Extreme

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Extreme Hair Metal Band

Extreme was one of the few metal bands to come out of Massachusetts.  The band started out in 1985 and was formed by Gary Cherone, who at the time, was in a band called "The Dream".  The saying goes that the band name "Extreme" was a derivative of the earlier band (ex-dream, get it?).  The rest of the band members came from other local bands in the area at the time, including the band's guitarist, Nuno Bettencourt.

By 1986, Extreme had quite the local Boston following, and were soon winning Boston Music Awards.  By 1988, the band had a contract with A&R Records, and their self-titled album it the shelves in 1989.  Many of you might remember that the song "Play With Me" from that album was featured on the "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure" soundtrack.  For their second album, Extreme worked with a producer that had worked with Dokken and White Lion, which paid off considering that Extreme 2: Pornograffitti was their most popular release today and charted number 10 on the Billboard 200 back in 1990.  It was this album that brought us the songs "More than Words" and "Hole Hearted", which we admit our two of our favorite songs to play on our acoustic guitars.

Although Extreme's third album Three III Sides to Every Story (1992) did not do nearly as well as previous releases, we have to admit we really like this album as well.  Their 1995 release, Waiting for the Punch Line, may suit die hard Extreme fans, but we admit the sound was to contemporary for our taste.  By 1996, Extreme had parted ways. 

Many of you know that Gary Cherone was tapped by Van Halen to sing onVan Halen III.  We have to admit, although we prefer Diamond Dave or Sammy, we actually like several of the songs on Van Halen III.  Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it), this album did not do nearly as well as former Van Halen albums, and the subsequent Van Halen studio album created by Van Halen with Gary Cherone on vocals was rejected by Warner Brothers (can somebody please send us this album!).  Shortly after, Gary left (or was asked to leave) Van Halen on a solo project called "Tribe of Judah".

As the years have gone by, Extreme has reunited and toured.  In 2008, they released a new album, Saudades de Rock, and then went on tour with Kings X and Ratt.  Another release, Take Us Alive, was released in 2010.  More to come?

At the time of this writing, the Extreme Discography was as follows:

Listen for free or download any Extreme track for just 12 cents per song!

  • 1989: Extreme
  • 1990: Pornograffitti
  • 1992: III Sides to Every Story
  • 1995: Waiting for the Punch Line
  • 2008: Saudades de Rock
  • 2010: Take Us Alive