill; following the completion of the touring cycle for the album, the band severed ties with the label and signed to Rise Records in 2009. They released two albums through Rise, Bleeding Through and The Great Fire, before the group disbanded in 2014. They remained inactive for three years before reuniting in 2017, releasing Love Will Kill All through SharpTone Records. The band's latest album, Nine, was released on February 14, 2025.
History
''Dust to Ashes'' and ''Portrait of the Goddess'' (1999–2002)
Bleeding Through, a band from Orange County, California, traces its origins back to 1998, when a hardcore punk band named Breakneck was founded by vocalist Brandan Schieppati and guitarist Javier Van Huss, then both of Eighteen Visions. Completing the lineup were guitarist Scott Danough, bass guitarist Chad Tafolla, and drummer Troy Born. Van Huss and Schieppati had also both played guitar in the Orange County band Throwdown. Breakneck played only one live performance, opening for Throwdown, Eighteen Visions, and Adamantium among others. Schieppati, who had replaced Van Huss in Throwdown and was still playing guitar for them at the time of Breakneck's show on top of Eighteen Visions, left Throwdown to focus on fronting his own group after the Breakneck show. Established as a hardcore punk act, Breakneck subsequently began to explore a more metallic musical direction. Eventually, this led the members to feel it necessary to change their band name. The origin of the band's name was explained in an interview as follows: "Well, it is summed up by the explanation that whether black, white, red, brown, yellow, religious preference, straight or gay, we all bleed the same, and we bleed through this life the same. Thus Bleeding Through."The band undertook many lineup changes in its early days. Van Huss was the first departure; he was briefly replaced by Dave Peters, after which Tafolla switched from playing bass to guitar. The vacant bass position was temporarily replaced by Brandon Conway; Marc Jackson was recruited as the next permanent bassist. Jackson and Danough had previously played in the band Refuge together in the early 1990s. Jackson quit the band before the band began recording their debut album, and added Vijay Kumar as the band's new bassist. The band also established a keyboardist in Molly Street. The band's first album began as a demo comprising five songs using a 4-track recorder in Born's bedroom. At the beginning of the following year, Born left the band, followed the next month by Kumar. Despite these losses, the band released their debut album, Dust to Ashes, on March 25, 2001 through Prime Directive Records. Kumar later reversed course and returned to the band, and Born was quickly replaced by Derek Youngsma, who had previously played with Danough in a band called Daggers.
The band signed a two-album and one-EP contract with Indecision Records in April 2001, less than a month after the release of Dust to Ashes. In August 2001, following the band's first tour, Tafolla left the band and was replaced by Brian Leppke. After completing a tour of the American West Coast with From Autumn to Ashes, the band entered a studio to begin recording their new album around December, with a tour between recording sessions accompanying Throwdown from late December into early January. The record, titled Portrait of the Goddess, was completed in early March 2002, and it was released on April 13. A few days later, Kumar left the group for good, and was replaced by Eighteen Visions' Mick Morris the following month. The band then joined Every Time I Die and Norma Jean for a six-week tour spanning late may through early July, though the band were forced to withdraw from several of the July shows after Schieppati was injured after a show in Newport Beach, California. The band would go on to play at Hellfest later that year. Schieppati opted to pursue Bleeding Through as a priority after completion of Portrait of the Goddess, amicably departing Eighteen Visions in July, followed by Street's replacement with Marta Demmel. Morris eventually returned to Eighteen Visions later that year, and his role in Bleeding Through was filled by Ryan Wombacher.
''This Is Love, This Is Murderous'' (2003–2005)
After these two relatively under-distributed albums, Bleeding Through signed to a larger label, Trustkill Records, in 2003. Their third full-length album, the Ulrich Wild-produced This is Love, This is Murderous, was released that September, to generally favorable reviews from critics. It was the band's breakthrough album, with the videos for "Love Lost in a Hail of Gun Fire" and "On Wings of Lead" becoming staples on MTV2's Headbangers Ball and on Fuse TV's Uranium.The band embarked upon tours across the United States, first opening for AFI, followed by the ill-fated Pure Hatred tour with Chimaira, Soilwork and As I Lay Dying. These dates had propelled the band to national attention not because of the initial reception of their music, but because of an accident captured by live television crews which happened to involve the band. Traveling from Utah to a show in Colorado, the group's tour van hit black ice on the highway, spinning out of control and slamming into a truck that was already flipped over. A mobile TV unit reporting for Salt Lake City's KSL-TV was present to report on another crash, but ended up catching the band's collision on film as their equipment trailer rolled and exploded, showering their instruments and gear across the road. The band escaped with only minor injuries; however, with their gear and vehicle destroyed, the group was forced to drop off the tour. The dramatic televised footage was broadcast everywhere from CNN's Headline News, Good Morning America, NBC News and even The Weather Channel.
The band began 2004 with the Mutilation Tour, which culminated in a sold-out homecoming performance at The Glasshouse in Orange County. This date was captured on a live DVD, titled This Is Live, This Is Murderous. Later that year, the band toured with Ozzfest, sharing the second stage alongside headline act Slipknot and fellow supports Unearth, Lamb of God, Every Time I Die, Hatebreed, Lacuna Coil and Atreyu. They earned the direct support position on MTV2's third Headbangers Ball: The Tour in November, featuring Cradle of Filth, Arch Enemy and Himsa as touring partners. Bleeding Through also contributed their rendition of "Rocket Queen" to the Guns N' Roses tribute album Bring You to Your Knees released by Law of Inertia Records in 2004. A 2005 re-issue of This Is Love, This Is Murderous added three bonus live tracks, "Revenge I Seek", "Rise" and "Our Enemies", two music videos and a ten-minute documentary. Following this, the band embarked upon a European tour in February 2005, supported by Cult of Luna.
''The Truth'' (2005–2007)
In April, the group entered Cherokee Studios with producer and then-Anthrax guitarist Rob Caggiano. Together, they began work on a new album titled The Truth. As This Is Love, This Is Murderous passed 100,000 sales the US, further touring found the band headlining the second annual Strhess Fest in alliance with Darkest Hour, Zao, Misery Signals, and Fight Paris commencing early July. Upon completion of these gigs the group joined the Warped Tour for a two-week stretch. November saw shows with Day of Contempt, before the group entered the recording studio to record cover versions of Black Flag's "My War", for use on a tribute album, and Unbroken's "Fall On Proverb".The Truth was released on January 10, 2006, through Trustkill. The band decided to rebuild their sound from the ground up; Danough told Alternative Press that the band's approach involved "Taking out the Metalcore, and then adding the metal into hardcore, if that makes any sense," while Leppke added, "I don't think this album sounds like anything else out there right now. We're very proud of that fact." The album sold 17,000 copies in its first week to enter the Billboard 200 at No. 48, and No. 1 on the Top Independent Albums. To promote the album, the band opened 2006 with US dates throughout February and March backed by Every Time I Die, Between the Buried and Me and Haste the Day. The band also put in a significant appearance on the second stage at the UK's Download Festival in Castle Donington on June 9. On July 18, Bleeding Through appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Stand-up comedian Mitch Fatel joined the band for a song.
The group once again played on the second stage at the 2006 Ozzfest, now as part of the year's permanent lineup along with Black Label Society, Unearth, Atreyu and Norma Jean. During days Ozzfest was not performing, Bleeding Through played shows supporting Disturbed, Avenged Sevenfold and Hatebreed. The band members were on a day off from the festival passing through Medford, Oregon, when they pulled into a Taco Bell parking lot to eat. This resulted in a fan recognizing them and then calling over a bunch of his friends. The band talked with the fans, signed autographs, posed for pictures and also asked the kids if there were any shows happening that night they could participate in. They ended up doing a small club concert with local bands, with roughly 150 people in attendance. The show was a benefit with all proceeds going toward cancer research. The band spent November and December 2006 on tour with Saosin and Senses Fail.
Bleeding Through headlined the Darkness Over Europe 2007 Tour with I Killed The Prom Queen, All Shall Perish, and Caliban from February to March. It would be Danough's final tour with the band, as the two parties agreed to mutually part ways in April. According to a statement released by the band, Danough and the other members "had grown apart and it was time for both parties to move on". Danough was quickly replaced by Jona Weinhofen of I Killed The Prom Queen – one of several factors that led that band to disband. The band then toured as the opening act for the Slayer and Marilyn Manson summer tour.
Following that, the group embarked on a six-week stint across the North America opening for HIM, finishing the touring cycle for The Truth on December 1 and 2, 2007.