After nearly two decades in the club circuit, 12 Stones continues to grace the stage with new music and energy.
The Mandeville-based rock band will perform old favorites and cuts from its newest album at The Texas Club in Baton Rouge on Friday. Supporting act Neutral Snap opens at 9 p.m.
For 12 Stones, the rise to rock star status in the early 2000s was sudden and raucous.
Within a year of their start at a music store in Mandeville, the musicians traveled to New York and signed a record deal. Soon, a 12 Stones debut arrived on Wind-up Records, a label known for supporting top acts like Creed and Finger Eleven.
“I was 19 when all that happened,” says Paul McCoy, the group’s vocalist. “I dropped out of college and told my parents I was going to join a rock band.”
A year after the debut, McCoy collaborated with fellow Wind-up artists Evanescence on the global hit single “Bring Me to Life,” which peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100.
“When the song came out, radio was all over it. We got offered to play Access Hollywood, which I thought was funny,” McCoy says. “Most people hadn’t heard of 12 Stones, so it was definitely a good promotional tool for us.”
Over the next decade, the group would record three more albums and take a breather after releasing “Beneath the Scars” in 2012. By then, 12 Stones was a band that had mostly run its rock music course. That changed when they connected with Cleopatra Records. To McCoy’s surprise, the Los Angeles label wanted to support a new 12 Stones project with full creative freedom to the artists.
In 2017, the band delivered “Picture Perfect,” a collection of emotive post-grunge carried by massive guitars and McCoy’s powerful voice.
Their material, unlike much in the genre, promotes a refreshing, positive message and blows your hair back at the same time.
“All of our songs are about overcoming some type of adversity, believing in yourself, keeping your head up,” McCoy says. “Our live shows are high-energy. I do a lot of screaming.”
The musicians tour less often now, but as the lead singer pointed out, 12 Stones still performs for the love of the music.
“Or maybe we’re too stupid to quit. I don't know,” he jokes.
12 STONES with NEUTRAL SNAP
WHEN: Friday. Doors open at 7:30 p.m.; music at 9 p.m.
WHERE: The Texas Club, 456 N. Donmoor Ave., Baton Rouge
COST: $20 at the door, $15 in advance at thetexasclub.com
INFO: facebook.com/12stones