Swollen Members Explained

Swollen Members
Background:group_or_band
Origin:Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Years Active:–present
Label:PCP Productions, Suburban Noize, Virgin Records
Associated Acts:Rock Steady Crew, Moka Only, Dilated Peoples, La Coka Nostra
Website: <—- what is up with this link?
Current Members:
Past Members:

Swollen Members is a four-time JUNO Award-winning Canadian hip hop group from Vancouver, British Columbia, consisting mainly of Madchild and Prevail. Frequent collaborators include vocalist Moka Only (who was actually a member of the group for a short period of time in the mid-1990s when the group was formed, and then again from 2002 to 2005) along with the other former members Easy Roc & Zodak who were only in the group for a few years and producer Rob the Viking, an official group member since 2002. Swollen Members has released nine studio albums, one greatest hits album and 2 compilations, as well as numerous other singles. From 1996 to 2016, Swollen Members were the second best-selling Canadian hip hop artist in Canada (behind Drake) and were the best-selling Canadian hip hop group in Canada.[1]

History

Foundation and single releases

Swollen Members was founded in 1995 by Vancouverites Madchild (Shane Bunting), Prevail (Kiley Hendriks), and Moka Only (Daniel Denton). Having begun a solo career while living in San Francisco, California, Madchild returned to Vancouver to work. There he met Prevail and Moka Only, who had been working together earlier and joined them. The group had to decide on a name and Moka Only suggested Swollen Members as a joke and it stuck.

The group began testing the international hip-hop waters by releasing four 12-inch vinyl singles on Madchild's own indie label Battleaxe Records initially distributed by New York-based Fat Beats; the singles sold approximately 10,000 copies each.

2001-2002: Second album and mainstream success

Following Balance, Swollen Members recorded and released Bad Dreams, released on November 13, 2001, and featuring guests such as Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, Son Doobie, Joey Chavez, and former member Moka Only. It appealed to both underground and mainstream audiences, reaching platinum status in Canada. The album earned Swollen Members their second Juno Award and four MuchMusic Video Awards including best rap video, best director and best independent video.[2]

2002-2003: Monsters in the Closet

2002's Monsters In the Closet, their third release, brought official group membership for Moka Only and Rob The Viking to Swollen Members. Monsters in the Closet was a collection of B-sides and outtakes along with three new songs, "Breathe" which featured Portuguese Canadian pop singer, Nelly Furtado. Production credits include Evidence from Dilated Peoples. In January 2003, Swollen Members signed with Virgin Records.[3]

2003-2004: Heavy

In 2003, the band released Heavy. In the same year the songs "All Night" and "Deep End (Utah Saints Remix)" were featured in the videogame SSX3. In 2004, the Swollen Members song "The Bottom Line" was featured in the video games WWE Day of Reckoning and WWE SmackDown! vs. Raw.

2005-2006: Black Magic

In 2005, Moka Only decided to break off from the group for a second time and continue work on his solo career. The following year, Swollen Members released their fifth full album, Black Magic. It is understood that Madchild and Prevail made an attempt to return to their previously critically acclaimed style and method. Their previous album Heavy was unlisted on their official site discography. A single from the album, "Put Me On (feat. Everlast)", was released in August 2006. Later that year, Nettwerk Management dropped the group due to Madchild's affiliation with the Hell's Angels.[4]

2009-2010: Armed to the Teeth

Armed to the Teeth was released October 27, 2009 through Kottonmouth Kings label Suburban Noize Records. Featured artists on the album include La Coka Nostra, Talib Kweli, Tech N9ne, Tre Nyce, and a return of Moka Only on the previously released track, "Red Dragon". This release was followed by a North American tour with Australian Hip-Hop group Bliss 'n' Eso.

2011-2012: Dagger Mouth

Swollen Members scheduled the release of a studio album, Dagger Mouth, for April 2011, under Suburban Noize. Its first single is "Mr. Impossible".[5] The second single released off Dagger Mouth is "Bring Me Down" which features rapper Saigon. A compilation album titled Monsters 2 was released August 2, 2011.

2013: Beautiful Death Machine

On March 19, 2013, their ninth studio album, Beautiful Death Machine was released, and had debuted at number 3 on the Canadian Albums Chart, making it the group's highest charting album in Canada to date.

2014: Brand New Day

June 17, 2014 brought their tenth studio album Brand New Day to store shelves across the world.In mid-February 2015, Madchild was listed on the King of the Dot BO5 card against the battle rapper by the stage name of Daylyt. Footage of his trailer for this event can be found on the KOTD Entertainment channel on YouTube.[6] The footage of the battle can be seen on the KOTD YouTube channel.[7]

2018: "Bank Job" + other projects

In 2018, the Swollen Members single "Bank Job" was released on all platforms, followed by several solo releases by Madchild and Prevail and Rob the Viking's new project XL The Band. In 2021, Swollen Members released a single and music video for "Tetris" featuring Neph. Since then, Madchild has been focused on solo releases, and Prevail and Rob the Viking have been focused on XL The Band.

Group members

Current members
Former members

Discography

Studio albums

Title! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:19em;"
Album detailsPeak chart positionsCertifications
CANU.S.U.S. Ind.
Balance
  • Released: May 31, 1999
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
Bad Dreams
  • Released: November 13, 2001
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
34
Monsters in the Closet
  • Released: November 12, 2002
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
7
  • MC: Gold
Heavy
  • Released: November 18, 2003
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
14
Black Magic
  • Released: September 12, 2006
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
22 19 21
Armed to the Teeth
  • Released: October 27, 2009
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
19 146 5 23
Dagger Mouth
  • Released: April 12, 2011
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
15 3 41
Beautiful Death Machine
  • Released: March 19, 2013
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
3 167 3 26
Brand New Day
  • Released: June 17, 2014
  • Label: Battle Axe Records
8 7

Compilations

YearAlbum
Greatest Hits: Ten Years of Turmoil
  • Released: March 16, 2010
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize
1997
  • Released: December 6, 2011
  • Label: Battle Axe Records, Suburban Noize

Singles

YearSinglePeak chart
positions
Album
CAN
[9]
1999"Front Street"Balance
"Strength"
2000"Camouflage"
"Lady Venom"
2001"Take It Back"Bad Dreams
"Fuel Injected"
2002"Bring It Home"3
"Steppin Thru"Monsters in the Closet
"Breath" (featuring Nelly Furtado)
"Fuel Injected (Remix)" (featuring Saukrates)
2003"Watch This"Heavy
2006"Black Magic" (featuring DJ Swamp)Black Magic
"Too Hot" (featuring DJ Babu)
"Put Me On" (featuring Everlast and Moka Only)
"Pressure"
2009"Warrior" (featuring Tre Nyce and Young Kazh)94Armed to the Teeth
"Red Dragon"
"Bollywood Chick" (featuring Tech N9ne and Tre Nyce)
2010"Pornstar" (featuring Tre Nyce)
2011"Mr. Impossible" Dagger Mouth
"Bring Me Down (Swollen Mix)" (featuring Saigon)
"Night Vision"
"Do or Die"
"War Money"
2013"Kings of Diamonds" Beautiful Death Machine
"Mercenary"
"Inception"
"Almost Famous"
2018"Bank Job" TBA (2018)
2024"Triple Aces" TBA (2024)
-2024"Faceless Kings" TBA (2024)
"—" denotes releases that did not chart

Guest appearances

Title! scope="col"
YearOther artist(s)Album
"S and M on the Rocks"1999Blazing the Crop
"Artillery"2007Infected MushroomVicious Delicious
"Chewing Concrete"2010DJ MurgeSearch and Rescue[10]
"Lost in the Music"2012Insane Clown PosseMike E. Clark's Extra Pop Emporium
"Falling Down"2013TwiztidA New Nightmare
"The Plague"2015Prozak, UbiquitousBlack Ink

Music videos

YearSongDirector(s)Album
2000"Lady Venom"Trevor CornishBalance
2001"Take It Back"Wendy MorganBad Dreams
"Deep End"Jason Goldwatch
2002"Bring It Home"Wendy MorganMonsters in the Closet
"Fuel Injected"Wendy MorganBad Dreams
"Steppin Thru"Wendy MorganMonsters in the Closet
"Breathe" (feat. Nelly Furtado)Todd McFarlane
2003"Watch This"Heavy
2006"Too Hot"Black Magic
"Put Me On" (feat. Everlast)Margaret Malandruccolo
"Pressure"
2009"Warrior" (feat. Young Kazh)Chad Archibald & Philip CarrerArmed to the Teeth
"Bollywood Chick" (feat. Tech N9ne)
2010"Pornstar" Chad Archibald & Philip Carrer
2011"Mr. Impossible"Mr. InvisibleDagger Mouth
"Bring Me Down (Swollen Mix)" (feat. Saigon)Mr. Invisible
"Night Vision"
"Do or Die"
2013"King of Diamonds"D-ShotBeautiful Death Machine
"Mercenary"D-Shot
"Inception"D-Shot
"Almost Famous"D-Shot
"BAX WAR"D-Shot
"Death Warrant"D-Shot
"Fear" (feat. Snak the Ripper)D-Shot
"Juggernaut"
2014"Power"Brand New Day
"Brand New Day"Dale Resteghini

Awards and recognition

Juno Awards

MuchMusic Video Awards

Western Canadian Music Awards

Additional awards

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: NIELSEN MUSIC & BILLBOARD PRESENT CANADA 150 CHARTS. bdsradio.com. 28. January 2, 2020. January 2, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200102202137/https://bdsradio.com/pd/docs/Nielsen_Canadian150_2017_vs2.pdf. dead.
  2. http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/75393/swollen-members-clean-up-at-muchmusic-awards "Swollen Members Clean Up At MuchMusic Awards"
  3. Web site: Swollen Members Hash Out Deal With American Major. https://web.archive.org/web/20030627162647/http://www.chartattack.com/damn/2003/01/0801.cfm. usurped. June 27, 2003. Chart Attack. February 3, 2019.
  4. Woo, Andrea. "Conversations: Swollen Members", "Exclaim!" November 2009.
  5. Web site: Swollen Members - Mr Impossible - Listen/Watch Now. MusicRemedy/. 26 March 2015.
  6. KOTD - #BLACKOUT5 - ANNOUNCEMENT #10. https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/a0yNJnNd1C8. 2021-12-12 . live. 18 December 2014. YouTube. 26 March 2015.
  7. Web site: KOTD - Rap Battle - Madchild vs Daylyt #Blackout5. https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/gZkYRjG-VtY. 2021-12-12 . live. YouTube. 3 November 2015.
  8. Web site: Music Canada Certifications . . March 10, 2016.
  9. Web site: Swollen Members. Allmusic. November 20, 2013.
  10. Web site: ISRC Search .