Black Tide

Black Tide is an American heavy metal band from Kendall, Florida. Formed in 2004, the band last consisted of Gabriel Garcia (lead guitar, vocals), Austin Diaz (rhythm guitar) and Cody Paige (drums). They released their debut album, Light from Above, in 2008 through Interscope Records when Garcia was 15 years old. Their second album, Post Mortem, was released in 2011. Black Tide's EP Bite the Bullet was released in 2013 by InnerCat Music Group, a Miami-based boutique label. In 2015, the band released their last album Chasing Shadows. In July 2016, Garcia announced that the band is over and he is concentrating on his solo project. In January 2026, the band reunited, teasing new original music and old projects.

Black Tide was founded in Kendall, Florida in 2004 under the name "Radio" by lead guitarist Gabriel Garcia and his older brother Raul Garcia. Raul recruited rhythm guitarist Alex Nuñez and later bassist Zachary Sandler. At the time, Gabriel Garcia was 11 years old and Nuñez was just 13 years old. Garcia, Nuñez, and Sandler recruited drummer Steven Spence after Raul's departure from the group. This completed the band's lineup. The band started playing local shows, eventually gaining the attention of record labels due to the members' young age and talent. Winder Marin, the former drummer, was dropped and a replacement was brought in to keep the young image of the band.

In 2005, Black Tide signed a demo deal with Atlantic Records as Radio. The deal lasted for only a year, before the band was spotted by a record executive for EMI, who notified Interscope Records of the band. By mid-2007, now named Black Tide, they were signed to Interscope.

The band started touring and gained a spot on the second stage of Ozzfest, but were removed from the tour because the stage was sponsored by Jägermeister and all of the members of Black Tide were under the legal drinking age. Although the band was no longer appearing on the second stage, they were able to be the opening act on the main stage in some areas, opening for Lordi, Static-X, Lamb of God, and Ozzy Osbourne. After Ozzfest, the band toured with Avenged Sevenfold and All That Remains.

In early 2007, half a year before playing Ozzfest, Black Tide entered the studio in Chicago with producer Johnny K. They recorded 12 new tracks which included a cover of Metallica's first written song, "Hit the Lights", which originally appeared on Kill 'Em All. The resulting album, Light from Above, was released on March 18, 2008. It was critically praised, with Dan Epstein of Revolver magazine saying "Listening to the debut album from Miami's Black Tide is a little like stumbling across a cool late-80s metal record you'd completely forgotten about. A very promising debut", and Scott Alisoglu of Blabbermouth.net stating the album contains "Big, sometimes pop-based, melodies meets crunchy, guitar-driven metal that falls somewhere between thrash/traditional metal and the dirtier end of '80s glam/hair metal." Light from Above debuted at number 73 on the Billboard 200, with 11,400 copies sold in its first week of sales. Black Tide also won the Kerrang! Award for Best Newcomer. On March 27, 2008, the band performed on the late-night show Jimmy Kimmel Live! on the ABC television network in the United States and Citytv in Canada.

In the summer of 2008, shortly before the Mayhem Festival, guitarist Alex Nuñez left the band and was replaced by Austin "Panix" Diaz. Diaz subsequently left his former hardcore band The Panix for Black Tide. In an odd turn of events, Alex Nuñez joined The Panix to replace Diaz. Nuñez returned to his punk roots and continues to play in many bands in Miami as a guitarist, vocalist, and drummer.

Black Tide proceeded to tour on the Mayhem Festival, playing all around the U.S. They opened for Bullet for My Valentine on their European tour in November 2008, alongside Lacuna Coil and Bleeding Through. They also supported Bullet for My Valentine on their U.S. tour in September. The band toured on the Kerrang! Relentless Energy Drink Tour with Mindless Self Indulgence, Dir En Grey, Bring Me the Horizon, and In Case of Fire. They started performing "Prowler", an Iron Maiden cover, on this tour, which was formally recorded for Kerrang! magazine's Iron Maiden tribute CD, Maiden Heaven.

The band debuted on British television on January 17, 2009, on the BBC show Sound before supporting Escape the Fate on their 2009 This War Is Ours Tour in February–March 2009. Other supporting acts included Attack Attack!, William Control, and Burn Halo. Black Tide then supported Trivium between May 6–19, 2009, on the Japanese and Australian legs of Into the Mouth of Hell We Tour. This followed a stint playing at the Warped Tour 2009, where they started performing a new song entitled "Redefine".