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One of the most versatile, innately talented, and idiosyncratic singers in rock music,
Mike Patton is also one of the genre's most valuable players, since he has divided his time between a host of diverse projects including
Faith No More,
Mr. Bungle,
Fantômas,
Tomahawk,
Peeping Tom,
Nevermen,
Dead Cross, and an experimental solo career. In addition to his band and solo work,
Patton is a gifted actor and producer who has collaborated with a wide array of artists, including
John Zorn,
Sepultura,
Melvins,
Melt Banana, and
Kool Keith.
Patton found the most commercial success with alt-rock/rap-metal group
Faith No More, who hit it big in the early '90s via chart-topping singles like "Epic" and "Angel Dust," but his elastic voice (he can croon, rap, bellow, and shred) and ability to adapt to nearly any genre (metal, hardcore punk, rap, funk, R&B, avant-garde, electronic, pop, etc.) has helped make him a vital cog in the experimental rock machine for nearly four decades.
Born in Eureka, California on January 27, 1968,
Patton discovered his vocal talents when he and some high school friends formed the wacked-out
Mr. Bungle. The group touched upon almost every musical style imaginable and became popular in their region. The members of
Faith No More first met
Patton around 1988, when they were playing a show in the area.
The bandmembers were having problems with their singer at the time,
Chuck Mosley, and gave a careful listen to a
Mr. Bungle demo that
Patton gave the group. They were blown away. When
Mosley finally got the boot a short time later, the band set out to find a replacement. Since
Patton was quite content with being a college student and playing with
Mr. Bungle, he didn't exactly jump at the invitation (interestingly, the band also asked
Chris Cornell of
Soundgarden). Eventually he did change his mind, but made it clear that he would be a member of
Faith No More and
Mr. Bungle.
Patton proved to be an important addition to
FNM, as they gained worldwide recognition with releases like
The Real Thing,
Angel Dust, and
Album of the Year.
Mr. Bungle signed to Warner Bros., due in part to
Patton's newfound fame, and released their self-titled debut in 1991 (produced by experimentalist
John Zorn) and the critically acclaimed
Disco Volante in 1995. Although they didn't acquired massive
FNM-like success, they obtained a loyal and constantly growing fan base.
Patton continued to work with
John Zorn, releasing a pair of solo albums for
Zorn's Tzadik label, in addition to guesting on tracks by
Sepultura,
the Kronos Quartet, and
the Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E., among others.
A year after
Faith No More called it a day in mid-1998,
Patton launched his own record label, Ipecac. The label's first release was the self-titled debut by the
Patton-led all-star experimental outfit
Fantômas, who also included former
Slayer drummer
Dave Lombardo,
Melvins guitarist Buzz Osbourne, and
Mr. Bungle bassist
Trevor Dunn.
Patton then returned to
Mr. Bungle, contributing to one of their finest albums, the
Beach Boys-tinged
California. He subsequently joined ex-
Jesus Lizard guitarist
Duane Denison's
Tomahawk (featuring ex-
Helmet drummer
John Stanier and
Melvins bassist
Kevin Rutmanis) and formed the R&B/pop/electronic experiment
Lovage (a collaboration with hip-hop producer
the Automator). He also contributed tracks to Tzadik Records' tributes to
Burt Bacharach,
Serge Gainsbourg, and Marc Bolan.
A number of recordings featuring
Patton saw release in 2001, including
Fantômas' sophomore effort,
The Director's Cut; the debut recording of
Tomahawk; and a collaboration with
Dan the Automator on the
Lovage album.
Lovage were met with great enthusiasm by new audiences, inspiring
Dan the Automator and
Patton to collaborate on more songs throughout 2002 for a
Peeping Tom album. And when old friends
Dillinger Escape Plan found themselves without a singer that spring,
Patton stepped up and helped them put together a new EP, even continuing as a temporary singer after they had filled the position. In 2004 he collaborated with experimental ambient and electro-pop artist
Kaada on the album Romances. After six years of perfecting
Patton's warped take on a pop album,
Peeping Tom was finally released in May of 2006.
Patton also tried his hand at acting in such motion picture projects as Firecracker and Amnesia, and continued to develop his interests outside the music studio, providing voices for the video games The Darkness, The Portal, Left 4 Dead, and Bionic Commando, and using his guttural vocal roars to provide vocals for the creatures in I Am Legend. In 2008, he composed a soundtrack for the Derrick Scocchera independent film A Perfect Place, released on Ipecac. A long-planned album of big-band '50s and '60s Italian crooner covers followed in 2010 titled
Mondo Cane. In 2012
Patton composed the soundtrack for the ultraviolent, Derek Cianfrance-directed crime drama
The Place Beyond the Pines, and in 2015
Faith No More released
Sol Invictus, their first new studio album since 1997's
Album of the Year. The following year saw him issue a second collaboration with
Kaada called Bacteria Cult. In 2016 he teamed up with rapper
Doseone and
TV on the Radio's
Tunde Adebimpe under the moniker
Nevermen and released an eponymous LP, infusing elements of hip-hop and guitar-heavy indie rock with electronic pop. In 2017 he released
Dead Cross, the debut album from the hardcore punk supergroup of the same name, which also featured
Slayer and
Fantômas drummer
Dave Lombardo and members of San Diego punk rock outfit
Retox. The following year saw
Patton provide the funereal score to Netflix's film adaptation of Stephen King's period horror-drama 1922, and in 2019 he teamed up with French composer
Jean-Claude Vannier for the LP
Corpse Flower. ~ Greg Prato