While in Omaha, Nebraska singer and guitarist Matty Lewis and original drummer Jacob Horrocks formed the band Jank 1000. Horrocks found bassist Danny Isgro to complete the trio. Together the three produced two independent albums: Suburban Punks Are Go!!in 1999 and My Love Notes And Her Death Threats in 2000. Both spent several months atop the Homer's local album chart in Omaha, including extensive radio airplay for their first single, "Misty 540". During the summer of 2001, Jank 1000 signed a management deal with Todd Singerman and with Schwam, Schwabm & Schwam as well as Singerman Entertainment. The trio went to California, playing clubs and venues from the Midwest to the East Coast, to warm reviews. Jank 1000 also earned praise for their performance during selected dates of the 2002 Vans Warped Tour. On the heels of moderate success on the West Coast, the band decided to call southern California their home while Horrocks left the band and was replaced with Albert Kurniawan as the new drummer. The following year, the band broke up under the strains of producing and recording their third album. The members went their separate ways and Jank 1000 was officially extinct.
Zebrahead
Miles from home and without a band, a financially strapped Lewis put his teaching degree to use in the Washington D.C and Las Vegas areas. Meanwhile, he continued to write music and play acoustic gigs, while re-recording previous Jank 1000 songs in 2003 and 2004. In December 2004, Lewis received a call from Singerman, who informed him that the lead singer of Zebrahead, Justin Mauriello, had left the band due to creative differences. Lewis set out to California again to try out for the remaining members of Zebrahead. He was officially named Zebrahead's new co-lead singer, and formally introduced to the world at a "secret" show at the Anaheim House of Blues on March 8, 2005.
Side projects
Due to Zebrahead's growing popularity in Japan, Lewis and Zebrahead bandmate Ali Tabatabaee were asked by Sega to record vocals for a new theme song, titled "His World", which appears in the 2006 Sonic The Hedgehog game for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
