Nonpoint

It's hard to believe that at the end of the decade, any band once labeled "nü metal" is still going strong. So leave it to a band from South Florida, land of anomalies. In late 2009, Fort Lauderdale natives Nonpoint still enjoy an active touring career and a healthy, loyal fan base. The key to the foursome's success has been, largely, its attention to those fans and its hometown pride. The band has always flown the South Florida flag, even once it landed on the Billboard Mainstream Rock charts, a feat it's repeated some seven times since 2001. And in the era of waning record sales, Nonpoint wisely spends much of its time on the road, continuing to expand its audience organically by word of mouth about its high-octane live shows.

Recent years have seen the group encounter some label troubles, abandoning Lava Records in the mid-'00s in favor of the local Bieler Bros. imprint. It then split with Bieler Bros. earlier this year but continued its work unbowed. In May, Nonpoint headed to the studio to begin work on a new studio album. A teaser EP, Cut the Chord, was released earlier this month featuring acoustic renditions of old fan favorites. Word is the new disc is due out in the spring.