''New Again'' is the fourth studio album by American

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

Taking Back Sunday Taking Back Sunday is an American rock band from Long Island, New York. The band was formed by guitarist Eddie Reyes and bassist Jesse Lacey in 1999. The band's members currently are Adam Lazzara (lead vocals), John Nolan (lead guitar, keybo ...

. When guitarist

Fred Mascherino Frederick Paul Mascherino (born July 27, 1974) is an American musician best known for his work as lead guitarist and co-lead vocalist in alternative rock band Taking Back Sunday. He is currently active with the band The Color Fred, and also know ...

left the group after the

Projekt Revolution Projekt Revolution was a music festival hosted by Linkin Park, bringing artists of various genres of music together. Linkin Park started Projekt Revolution in the year 2002 with just one stage. Then, in 2004, they announced the Revolution Stage ( ...

tour ended in September 2007, band members took a break after years of touring. ''New Again'' was recorded in October and November 2008 at several studios in New York and California with

David Kahne David Kahne is an American record producer, musician, composer, and former record company executive. Professional career Kahne started his musical career as a working musician and soon became Director of A&R for America's first punk and new ...

and

Matt Squire Matt Squire (born May 7, 1976) is an American record producer, audio engineer, mixing engineer, and songwriter. His production, songwriting, and mixing credits include Underoath, Panic! at the Disco, Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato, Selena Gomez, Kesh ...

as producers. Matthew Fazzi of

Facing New York Facing New York is a three-piece progressive indie rock band from the Bay Area, California, formed in January 2004.Mason, StewartFacing New York Biography", Allmusic. Retrieved October 25, 2018 The band is signed to Nice Life Recording Company a ...

joined Taking Back Sunday in early 2008. He was praised by vocalist

Adam Lazzara Adam Burbank Lazzara (born September 22, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He is the lead vocalist of the rock band Taking Back Sunday. Along with singing lead vocals, Lazzara plays guitar and occasionally the harmonica. B ...

and the group's manager for incorporating new instruments into the group's sound. Guitarist Eddie Reyes called the album "one of the most aggressive records we've ever written". Towards the end of 2008, the group revealed the album's title, went on a US tour, and made "Carpathia" available for streaming. Following a European tour in April 2009, the title-track was released as a free download. Later in the month, "Carpathia" was released as a

Record Store Day Record Store Day is an annual event inaugurated in 2007 and held on one Saturday (typically the third) every April and every Black Friday in November to "celebrate the culture of the independently owned record store". The day brings together fa ...

release, and "

Sink into Me "Sink Into Me" is a song by the American rock band Taking Back Sunday. It was released as a single on April 27, 2009. The song impacted radio on April 28. The song is featured on the band's fourth album, ''New Again'', which was released on June ...

" was released as a single. After "Everything Must Go" was made available for streaming, the band toured the US in May and June. ''New Again'' was released on June 2 through

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

, with several editions of the album featuring bonus tracks and video content. Following the release of the title-track as a single in July, the group had a support slot on

Blink-182 Blink-182 (stylized as blink-182) is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Poway, California in 1992. Their current lineup consists of bassist/vocalist Mark Hoppus, guitarist/vocalist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker. Though their ...

's North American tour in August and September. The group embarked on a short US tour in October, followed by a co-headlining US tour with

The All-American Rejects The All-American Rejects is an American rock band from Stillwater, Oklahoma, formed in 1999.Soundwave festival in Australia in February and March 2010, Fazzi and Rubano left the group; in their place, former members John Nolan and

Shaun Cooper Shaun David Cooper (born 5 October 1983) is an English retired professional Association football, footballer. He is currently an assistant manager at club AFC Bournemouth. Career Cooper was a product of Portsmouth F.C., Portsmouth's youth sys ...

returned to the band. ''New Again'' sold 48,000 copies in its first week of release, charting at number 7 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

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. It also reached the top 10 on several other ''Billboard'' charts. The album also reached the top 40 in Canada and Australia. "Sink into Me" reached the top 40 on the

Alternative Songs Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...

and

Hot Rock Songs Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (formerly known as Rock Songs and Hot Rock Songs) is a record chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine. From its debut on June 20, 2009, through October 13, 2012, the chart ranked the airplay of songs across alternati ...

charts. ''New Again'' received a generally favorable response from critics, who praised the album's sound and Lazzara's vocals despite the latter's own dislike of the record. Subsequently, few songs have been performed live after the release of the band's fifth studio album, ''

''. "Everything Must Go,” “Catholic Knees,” and “Lonely, Lonely” have made rare appearances, with no other songs from the album being played.

Background

In June 2007, vocalist

said Taking Back Sunday were preparing to write the follow-up album to ''

Louder Now ''Louder Now'' is the third studio album by American rock band Taking Back Sunday. In April 2005, the group had begun writing material for the album. Two months later, they signed with Warner Bros. Records and contributed a song to the ''Fantasti ...

'' (2006). In July, bassist Matthew Rubano mentioned that the other members of the band were in the process of writing individually in separate locations: Rubano in Manhattan, Lazzara in Texas, guitarist

in Jersey, drummer Mark O'Connell on Long Island and guitarist Eddie Reyes in Ohio. From late July to early September, the band participated in the

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

tour. During the tour, they brought along a mobile recording studio and demoed material, and continued writing for their next album. Plans to do serious writing, as well as record their next album towards the end of the year, were in place. However, Mascherino left the band following the end of the tour. He said, "It was getting to the point where I felt I had taken the road as long as I possibly could," and his compositions were "more pop than anyone else

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wanted to go". In October, the group revealed that their next album was "in its very early stages". In December, Rubano said the group was in New York City working on new material, having already written six songs. Prior to demoing, O'Connell had to have back surgery, having injured it during the Projekt Revolution tour. During the demoing process, the group tried different drummers, but according to Rubano: "They just weren't Mark. Not enough ferocity, intensity." Following this, the band's members took time to refocus themselves after several years of constant touring. Lazzara sorted his life out following addiction issues, ending his engagement to Chauntelle DuPree of

Eisley Eisley is an American rock band from Tyler, Texas, originally consisting of siblings Sherri DuPree, Chauntelle DuPree, Stacy DuPree and Weston DuPree. Remaining recording/touring members are their sister Sherri DuPree-Bemis and their cousin Garro ...

. He subsequently moved to another town, got married, and had a child. O'Connell also got married, Reyes spent time with his family, and Rubano recorded music for the TV show '' Electric Company''. In May 2008, it was announced that guitarist Matthew Fazzi, formerly of

, had joined the band. Reyes, who had met Fazzi during Facing New York's stint on the 2004

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 ...

, asked him by text whether he wanted to audition for Taking Back Sunday. In a statement, the group called Fazzi "talented and versed in many musical instruments", mentioning that he would be "bring nghis unique talent and style to the mix". Rubano was uneasy with Fazzi initially: "He was this very nice, very talented, ambitious, happy guy, and I was like, 'This guy isn't going to last with us, this guy's the wrong fit.'" Around this time, Fazzi and Rubano visited Lazzara in Texas; accompanied by acoustic guitars and a bass, the trio practiced in Lazzara's living room. Here, the trio wrote "New Again" which helped "catapult the energy for the beginning of writing 'New Again''forward," according to Rubano. During an appearance at the

Virgin Mobile Festival The Virgin Fest, known as the Virgin Mobile FreeFest in the United States, was a rock festival held in the United States and Canada, a spin-off from the V Festival held in the UK. In North America the Virgin name, and more recently the Virgin Mo ...

August 2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...

, ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'' reported that the band was on the brink of entering a recording studio.

Production

In September 2008, the band began recording a new album aiming to release it in early 2009. They initially wanted

Eric Valentine Eric Dodd, known professionally as Eric Valentine, is an American record producer who began his career as drummer and producer in the heavy metal band T-Ride. He subsequently produced albums for artists such as Good Charlotte, Lostprophets, Tak ...

as a producer, but according to Lazzara, "the timing didn't work".

produced the sessions and engineered the overdubs. He aimed to capture the "power and scope" of the band's live performances. The group worked with Kahne because of Fazzi. According to Lazzara, when the band learned he produced

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

's ''

Memory Almost Full ''Memory Almost Full'' is the fourteenth solo studio album by English musician Paul McCartney. It was released in the United Kingdom on 4 June 2007 and in the United States a day later. The album was the first release on Starbucks' Hear Music la ...

'' (2007) album, they said, "let's go work with him". Evil Joe Barresi engineered the tracking, with additional production and engineering performed by Jamie Siegel. Recording was done at

Avatar Studios Power Station at BerkleeNYC, formerly known as Avatar Studios (1996–2017) and Power Station, is a recording studio at 441 West 53rd Street between Ninth and Tenth avenues in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood in Manhattan, New York City. The bui ...

, with Justin Gerrish, and at See Squared Studios in New York City. The majority of the album was recorded in five days. Additional recording took place at J-Rock Studios in New York City, with Anthony Lenoci. "Sink into Me" was recorded at J-Rock Studios, as well as

NRG Studios NRG Recording Studios is a recording facility located in North Hollywood, California, that was created by producer and mixer Jay Baumgardner in 1992. Facilities The facility consists of three studio consoles: *Studio A console: custom vintage ...

in North Hollywood, California, and The Village in Los Angeles, California. "Where My Mouth Is" was produced by

with engineer Bill Appleberry. It was recorded at NRG Studios, with assistance from Casey Lewis, and at The Village, with help from Jared Nugent. Squire also provided additional production and engineering on "Sink into Me". On October 24, the band mentioned that they had nearly finishing recording the album and would start the mixing process shortly afterwards. On November 6, the band announced they were "still putting the finshing touches on the album". The recordings were mixed by

Tom Lord-Alge Tom Lord-Alge (born January 17, 1963) is an American music engineer and mixer. He began his career at The Hit Factory in New York. Subsequently, he was the resident mixer at what used to be known as "South Beach Studios", located on the ground f ...

with Fernio Hernandez at South Beach Studios in Miami, Florida.

Ted Jensen Ted Jensen (born September 19, 1954) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered many recordings, including the Eagles' ''Hotel California'', Green Day's '' American Idiot'' and Norah Jones' ''Come Away with Me''. Biography Ted ...

mastered the recordings at Sterling Sound in New York City. In retrospect, Lazzara called Kahne "a good producer," but didn't think he was "the right fit" for the group. He added that what the group aimed to accomplish was "just different than what he had envisioned both sonically and with all of that stuff". Reyes said he was "pre-warned about working with him and I didn't listen to that. ... It was kind of very blank. I think I put my guitar tracks on and then I flew back home and that was it."

Music and lyrics

Overview

An early title for the album was ''When All Is Said and Done More Is Said Than Done'', suggested by Fazzi. The group liked it, however, Fazzi said it was "way too long to fit on a side of a CD". According to Lazzara, the album was given the title ''New Again'' because "that's what it feels like. We are in a totally different band, just because there has been this new life breathed into the band with the addition of Matt ew Fazzi" The album was written in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Here, Rubano said the group "stuck out on the street because we were so loud". For the album, the band embraced the concept that "it's up to us to decide what Taking Back Sunday sounds like. We always want to be redefining what that means, and there's stuff on this record I think in the past we would have stayed away from", according to Rubano. Fazzi said the group wanted to "put a new foot forward ... to show people that we're expanding the music". He noted that the song structures and chord patterns were "just a bit stronger and smarter". According to Lazzara, Fazzi was a major contributor in writing ''New Again''. The band was, "Experimenting ...

ith The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is immediatel ...

a lot of different instruments, horns, glockenspiels, there's a flautist on the record. And it's stuff we never would've tried before." Jillian Newman, the group's manager, also mentioned Fazzi's influence: " azzibrought a really positive, happy energy to the band. A lot of the walls came down during writing. He allowed everybody to try new things." They were able to do three-part vocal harmonies as Rubano was beginning to sing in the band. With ''New Again'', Lazzara considered his lyrics to be "a lot more forward," compared those on earlier songs. Reyes called the album "one of the most aggressive records we've ever written". The album's sound has been described as

alternative rock 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 Popular culture, mainstre ...

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 ...

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

post-hardcore Post-hardcore is a punk rock music genre that maintains the aggression and intensity of hardcore punk but emphasizes a greater degree of creative expression. It was initially inspired by post-punk and noise rock. Like post-punk, the term has been ...

, shifting away from the

emo Emo is a rock music genre characterized by emotional, often confessional lyrics. It emerged as a style of and hardcore punk from the Washington D.C. hardcore punk scene, where it was known as emotional hardcore or emocore and pioneered b ...

sound of their earlier work.

Songs

Rubano had a

bassline Bassline (also known as a bass line or bass part) is the term used in many styles of music, such as blues, jazz, funk, Dub music, dub and electronic music, electronic, traditional music, traditional, or classical music for the low-pitched Part ( ...

that, within an hour of playing it, became the track "New Again." After writing it, Fazzi said it was a "no-brainer for an opener". O'Connell called it "powerful" and said it "sets the mood" for the album. One day during rehearsals, Fazzi played a guitar riff, then O'Connell played along, resulting in "Sink into Me." The song begins with cheerleader-esque "hey!"s that Fazzi came up with, as well as handclaps. Lazzara referred to it as a "freight train. ... if you were to stand in front of it, you would get pummeled". Lazzara also mentioned that the music to it was "unlike anything we've ever done before. It's real yupbeat." For "Lonely, Lonely," Lazzara said it was the "first time that we just turned it up to ten and went with it". With this song, Fazzi said the group wanted something "short, to the point and just punishing from start to finish". The song's bridge had been suggested by Fazzi during his audition for the band. Rubano said the track was "a freight train of rock & roll" and was inspired by

Queens of the Stone Age Queens of the Stone Age (commonly abbreviated QOTSA) is an American rock band formed in 1996 in Palm Desert, California. The band was founded by vocalist and guitarist Josh Homme, who has been the only constant member throughout multiple line- ...

. "Summer, Man" was one of the first songs written for ''New Again''. It was composed during the Projekt Revolution tour, and consisted originally of a bridge guitar riff by Reyes. Rubano said it was the band's take on a

Beach Boys A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shell ...

-esque song, and has been compared to a mix of

Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backing v ...

and

Bush Bush commonly refers to: * Shrub, a small or medium woody plant Bush, Bushes, or the bush may also refer to: People * Bush (surname), including any of several people with that name **Bush family, a prominent American family that includes: *** ...

with its

power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and ch ...

chorus sections. O'Connell came up with "Swing," a song that Rubano said "speaks to what the sound of the band is right now". The

power ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner.J. M. C ...

"Where My Mouth Is" was the last song recorded for ''New Again''. According to Lazzara, the lyrics were "the most blatant that I've ever been in a song". The demo for the song was originally acoustic with an organ, mostly instrumental, and ran for 6–7 minutes. Fazzi praised the track, as did Rubano. The song subsequently went through various arrangement changes. The riff for "Cut Me Up Jenny" came from Lazzara: "I was so bored and so lazy, I picked up the guitar and then the imics intro guitar riff That's where it came from and we made a song out of it." Lazzara described it as "a little choppy" with "a nice groove to it". Fazzi said the track has a "crazy 80s vibe, it's a very different song for Taking Back Sunday", while Rubano said it contained hints of

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

and

Bloc Party Bloc Party are an English Rock music, rock band, composed of Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, sampler), Russell Lissack (lead guitar, keyboards), Justin Harris (bass guitar, keyboards, saxophones, backing vocals) and Loui ...

. When "Catholic Knees" existed as a rough idea, Fazzi suggested that the group change the

time signature The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...

to . Lazzara cited it as an example of Fazzi's influence on the band: "Cause none of us would have thought to hange the time signature" Reyes compared the track to Queens of the Stone Age and

Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) re ...

; the bridge section recalled

Glassjaw Glassjaw is an American post-hardcore band from Hempstead, New York. The band is fronted by vocalist Daryl Palumbo and guitarist Justin Beck, and was a major part of the Long Island music scene in the early 2000s. The band has been influential i ...

. Rubano came up with the main riff for "Capital M-E," which Lazzara called "too easy" after hearing it for the first time, "like it needs something else". Rubano was adamant, saying "work on it, we'll figure it out". While Reyes compared it to Weezer, Rubano compared it to early Taking Back Sunday, in the sense that "it's a very simple song and about the energy you put behind it". Lyrically, it was inspired by a comment Mascherino made during an interview after leaving the band: " aking Back Sunday wasmore about cooking food than making music." Lazzara said, "it would probably be the first and last time that I'll go in-depth about that subject". "Carpathia" was named after the ship RMS ''Carpathia'', which was the first ship to hear a distress call from the RMS ''Titanic''. With the lyrics, Lazzara said he tried to be "really obvious with it". The track features a bass solo, which was originally suggested by Fazzi and Lazzara. "Everything Must Go" details the split between Lazzara and DuPree. The title originally appeared as a lyric in an early draft of the song. Lazzara called "Didn't See That Coming" "really slow and almost haunting". He said it was a prequel to "Cut Me Up Jenny."

Release and promotion

Taking Back Sunday @ Steel Blue Oval (1 3 2010) (4416914324)

In November 2008, the band revealed the name of their next album: ''New Again''. Later that month, the band performed a few shows with

The (International) Noise Conspiracy The (International) Noise Conspiracy (abbreviated T(I)NC) were a Swedish rock music, rock band formed in Sweden in the late months of 1998. The line-up consists of Dennis Lyxzén (vocals), Inge Johansson (bass), Lars Strömberg (guitar), and Lud ...

in the US. In December, the group went on a tour of the US with Envy on the Coast dubbed Hurray Tour!. On every night of the tour, local acts were added to the lineup. In addition, fans could purchase holiday cards on the tour. The cards contained a code that, upon being entered on a website, would allow them to download "Carpathia". On December 21, "Carpathia" was made available for streaming on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

. In addition, it was mentioned that ''New Again'' was expected to be released in spring. On March 14, the album's artwork was revealed. In addition, fans could hear snippets of new tracks on the group's website. Three days later, ''New Again'' was announced for release. On April 8, the band posted a clip of "Sink into Me" online. Following an appearance at

Bamboozle Left The Bamboozle Left was an annual two-day music festival held in California from 2006 to 2009, based on The Bamboozle festival on the Atlantic coast. 2006 The 2006 festival was held at the Cal Poly Pomona Athletic Field in Pomona, CA, on October 15 ...

in April, the band went on a tour of Europe with

Underoath Underoath (stylized as Underøath or UnderOath) is an American rock band from Tampa, Florida. It was founded by lead vocalist Dallas Taylor and guitarist Luke Morton on November 30, 1997, in Ocala, Florida; subsequently, its additional member ...

, Emery and

Innerpartysystem Innerpartysystem (often stylized as InnerPartySystem) is an American electronic rock band. The group consists of Patrick Nissley, Jared Piccone and Kris Barman. The band is well known for their live performance lighting largely by Andrew Nissle ...

as part of the Give it a Name festival. On April 17, the album's track listing was revealed, and "New Again" was released as a free download. The band released a 7" vinyl single of "Carpathia," with a live version of "Catholic Knees" as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

, on April 18 as part of

. On April 19, "Sink into Me" was made available for streaming, and released via the

iTunes Store The iTunes Store is a digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It opened on April 28, 2003, as a result of Steve Jobs' push to open a digital marketplace for music. As of April 2020, iTunes offered 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,00 ...

on April 24. "Catholic Knees (26th St. Shakedown)" served as the single's B-side. The music video for "Sink into Me", which had been filmed in New York with director Travis Kopach in early April, premiered on May 13 on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

. It features the band covered in black goo, a reference to ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...

'' black oil, sinking into a stage. The following day, Rubano revealed that "an entirely acoustic reinterpretation" of ''New Again'' was in the works. On May 19, "Everything Must Go" was made available for streaming on the band's Myspace profile. Following an appearance at the

Bamboozle Festival The Bamboozle is an annual three-day music festival which was held in New Jersey from 2003 to 2012, and is scheduled for a 2023 revival by its founder. Every year, new bands competed for spots during the two days. The event evolved out of the ...

, the band toured the US in May and June with

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 ...

and Envy on the Coast. With every two tickets purchased for the tour, fans received a digital download copy of ''New Again''. ''New Again'' was made available for streaming via the band's Myspace account on May 28, and released on June 2 through major label

. People who pre-ordered the limited version of the album received two extra songs: "Didn't See That Coming" and "Catholic Knees (26th St. Shakedown)." A deluxe edition included a DVD with a making-of feature of the recording process, as well as a track-by-track commentary by the band. The iTunes edition included "Long Time Comin'" and the music video for "Sink into Me" as bonus tracks. In promoting the album, Warner Bros. Senior Vice-President of Marketing Rob Gordon said the promotional campaign would accomplish two objectives: "No. 1 is energizing the fan base. No. 2 is taking this band from the world of ... whatever you want to call it to an arena-rock band," such as the

. To help with the first point, the label worked with Myspace to hold listening sessions aboard the band's tour bus in various cities. The album's release was followed by a European tour in July. "New Again" was released as a single on July 24 with an acoustic version of "Sink into Me" as the B-side. In late July and early August, the band toured the UK with support from

Twin Atlantic Twin Atlantic are a Scottish alternative rock band from Glasgow, Scotland. The group currently consists of Sam McTrusty (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Ross McNae (bass) and Joe Lazarus (drums). Lead guitarist Barry McKenna departed from the b ...

. In August and September, the band supported

on their North American tour and performed at Virgin Mobile FreeFest. "Where My Mouth Is" was released to radio on September 1. In late October, the band went on a brief tour of the US. In November and December, the band co-headlined a US tour with

The All-American Rejects The All-American Rejects is an American rock band from Stillwater, Oklahoma, formed in 1999.Warner Music Japan Warner Music Group's labels include the following. Flagship labels *Atlantic Records *Elektra Records *Parlophone Records *Warner Records Atlantic Records Group * 1st & 15th Entertainment * Nipsey Hussle, All Money In * Mike Caren, Artist Par ...

and included "Didn't See That Coming" as a bonus track. In February and March 2010, the band participated in the Soundwave festival in Australia. On this tour, the band performed sideshows with

Enter Shikari Enter Shikari (stylised as enter: shikari and occasionally as ΣΠΤΣ℞ SΗΦΚ∆℞Φ) are a British rock band formed in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England in 1999 by bassist Chris Batten, lead vocalist and keyboardist Rou Reynolds, and drum ...

. After returning home, Rubano sent the rest of the band song ideas, which were ignored: "No responses to like half a dozen songs being sent out. Just, very weird." Following two weeks of no communication with the band, three members of the band and their manager held a conference call with Rubano. During the call, the band stated their intention of continuing without him. Likewise, Fazzi received a call saying that the group were letting him go. On March 29, statements by Fazzi and Rubano announcing their departure from the group were posted on the band's website. Two days later, it was announced that former members guitarist John Nolan and bassist

had re-joined the band.

Reception

Critical response

''New Again'' received generally favorable reviews from critics, according to review aggregation website

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reviewer Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that, like their peers, Taking Back Sunday "gets increasingly poppy as their career winds on". He mentioned that their sound was "brighter and bigger in every regard". Writing for ''

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'', Scott Heisel praised the record highly, stating that it "leaps forward as the best album of Taking Back Sunday's career to date". He also mentioned it featured "a darker, more menacing vibe". Jason Lipshutz of ''

'' said the group "branch dout from its emo roots," sounding "focused" delving into "complex melodies and thematic ideas". Lipshutz said that Lazzara's growth as a songwriter made the album "a brisk, enjoyable outing". In a review for ''

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'', author

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said the group were able to "reinvent themselves as mainstreamo shredders" with ''New Again''. ''

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'' reviewer Tom Spinelli noted that the "more straight forward ... sound" the group were going for could push them "into a more mainstream audience". He mentioned that while a lot of the songs have "a more radio sound on them," it's not done in a "cheesy way". Jon Pareles of ''

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'' mentioned Kahne's production as giving the band "a little more gloss". Pareles noted several homages to U2: the guitar work on "New Again" and "Catholic Knees," the keyboard intro to "Where My Mouth Is," as well as Lazzara's "vocal delivery, full of Bono's breathy gulps and open-throated crescendos". ''

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'' Matthew Niner praised Lazzara's voice, calling him "an incredibly versatile vocalist". Niner wrote that the group created "another solid album that cements their reputation as one of the most genuinely affecting and consistent bands in the current scene". Christian Hoard of ''

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'' wrote that while an "arena-ready polish" features throughout the album, it doesn't help the "forced melodrama," in songs such as "Lonely, Lonely". ''

'' reviewer David Bevan wrote that album "focuses on roaring arenas as much as on two-timing lovers". He said Lazzara's vocals sounded "more sore- than full-throated, but they still freeze blood for short stretches". Channing Freeman of

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wrote that ''New Again'' "places less emphasis on catchy parts and smore focused on entire songs".

Commercial performance and legacy

''New Again'' debuted at number seven on the ''

, selling 48,000 copies in its first week in the United States. The album reached number two on the

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chart, number five on both the

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and

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charts and number six on the

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chart. The album also charted at number 16 on the

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, number 31 on the

Australian Albums Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

and number 46 on the

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. "Sink into Me" peaked at number 10 on the

chart and number 32 on the

chart. ''

'' named it album of the year.

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's Jason Lipshutz called ''New Again'' his least-favorite Taking Back Sunday album. Lipshutz said that there were "moments worth revisiting" on the album, but it was "clearly a transitional outing," attempting to build on the success of ''Louder Now''. In a retrospective piece, Scott Heisel of ''Alternative Press'' said Fazzi helped bring "jazz, off-kilter riffs" and "lush textures" to the band, while mentioning the rest of the group provided the "most aggressive songs to date in 'Lonely, Lonely' and 'Swing'." In 2010, Lazzara answered questions on his

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account, commenting that ''New Again'' "was a gigantic step backwards" and that he was "not fully satisfied with what we put out". In 2012, Reyes said of ''New Again'': "I didn't like how we had to constantly change producers and the songwriting didn't turn out originally as it was, it just kind of bummed us out a bit." Discussing ''New Again'' in 2016, Rubano called the period "the golden time where I was like 'oh, we're doing music, that we all really like, that we can't wait to get out' and things were going pretty good for a little while". However, when the album was released, the "critics seemed to like it, but it didn't really hit ith the public and then when we started the touring cycle for it there was a very decisive mood turn in a band that already was insanely moody all the time". The album was released on vinyl in April 2017.

Track listing

All songs written by Taking Back Sunday. ''Scroll down to the relevant entries and click on the titles for the songwriter information.'' Bonus tracks

Personnel

Personnel per sleeve. Taking Back Sunday * Matthew Fazzi – lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals * Adam Lazzara – lead vocals * Mark O'Connell – drums, percussion * Eddie Reyes – rhythm guitar * Matthew Rubano – bass guitar, backing vocals Production *

– producer, overdubs engineering * Evil Joe Barresi – tracking engineering * Jamie Siegel – additional production, engineering *

– additional production, engineering, producer * Bill Appleberry – engineering *

– mixing * Justin Gerrish – assistant * Anthony Lenoci – assistant * Casey Lewis – assistant * Jared Nugent – assistant * Femio Hernandez – assistant *

– mastering * Brad Filip – art design * Kurt Iswarienko – band photo

Chart positions

References

Citations

Sources

* {{Authority control Taking Back Sunday albums 2009 albums Albums produced by David Kahne Albums produced by Matt Squire Warner Records albums