[2] He was raised primarily in the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles, where his father was a college professor.

He is often cited as having a Ph.D. in English from University of California, Berkeley, however, this is a common misconception, as Saenz had lied about his education to get an apartment when his credit was being checked.

Saenz was the lead singer for the David Lee Roth-era Van Halen tribute band Atomic Punks from May 1994 to December 2008, where he used the stage name David Lee Ralph.

He formed the band with future bandmate, Steel Panther guitarist Russ Parrish.

He provided background vocals for AFI on the albums Sing the Sorrow and Decemberunderground [5] Saenz also briefly appeared in the 2001 film Rock Star, playing the part of a singer auditioning for the fictitious band Steel Dragon.