Blue October is an American rock band originally from Houston, Texas, formed in 1995. It currently consists of singer/guitarist Justin Furstenfeld, drummer Jeremy Furstenfeld, multi-instrumentalist Ryan Delahoussaye, bassist Matt Noveskey, and lead guitarist Steve Schiltz.
The band has had nineteen top 40 singles on the alternative rock chart over the span of twelve studio albums, and is best known for its platinum singles "Hate Me" and "Into the Ocean" from their 2006 platinum album Foiled. Their latest album, the triple album Spinning the Truth Around, is being released in three installments, the first of which was released October 14, 2022, and the second part on September 29, 2023.
Blue October has won numerous Houston Press music awards including Best New Act (1998), Best Pop/Rock artist (1999, 2000, 2002, 2003), and album of the Year for History for Sale in 2003. They are considered a legendary rock act in the Houston scene.
Band history
Early years and The Answers (1995–1998) Blue October was formed by lead singer/songwriter/guitarist Justin Furstenfeld, his brother Jeremy and multi-instrumentalist Ryan Delahoussaye. The band was discovered by former Kid Rock manager Michael Rand performing at the Pappadeaux Cafe in Houston in 1998. His agency proceeded to book over 350 dates on the group unsigned. Extensive publicity and artist development was regimented. This work eventually led to Michael bringing the band to Universal Music Group CEO Doug Morris under the direction of longtime A & R Recording rep Reen Nalli. The group moved to San Marcos, Texas in December 1996.
Managed by Justin and Jeremy's parents under the name RoDan Entertainment, Blue October released their first album, The Answers in 1998. It was a well-received debut which sold over 5,000 copies in Houston alone. Due to a fan-based connection with ABC's KTRK-TV (Channel 13), Blue October was able to schedule an early-morning news performance – the band's first live television performance. Other unreleased songs from this period (which can now be found on YouTube) include: "Rust", "Colorado 5591", "His Name Is Crazy", "Gun Metal Blue", "Dollar 30 Gravy" and "5 Day Walk".
Blue October caught the attention of the major record labels while working with producer dB (Don Byczynski) in early 1998. Pre-production started for getting Blue October a more "radio ready" sound, with new songs and to rewrite material off The Answers. Tracking was done in a studio setup at Justin's home in San Marcos.
Consent to Treatment and History for Sale (1999–2005) After recordings were sent to Universal Records, Blue October signed to the label in 1999 for the release of their second album, Consent to Treatment. The band was dropped by Universal Records in 2000.
Then the band recruited a new guitarist, C.B. Hudson, and got back on the road. In November 2002, the band signed with Texas-based management company Rainmaker Artists. Rainmaker immediately signed the band to their record label Brando Records. Just before entering the studio Matt Noveskey left the band for personal reasons. The remaining band members persevered, entering the studio to record what would become their third album, History for Sale. The first single from History For Sale was "Calling You", released in February 2003. On March 20, 2003, radio station "102.1 the EDGE" in Dallas added "Calling You" to regular rotation, and it began to spread to radio stations across the country receiving over 56,585 spins on the US airwaves. Rainmaker took the band to New York, where the band played multiple live showcases over a week in early May 2003 for Atlantic Records, Columbia Records and Universal Records.
Blue October was then offered records deals by each company. Ultimately the band returned to Universal Republic Records in May 2003. History for Sale was then re-released on Universal Republic in August 2003. History for Sale was largely a response to the control Universal had placed on the group during the Consent to Treatment production process. This is evident in songs such as "Somebody" and "Inner Glow".