''Constellations'' is the third studio album by American

metalcore Metalcore (also known as metallic hardcore) is a fusion music genre that combines elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. As with other styles blending metal and hardcore, such as crust punk and grindcore, metalcore is noted for its use of ...

band August Burns Red. It was released on July 14, 2009, through Solid State Records and was produced by Jason Suecof.

Composition

Influences, style and themes

The song "Indonesia", which features guest vocals from

Tommy Giles Rogers Tommy Giles Rogers (born December 30, 1980 in Morganton, North Carolina) is an American musician, most notable for being the lead vocalist, keyboardist and lyricist of the American progressive metal band Between the Buried and Me, which he co-fo ...

of Between the Buried and Me, was made as a tribute to David Clapper, a missionary who died in a plane crash in Indonesia. He lived in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the city in which August Burns Red began. Some tracks from the album are featured in the rhythm game, '' Rock Band 2'', via the

Rock Band Network The ''Rock Band'' Network (abbreviated RBN) was a downloadable content service designed by Harmonix with the help of Microsoft to allow musical artists and record labels to make their music available as playable tracks for the ''Rock Band'' seri ...

Release and promotion

On the band's Myspace page, they released four singles from the album, "Thirty and Seven" and "Existence", with "Thirty and Seven" also available for download on the iTunes Store. "Ocean of Apathy", the third track from the then-upcoming album, was released on Monday June 29, 2009. "Meddler" was released on July 6, 2009 and was shown on the band's Myspace. On July 7, 2009, the band posted the entire album on their Myspace page. They then would sell the album days ahead of the release at the beginning of their tour with Enter Shikari, Iwrestledabearonce and Blessthefall, starting with the Recher Theatre in Towson, Maryland on July 10, 2009.

Commercial performance

The album was at No. 24 on the ''Billboard'' 200 with sales of 20,401 copies in its first week. The album also has a bonus 7-inch vinyl record, that contained an alternate version of "Indonesia" and a cover of the

NOFX NOFX () is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1983. Vocalist/bassist Fat Mike, guitarist Eric Melvin and drummer Erik Sandin are original founding and longest-serving members of the band, who have appeared on every ...

song, "Linoleum", as a special gift when pre-ordering through a select dealer. A second 7-inch vinyl, ''O Come, O Come, Emmanuel'', was released on November 10, 2009 by August Burns Red's former label, CI Records. The vinyl editions were limited to 1,000 colored discs, 400 of which were green, 400 of which were red, and 200 of which were split-colored red and green.

Accolades

In 2010, ''Constellations'' was nominated for a

Dove Award A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards are presented annually. Formerly held in Nashville, Tennessee, the Dove Awards ...

for Rock Album of the Year at the

41st GMA Dove Awards The 41st Annual GMA Dove Awards presentation was held on April 21, 2010 recognizing accomplishments of musicians for the year 2009. The show was held at The Opry Entertainment Complex in Nashville, Tennessee, and was hosted by Bart Millard. Nomin ...

.41st Annual GMA Dove Awards nominees announced
on The Tennessean (February 18, 2010)

Track listing

Personnel

August Burns Red * Jake Luhrs – lead vocals * J.B. Brubaker – lead guitar * Brent Rambler – rhythm guitar * Dustin Davidson – bass, backing vocals * Matt Greiner – drums, piano Additional musicians *

Tommy Giles Rogers Jr. Tommy Giles Rogers (born December 30, 1980 in Morganton, North Carolina) is an American musician, most notable for being the lead vocalist, keyboardist and lyricist of the American progressive metal band Between the Buried and Me, which he co-fo ...

of Between the Buried and Me – guest vocals on track 7, "Indonesia" Additional personnel * Jason Suecof – production, mixing * Devin Townsend – additional mixing * Troy Glessner – mastering * Ryan Clark of Invisible Creature – artwork *

Jonathan Dunn Jonathan Paul Dunn (born December 12, 1981) is a former American football offensive tackle. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the seventh round of the 2005 NFL Draft. He played college football at Virginia Tech. Dunn has also been a m ...

– A&R

References

{{Authority control August Burns Red albums 2009 albums Solid State Records albums