Filter is back on the road with a new lineup and a new album, which may be the alternative/industrial band’s strongest since its 1995 debut, “Short Bus.”
At least, that’s what audience response to the band’s recently released fifth studio album, “The Trouble With Angels,” seems to indicate, said bassist Phil Buckman.
“The feedback we got from ‘Drug Boy’ in Vegas, which was my first show, rivaled that of ‘Hey Man, Nice Shot,’ ” Buckman said. “The place went freaking nuts, and it’s been like that almost every night.”
Filter was co-founded by lead singer/multi-instrumentalist Richard Patrick, a former touring guitarist for Nine Inch Nails, and Brian Liesegang, who left in 1997. The band had a run of hits in the ’90s, including “Hey Man, Nice Shot” and “Take a Picture,” but took a hiatus in the early 2000s.
Patrick re-formed the band leading up to the production of its fourth studio album, 2008’s “Anthems for the Damned.”
The lineup today is almost completely different. Buckman, who replaced bassist John Spiker, joined the band earlier this year, a few months after his longtime friend and collaborator, former Otep and Korn guitarist Rob Patterson.
Sunday, the band will take the stage at Rhythm & Brews, performing a set list comprising songs off “Trouble,” including recently released single “No Love,” and a cocktail of hits from its back catalog, Buckman said.
IF YOU GO* What: Filter with Downstream and Middle Class Rut.* When: 9 p.m. Sunday.* Where: Rhythm & Brews, 221 Market St.* Admission: $15.* Phone: 267-4644.* Venue website: www.rhythm-brews.com.THE OPENERLocal alternative rock band Downstream will be opening for Filter on Sunday. Members of the band just received four tracks for a new album they recorded in Orlando, Fla., with Brett Hestla of Dark New Day. Downstream’s new EP, “Forever Lost,” will be released today on CD Baby and iTunes.STUDIO DISCOGRAPHY1995: “Short Bus”1999: “Title of Record”2002: “The Amalgamut”2008: “Anthems for the Damned”2010: “The Trouble with Angels”CREDIT ROLLFilter’s music has been featured in a number of films, including:* “The Crow: City of Angels” (1996)* “Spawn” (1997)* “3,000 Miles to Graceland” (2001)* “The Girl Next Door” (2004)* “2012” (2010)
Almost immediately after joining Filter, Buckman said, he and Patterson were brought into the creative process to contribute songs for the deluxe edition of “The Trouble With Angels” and allowed to explore new approaches to the band’s deep cuts.
From those early sessions, it was clear that the musical chemistry was intense, Buckman said.
“We are very well gelled,” he said. “To hop into the situation, it’s probably the best group of musicians I’ve played with for this style of music.”
Contact Casey Phillips at cphillips@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6205.