Altered State

There are three known bands that goes by the name Altered State. Altered State formed in 1988 Huntington Beach, CA as Show of Hands. Formed by ex-The Prime Movers vocalist and "Strong As I Am" writer. Gregory Markel. Gregory Markel (vocals) Curtis Mathewson (guitar) Scott Richmond (guitar) Rob Thomas (bass) Chip Moreland (drums) 1990 Show of Hands gained the attention of Warner Bros. Records and signed. Changing the name to Altered State. Scott Richmond and Rob Thomas left the band. Howard Ulyate would jump in on bass but leave before recording would begin.

Altered State formed in 1988 Huntington Beach, CA as Show of Hands. Formed by ex-The Prime Movers vocalist and "Strong As I Am" writer. Gregory Markel.

Gregory Markel (vocals)
Curtis Mathewson (guitar)
Scott Richmond (guitar)
Rob Thomas (bass)
Chip Moreland (drums)

1990 Show of Hands gained the attention of Warner Bros. Records and signed. Changing the name to Altered State. Scott Richmond and Rob Thomas left the band. Howard Ulyate would jump in on bass but leave before recording would begin.

1991 Warner Bros. Released the debut and first single "Step Into My Groove". Later, releasing "Ghost Beside My Bed" which chainsawed it's way up the charts reaching Number One at Rock Radio and Top Thirty Nationally.

1993 saw the release of "DOS". "Where Is Harrison Ford ('Cause this must be Bladerunner)" "Thinking About Moving To A Catatontic State"

The band called it quits in 1995 but are back!


"Altered State" is also a band formed in 2000, in Clavet, SK, CANADA. A shooter name from a local bar was chosen to describe the band (Altered State). The band released the album 'Get Real' in 2007 and is currently writing new material.

Lorna (lead vocals)
Biman (guitar/vocals)
Jim (bass/vocals)
Dean (drums/vocals)

Not since Chrissie Hynde fondled the brass in her pocket has a three-guy group with a fiery and charismatic female lead singer (Lorna Dowell, unafraid to declare that "I Need A Vacation" while exposing her "Skeletons In The Closet") kicked up this much punky pop/rock dust.

Songs like "Consuming Me," "Anticipation," "War" and "I Want It Now" have received spins at over 75 stations from Champaign, IL to Amarillo, TX and Eureka, CA. Altered State is also crossing mediums. A publisher who loved the crunchy guitars and cool harmonies of "Let Me In" placed the song in the Tim Daly TV movie Bereft.

Dick Wagner, co-writer of 'Only Women Bleed', says, ?I love the Altered State version of ?Only Women Bleed'. It's unique among the many covers of this song that have been recorded over the years. Being a rock and roller, I really enjoy this rock interpretation of the song.?

Stoker, former drummer with Dexy's Midnight Runners whose production credits include Sting and ZZ Top flew to Altered State's hometown of Saskatoon and liked the raw tracks he heard. He produced "Get Real," "I Need A Vacation" and "Only Women Bleed," and mixed and contributed additional production to the other eight tracks. The project was mastered by Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering Studio in Los Angeles.

Dowell, who cites her chief rock influences as Alice Cooper and AC/DC, adds, "Maybe it's the times we are living in, but when I listen to people who like our music, I find that they're really excited about hearing something that sounds happier. So on Get Real, we've managed to create a light, upbeat vibe while still getting our point across. The title track conveys a lot of what we're about. People feel they're getting scammed all the time and long for honesty and integrity. Why do we have to be politically correct to the point of being politically incorrect? While the lyrics have a tinge of anger, the reality is that nobody wants to listen when you're angry. So we say what we say but without bringing the listener down. We just want them to think, and make sure they have a good time in the process."

Dale Penner (Nickelback, Dave Matthews Band, etc.) is interested in working with the group on their next project.

"Altered State - Get Real" is listed as one of Chuck Eddy's (Senior Editor BillBoard Magazine) favorite albums so far in 2007.

"Altered State - Get Real" on John Shelton Ivany's Top Line "Albums Of The Week". Mr. Ivany is the former editor of Hit Parader, Country Song Roundup, Revolution and Rock & Soul (all national magazines). Formerly editor of On Radio, Electric Village and Riffage.com websites. Mr. Ivany was the President of Titanium Records, a subsidiary of Atlantic Record Company.


There's also Progressive/Thrash Metal band from the US that released a demo back in 1991.