|
Robert Edward McCracken (born February 25, 1982), known professionally as Bert McCracken, is the lead singer of the American rock band The Used.
BiographyBert McCracken was born in Provo but grew up in Orem, Utah, USA, and was raised in a Mormon family, living as a member of the straight edge community until age 15. He has three sisters (Katie, Melanie, Rachel) and one younger brother (Joseph Taylor). (See liner notes for The Used and In Love and Death.)
He attended Timpanogos High School for a brief time, before dropping out at 16. Before joining The Used, he played the trumpet in a local band called I'm With Stupid, starting at age 12.
The eldest son of the household, Bert enjoyed a happy home life as a child, but as he grew into a teenager his and his parents' views conflicted. He rebelled against his parents and against their Mormon religion by going to other churches. As a teenager Bert was against drugs and he edited a straight-edge magazine, "Drugs Suck ," until engaging in a physical bout with fellow straight edgers, thus driving the drifting 15-year-old in a different direction, encouraging him to experiment with drugs [Blender- "I'm Out Of My Head!" www.blender.com/guide/articles.aspx?id=1051" class="PageLink" target="_blank">www.blender.com/guide/articles.aspx?id=1051] He became addicted to crystal meth, then continued his self-destructive behavior by dropping out of high school; soon after, he was kicked out of the house at the age of 16
. For some time he was homeless until he found enough money for an apartment, moving in with girlfriend Kate. After the relationship fell apart he was again living on the streets and sinking deeply into drug addiction, until he finally chose to return to his parents' home in late December of 2000.
2003-2004 and In Love and DeathDrinking and some forms of drug addiction continued to follow Bert. According to an interview, he used to drink up to two bottles of Jack Daniels daily. Constant touring and alcoholism didn't mix well and while touring for The Used's self titled album, he was carried out to stage, after a long delay, at a show at Jillian's in Covington Kentucky on May 27, 2003. He still managed to sing the song "On my Own" while lying on stage before being rushed to the hospital. After being rushed to the hospital, getting treatment for severe chest pain, nausea and vomiting, and consulting several doctors he was diagnosed with acute pancreatitis, a severe inflammation of the pancreas caused by autodigestion of pancreatic tissue by its own enzymes. The condition most often stems from alcohol abuse or gallstones, forcing McCracken to abstain from alcohol for several months afterward. He has stopped doing hard drugs as of 2005. On July 4, 2004 McCracken's ex girlfriend, Kate, died in a car accident under the influence of drugs, killing both herself and the couple's unborn child. Ever since then Bert has been writting music to heal people who have been through what he has.
2006-2007 and Lies for the LiarsIn the first half of 2006 the band took a break from touring and settled down to write their new record. During this time Bert, whose naturally ginger-blonde hair he had dyed jet black since first joining The Used at age 19, dyed it back to blonde. The previous year, he had moved from Orem, Utah to Los Angeles, California, soon moving in with his Australian fianceé Alison. The city, he found, fascinated and disgusted him at the same time. "I met the most fake people I had ever come across on the whole planet," McCracken recalled. "They’re all just liars, and they're so used to doing it, half the time I don’t think they even know they’re lying. Being in that environment had a direct effect on the tone of this new record, which is a little more vicious, but in a strange way, also more loving and caring." Such an environment invoked many songwriting ideas for the lyricist, inspiring songs such as "Pretty Handsome Awkward" and "Liar Liar (Burn In Hell)."
At the beginning of August 2006, The Used's drummer Branden Steineckert was kicked out of the band, for reasons that to this day are not entirely clear. While Quinn Allman has used the term "creative differences," Bert has hinted at more personal sources of discontent with Steineckert by describing it as a "conflict of personality" between band members other than himself (as he "loves him to death"). Branden therefore did not take part in recording the drum tracks for Lies for the Liars; Good Charlotte's drummer Dean Butterworth served as the band's temporary drummer for the recording, after which Dan Whitesides was hired as Steineckert's permanent replacement.
2008-2009On August 31st, 2009 The Used came out with their 4th studio album named "Artwork".
DiscographyThe Used- 2001: Demos from the Basement [1]
- 2002: The Used
- 2003: Maybe Memories [2]
- 2004: In Love and Death
- 2007: Berth Live (Recorded in 2005, Released in 2007)
- 2007: Lies for the Liars
- 2008: Shallow Believer [3]
- 2009: Artwork
Outside of MusicBert has appeared on the MTV show The Osbournes, while he was dating Kelly Osbourne
Collaborations- 2002: Goldfinger featuring Bert McCracken - "Open Your Eyes" - Open Your Eyes
- 2002: Goldfinger featuring Bert McCracken - "Spokesman" - Open Your Eyes
- 2002: Goldfinger featuring Bert McCracken - "Woodchuck" - Open Your Eyes
- 2004: My Chemical Romance featuring Bert McCracken - "You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us In Prison" - Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge
- 2004: Linkin Park featuring Bert McCracken - "Faint" (Live) on Projekt Revolution
- 2005: Goldfinger featuring Bert McCracken - "Ocean Size" - Disconnection Notice
- 2005: Street Drum Corps and Bert McCracken - "Happy X-Mas (War Is Over)" - Taste of Christmas
- 2006: The Distance featuring Bert McCracken - "At Least I'm Good At Something" - The Rise And Fall And Everything In Between
- 2008: Goldfinger featuring Bert McCracken and Monique Powell - "Handjobs For Jesus" - Hello Destiny
- 2008: Cute Is What We Aim For featuring Bert McCracken - "Practice Makes Perfect" - Rotation
- 2008: Cute Is What We Aim For featuring Bert McCracken - "Doctor" - Rotation
Copyright Citations
This article is licensed under the GNU License
Click here for original article: Bert McCracken
|
