The major label goldrush toward punk, metal and alternative bands in the early 90s was one of the most fascinating times in heavy music. By 1994, many of those labels, desperate to find themselves the next Nirvana, had reached the point where they were snapping up rising bands that they’d ultimately struggle to control. One such band were New York hardcore crew Biohazard, who had experienced enough crossover success with their second album Urban Discipline in 1992 that they suddenly found themselves on Warner, one of the biggest labels on the planet.
It raised their profile, but the band themselves weren’t going to give up their underground punk principles too easily, leading to one of the most infamous festival sets of the decade.
Urban Discipline was a masterpiece of grooving rap metal and careering punk, turning Biohazard from an underground club band into one of the big players in New York hardcore. The record featured the now iconic Punishment, as close as Biohazard ever got to a hit, and their growing reputation as a phenomenal live band saw them embraced by both rock and hip hop artists and put on tours opening for everyone from Kyuss to House of Pain.
The band were even invited to collaborate with hip hop crew Onyx on the legendary Judgement Night soundtrack, contributing the song title track to that groundbreaking rap-rock crossover album.
Warner didn’t ask for lyrics or demos. They just said write your music and do what you gotta do
Billy Graziadei
“They asked me to do a remix of [song[Onyx’s] Slam, and I did that,” guitarist Billy Graziadei told The Eagle in 1994. “Then they asked us to do a live version of the song, so we ended up doing the video and became friends with them, and that’s it.”
So high was Biohazard’s stock that they bagged that aforementioned deal with Warner, something that would have been unthinkable for a hardcore band only a few years earlier. Although they admitted that there was some scepticism from fans, Biohazard trusted that the major label machine was going to let them be who they were without any interference.
“When we first came in contact [with Warner] they just said ‘Here’s the contract, go record your album.’” Billy continued to The Eagle. “Biohazard knows Biohazard best, ya know? It was cool. They didn’t ask for lyrics or demos. They just said write your music and do what you gotta do.”
The record in question was 1994’s State of the World Address. The label believed that Biohazard could crossover from the metal and hardcore scene and into the alternative market, and with featured guest appearances from Cypress Hill’s Sen Dog and House of Pain’s DJ Lethal, MTV picking up on the video for lead single Tales from the Hardside and the album becoming the band’s first to chart on the Billboard 200, at a very respectable 48, the signs looked good.
It would go on to sell over a million copies worldwide and turn Biohazard into one of the biggest bands in metal at that time. But in the members’ heads, they were still the same underground hardcore crew.
“We don’t have to stand on a pedestal looking down on everyone,” Drummer Danny Schuler told Kerrang! When asked about his bands’ rapidly growing status. “The day I feel like I can’t walk through our crowd it’s gonna suck.”
The day I feel like I can’t walk through our crowd it’s gonna suck
Danny Schuler
Still, it was a measure of how far Biohazard had come when they were added to the prestigious Monsters of Rock bill at Castle Donington on June 4 1994, playing the newly formed second stage and positioned on a poster with the likes of headliners Aerosmith, Pantera, Sepultura, Extreme and Zakk Wylde’s Pride and Glory. It was a huge moment for the band, and they knew it.
“We’re just totally thrilled to be part of a festival like this in England, we’ve never been part of anything like this before,” Bassist and vocalist Evan Seinfeld told MTV prior to taking the stage on the day of MOR, adding: “Anything is possible, man; six years ago the four of us were hanging out in the street up to no good, and look at us now, we’re out here and we’re playing Donington, anything can happen.”
Anything can happen, but no one really expected what was going to happen once Biohazard got up onstage. Even if there was a clue that the band had the bit between their teeth when Schuler spoke to MTV.
“We don’t really care if it’s five people or 50,000 people, Biohazard play their asses off regardless. Our goal is to break that stage in half. That’s our goal.” He then ushered to the fans surrounding the band during the interview and said: “And all these dudes are gonna help us out.”
Seinfeld, too, was keen to pump everyone up, barking, “Yo, you guys getting up on the stage? These guys will be up there, check it out.”
What happened next has gone down in Monsters of Rock infamy, as Biohazard went onstage for their set at a wet and windy Castle Donington and began to encourage the thousands of fans present to join them onstage. By the time the band got to their fifth song, Tales from the Hardside, more and more people were clamouring to join the band onstage. Soon, the stage was almost entirely full of invaders; the decision was made by the organisers to pull the plug and end Biohazard’s set after only 20 minutes.
Our goal is to break that stage in half. That’s our goal
Danny Schuler
Needless to say, they were pissed about it.
“It’s supposed to be some big rock festival, people are supposed to be having fun,” Seinfeld said to MTV after being removed from the stage. “Some kids wanted to come up onstage and stagedive. Chaos ensues, therefore, the people in charge seemed to panic, cut the power and I think they’re scared of kids having a good time. I guess we don’t fit into the heavy metal cliche of genres. It’s really unfortunate that, to us, people wanna put on big shows like this, but they can’t handle it.”
The rumours that circulated afterwards were that the band were so angry that they went back to their dressing room and smashed the whole place up before fleeing the scene. Thankfully, they had calmed down a bit a year later, but were still unhappy about how the situation played out.
“I understood why the security guys had to do that,” Schuler told Kerrang! in 1995. “Nobody wants people to get killed. But we really wanted to finish what we started. All that controversy about us wrecking the dressing room isn’t what Biohazard are about. We were close to tears when we left the site.”
Thankfully, the damage between the band and Monstesr of Rock wasn’t irreparable; Biohazard were invited back to play the festival’s main stage in 1996. Although that set, as well as it went, will never be able to match the excitement of their first appearance. It was a lesson for everyone: you can take Biohazard out of the hardcore scene, but you can never take the hardcore scene out of Biohazard.