Gravity Kills first gained mainstream attention via their 1996 self-titled debut album, which contained the single "Guilty".
Their music was described by one critic as "a blending of eerie industrial rock with a pop-infused melodic chorus and a bit of hard-core head banging.
"[3] Overall, Gravity Kills' songs have been featured on soundtracks for a variety of media, such as Mortal Kombat, Se7en, Escape from L.A., and Kissing a Fool, in addition to video games such as the Test Drive franchise.
[4] Gravity Kills toured with a mixture of bands during their first run, such as Sex Pistols, Sevendust, Local H, Flaw, Sister Machine Gun, and Pigface.
Firley told drummer Kurt Kerns and guitarist Matt Dudenhoeffer about it and thought that Gravity Kills would be a great name for the band.
In response to a contest from St. Louis area radio station KPNT for a compilation CD of local artists, the trio brought in vocalist Jeff Scheel (Kerns' cousin) to record and mix a track in one week during the summer of 1994.
[6][7] Although nearly an entire year had passed since "Guilty" was first released, Gravity Kills finally played their first live show in November 1995 at a soldout venue in St. Louis.
Hollywood also embraced the band's music as they landed songs on three high profile soundtracks: Se7en with "Guilty", Mortal Kombat with "Goodbye (Demo Version)", and Escape From L.A. with "Blame (L.A. Remix)".
[10] On April 19, 1998, Scheel suffered a whiplash when he got overexcited during a warm-up gig at the University Wellness & Activities in San Antonio, Texas.
The injury happened at a club in what was supposed to be a low-key gig that attracted 6,000 fans, according to the band's label, TVT Records.
The injury, which put Scheel out of commission for a few weeks, came less than a week before Junkie XL leader Tom Holkenborg injured his back in an onstage accident; ironically, Junkie XL and Gravity Kills were scheduled to join British band Pitchshifter on a U.S. tour on June 3.
35 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, and was featured in the 1998 racing video game Test Drive 5 along with Pitchshifter, Fear Factory, Junkie XL, and KMFDM.
In August 1999, drummer Kerns had left the band, reasons for leaving as a chance for him to spend time with his family and to return to practicing architecture.
[15] The following month, on May 2, keyboardist Firley sustained serious injury to his hand in Allentown, Pennsylvania while performing in front of a sold-out crowd.
The injury occurred when Firley dropped the 300 pound custom-made spring-loaded steel keyboard on his hand, shattering the bones in his right ring finger during the band's performance of their single "One Thing".
The band returned home to St. Louis after finishing the weekend shows in New Jersey and New York for Firley to seek treatment and had to sell off the components of the recording studio it owned, thus ending the cycle of tour dates.
[16][17] On October 28, 2005, Gravity Kills reunited to perform for a self-created Halloween music festival in St. Louis, Missouri entitled The Killoween Freakshow.
Gravity Kills confirmed rumors that had persisted over the past year on October 20, 2009, and the band announced that they were working on new music.
The band performed in Tulsa at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino on May 7, 2010, and at Roberts Orpheum Theater in St. Louis, MO on June 25, 2010, as part of a benefit show.
[19] On December 13, 2018, Gravity Kills noted on their official Facebook page that the last time the band had performed together was on November 23, 2012, at The Pageant in St. Louis, Missouri.