All three music videos endured heavy play on MTV2 and the songs were rock radio hits. The song " School of Hard Knocks" was featured on the soundtrack for Little Nicky while both "Southtown" and "Rock the Party" appeared in the movie. P.O.D.'s third studio album, 1999's The Fundamental Elements of Southtown, spawned the hits " Southtown" and " Rock the Party (Off the Hook)", which was their first video to reach No. 1 on MTV's Total Request Live. Main articles: The Fundamental Elements of Southtown and Satellite (P.O.D. The Fundamental Elements of Southtown and Satellite (1999–2002)
soon released The Warriors EP, a tribute EP to their loyal fans as a transitional album from Rescue Records to Atlantic Records. The band was quickly signed to a major-label deal. It was only when he saw them play live at The Roxy on the Sunset Strip and witnessed not just an enthusiastic audience singing every word but the center of a vibrant youth movement that he became convinced by the band. a $100,000 recording contract, but on behalf of the band Sandoval told band manager Tim Cook to decline the offer because, "God has a bigger plan for P.O.D." When, in 1998, Atlantic Records A&R John Rubeli first came across P.O.D.'s demo he "didn't quite get it", as he later told HitQuarters. Shortly after the release of Payable on Death Live, Essential Records offered P.O.D. was looking for someone else to take P.O.D.'s career further and so Cook took over as manager. He later described their performance by saying: "I stood at the back of the venue with tears in my eyes – it was the greatest thing I had ever seen." By that point, Bernardo Sr. Longtime manager Tim Cook was first introduced to the band when he booked them to play his club The Where-House in Bartlesville, Oklahoma following strong local word of mouth support. Between 19, they released three albums under the label, Snuff the Punk, Brown and Payable on Death Live. signed with Rescue Records, a label created by Bernardo's father, Noah Bernardo Sr., who was also the band's first manager. album)Īfter recording a demo tape, Traa Daniels joined the band in 1994 when they needed a bassist for some shows to replace Portillo. Main articles: Snuff the Punk and Brown (P.O.D. They then recruited bassist Gabe Portillo and eventually changed their name to P.O.D.
Calling themselves Eschatos, they started playing at keg parties doing Metallica and Slayer cover songs.Īfter his mother's fatal illness, Sonny Sandoval converted to Christianity and was asked by Bernardo, his cousin, to join the band as a way to keep his mind straight as mentioned on their DVD, Still Payin' Dues. In 1991, friends Wuv Bernardo and Marcos Curiel engaged in jam sessions, with Bernardo playing the drums and Curiel covering guitar with no vocalist.
Their following studio album, Satellite, continued the band's success with the singles, " Alive" and " Youth of the Nation", pushing it to go triple platinum. With their third studio album, The Fundamental Elements of Southtown, they achieved their initial mainstream success the album was certified platinum by the RIAA in 2000. Over the course of their career, the band has received three Grammy Award nominations, contributed to numerous motion picture soundtracks and toured internationally. They have sold over 12 million records worldwide. The band's line-up consists of drummer and rhythm guitarist Wuv Bernardo, vocalist Sonny Sandoval, bassist Traa Daniels, and lead guitarist Marcos Curiel. Payable on Death is an American Christian metal band formed in 1992 and based in San Diego, California.