The 1990s

By the early '90s, both Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland had moved from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. Ken and Scott bought a house together in La Crescenta, Glendale, California, which had a small underground shelter beneath the front lawn. Originally intending to turn the shelter into a studio, it proved to be an unrealistic idea and the duo set up a studio in their house which was located near a 210 Freeway overpass. They subsequently named their studio The Bomb Shelter. They were interviewed on the front lawn of the house in the documentary Better Living Through Circuitry. After The Bomb Shelter was built, a tape of The Crystal Method's music found its way to a British DJ named Justin King. King was interested in starting a record label that would showcase American electronic dance acts. King teamed up with a Scot named Steve Melrose to form the record label City of Angels. The first official release from the City of Angels label was The Crystal Method's "Now is the Time". The Crystal Method were signed to Outpost Recordings in 1996.

The first release from the City of Angels label was The Crystal Method's "Now is the Time". The Crystal Method were signed to Outpost Recordings in 1996. On September 8, 1997, The Crystal Method released their best-selling album, Vegas. Vegas peaked at number 92 on the Billboard 200. It was certified gold by the RIAA in 1998, then platinum in 2007. In 1999, the band went into the studio to record their next album, Tweekend, which featured more guest artists than Vegas had. The album was released in July 2001, and peaked at number 32 on the Billboard 200, which is still the duo's highest album chart position. Featured guests from the album include Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello, Stone Temple Pilots vocalist Scott Weiland, and others, like Doug Grean, DJ Swamp, Ryan "Ryu" Maginn, and Julie Gallios. Four singles were released from Tweekend: "Wild, Sweet and Cool", "Murder", "Blowout", "Name of the Game".

Youtube link to the High Roller video