The hardcore CCM supergroup Stavesacre formed in 1995, with vocalist Mark Solomon (the Crucified, Native Son), guitarist Jeff Bellew (Crucified, Chatterbox), drummer Jeremy Moffat (the Blamed), and bassist Dirk Lemmenes. Heavy and leaning toward hardcore metal and thrash, their original sound had more in common with Die Happy or Tourniquet. The group released their debut album, Friction, in early 1996, followed a year later by Absolutes. In that time, Scaterd Few drummer Sam West had replaced Moffat. Stavesacre returned in 1999 with Speakeasy with a new second guitarist, Ryan Dennee. Bellew left very soon after to get married, so Stairwell guitarist Neil Samoy took his place. A collection, aptly titled Collective, summed up their period on Tooth & Nail, chronicling their slow transition from heavy metal to emo rock. By the time of their Nitro Records debut, (stavz'a'ker), the band had fully transitioned into an emo band. The group released two full-lengths shortly thereafter: 2001's Collective and 2002's (stavz'a'ker). ~ John Bush, Rovi
