Breakdown

This was Tantric's first single. Three of the members - Todd Whitener (guitar), Jess Vest (bass), and Matt Taul (drums) - were original members of Days Of The New, a very promising band that made some noise with the song "Touch, Peel And Stand" in 1997. After a few incidents, Days Of The New lead singer Travis Meeks fired them, so they recruited Hugo Ferreira to sing and formed Tantric in 1998. It took about a year, but Tantric landed a deal with Madonna's Maverick Records, which released "Breakdown" at the end of 2000 a few months ahead of their self-titled debut album. The song went to #1 on the Mainstream Rock chart and Tantric spent the summer touring with 3 Doors Down and Lifehouse. They released another album with Maverick in 2004 called After We Go before moving to a smaller label. By 2007, Ferreira was the only original member still in the lineup. "Breakdown" ended up being their biggest hit.

The song is aimed at the kind of person who makes a big mess for everyone around him, but never seems to think he's doing anything wrong. "Maybe you can find the reason that no one else is living this way," Hugo Ferreira asks him in this song.

The music video was directed by Marcos Siega, who also did "Last Resort" for Papa Roach and "Chop Suey" for System Of A Down. It shows a kid getting bullied relentlessly at school before someone lends him a hand at the end.