Acceptance is an American

pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti-suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other pu ...

band from

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, formed in 1998. They released their first EP, ''Lost for Words'', in 2000, followed by ''Black Lines to Battlefields'' in 2003 (this EP was also re-released with live bonus tracks). Their debut album, '' Phantoms'', was released in 2005. On January 26, 2015, it was announced that Acceptance had reunited. They released their first song in over ten years called "Take You Away" on May 8, 2015. A second studio album, titled ''Colliding by Design'', was released in 2017, followed by ''Wild, Free'' in 2020.

History

Early years, debut album and break-up (1998–2006)

The band toured nationally and shared stages with the likes of

The Juliana Theory The Juliana Theory is an American Rock music, rock duo from Greensburg, Pennsylvania, Greensburg and Latrobe, Pennsylvania, Latrobe, Pennsylvania, United States. They signed to Tooth & Nail Records, and later to Epic Records for the release of the ...

Anberlin Anberlin is an American alternative rock band formed in Winter Haven, Florida in 2002. Since the beginning of 2007, the band consists of lead vocalist Stephen Christian, guitarists Joseph Milligan and Christian McAlhaney, bassist Deon Rexroat, an ...

Finch The true finches are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. Finches have stout conical bills adapted for eating seeds and nuts and often have colourful plumage. They occupy a great range of habitats where they are usua ...

Further Seems Forever Further Seems Forever is an American rock band formed in 1998 in Pompano Beach, Florida. Over its initial eight-year run the band experienced several lineup changes, resulting in a different lead vocalist performing on each of their first three s ...

, and

Seether Seether are a South African rock band founded in 1999 in Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa. The band originally performed under the name Saron Gas until 2002, when they moved to the United States and changed it to Seether to avoid confusion wit ...

as well as performing successfully on the

Warped Tour The Warped Tour was a traveling rock tour that toured the United States plus three or four stops in Canada annually each summer from 1995 until 2019. It was the largest traveling music festival in the United States and the longest-running touring ...

and

Cornerstone Festival Cornerstone Festival was a Christian music festival put on by Jesus People USA and held annually around July 4 near Bushnell, Illinois, drawing some 20,000 attendees each year. In a given year, many artists that played at Cornerstone also playe ...

. When the band's debut record, '' Lost for Words'' came out on Seattle indie label, Rocketstar Records, and quickly approached the 5,000 sales mark, the industry at large began taking notice. When the band recorded a new 5-song demo with

Aaron Sprinkle Aaron Sprinkle (born March 20, 1974) is an American singer, songwriter and record producer from Seattle, Washington. Career His career in music began in high school with a group called BellBangVilla. BellBangVilla became Poor Old Lu and the ...

, this industry interest turned into serious courting by several major labels. After putting a professional management team in place to help determine the band's course of action, the band signed to Sony-owned Columbia Records, who then released the ''

Black Lines To Battlefields Acceptance is an American pop punk band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1998. They released their first EP, ''Lost for Words'', in 2000, followed by ''Black Lines to Battlefields'' in 2003 (this EP was also re-released with live bonus track ...

'' EP (produced by Aaron Sprinkle) through

The Militia Group The Militia Group is an independent record company based in Long Beach, California. History The Militia Group was founded in 1998 by Chad Pearson as a booking agency, booking for artists such as Slick Shoes, Craig's Brother, Dogwood, twothirtyei ...

who had been a long-time supporter of the band and was distributed through Sony-owned Red Distribution at the time. Acceptance later released their debut album ''Phantoms'' on Columbia Records in 2005, again produced by Aaron Sprinkle. The album was one of many included in the

Sony rootkit A scandal erupted in 2005 regarding Sony BMG's implementation of copy protection measures on about 22 million CDs. When inserted into a computer, the CDs installed one of two pieces of software that provided a form of digital rights management ...

controversy due to its inclusion of the

Extended Copy Protection Extended Copy Protection (XCP) is a computer software, software package developed by the British company First 4 Internet (which on 20 November 2006, changed its name to Fortium Technologies Ltd) and sold as a copy protection or digital rights man ...

software. On August 2, 2006, the band announced they were breaking up. Former guitarist Christian McAlhaney posted the following message on their site: At the time of the band's breakup, they had already written and demoed songs for a new album. As a "going away" for fans, the band posted for free download from thei
Myspace page
the demo for the previously unreleased track "Not Afraid".

Post-breakup (2006–2014)

Jason Vena was featured on the 2010 album "Vessels" by

Ivoryline Ivoryline is an American Christian rock band from Tyler, Texas, formerly signed to Tooth & Nail Records. History Ivoryline formed in 2003 under the name Dead End Driveway, releasing an EP and an album under this name before changing the name to ...

on the song "The Healing", marking it his first major appearance since the breakup. In 2012, he featured on the new album ''Don't Panic'' from

All Time Low All Time Low is an American rock band from Towson, Maryland, formed in 2003. Consisting of lead vocalist/rhythm guitarist Alex Gaskarth, lead guitarist Jack Barakat, bassist/backing vocalist Zack Merrick, and drummer Rian Dawson, the band too ...

on the song "Outlines". Kaylan Cloyd has joined Ryan Van Wieringen and Bobby Darling of

Gatsbys American Dream Gatsbys American Dream is an American indie rock band from Seattle, Washington. Since their founding in 2001, they have released four full-length albums and one EP. The band's self-titled fourth album, their second on Fearless Records, peaked a ...

to form

Search/Rescue Search/Rescue is a progressive rock band formed from the members of bands Gatsbys American Dream and Acceptance following their split-up. The band's debut album, titled ''The Compound'' Anberlin Anberlin is an American alternative rock band formed in Winter Haven, Florida in 2002. Since the beginning of 2007, the band consists of lead vocalist Stephen Christian, guitarists Joseph Milligan and Christian McAlhaney, bassist Deon Rexroat, an ...

until November 2014, when the band disbanded (though they have since reunited, and McAlhaney continues to play with them). Nick Radovanovic, Christian McAlhaney, and Kyle Flynn started a band calle
Thunder Thunder
with Jerrod Bettis. Their current status is unknown due to McAlhaney's commitment with Anberlin. Kyle Flynn currently resides in Los Angeles, CA and is working on a script with his brother Kevin Flynn for Warner Bros. Pictures. It has recently been announced that he will be touring with Anberlin. On May 30, 2009, Nick Radovanovic posted a remixed version of the song "So Contagious" on Acceptance's Myspace page. On Wednesday, September 23, 2009 Nick posted another demo the band had written before their breakup called "Desperate" and also a blog entitled "Hey guys, Nick here" inside the blog it said:

Just wanted to say hi to everyone and to let you know im throwing up an old acceptance demo we made a while ago titled "desperate". this was during our writing sessions for which was supposed to be our newest record. most of you know we never made it that far. again, this is just a rough demo so bear with the quality. hope you guys like it. take care everyone and thanks for all this support. nickrad

Reunion and ''Colliding by Design'' (2015–present)

On January 26, 2015, it was announced that Acceptance would be reuniting at Skate & Surf 2015 in Asbury Park, New Jersey. Since the announcement of their reunion, the band has released a brand new song entitled "Take You Away", making it their first single to be released since their 2006 breakup. On August 3, 2016 Acceptance announced they would be playing three Texas dates with

As Cities Burn As Cities Burn is an American post-hardcore band from Mandeville, Louisiana, that formed in 2002 and has released four studio albums. Their debut, ''Son, I Loved You at Your Darkest'', was released in 2005. Two years later, they released ''Come ...

& more on October 21 in Dallas at So What?! Music Fest in Deep Ellum, October 22 in Houston at Scout Bar, and October 23 in Austin at Dirty Dog Bar! On November 30, 2016, Christian McAlhaney was interviewed for TheTalkhouse, where he elaborated on the band's demise in 2006. Factors contributing to Acceptance's breakup included their debut album, '' Phantoms'', leaking 9 months early, being "strong-armed by

heir Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Officiall ...

label into releasing a ballad as 'Phantomsfirst single,"

spyware Spyware (a portmanteau for spying software) is software with malicious behaviour that aims to gather information about a person or organization and send it to another entity in a way that harms the user—for example, by violating their privac ...

being bundled with the album (as well as other releases by Columbia Records) and a lengthy court battle that resulted in ''Phantoms'' being permanently recalled. Acceptance have announced they are recording a second studio album, ''Colliding by Design'', which is scheduled for a February 2017 release. A track from the album, "Diagram of a Simple Man", was released early to fans who backed the album financially via Pledge Music. On January 26, an official lyric video for the song "Haunted" was released on the Rise Records YouTube channel. On May 17, 2019, Acceptance confirmed that they were working on and recording new material. On June 10, 2020, Acceptance announced their new ''Wild'' EP would be released on July 24. On June 18, they released the song "Cold Air". The band released their third album, ''Wild, Free'' on October 2, which included all tracks from the ''Wild'' EP.

Musical style

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

biographer Neil Z. Yeung described the band's sound as "catchy melodies, big choruses, and arena-sized singalongs, incorporating a harder rock edge into their sound," reminiscent of

Jimmy Eat World Jimmy Eat World is an American rock band formed in 1993 in Mesa, Arizona. The band is composed of lead vocalist and lead guitarist Jim Adkins, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Tom Linton, bassist Rick Burch, and drummer Zach Lind. They h ...

the Juliana Theory The Juliana Theory is an American Rock music, rock duo from Greensburg, Pennsylvania, Greensburg and Latrobe, Pennsylvania, Latrobe, Pennsylvania, United States. They signed to Tooth & Nail Records, and later to Epic Records for the release of the ...

, and

. ''Phantoms'' has been described as

fused with

alternative pop Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commercial ...

, pop,

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...

, and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

Band members

Current members * Jason Vena –

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

(1998–2006, 2015–present),

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

(2000–2006, 2015–present); bass (1998–2000) * Kaylan Cloyd –

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

(1998–2006, 2015–present) * Garrett Lunceford –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

percussions A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Excl ...

(2000–2003, 2015–present) * Christian McAlhaney –

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...

(2000–2006, 2015–present) * Ryan Zwiefelhofer – bass (2002–2006, 2015–present) Former members * Nick Radovanovic – drums, percussions (2003–2006, 2015 (reunion shows)) * Peter Pizzuto – drums, percussions (1998–2000) * Chris DeCastro – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (1998–2000) * Christopher Camp – bass (2000–2002) Touring musicians * Kyle Flynn – bass (2006); keyboards (2005–2006) ;Timeline

Discography

Studio albums *'' Phantoms'' (2005) *''Colliding by Design'' (2017) *''Wild, Free'' (2020)

References

External links

Official websiteAcceptance
at

Purevolume PureVolume (formerly Unborn Media) was a website for uploading and streaming of music files, the first independently run of its type. PureVolume was created by Unborn Media, Inc; Mitchell Pavao; Brett Woitunski; and Nate Hudson, all from the Univer ...

Chat with Jason Vena post-Acceptance
at AbsolutePunk.net {{DEFAULTSORT:Acceptance Musical groups established in 1998 Musical groups disestablished in 2006 Musical groups reestablished in 2015 Alternative rock groups from Washington (state) Pop punk groups from Washington (state) Emo musical groups Columbia Records artists Musical groups from Seattle 1998 establishments in Washington (state)