Flannel Channel: U.P.O. “Godless” [VIDEO]

As I look back over all the bands I've seen come and go, there are few that were more tragically overlooked than U.P.O.  U.P.O. was a bridge between grunge and metal, and rightfully so.  They delivered one stellar album which performed modestly, then a second album that was really noticed at all.  More after the jump.

What about that "bridge" from grunge to metal label I gave them?  Well guitarist Chris Weber was a founding member of "Hollywood Rose" which featured Axl Rose, Slash, Izzy Stradlin and Steven Adler (yep, just a "Duff" short of Guns n' Roses).  A later version of U.P.O. even featured Zoltan Bathory on Bass.  Zoltan went on to be the founder and one of the guitar players in Five Finger Death Punch.  I still remember to this day these guys playing an unbelievably blistering set at the Depot Warehouse.

Vocalist Shawn Albro is recognized in the music community as one of the best lead vocalists ever.  He even wrote and recorded with Velvet Revolver before they took on Scott Weiland.

U.P.O.s c.d. "No Pleasantries" is one of the most listened to c.d.s in my collection.  The band left behind no real videos, but Shawn's lyrics and voice paint a picture that doesn't require video.  Here's the top two tracks from U.P.O.