Skillet is a legendary Christian band formed in 1996. On account of the team: 10 studio albums, 4 EPs and several live collections.
Christian rock is a type of music dedicated to Jesus Christ and the theme of Christianity in general. Groups that perform in this genre usually sing about God, beliefs, life path and salvation of the soul.
To understand that there are nuggets in front of music lovers, it is worth noting the Collide album, which in 2005 was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Rock Gospel Album nomination.
A few years later, Comatose was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Gospel Album.
The history of the creation and composition of the Skillet group
The team appeared in the music world back in 1996, in Memphis. The origins of Skillet are bassist and vocalist John Cooper and guitarist Ken Stewart.
Both guys had experience of being on stage behind them. Both Cooper and Stewart played in various Christian rock bands. The first place of work was the groups Seraph and Urgent Cry.
In the mid-1990s, on the advice of the pastor, the guys joined forces to perform "on the warm-up" of the Fold Zandura team. In addition, they released several joint demos.
A little later, Trey McLarkin joined John and Ken as drummers. About a month passed, and Fore Front Records became interested in the musicians. The label owners offered the guys to sign a lucrative contract.
It didn’t take long to think about the name of the new team. The name Skillet means "frying pan" in translation. The idea to call the group that way was suggested by the same pastor who advised Ken and John to join forces.
This is a symbolic name, which, as it were, hints at the unification of various musical styles. At the same time, the musicians came up with a corporate logo, which is still present on all advertising products and discs of the team.
After the release of the first album, another member joined the team. The group's lead singer was replaced by Cooper's charming wife, Corey, who played lead guitar and synthesizer.
The girl remained in the Skillet group on an ongoing basis. After this event, Stewart permanently left the team. John became the leader of Skillet.
In the early 2000s, the team changed again. The band welcomed drummer Laurie Peters and guitarist Kevin Haland into their ranks.
Later, Ben Kasika joined the team. At the moment, John Cooper and his wife Corey work in the team, as well as Jen Ledger and former 3PO and Everlasting Fire member Seth Morrison.
Music of the band Skillet
In 1996, almost immediately after the creation of the musical group, the soloists presented their debut album to music lovers. To say that the music lovers liked the tracks would be an understatement.
Christian texts were accompanied by grunge music. Despite the fact that fans warmly accepted the work of newcomers, none of the songs on the collection made it to the charts.
The musical compositions for the debut records belong to the "pen" of Stewart and Cooper. The Bible became a source of inspiration.
In one of their early interviews, the musicians said that they wanted God to reach people through their compositions. The video clips for the tracks I Can and Gasoline deserve considerable attention. The musicians appeared surrounded by praying people.
Soon the band's discography was replenished with the second studio album Hey You, I Love Your Soul. The musicians did a good job on the sound and moved from heavy guitar riffs to a technique that is typical for alternative rock.
Interestingly, with the release of their second studio album, the Skillet group began to release only one video clip for the brightest, in their opinion, work. It is also valuable that John Cooper played the keyboard parts for the last time.
Tour and minor line-up change
In support of the second studio album, the musicians went on tour. On tour in 1998, Corey was already sitting at the synthesizer.
The skill of the girl and a certain lightness gave "airiness" to such musical compositions as Deeper, Suspended in You and Coming Down.
In 1999, it became known that Ken had decided to leave the group. There were no conflicts between Ken and the soloists. The young man just wanted to spend more time with his family.
He also planned to go to college. From that moment on, Cooper became the main author of musical compositions for the group. Ken's place was taken by guitarist Kevin Haland.
In the early 2000s, the group's discography was replenished with the third studio album Invincible. With the release of this album, the style of presenting tracks has changed.
The post-industrial quality in the songs has become more pronounced and modern. The collection contained elements of techno music and electronic music.
The Invincible genre was liked by music lovers and music critics. The album brought the band to a new level of popularity and professional excellence.
The peak of the popularity of the group Skillet
After the release of the third studio album, the Skillet frontman decided to test his strength in a different capacity. He produced the fourth compilation, which was called Alien Youth.
And, oh miracle! The album peaked at number 141 on the popular US Billboard 200 and peaked at number 16 on the Australian Christian Compilation Chart.
The musical compositions of Alien Youth and Vapor deserve considerable attention. It was these tracks that were nominated for the Gospel Music Association.
Since 2002, the soloists of the group have been collecting material for the fifth studio album. The first song was A Little More. Paul Ambersold managed to work on this disc.
Paul suggested that Skillet move to the mainstream label Lava. When Ambersold made such an offer to the guys, they did not have funds for a new recording studio.
But Paul didn't really care. The man wanted to "promote" the team, which he had admired for several years.
The track Savior from the new album stayed on the 1st position in the R&R's hit parade for about several months. In May, a re-released Collide album was released specifically for the mainstream.
The surprise was a new track on the Open Wounds album. After that, the Skillet group, together with the Saliva group, went on a joint tour.
Top of the Pops album Awake
The peak of the musical career of the legendary band Skillet was the seventh album Awake. In the first week after the start of sales, the album was released with a circulation of 68 thousand copies.
The first musical compositions of the album became so popular that they began to be used as soundtracks for films, TV shows, and video games.
And the composition Awake and Alive sounded in the blockbuster Transformers 3: The Dark Side of the Moon. In addition, the collection received a prestigious RIAA certification and several nominations at the American GMA Dove Awards.
Soon it became known that the musicians were preparing material for a new album. In one of the social networks, Cooper wrote that the songs of the new collection will be like a "roller coaster".
The bandleader Skillet also focused on the fact that this work will be a mix of aggressive and lyrical tracks with symphonic alternative rock classics. The Rise album was made available for download in 2013.
The collection received rave reviews from music critics and music lovers. In addition, for some time the album held on to the 1st position of the US Christian Albums and US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard) charts.
A year later, the musicians delighted fans with new singles: Fire and Fury and Not Gonna Die. After this event, it became known that the band had begun work on their ninth studio album.
To draw attention to the new collection, the musicians published several tracks of the new collection on the official website and social networks even before the official presentation. The bonus was a video clip for the song Feel Invincible.
Soon the presentation of the collection Unleashed took place. It was enough for fans to listen to the title track to understand that this is a collection released by real maestros of Christian rock music.
Among the musical compositions of the collection, you should definitely listen to the songs Feel Invincible and The Resistance. In addition, these songs were included in the deluxe edition of Unleashed Beyond.
The gift collection could be purchased exclusively on the official website of the Skillet group.
Skillet group today
In 2019, the soloists presented the musical composition Legendary. A music video was later released for the track. This year, the presentation of the tenth studio album Victorious took place.
“The title 'Victorious' perfectly captures how we feel about this compilation. Every day you wake up, face your demons and never give in... You are the conqueror of evil."
In 2020, the musicians want to organize a tour. To date, the soloists do not name the exact release date of the eleventh studio album.
