Apartment 26 was formed by Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler’s son Terence ‘Biff’ Butler in 1999 (his nickname was given to him by Ronnie James Dio). Biff’s mother, owner of Gloria Butler Management (Geezer, Gravity Kills, Snake River Conspiracy, Heaven & Hell), managed the band.

Early promotion for the band states their influences were as diverse as nu-metal, 80s pop, drum-n-bass, death metal and techno. Their sound has been described as ‘post industrial/pre-apocalyptic quasi metal’. The band name is a reference to David Lynch’s films which have a recurring theme of apartments that are numbered ‘26’.

Apartment 26 recorded a five-song demo Within and began attracting record label attention as they embarked on a tour of the US as part of Ozzfest ‘99. They signed with Hollywood Records and released their debut album Hallucinating in May 2000 while the band toured the US again, this time with Rollins Band. “Basic Breakdown” was a US Rock Chart top 40 song that summer, and “Backwards” was included on the Mission: Impossible 2 soundtrack.

Also that summer, the band performed on Warped Tour, and then on the second half of Ozzfest 2000. The following year, they toured the UK with their final date being at Ozzfest UK 2001. In 2002, the band was dropped by Hollywood Records.

Apartment 26 then signed with Atlantic Records in 2003. Their second (and final) album Music For The Massive was recorded at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios. It was originally intended to be a 2003 summer release, but it didn’t come out until February 2004 after a UK tour with Evanescense and a US run with Life Of Agony.

Music For The Massive sold 2,367 copies in its first week. Its second single “Give Me More” reached the top 40 on the US Rock Chart in March 2004. But Atlantic dropped the band in May while they were on tour with Sevendust and Cold. The group folded that September.