The reunited SPINESHANK will embark on the tongue-in-cheek "Nu Metal Sucks Tour" this spring with support from (HED)P.E. and PRIMER 55, celebrating the enduring legacy and nostalgia surrounding the nu-metal movement that dominated heavy music at the turn of the millennium. The self-deprecating tour name reflects the subgenre's unique relationship with both its devoted fanbase and its vocal critics — a winking acknowledgment that nu-metal has long been one of the most debated and polarizing movements in heavy music history.
For SPINESHANK, these will be the final shows celebrating the 25th anniversary of their sophomore album "The Height Of Callousness," which was released in 2000 and represented the Los Angeles band at the peak of the nu-metal wave. The album blended industrial metal textures, aggressive groove-based riffing, and electronic elements in a way that distinguished SPINESHANK from many of their more rap-oriented contemporaries.
(HED)P.E. will perform their 2000 sophomore effort "Broke" in its entirety, revisiting an album that showcased the Huntington Beach band's chaotic fusion of punk, metal, hip-hop, and reggae. PRIMER 55, meanwhile, will play their debut album "Introduction To Mayhem," adding another layer of late-'90s/early-2000s nostalgia to the bill. Additional support comes from KISSING CANDICE, OCEANS ON OTHER PLANETS, and TIDALS, rounding out an evening that promises to be a comprehensive celebration of the era.
Tickets went on sale February 20 at 10 a.m. local time, and early reports suggest strong demand from fans eager to relive the nu-metal experience. The nostalgic package tour taps into a growing trend of turn-of-the-millennium metal acts reuniting for anniversary tours, proving that the genre's appeal has outlasted the critical backlash that once threatened to bury it entirely.