Philadelphia, PA

Originally formed in 1999, Philadelphia's A Life Once Lost joined a rapidly growing fraternity of metalcore bands (Converge, God Forbid, Killswitch Engage, to name but a few) spread across the U.S. Eastern Seaboard -- over the next few years, these groups helped define the so-called New Wave of American Heavy Metal. Featuring vocalist Robert Meadows, guitarists Robert Carpenter and Douglas Sabolick, bassist Nick Frasca, and drummer Justin Graves, their releases include 2000's Open Your Mouth for the Speechless... LP, and 2003's A Great Artist LP and The Fourth Plague: Flies EP. Those last two albums not only snagged the guys tours with Throwdown, Breather Resist, Dead to Fall, and more, but also the attention of Nora's Carl Severson. He eventually signed the band to Ferret Music, which then released the LP Hunter in 2005. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia