That was a few years ago, when the band first formed in Bakersfield, California. Now their self-titled debut album is about to go gold and they've just kicked off a cross-country tour with Alien Ant Farm. The band is happy with their success, and they often celebrate by marking a special occasion with ... tattoos.

So CNN met lead singer Mark Chavez, guitarist Tim Fluckey, drummer Kris Kohls and bassist Dave DeRoo (guitarist Mike Ransom was out sick) at East Side Ink -- a tattoo parlor in New York City.

Amidst the buzz of the tattoo needle, the band of boys told why their passion for illustrated art matches their passion for the music.

CNN: Do you have to have a tattoo to be in the band?

KRIS KOHLS: (laughs) Actually you do.

CNN: Is it connected to your image? Does it matter if you all have tattoos?

KOHLS: I think it's just something that we like. We're interested in tattoos and we like the way they look. You don't have to have a tattoo to be in the band -- it just happens that we all do.

CNN: Is this a make-or-break time [for the band]?

TIM FLUCKEY: I think, I don't know. I mean there is a make-or-break time in anybody's career but I think (if) you're putting albums out, it's always kind of make-or-break at the moment but I think you go out there and it's more of a long-term thing. It's not just one thing that happens.

MARK CHAVEZ: We've had pretty good radio and stuff like that but I think most of our success comes from hitting the streets and being with the kids. That establishes your fan base (so) that you will remain having success in the music.

CNN: What about the six degrees of Jonathan Davis [lead singer of Korn; Mark Chavez is his half-brother]?

CHAVEZ: That's a fact that's been well publicized. When we were getting our record deal, people didn't know about it cause we're half-brothers and don't have the same last name. People started digging and finding out about stuff and that kind of came out, but it's just a family tie. We're separate from that band. They have their own record label and their own side of things and we're doing it out here on our side of things.

CNN: When they put you in the category of "nu-metal," do you just hate that? Is that fitting? What do you say about your music?

CHAVEZ: I just say it's rock music. I don't know why they call it nu-metal. I mean metal's always been around -- there's always gonna be kids in garages rocking out playing metal songs so I don't think metal ever went away. I think that we're just a straightforward rock band.

DAVE DEROO: It doesn't really matter what you call the music anyway, at the end of the day. It's all about the songs and if you enjoy the music or not.

CNN: "Giving In" is a very personal song for you [Mark Chavez]. Was that you coming clean about addictions of your own?

CHAVEZ: Yeah. I wrote the lyrics very broad because it could be anything... For me it was booze. I was really bored, I was in this cabin trying to write all these lyrics and stuff and I was getting wasted all the time which was stupid. It was that time in my life and I think everyone has a secret or something that they want to leave behind but they gave into it.

The song's positive, though. It's just saying it's okay to screw up because you're human and just check yourself -- make sure you're gonna be all right.

CNN: Mark, you've said that you want to put the show back in the rock show.

CHAVEZ: I just think that a lot of acts in the last few years are using all this stuff like fire and all these lights and all this crap. With us, we go out there and kids love our stuff because they can see that we feel it, and they're enticed to Adema because of what's going on the stage. We're moving around and we rock it.

CNN: Not to minimize how hard you guys have worked, but has it been relatively easy to get where you are?

CHAVEZ: I would say that the stuff that we've been through has been challenging, but at the same time, I feel like totally blessed by God that things have happened so fast. You know, 99 percent of bands that even get signed don't see 100,000 records sold. To get where we're getting -- we're not like blowing up huge out of the water and stuff but at this pace, this is fine.

DEROO: Everyday that I get to do this and be on the road and not have a real job is a blessing (laughs)