Taproot

Taproot emerged at the height of the rap-rock movement of the late ‘90s, balancing heavy riffs with rap-influenced vocals. As the scene became less popular, Taproot evolved into a more straightforward hard rock group. The quartet formed in Michigan in 1997 thanks to the friendship of lead singer Stephen Richards and guitarist Mike DeWolf. Bassist Phil Lipscomb and drummer Jarrod Montague soon joined the group, and the original lineup has remained intact ever since.

Taproot put out a series of self-released albums at the end of the 20th century. Soon after, the band attracted the interest of Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit, who wanted to sign the band. However, Taproot eventually went with Atlantic, causing friction with Durst. Regardless, Taproot’s first album, Gift, was released in 2000. Gift featured occasionally rapped lyrics from Stephen Richards that touched on male aggression and self-doubt. Listening to Gift, it was understandable why Durst would take a liking to the group: Taproot shared a definite lyrical and sonic similarity to Limp Bizkit.

2002’s Welcome represented a step up from the overly familiar Gift. Peaking at No. 17 on the Billboard album chart, the group’s highest ranking to date, Welcome moved away from rap-rock conventions. In their place, Taproot continued to pound away on the guitars, but vocal melodies started taking on greater importance. Two singles, “Mine” and “Poem,” made some headway on both the mainstream and modern rock charts, although the album failed to reach even gold-certified sales.

Taproot released their third album, Blue-Sky Research, in 2005. Blue-Sky Research showed no traces of rap-rock influences, and the band embraced the moody textures of modern rock within the confines of their angst-driven mid-tempo songs. Though the album suggested that Taproot were chasing trends, Blue-Sky Research proved to be the most confident record of the band’s career. However, significant commercial success continued to elude Taproot, despite Blue-Sky Research’s solid singles “Calling” and “Birthday.”

Taproot and Atlantic parted ways after Blue-Sky Research. Undaunted, the band released their fourth album, Our Long Road Home, on September 16, 2008.

'Plead the Fifth':

Taproot returned in 2010 with their fifth studio record, called appropriately enough Plead the Fifth, which was a more aggressive, guitar-oriented album. The first single was “Fractured (Everything I Said Was True).” Nick Fredell replaced Jarrod Montague as the band’s drummer.

Mike DeWolf – guitar
Nick Fredell – drums
Phil Lipscomb – bass
Stephen Richards – vocals, guitar

Key Taproot Songs:

“Mine”
“Poem”
“Calling”
“Birthday”

Discography:

Gift (2000)
Welcome (2002)
Blue-Sky Research (2005)
Our Long Road Home (2008)
Plead the Fifth (2010)