If the hip-hop rock group Gym Class Heroes were as popular as the movie “”Snakes on a Plane,”” they might just be on the cover of Rolling Stone. With a hefty but still growing fan base, this band hasn’t reached the Samuel L. Jackson level of rock-hood yet, but it is featured on the soundtrack to the movie.
Gym Class Heroes will take the stage tomorrow night at the UA as part of Catfest, an annual concert to introduce the upcoming music year.
The latest album from Gym Class Heroes, As Cruel as Schoolchildren, came out in July, but the band was originally formed in Geneva, N.Y., in 1997.
“”Travis the guitarist and Matt the drummer were in different bands, playing a house party,”” said guitarist Disashi Lumumba-Kasongo. “”Matt’s band was playing Rage Against the Machine covers. Travis jumped onstage and did some freestyles and stuck with it.””
Those two founding members were vocalist Travis McCoy and drummer Matt McGinley. Lumumba-Kasongo and bassist Eric Roberts joined the band in 2001 and each member, Lumumba-Kasongo said, has his own set of influences.
“”We have so many influences. The sound is rooted in hip-hop, but not limited in that. Whatever rules,”” Lumumba-Kasongo said.
“”Travis was a huge Hall and Oates fan. Matt’s influences are the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jimi Hendrix, Radiohead. I’ll listen to tons of different music, from hip-hop to pop. Whatever sounds good, we don’t look at it as categories,”” he said.
The Papercut Chronicles was released in February 2005, and the band has been touring since 2004. They just got back from the Van’s Warped Tour over the summer and will head to the U.K. in September, followed by a headlining tour in the U.S.
The song “”Snakes on a Plane (Bring it),”” was made in a collaboration between Gym Class Heroes, Cobra Starship, The Academy Is…, The Sounds and the All-American Rejects. Their song “”New Friend Request”” is also featured in the soundtrack.
“”One day on our tour before Warped Tour, Travis said he had to go to Denver and he said ‘I think I’m going to be doing a song for a movie called “”Snakes on a Plane.””‘ The song ended up being the title track,”” Lumumba-Kasongo said.
Gym Class Heroes performs tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. in Centennial Hall as part of the annual Catfest. The concert is free with a CatCard and $5 without a CatCard.
