Limp Bizkit: looking back at the band’s Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water 25 years later

Limp Bizkit are set to tour the UK later this year as part of their Loserville world tour—making it the perfect time to revisit one of their most iconic albums, now celebrating its 25th anniversary.

For those of us who, in our teenage years, rocked baggy jeans, wallet chains, oversized hoodies featuring our favourite metal acts, and sometimes even eyebrow piercings, Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water has officially hit a quarter-century. That should make you (and me) feel especially old.

Released on October 17, 2000, the follow-up to Significant Other arrived at the peak of Bizkit-mania, with Fred Durst dominating music television and rock magazines. Yet, the album’s release came at a time when Limp Bizkit were often seen as a potential threat to society’s moral fabric.

Controversies leading up to its release, combined with what many saw as an oversaturation of Durst, led some fans to declare that the band had sold out, distancing themselves from the more ‘art-metal’ sound of their debut album, Three Dollar Bill, Y’all.

Let’s take a step back to a time when Limp Bizkit were, by all accounts, the biggest nu-metal band on the planet—exploring the controversies that made Fred Durst nearly public enemy number one.

Breakthrough success and infamy post Significant Other

If the band’s second album, Significant Other, made them a household name, then Chocolate Starfish catapulted them into the biggest band on earth territory. As nu-metal was the genre du jour at that point in time, the band became perhaps the leading light of the movement.

Your parents knew who Limp Bizkit were after Take A Look Around, right?

The rise of Limp Bizkit and nu-metal came at a time when MTV was viewed as heavily saturated by pop acts such as NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera which some metal fans, as shown on the HBO documentary Woodstock 99: Peace, Love, and Rage, took exception to.

Fred Durst, the band’s charismatic frontman, became a constant on MTV and in magazines as the media's favourite controversial figure, effortlessly transitioning from rock star to celebrity with his brash attitude and in-your-face persona made him a media staple, often landing him in the headlines for reasons both musical and personal.

But there was a distinct moral panic around the band even before Chocolate Starfish’s release - the now infamous Woodstock '99 performance in July of that year is considered one of the best examples of a music festival gone wrong.

The event ended in riots and fires and the main culprit everyone pointed the finger at was Limp Bizkit; Fred Durst and the band's music, including the incredibly popular Break Stuff from Significant Other, was blamed for inciting the chaos - an allegation that Durst has repeatedly rejected.

By the time Chocolate Starfish was released, Limp Bizkit had already cultivated a loyal fanbase, but their transition into mainstream success came with a hefty dose of controversy. For better or worse, Fred Durst had become the centre of attention, and the centre of nu-metals controversial moments.

Back into the studio - recording Chocolate Starfish

After the immense success of Significant Other, Limp Bizkit quickly aimed to capitalize on their mainstream fame by diving straight into their next album.

Initially, the band brought in the legendary Rick Rubin to produce the record, hoping to capture a fresh, exciting sound. However, creative differences led to Rubin's departure after only a week, leaving Terry Date, who had previously worked with the band on Three Dollar Bill, Y’all, to take over the production duties.

Despite their success, the band faced challenges entering the studio with little prepared material. Fred Durst and guitarist Wes Borland later admitted that they lacked a clear direction, with Borland famously stating they had "17,000 methods" and used "all of them."

The creative process became even more complicated as the band was simultaneously headlining Napster's Back-To-Basics tour, stretching their time between touring and recording.

The band's original working title for the album was Limpdependence Day, a reference to their newfound mainstream success, but the delay in recording and the missed July 4 release date led to the title being discarded.

Before the album was even finished, Limp Bizkit released Take a Look Around as part of the Mission: Impossible 2 soundtrack in May 2000. The track's success helped build anticipation for the full album, though it would still be several months before Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water would be released.

Take A Look Around performed very well in the UK charts, reaching number 5 on the UK Singles Chart in 2000, marking a significant chart success for the band in the UK market. This high chart placement, combined with the song's association with the Mission: Impossible 2 soundtrack, helped boost Limp Bizkit’s profile in the UK and beyond.

As a result of its success, the band made an appearance on Top of the Pops - a major platform for promoting popular singles at the time, and their performance on the show further solidified their presence in mainstream music, especially in the UK, where they were gaining a significant following

By August 2000, despite the delays and challenges, Limp Bizkit had most of the album’s tracks completed. One of the first glimpses of the new material came at the MTV Video Music Awards, where the band debuted Livin’ It Up in a highly-publicized duet performance with Christina Aguilera, further building excitement for the eventual album release.

Some questioned why Fred Durst, who at this point was helping lead the charge against the dominance of pop acts on MTV, would perform with Christina Aguilera. Durst humorously responded that he did it “for the nookie,” a reference to his infamous song, Nookie.

Aguilera, however, denied any romantic connection, but that didn’t stop Eminem making a reference to the rumours on his hit single The Real Slim Shady.

My Generation, Rollin’ and anti-Durst sentiments

By late 2000, Limp Bizkit had firmly established themselves as the face of nu-metal with Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water. The album's singles, starting with My Generation and Rollin’ became instant classics from the band, with Rollin’ eliciting a second appearance from the band on Top Of The Pops after it hit the top spot on the UK singles chart.

The accompanying music videos only added fuel to the band’s rising profile. Rollin’ showcased a larger-than-life confidence that bordered on caricature for some and for fans, this over-the-top energy was exactly what they loved about Limp Bizkit. Fred Durst’s swagger and unapologetic attitude made him a magnetic frontman—but also a polarizing figure.

You see, not everyone embraced the band’s growing dominance; critics and some former fans viewed the singles as emblematic of the excesses of nu-metal, accusing the band of prioritizing commercial success over musical integrity.

James “Munky” Shaffer, the guitarist of Korn, apologized for helping Limp Bizkit find success. In an interview, Munky humorously expressed regret over introducing Fred Durst and Limp Bizkit to Korn's manager at the time, which ultimately helped the band get their big break.

While his comments were likely tongue-in-cheek, they reflected the mixed feelings some within the rock and metal community had about Limp Bizkit's meteoric rise and polarizing reputation.

Durst, already a controversial figure due to incidents like Woodstock ‘99, became the focal point for this backlash. From his feud with Slipknot’s Corey Taylor to the infamous Christina Aguilera VMAs performance, Durst’s behaviour and frequent media appearances painted him as a lightning rod for controversy.

Compounding this was a growing divide within Limp Bizkit’s fanbase. Hardcore followers of the band’s earlier, grittier sound on Three Dollar Bill, Y’all began to accuse Durst of "selling out" by leaning into a more mainstream aesthetic. The reception to Chocolate Starfish marked a critical turning point—not just for the band’s popularity, but for Durst’s public perception as both a rock icon and an easy target for scorn.

But things would come to a head in 2001, and Fred Durst found himself public enemy number one after a tragic event at the Big Day Out festival in Australia.

Big Day Out 2001 - a dark moment for Limp Bizkit

As part of Limp Bizkit’s tour cycle for the album, the group performed at Australia’s Big Day Out festival in 2001, a touring festival that arrived in Sydney on January 26 2001.

Earlier in the day, tensions around crowd safety were already evident. Post-hardcore band At the Drive-In, performing on the same stage before Limp Bizkit, openly criticised the intense moshing and crowd-surfing, with frontman Cedric Bixler-Zavala admonishing the audience for what he viewed as reckless behaviour.

Despite the warnings, the atmosphere intensified during Limp Bizkit's set, particularly when they began playing ‘My Generation.’

A dangerous crowd surge occurred at the front of the stage, leading to medical personnel halting the performance as they attempted to rescue those injured. Fred Durst addressed the crowd during the break, urging them to calm down.

After a 15-minute pause, the band continued with a few more songs, including Take A Look Around and Break Stuff. However, the chaotic energy persisted, and another intermission was needed before they finished their set with Nookie.

Tragically, the performance and crowd surge led to the death of Jessica Anna Michalik, who suffered a fatal asphyxiation after being crushed in a mosh pit, Michalik succumbed to her injuries five days later with many accusing Fred Durst of intentionally whipping the crowd into a frenzy (echoing the criticisms the band faced after their Woodstock ‘99 performance) and doing nothing to alleviate the drama.

It was a moment in the history of Limp Bizkit and Fred Durst in particular that had an everlasting effect; speaking about the tragedy years later, guitarist Wes Borland attributed it to one of the reasons he would leave Limp Bizkit later in 2001, saying: “It was one of the reasons I left the band. It immediately brought this grief . . . it took the colour and the taste out of everything and I realised what we were doing could be incredibly dangerous."

Durst has continually denied any wrongdoing regarding the incident; at a 2002 hearing regarding the death, Durst testified that they had warned organisers prior to the crush that the festival's security measures were inadequate.

During the band’s performance at Soundwave Festival 2021 in Brisbane, Durst spoke regarding the incident to fans in attendance, stating he told organisers "there's too many people here, and there's no barricades. We ain't playing." Durst then claimed the band was forced on stage.

It has been a moment that has stuck with Durst in particular. At the same show, he paid tribute to Michalik saying "we lost a human being named Jessie. So as much as we're here to be with you tonight - which we really are - our feet on your ground, in your house, in Australia, right now today, on February 25, 2012 - is a tribute. A tribute to Jessica."

Is Chocolate Starfish and the Hotdog Flavored Water the most successful of Limp Bizkit's discography?

Without a doubt - the album album sold over 1 million copies in its first week in the United States, debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200. At the time, it held the record for the highest first-week sales by a rock band.

It went on to become certified 6× Platinum in the U.S. and achieved multi-Platinum status in several countries, including Canada and Australia. The album's massive success coincided with Limp Bizkit's peak cultural relevance, with tracks like Rollin' becoming synonymous with the early 2000s.

While subsequent albums, like Results May Vary (2003) and Gold Cobra (2011), had varying levels of success, none came close to matching the critical and commercial impact of Chocolate Starfish. It remains a defining moment for the band and a quintessential nu-metal album.

Limp Bizkit make their return to the United Kingdom as part of their Loserville tour, kicking dates off at the OVO Hydro in Glasgow on March 8 2025, Birmingham’s bp pulse live on March 13 2025, Manchester’s AO Arena on March 15 and London’s OVO Wembley Arena on March 16 2025. Tickets are still available now from Ticketmaster.