Alex Band - Early Life

Early Life

Alex Band was born into an entertainment family. His mother is Meda Band, and his father Charles Band is a well known horror film director. His grandfather Albert Band was also another well known director. Band's father is Jewish and his mother is Christian. Both his parents were raised in Italy and they own a castle in Giove, Umbria. Band explores spiritual themes in several of his songs though claims to be of no particular faith himself. Of the song "Please" Band said, "...I grew up with a Jewish Father who didn't practice and a Christian Mother whose only tie to Jesus was celebrating Christmas. Needless to say I had to find my own religion. And in this song I'm asking God what that should be...what should I believe? In a world so full of different religions and so many people fighting over whose belief is the correct one, it frustrates me to think that they all really boil down to the same thing."

At a young age Band's parents divorced and his father remarried. He grew up with two of his half brothers Harlan and Zalman, and his sister Taryn. After his parents divorce his mother moved to Germany where she remarried and still resides. Band was about 8 at the time. She had 3 sons after her move, who Band eventually met when he toured Germany. The single "Could It Be Any Harder" explains some of his feelings towards his mother's move.

Growing up Alex made small appearances in his father's films. He grew up on Camino Palmero street which would later inspire his first album of the same name. He began playing guitar and song writing at the age of 8.

Musically, Alex was influenced by Pearl Jam, Bon Jovi, Live, Train, and U2.

He soon formed his first band with friend and filmmaker, Jethro Rothe-Kushel, called "Maybe Solitude". Rothe-Kushel also directed his first music video for a song called "Dormant Prayer". Several bands followed including one named "Generation Gap" that consisted of him, Aaron Kamin, a musician he met when Kamin began dating his sister, and a few much older musicians. The band has a brief cameo in Coyote Ugly. At the age of 14 he had a kokopelli tattooed on his wrist. This would later become a symbol for The Calling.