The band formed when guitarist Dan Donegan, drummer Mike Wengren and bassist Steve "Fuzz" Kmak hired vocalist David Draiman in 1996.

[1] A demo tape led to their signing to Giant Records, which released their debut album, The Sickness, in March 2000.

[4][5][6] Four singles were released from the album, "Stupify", "Voices", "The Game", and "Down with the Sickness"; the latter of which was the most successful, having been certified eight-times platinum by the RIAA.

[4] In March 2002, Disturbed released the documentary M.O.L., which showed some of the band's more personal moments in the studio and during tours, and featured several music videos and live performances.

The 2003 tour Music as a Weapon II was documented on the live album, which also featured the bands Taproot, Chevelle, and Ünloco.

Ten Thousand Fists spawned singles such as "Guarded", "Just Stop", the Genesis cover of "Land of Confusion", and "Stricken".