Vertical Horizon formed in 1991 as a collaborative duo between Matthew Scannell and Keith Kane. After a couple indie releases, they landed at the top spot on the charts at the dawn of the new millennium with their breakout hit, "Everything You Want." They followed this up with another score: "You're A God" reached #23 later in 2000. A third single from this winning album, "Best I Ever Had (Grey Sky Morning)" reached #58 in 2001. You'd think this group would score at least one more chart appearance with the release of their lead single from the next record, but no. The next record, "Go" arrived in 2003 and "I'm Still Here" went nowhere. The label really dropped the ball. "I'm Still Here" should have been a hit and "When You Cry" should have followed suit. The group has continued to quietly release additional records, but it seems that's not what everybody wants. Kane left in 2010 to pursue a solo career and a side project called Boys Gone Wild, which includes members of Stroke 9.
Stroke 9 is a pop rock band from San Francisco that nearly broke onto the Top 100 in 1999 with "Little Black Backpack." The single comes from their album, "Nasty Little Thoughts," which contained a number of additional highlights like "Washin' + Wonderin'" You can find an earlier version of this song as well as "Little Black Backpack" on their 1995 indie release, "Bumper To Bumper." The follow-up record, "Rip It Off," tanked, despite the lead single "Kick Some Ass" being featured in the film Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. The band is still chugging along, though, with a fresh album out this year called "Calafrio."
