Del.icio.usThe Used
Originally, Jeph Howard (Now the bassist) was the lead singer. A few months after forming, they recruited Bert McCracken for his powerful voice. Jeph still contributes to the back-up vocals in various Used songs.
Orem and neighboring city Provo didn't offer much in the way of paying gigs. When the band did manage to land a show, they often weren't invited back. "Everywhere we played, people wouldn't let us back because the way we play, I don't know...we kinda...I think it would frighten some people," drummer Branden Steineckert explains. "It's just us goin' off, and it's too much, the puke and the blood and things like that."
The band also struggled with personal problems. They faced homelessness, poverty, and drug addiction. Music proved to be a way out. "You're held down so long and told what to do," says Steineckert. "You're supposed to fit in this fuckin' mold all the time. Music is your one place to break out and just say fuck it all, do what you want, be the person you are with no fuckin' rules."
The band released their self-titled first album in June 2002. Recorded in both John Feldmann's home studio and Olympic Studios in London, it has since sold over 200,000 copies. Singles include “A Box Full of Sharp Objects,” “The Taste of Ink,” “Buried Myself Alive,” and “Blue and Yellow.”
The Used's sophomore album, In Love and Death, released September 2004, was also produced by John Feldmann (of California-based punk act Goldfinger) and was recorded in his Los Angeles home. Singles include "Take It Away," "I Caught Fire," and "All That I've Got."
The Used toured extensively, including the 2002 Ozzfest, the 2002 Vans Warped Tour, the 2003 Vans Warped Tour, Linkin Park's Projekt Revolution Tour, the Taste of Chaos tour and most recently a fall 2005 tour (with Glassjaw) throughout August and September. In March 2005, The Used sold all 5,500 tickets for their only Australian headline concert in Sydney in just one hour. Also featured in the Crusty Demons 10th Anniversary tour in 2005.
They won Best International Band at the Metal Hammer awards in June 2005.
The Used also made a Christmas single with Kelly Osbourne called "Alone This Holiday", featured on the Taste Of Christmas compilation album.