Limp Bizkit

Limp Bizkit biography

Limp Bizkit is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida, formed in 1994. The band consists of Fred Durst (vocals), Wes Borland (guitar), Sam Rivers (bass), John Otto (drums) and DJ Lethal (turntables, samples).

Formed in 1994, Limp Bizkit started playing in the Jacksonville, Florida underground music scene in the late 1990s, signing with Flip Records and releasing their début album Three Dollar Bill, Yall$ in 1997. The band achieved mainstream success with their second and third studio albums, Significant Other (1999) and Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water (2000), although the success was marred by controversy. To date, the group has sold over 33 million records worldwide.

Borland left the group in 2001, and Durst, Rivers, Otto and Lethal continued to record and tour with guitarist Mike Smith. Following the release of their album Results May Vary (2003), Borland rejoined the band and recorded The Unquestionable Truth (Part 1) (2005) with Durst, Rivers, Lethal and drummer Sammy Siegler before going on hiatus. In 2009, the band's original lineup reunited and began touring, culminating with the recording of the album Gold Cobra (2011), after which they left Interscope and later signed with Cash Money Records.

History

Formation and early years (1994-1996)

thumb Fred Durst grew up in Gastonia, North Carolina, where he took an interest in breakdancing, hip hop, punk rock and heavy metal. He began to rap, skate, beatbox and deejay. While mowing lawns and working as a tattoo artist, he developed an idea for a band that combined elements of rock and hip hop. Durst played with three other bands, Split 26, Malachi Sage, which were unsuccessful, and 10 Foot Shindig, which Durst left to form a new band. Durst told Sam Rivers, the bassist for Malachi Sage, "You need to quit this band and start a band with me that's like this: rappin' and rockin'." Rivers suggested that his cousin, John Otto, who was studying jazz drumming at the Douglas Anderson School of the Arts and playing in local avant garde bands, become their drummer. Durst, Rivers and Otto jammed and wrote three songs together, and Wes Borland later joined as a guitarist.

Durst named the band Limp Bizkit, because he wanted a name that would repel listeners. According to Durst, "The name is there to turn people's heads away. A lot of people pick up the disc and go, 'Limp Bizkit. Oh, they must suck.' Those are the people that we don't even want listening to our music." Every record label that showed an interest in the band pressured its members to change its name. Unbeknownst to the band, the phrase "limp biscuit", known alternatively as "soggy biscuit", is a phrase used in the United Kingdom and Australia for a game in which teenage boys stand around a biscuit or a piece of bread masturbating; the player who ejaculates last has to eat the bread.

Limp Bizkit developed a cult following in the underground music scene, particularly at the Milk Bar, an underground punk club in Florida. The band's local popularity was such that Sugar Ray, who had a major label contract, opened for a then-unsigned Limp Bizkit at this club. The club's owner, Danny Wimmer, stated that Limp Bizkit "had the biggest draw for a local band. They went from playing for ten people to eight hundred within months. Fred ... was always marketing the band. He would go to record stores and get people involved, he was in touch with high schools." However, the band knew that to achieve national success, they would have to distinguish themselves in their live performances. Attracting crowds by word of mouth, the band gave energetic live performances, covering George Michael's "Faith" and Paula Abdul's "Straight Up", and featuring Borland in bizarre costumes. Borland's theatrical rock style was the primary attraction for many concert attendees.

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