All Boro Kings

About

Dog Eat Dog began writing the songs that would become their first full-length album. Titled All Boro Kings, it was released on May 24, 1994. All Boro Kings also brought the saxophone into the foreground of their songs. Tracks like "If These Are Good Times", "Who's the King", and "No Fronts" contained the trademark saxophone sound that the band would be known for. Darryl Jenifer of the Bad Brains also made a vocal appearance on "Who's the King". With the release of the album, Nastasi decided he could no longer tour for long periods of time because of family and business obligations. The band hired Parris Mayhew of the Cro-Mags to temporarily fill the position with the intention of bringing back Nastasi for local touring and recording. With a new record in stores, the band toured Europe, once again opening for Biohazard. This proved to be a tremendous success for Dog Eat Dog. They received critical acclaim for both the new album and their live performances. All Boro Kings went on to sell over 600,000 records worldwide. The band also saw their videos in heavy rotation on MTV Europe. In December 1994, Dog Eat Dog's video for "No Fronts" was featured on an episode of MTV's Beavis and Butthead, where the animated duo referred to the band as "a bunch of butt-munches." After the tour, Mayhew returned to directing videos and forming his new band, White Devil. The band contacted DeBacker, Neabore's replacement in Mucky Pup, with an offer for him to fill-in on guitar on their upcoming tour. Being familiar with the material, he accepted. It was then that Maltby also decided to part ways with the band for personal reasons. He later put together a short-lived band called The Shining Path, with Jenifer of the Bad Brains and the members of the Roguish Armament. After many auditions, Brandon Finley, known for his drumming with Chuck Brown, Queen Latifah, Urban Blight, and Chris Haskett of the Rollins Band, was hired. Mueller was also brought on as a full-time saxophone player. The band had always stood out from other hardcore bands because of their addition to a saxophone player. For a good portion of their live shows, as well as their two studio albums, Mueller had held the position. While the albums would list Mueller as a guest musician, he had never been considered a full-time member of the band until now. MTV would prove to be one factor that would help the band achieve its status. After the surprise hit "Who's the King", the band collaborated with Run–D.M.C. member Jam-Master Jay on a remix of their hit song "No Fronts". The single entered the top ten on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at No. 9, and the video was in heavy rotation on MTV UK. On Thanksgiving Night 1995, they were voted Breakthrough Artists of the Year at the MTV Europe Music Awards, as part of a viewer's choice program and were presented the award by Patsy Kensit and Michael Hutchence of INXS. In winning the award, they defeated the likes of Alanis Morissette, Weezer, H-Blockx, and Portishead. Europe continued to be a large part of the band's fan base. While they were relegated to small clubs at home in America, they were playing festivals and arena-sized shows in Europe, the biggest being the Dynamo Open-Air festival in 1995. They also charted on Europe's top forty heavy metal charts, while radio stations at home rarely acknowledged them. When the band returned home from Europe, Nastasi decided not to return from his hiatus and the decision was made to keep DeBacker as the full-time guitar player. After leaving Dog Eat Dog, Nastasi recorded two albums, Trim the Fat and Ule Tide, under the name Nastasee. Both albums and their respective tours contained members from both Dog Eat Dog and Mucky Pup.

via Last.fm

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