Playing with perky rock riffs similar to the likes of Eve 6 and Matchbox Twenty, Ultimate Fakebook has touched upon the ever so popular three chords. Hailing from Manhattan, Kansas, Ultimate Fakebook is another alternative pop/rock band mixing old school rock music in the face of their successors such as Green Day. Coming together in 1994, third cousins Bill McShane (vocals/guitar) and Nick Colby (drums) created the first stint of Ultimate Fakebook, with Eric Melin (bass) joining a few months later. They grew up worshipping the hard-rock glam sounds of KISS, Metallica, and Slayer. Later on, their tastes leaned toward bands like Soul Asylum and the Replacements while their sound went from alternative metal to original indie-pop. They are also road junkies, playing over 140 shows in 1999. Ultimate Fakebook released their first full-length, Electric Kissing Parties, in 1998, and their follow up, This Will Be Laughing Week, was re-released by Epic/550 Music in summer 2000. Two years later, the trio hooked up with Ed Rose (Get Up Kids, Reggie and the Full Effect) to produce a third album, Open Up and Say Awesome. ~ MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide