The band stuck to its guns, honed its sound, and soldiered on, but talent and perseverance can only take you so far. Fortunately, Fear Factory got a significant boost from a handful of bands like Dead White And Blue and Black Market Flowers, who tapped the then-unknowns to open high-profile shows at hallowed venues such as the Whisky, the Roxy, and the Troubadour.

"Once we did a couple of Hollywood gigs, the club would be like, 'Hey, you guys are pretty cool,' and invite us back," Bell explained.

As a result, Fear Factory gained some exposure, signed to a record label (Roadrunner in 1992), and started touring nationally. The band then used its own blueprint for success to help its West Coast brothers in arms.

"Once we started being able to headline, all these bands that we respected growing up in L.A., like System Of A Down and Manhole and SpineShank, we'd take them on tour," Bell said.

One of the first bands Fear Factory reached out to was Coal Chamber, now one of the L.A. scene's most prominent entities. In 1995, Fear Factory's Cazares helped to bring that band to the attention of Roadrunner. Now Coal Chamber is about to drop its second album, "Chamber Music," for the label, and the record was recently marked as one of the most anticipated albums of the year by the folks at "Alternative Press" magazine.

"We're thankful for all those bands that opened up the doors to give us a way to get our music out there," Coal Chamber bassist Rayna Foss Rose said, recalling the helping hand her band got from Fear Factory and others.

After paving the way from dingy clubs to the stage of Ozzfest, both Fear Factory and Coal Chamber were intent on helping out as many worthwhile bands as they could. The bands would pepper interviews with references to System Of A Down, SpineShank, Static-X, and others. The liner notes of their albums read like a musical family tree of Los Angeles, and their tours looked like that family's reunion.

"[Coal Chamber and Fear Factory] were extremely important," Static-X frontman Wayne Static recalled, "because we were doing what we're doing over two years ago, but we couldn't get any shows, There are so many bands in L.A., and there's only so many good venues, and we would play these shows at crappy venues and ten people would show up. And [Coal Chamber singer] Dez [Fafara] and all the Coal Chamber guys saw us at one of these shows and asked us to open for them for a couple of shows. Once their following got to see us, that's when it all started." [RealVideo]

"When all we had was a six-song demo, they were playing that between sets at Fear Factory shows," Static-X drummer Ken Jay added. "Dino had a copy of it. Those two bands just spread the word quite a bit about this band, and then the L.A. music scene in generalÉ all the other bands went out and talked about us. It hasn't been the easiest thing in the world, but it's been a lot easier on us than on other bands." [RealVideo]

"We'd make sure other bands were promoted," SpineShank's Decker said of all-for-one attitude that came to drive the scene. "If we played a show with Static-X, we wouldn't just put SpineShank [on fliers], we'd put the whole lineup of bands that played."