Over the course of ten years, Cobra Starship produced four albums and two Billboard Hot 100 top 10 singles. The group released its debut album, While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets, in 2006, which contained the single "Snakes on a Plane (Bring It)". The band released its second album, ¡Viva La Cobra!, on October 23, 2007. Their third album, Hot Mess, was released on August 11, 2009. Their fourth and final album, Night Shades, was released on August 30, 2011, in the United States and October 28, 2011, in the United Kingdom.
Cobra Starship officially announced its dissolution on November 10, 2015.[1]
History
Formation and While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets (2005–2007)
Midtown's management company soon set Saporta up with an opportunity to record a song for the soundtrack to the 2006 Snakes on a Plane. Along with members of The Academy Is..., Gym Class Heroes, and The Sounds, Saporta recorded "Snakes on a Plane (Bring It)", which became a minor hit.[4] During the recording of While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets, Saporta began recruiting new members to complete the group's lineup. He first enlisted drummer Nate Novarro, whom he met on tour while Novarro sold merchandise for fellow touring act Hidden in Plain View.[2] After seeing Saporta in Entertainment Weekly, guitarist Ryland Blackinton and bassist Alex Suarez emailed Saporta, asking to join the group.
While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets was released October 10, 2006. It featured the single "Snakes on a Plane (Bring It)"; the song's music video had been featured during the closing credits of the film Snakes on a Plane earlier that summer. In October 2006, they supported Thirty Seconds to Mars on their Welcome to the Universe Tour.
¡Viva la Cobra! (2007–2008)
Cobra Starship performing in 2008
With the group's lineup now solidified, Cobra Starship began touring across the United States. While on the 2007 Honda Civic Tour, the group began writing music together for the first time. The members recorded their individual parts on their laptops in the band's bus.[5] By the time Cobra Starship entered the studio to work on a new album, much of the material was already written.[2] Recorded in twenty days at Mission Sound Studios in Brooklyn, New York, ¡Viva la Cobra! was released on October 23, 2007.[5] It was produced by Patrick Stump, who was also credited as singing some backup vocals.[6] The album has been described as "11 tracks of unabashed party jams, full of big hooky electropop, super-produced guitar crunch and the occasional T-Pain-style vocoder thrown in for good measure."[7]
The album was toured heavily worldwide. Cobra headlined the Really Really Ridiculously Good Looking Tour, with guests Metro Station, The Cab, and We The Kings, from January to March 2008. They also played on Warped Tour 2008 and headlined the SassyBack tour, which toured from October 7 through November 30, 2008, with guests Forever the Sickest Kids, Hit the Lights, and Sing It Loud.
The album art for the ¡Viva la Cobra! album was used to promote the fourth-generation Apple iPod Nano in purple.
Cobra Starship also began the Believers Never Die Tour Part Deux tour in the beginning of April 2009, opening for Fall Out Boy, alongside All Time Low, Metro Station, and Hey Monday. They spent time performing many shows in the US, mostly all in April and the beginning of May 2009; however, they also played a few shows in the UK at the end of May 2009, supported by Sing It Loud, Cash Cash, and UK band Mimi Soya.
In 2009, the band went to a cabin in Pennsylvania in an attempt to produce new material. They broadcast live throughout their stay on the live camera feed site Stickam, thus creating the Shelf Kids, an unofficial Cobra Starship fan club. After their stay, a new album was announced with a tentative release in the summer. The band worked with Kara DioGuardi, Kevin Rudolf, S*A*M and Sluggo, and songwriters Benny Blanco and Patrick Stump on Hot Mess.[8]Gossip Girl star Leighton Meester is featured on the song "Good Girls Go Bad", which was produced by Kevin Rudolf and co-written by Rudolf and Kara DioGuardi.[9] The song was the album's first single, and was added on iTunes on May 11, 2009, and made available to listen to on the band's official MySpace page. Other songs include "Pete Wentz Is the Only Reason We're Famous", which was released on their YouTube channel[10] and Vevo page. On May 8, the album title was confirmed as Hot Mess, with a release date of August 11. It debuted on the US Billboard 200 at number four, becoming the band's highest-charting album. Guitarist Ryland Blackinton said of Hot Mess, "We just wanted to make music that was fun and kinda make people just forget about whatever shitty problem they might be having during the week."[11]
The band began their Hot Mess Across the US Tour to promote the new album on August 3, 2009. The tour had 21 stops and featured guests such as Friday Night Boys and DJ Skeet Skeet. After Plastiscines dropped off the tour, Cobra Starship listed a number of candidate bands for the fans to vote for online in a blog; The Audition won.[12] On their official video podcast CobraCam.tv, the band released humorous tentative titles for the album (parodying several other notable albums): Griller, Tha Ryland III, and variations of their ¡Viva La Cobra! album.
On February 4, 2010, Cobra Starship embarked on their first-ever European tour, Hot Mess Across the EU-Niverse, which included the UK, Ireland, Germany, France, and the Netherlands. When the tour ended on February 21, the band then traveled to Japan for a few shows, and then onto Australia and New Zealand for the Wet Hot Australian Summer Tour. The group also toured in Germany with I Heart Sharks and One Night Stand!. On February 5, 2010, it was announced that Cobra Starship and 3OH!3 would be embarking on a co-headlining tour, the Too Fast for Love Tour, with opening acts Travis McCoy, The Lazarus Project, and I Fight Dragons. The tour ran from April 28 to June 13, 2010.
In late 2010, the band collaborated with British singer Alexandra Burke on the song "What Happens on the Dancefloor", which was included on the deluxe edition of her debut album Overcome.
Night Shades, "Never Been in Love", and disbandment (2011–2015)
Cobra Starship canceled their 2011 Australian tour to finish up their fourth album,[16] which they were working on with Ryan Tedder and Kara DioGuardi. Gabe Saporta released a song off of the album, "Don't Blame the World, It's the DJ's Fault", on his Tumblr. A video was released of an eggplant with sunglasses and headphones getting made into eggplant Parmesan, supposed to represent the album title. Saporta later announced via Twitter that the new album will be called Night Shades. The first single, "You Make Me Feel...", was released on May 10, 2011. The song was written by written by Steve Mac and Ina Wroldsen, and features American singer/songwriter and rapper Sabi. The music video premiered on MTV on June 28, 2011.
The band's official Twitter and Tumblr announced that the album would be out on August 30, 2011.[17]
The group released iTunes Session – EP on August 23, 2011, containing four acoustic songs and an alternative version of "Fold Your Hands Child".
In promotion of the album, the band performed "You Make Me Feel..." on the MTV Video Music Awards pre-show with Sabi on August 28, 2011.
Night Shades was released on August 29, 2011, with the lead single "You Make Me Feel..."[18] and three promotional singles. The first promotional single, "#1Nite (One Night)" was released on July 26, 2011, while the second, "Fool Like Me" (featuring the Plastiscines) was released on August 9, 2011; the third and final promotional single, "Middle Finger" (featuring Mac Miller) was released on August 23, 2011. Cobra Starship also performed "You Make Me Feel..." in the fall of 2011 on Dancing with the Stars.
On September 9, 2011, Cobra Starship headlined the Fueled by Ramen 15th Anniversary show in New York's Terminal 5, with VersaEmerge, The Academy Is..., and A Rocket to the Moon supporting. In March 2012, Cobra Starship was featured in the Australian touring rock festival Soundwave.
On April 19, 2014, after nearly three years of no announcements of new material, Cobra Starship confirmed that they were working on a new single.[19] Their single "Never Been in Love", featuring Icona Pop, was released on August 25, 2014.
On October 21, 2014, both Suarez and Blackinton left the band to pursue their own separate careers.[20] They have since been replaced by Eric Halvorsen, formerly of A Rocket to the Moon, and Andy Barr. The band played their first show with their current line-up, a Halloween party, on October 30, 2014 at Saints and Sinner. The band also played on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on November 6, 2014.
On November 10, 2015, it was announced in a blog post on the band's website that they had broken up.[21]
Post-disbandment (2015–2018)
In November 2015, Saporta announced on his Beats1 Radio show that he would no longer be performing or putting out new music. He and business associate Mike Carden announced the formation of a talent management firm, T∆G // The Artist Group,[22] expected to commence operations in the first quarter of 2016. Saporta explained that he now wanted to work behind the scenes and help younger artists see their dreams come true.[23]
From October 2016 until 2018, guitarist Andy Barr toured with rock band America.
Reunions (2021-present)
In October 2021, Cobra Starship released a new song, "Beautiful Life", through Fueled By Ramen. In December 2021, they released another song, "Party With You". Both songs received accompanying videos and were previously unreleased b-sides from "Hot Mess". The songs, called Tracks To The Future, were released as part of a promotional campaign for Fueled By Ramen's 25th anniversary and the limited edition re-issue of "Hot Mess" on vinyl. "Party With You" also received a Hannukah themed parody version, "Party With Jews", before its official release. 2021 promotions also included Cobrakkah, a multi-day event in the lead-up to the release of "Party With You".[24][25][26][27][28]The group is scheduled to play at When We Were Young festival in October 2024. On March 4, 2024, the band joined Fall Out Boy onstage and performed Good Girls Go Bad together.[29]
Midtown is an American pop-punk band from New Brunswick, New Jersey. Midtown was formed in November 1998 by three Rutgers University students, but quickly became a quartet. The group released three full-length studio albums and three extended plays before disbanding in 2005. In early 2014, Midtown reunited to play three shows, the first as a secret show at The Knitting Factory in Brooklyn, and the two remaining at the Skate And Surf Festival. They reunited for more shows in 2022 as openers on My Chemical Romance's reunion tour.
The Academy Is... are an American rock band from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 2003. Before temporarily disbanding, they were signed by the Decaydance imprint of the Fueled by Ramen label. They were originally known as "The Academy", but added the "Is..." in 2004 to avoid legal complications with other established bands already under that name. The band has released three studio albums: Almost Here (2005), Santi (2007) and Fast Times at Barrington High (2008), along with four EPs. The band announced their disbandment on October 8, 2011. In May 2015, lead singer William Beckett announced that the band would reunite at Riot Fest 2015 in Chicago. In addition, the core members of the band, being Beckett, Mike Carden, Adam Siska, and Andy Mrotek, as well as Jamie Reed Schefman and Ian Crawford, reunited for a farewell tour that took place during December 2015. They announced that they would be reuniting again on May 11, 2022, alongside the announcement of their participation in the 2022 Riot Fest. They have since played shows opening for Fall Out Boy and in When We Were Young (festival), however have yet to announce new musical endevors.
Patrick Martin Stumph, known professionally as Patrick Vaughn Stump, is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the rock band Fall Out Boy, originally from Wilmette, Illinois.
Gabriel Eduardo Saporta is an Uruguayan-American musician and entrepreneur. From the years 2005 until 2015, he was the lead vocalist and founder of the electropop band Cobra Starship. On November 10, 2015, after nearly ten years and two Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hits, Saporta announced that the band would stop its work, and that he would be focusing on helping other musicians through his new venture, The Artist Group. Prior to Cobra Starship, Saporta had been the lead singer, bassist, and lyricist for the punk band Midtown.
While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets is the debut studio album by Cobra Starship. It was released on October 10, 2006 in the US, and on October 17, 2006 in Canada. A rough clip of "Send My Love to the Dancefloor, I'll See You In Hell ", a finished version of "Snakes on a Plane ", and "The Church of Hot Addiction" were uploaded onto Cobra Starship's PureVolume site. "The Church of Hot Addiction" was also used as the theme song for the WWE's Great American Bash 2007. It has sold more than 69,000 copies to date.
"Snakes on a Plane (Bring It)", also referred to as "Bring It (Snakes on a Plane)", is the debut single by Cobra Starship, released in 2006 as the main single from the soundtrack to the film Snakes on a Plane. In addition to Cobra Starship vocalist Gabe Saporta, the song features William Beckett of The Academy Is..., Travie McCoy of Gym Class Heroes, and Maja Ivarsson of The Sounds. Before being written specifically for the film, the song was titled "Bring It".
Santi is the second studio album by American rock band The Academy Is..., released on April 2, 2007 by Fueled by Ramen, Decaydance Records and Atlantic Records. It is their first release to feature Michael Guy Chislett on lead guitar after Tom Conrad's departure from the band.
¡Viva la Cobra! is the second studio album by Cobra Starship. The album was released on October 23, 2007. It was produced by Fall Out Boy's Patrick Stump, whose vocals also feature throughout the album. The album peaked at No. 80 on Billboard 200. It has sold more than 40,000 copies to date.
Fast Times at Barrington High is the third studio album by American rock band The Academy Is..., released on August 19, 2008.
Night Shades is the fourth and final studio album by Cobra Starship, released through Fueled by Ramen and Decaydance Records on August 29, 2011. The album is the follow-up of 2009's Hot Mess. The first single from the album, "You Make Me Feel...", features singer Sabi and was released on May 10, 2011. The full album was made available to stream for free on their Facebook page prior to its release.
The Friday Night Boys was an American rock band from Fairfax, Virginia. The band consisted of lead vocalist and guitarist Andrew Goldstein, guitarist and backing vocalist Mike Toohey, bassist Robby Reider, and drummer Chris Barrett. The band was signed to Fueled by Ramen and toured the U.S. and Europe in support of two EPs and a full-length album.
"Good Girls Go Bad" is a song by American pop band Cobra Starship with guest vocals by Leighton Meester. It was the first single released from their third studio album, Hot Mess. The song was released digitally through iTunes on May 11, 2009. On May 8, 2009, "Good Girls Go Bad" made its radio debut on KIIS-FM with Ryan Seacrest's show.
Hot Mess is the third studio album by the American musical ensemble Cobra Starship, released through Fueled by Ramen and Decaydance Records on August 11, 2009. The album is the follow-up to 2007's ¡Viva la Cobra!. It debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 albums chart on sales of more than 42,000, by far their best chart performance ever.
"Hot Mess" is a song recorded by the American pop punk band Cobra Starship. It was the second single released from their third studio album, Hot Mess. The song was released digitally through iTunes on October 30, 2009. The single has been released in the United States and New Zealand. It was used in the films Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star and American Pie Presents: The Book of Love and in the TV series Gossip Girl.
I Heart Sharks were a German–British Indietronica band from Berlin, Germany. They have released on Island Records and AdP Records respectively.
Black Cards was an American electronic music band that formed in July 2010 as Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz's new main project following the band's hiatus. Originally conceived as a four-piece electropop band, Wentz played bass guitar and wrote the band's lyrics, while singer Bebe Rexha filled in on vocals. The pair met when Wentz and producer Sam Hollander overheard Rexha recording demos at their studio. Nate Patterson and Spencer Peterson completed the lineup with guitar and drums respectively.
Cobra Starship was an American pop punk band, formed by Gabe Saporta in 2005. Other members are guitarist Ryland Blackinton, bassist Alex Suarez, drummer Nate Novarro, and keytarist Victoria Asher, all of whom provide backing vocals. The group released their debut album, While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets in 2006. Their song "Bring It" was retitled "Snakes on a Plane " in order to be included on the soundtrack album Snakes on a Plane: The Album.
"You Make Me Feel..." is a song by American synthpop band Cobra Starship with guest vocals by American pop singer Sabi. It was the first single released from their fourth studio album, Night Shades. The song was released digitally through iTunes on May 10, 2011. The song is a dance-pop, electropop song and it talks about looking for a soul mate in the club. It received mixed reviews from most music critics; some thought that the song was "catchy and happy" but at the same time criticized it for being too "faceless and empty." Commercially, the song reached No. 1 in New Zealand and the top 10 in Australia, Canada, Hungary, Japan, and the United States.
"Middle Finger" is a song by American synthpop band Cobra Starship. The track was written and produced by Norwegian production team Stargate and features Pittsburgh rapper Mac Miller. It was released as the third promotional single from their fourth studio album, "Night Shades" and later as the second official single.
"Never Been in Love" is the final single by American pop rock band Cobra Starship. It features vocals from Swedish synth-pop duo Icona Pop. The song was the band's first single since their 2012 single “1Nite “. "Never Been in Love" borrowed a prominent piano melody from Fatboy Slim's 1999 single "Praise You".
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