Biography

Emo-inflected pop/punk act Name Taken formed in October 1999, originally named All That's Left, when its members were still in their mid-teens. Starting off as a quartet, the Orange County crew eventually parted ways with one of their guitarists and the remaining members -- vocalist/bassist Chad Atkinson, guitarist/vocalist Blake Means, and drummer Bret Meisenbach -- recorded a demo. The Stupid Chad EP resulted, and shortly after the band independently released it, they added in second guitarist Ryan Edwards to fill out their sound. Around the same time, another band called All That's Left was uncovered, and the guys mended the situation by becoming Name Taken. Less than a year after the switch, in August 2001, the group entered a Riverside studio to record another EP. The Silent Game was picked up by Top Notch Records and released three months after its completion. Following this EP, Meisenbach made his exit and was replaced behind the kit by Danny Valencia. A bunch of compilation appearances surfaced before Name Taken hooked up with Long Island's Bayside to release a split album on Dying Wish Records in 2003. The band next joined forces with Fiddler Records for their April 2004 debut full-length, Hold On. Fans of similarly earnest pop/punk acts like Saves the Day took to the record, but Name Taken's modest success was short-lived. The band broke up in 2005, playing their last show that June, so certain members could go back to school. Name Taken reunited for two shows at Anaheim's Chain Reaction in May 2007, dubbed simply "refresher courses" by the band; the second show was added when the first sold out in less than two days. ~ Corey Apar, Rovi