History
Formed in
1992, the band originally consisted of Donny on guitar, Spec on bass, Dose on drums, and their two MCs Sense and Season. Within two years the band had a record deal with
Mercury Records and released a live EP (recorded in Queens, Respect) in 1994, with their debut full length
Jammin' in Vicious Environments (J.I.V.E.)
released a year later (on vinyl and cd). In support of their album, Shootyz Groove toured with many acts on both ends of their musical spectrum, including
Slayer,
Boogie Down Productions, and
311. By 1995 the band's bassist Spec had left the band, they were no longer with
Mercury Records and they released their hard-to-find live album,
Live J.I.V.E
. After acquiring a new bass player, Paul "Freak Love" and thanks to frequent touring, the band was picked up by
Roadrunner Records. In 1997 they released their Roadrunner Records debut,
Hipnosis
. Shootyz Groove then moved to
Reprise Records and resurfaced two years later with
High Definition
and gained popularity with single "L Train". Shootyz Groove split after this album but have reformed in 2004. They have released a demo of "Heard That All Before" taken from their forthcoming, untitled album on their website. In early versions of
iTunes, "L Train" was bundled.
During their hiatus some of the members started a band called "Dead Fly Syndrome".
Some of their tracks, including "Blow Your Top" and "Mad For It", were included in the Playstation 1 game, Street Skater 2. "Mad For It" was also featured in the game
Shaun Palmer's Pro Snowboarder
.
Discography
- Respect
EP (1993)
- Jammin' In Vicious Environments
(JIVE) (1994)
- Generation Of Hope
(EP with downset.) (1995)
- Live J.I.V.E
(1995)
- Hipnosis
(1997)
- High Definition
(1999)
- ONE
(Coming Out In Japan of all places! Blame RB Records! 2009)