underoath

History

Early Years

Underoath formed in 1998 in then-vocalist Dallas Taylor's bedroom in Ocala, Florida. Their first two releases, Act of Depression (1999) and Cries of the Past (2000), showcased the band's original sound. On these first albums, Underoath's sound was much different from its sound when it achieved wide popularity a few years later, partly due to the fact that there is only one original member still left in Underoath (Aaron Gillespie). He has been featured on all five Underoath recordings to date but Scott Nunn had a short run on the drums with Underoath prior to the release of Act of Depression. The band members were mostly still in high school at that time, and more notably, the band's music leaned more toward grindcore and melodic death metal, with songs that averaged around eight minutes in length. Both albums are currently out of print.

Cries of the Past marked a turning point in Underoath's sound. Prior to the release of the record, keyboardist Chris Dudley joined the band, and after its release, guitarist Corey Steger left the band. He and Dallas Taylor had been credited with giving the band its signature and principle sound. Dudley's presence, on the other hand, solidified the use of electronic elements in the band's music.

The band went on to work with James Paul Wisner (Dashboard Confessional, New Found Glory) in recording their first Solid State Records-released album, The Changing of Times. Released on February 26, 2002 the album produced one single, "When the Sun Sleeps". The loss and addition of different members led the album to adopt a different sound with shorter songs and more melodic/chorus-oriented song structures. Though the change in style caused some long-time fans of the band to criticize the album, The Changing of Times went on to easily outsell both of their previous albums combined.

Following the release of the album, the band joined the Vans Warped Tour in 2003. However, during the tour, the band had a falling-out with Dallas Taylor and asked him to leave the band; Underoath decided to drop off of the remaining dates of the tour. The future of the band was in considerable doubt, but in October of 2003, at the CMJ Fest in New York City, Underoath debuted their current vocalist Spencer Chamberlain of the hardcore band This Runs Through.

They're Only Chasing Safety

During the early months of 2004, the band hit the studio again with Wisner to record their first album with Chamberlain and their second record for Solid State. They're Only Chasing Safety proved to be a breakout success for the band, going on to sell about 350,000 copies. On this record, Underoath moved even further away from their metal roots; drummer Gillespie arguably made as much of an impact with his singing on the record as Chamberlain did with his screaming. "Reinventing Your Exit",and "It's Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door" were chosen as singles for the album; both songs spawned music videos that received airplay on MTV2 and Fuse.

Following the release of the album, the band played a number of Warped Tour dates. In the Spring of 2005 the band was asked to participate on the inaugural Taste of Chaos tour. Shortly after the tour, the band embarked on its first headlining tour. The band premiered two brand-new songs during the length of the tour.

In October 2005, They're Only Chasing Safety was re-released in a two-disc set with four unreleased songs, new artwork, and a DVD with over two hours worth of footage of the band touring in support of the album.

Define the Great Line

Underoath entered the studio in January 2006 to record their fifth album. Matt Goldman, a founding member of Blue Man Group, and Adam Dutkiewicz, guitarist for Killswitch Engage, worked with the band in producing the album, which would come to be titled Define the Great Line. The album combined the intricate melodies of Chasing Safety with a partial return to the band's metalcore roots.

An unmastered version of the album was leaked onto BitTorrent websites and P2P services months before the release date. Members of the band released a statement saying that the leaked version was an unfinished, unmastered, raw copy of the album and the finished product would sound much different.

The band flew to Sweden in the spring of 2006 to make videos for the new songs "In Regards to Myself" and "Writing on the Walls"; the latter was chosen as the lead single for the album. When Define the Great Line released on June 20, 2006, it sold 98,000 copies in its first week and debuted on the Billboard 200 Chart at #2 ^[2], the highest debut for a Christian album since 1997 ^[3]. In its first four weeks on the chart, it stayed in the top 50. It debuted at #1 on the Christian, Christian/Gospel, and Rock charts.

Departure from Warped Tour and alleged NOFX controversy

Underoath was scheduled to spend the summer of 2006 on the main stage of the Warped Tour, but on July 28, 2006, it was announced that Underoath was dropping off the remaining dates of the tour. A statement from the band claimed that the members "felt it necessary to take some immediate time to focus on our friendship, as that’s more important than risking it for the sake of touring at this time."^[4]. Rumors that the band had actually left because NOFX frontman Michael "Fat Mike" Burkett was making fun of Underoath and their religious beliefs onstage were debunked when Burkett told PunkNews.org in a statement of his own that Underoath's claim of needing a break was indeed true.^[5] Burkett did admit to poking fun at the band and criticizing their stance on gay marriage, but emphasised that he befriended Underoath's band members at the start of the tour, had very civilized conversations with various members right up to the band's departure, that he had a personal policy of not making jokes onstage about anyone he wasn't friends with or didn't like personally, and that there were never any hard feelings between himself and Underoath's band members.^[5] Burkett also revealed on the August 2006 Fat Wreck Chords Podcast that internal troubles amongst the members of Underoath started after Spencer Chamberlin had indulged in a couple of cans of Bud Light with Burkett backstage a few nights prior to Underoath's sudden departure.^[6]

In an Alternative Press cover story on Underoath, Burkett told the magazine that Spencer Chamberlin had confided in him that Underoath's band members had been "having a lot of arguments over their religious beliefs."^[7]. In a sidebar of the same article, Burkett stated that he was "not calling Underoath homophobic, but they're against gay people having the same rights that straight people do. I find that to be bigoted."^[8] Tim McTague admitted that "90 percent of what [Fat Mike] believes in and thinks is wrong about our country and our government, I agree with... [my] opinion doesn't align with the conservative church or the extreme leftist liberal side, either."^[8]

Multiple rumors have flown around by word of mouth and through the internet of Underoath breaking up, members leaving, and rehab stories. Underoath's Official MySpace site recently set the rumors straight with the following message: "Don't believe the rumors, Underoath did not break up, no one has been kicked out or quit or in rehab or any other silly places people are talking about. The dudes are getting ready to do their Canadian tour and then Taste of Chaos international and then will do a headline tour in the US after that."

Members

• Spencer Chamberlain - Vocals
• Aaron Gillespie - Drums, Vocals
• Timothy McTague - Guitar
• James Smith - Guitar
• Grant Brandell - Bass
• Christopher Dudley - Keyboards

Former members

• Dallas Taylor - Vocals
• Corey Steger - Guitar
• Matthew Clark - Bass
• Octavio Fernandez - Bass/guitar
• Billy Nottke - Bass
• Scott Nunn - Drums

Discography

Videography

The Changing of Times

"When the Sun Sleeps" (2002)

They're Only Chasing Safety

"Reinventing Your Exit" (2004)
"It's Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door" (2005)

Define The Great Line

"Writing On The Walls" (2006)
"In Regards To Myself" (2006)

References and footnotes

External links

• Official Web site
• Define The Great Line mini-site
• They're Only Chasing Safety mini-site
• MySpace Profile
• purevolume Profile
• Interview With Tim And Chris
• Interview With Tim
• Underoath on YouTube
• Underoath lyrics
• allmusic Underoath Biography
• MTV Music Underoath - Artist area
• Interview with Underoath
• CD Reviews for Underoath at Sputnikmusic
• Unofficial Fan Site