at the drive-in

A band from El Paso, TX. They were highly successful in the mid-90s underground scene until the single "One Armed Scissor" was released and played quite frequently on MTV in the late 90s. But even during their popularity on MTV, they still stuck to their roots, playing with the same energy as they did when they were still underground and not conforming to the stereotypical MTV egocentric band. They eventually broke up in 2001, but the reason why is still in debate. Some say it's because they didn't want to become mainstream, some say it was artistic differences, and some say it's a mix of the two. Either way, their break up formed two different bands: Sparta, which is similar to At the Drive-In, but not as energetic in my opinion, and The Mars Volta, which is quite different from At the Drive-In and the main reason to support the "artistic differences" reason for the break up.