''Southern Weather'' is the debut album by
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 ...
drummer
Aaron Gillespie
Aaron Roderick Gillespie (born July 18, 1983) is an American musician, best known for being the original and current drummer and clean vocalist for the metalcore band Underoath and the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the alternative rock ...
's solo-project,
the Almost
The Almost is an American rock band from Clearwater, Florida, fronted by Underoath drummer and vocalist Aaron Gillespie. Formed in 2005 as a solo project by Gillespie, the band currently includes guitarist Jay Vilardi, bassist Jon Thompson, and ...
.
Background and production
In October 2005, Gillespie was in New York City and had the urge to do some straight-forward
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 ...
songs. After telling his manager, he was put in a studio where he started working on material. That evening, he received the songs from the studio and posted two demos ("I Mostly Copy Other People" and "Never Say "I Told You So"") on his
Myspace profile. Gillespie was recording with Underoath (for ''
Define the Great Line
''Define the Great Line'' is the fifth album by American rock band Underoath. It was released on June 20, 2006, through Tooth & Nail Records. Five months after the release of their fourth studio album '' They're Only Chasing Safety'', the band w ...
'') at the time and, as their drummer and co-vocalist, was in a several week period between tracking drums and doing the vocals. To keep himself productive during this lull, he wrote a bunch of songs
that differed from the band's sound and fit a more
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 ...
vein.
''Southern Weather'' was produced by Aaron Sprinkle; Gillespie was initially going to work with someone different until an A&R representative at
Tooth & Nail Records
Tooth & Nail Records is a Christian rock record label founded by Brandon Ebel in California in November 1993. The label later moved to Seattle, Washington where it is situated today. It is home to many well-known musical acts, including Underoat ...
suggested Sprinkle.
[ Gillespie didn't know Sprinkle beforehand, but admired his work with ]Pedro the Lion
Pedro the Lion is an American indie rock band from Seattle, Washington, United States. David Bazan formed the band in 1995 and represented its main creative force, backed by a varying rotation of collaborating musicians. In 2006 Pedro the Lion wa ...
.[ Recording sessions were held at Compound Recording in Seattle, Washington with Zach Hodges acting as the additional engineer.][ Gillespie tracked the drums on a kit made by former ]Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), and Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, guita ...
drum tech Aaron Mlasko. Gillespie used a number of snares to achieve as many different tones as he could. For "Dirty and Left Out", the drums were recorded into one microphone with a tambourine taped to the bass drum.
"Dirty and Left Out" also features an additional vocal from Sunny Day Real Estate
Sunny Day Real Estate is an American emo/indie rock band from Seattle, formed in 1992. The band currently consists of founding members Jeremy Enigk (vocals, guitar), Dan Hoerner (guitar) and William Goldsmith (drums), alongside Greg Suran (gui ...
frontman Jeremy Enigk
Jeremy Enigk (; born July 16, 1974) is an American singer-songwriter, vocalist and guitarist / multi-instrumentalist. He is known as a solo artist, a film score composer, and as the lead vocalist, bassist, rhythm guitarist and keyboardist of the ...
, who grew up with Sprinkle. Though Gillespie had considered the album finished by this point, Sprinkle recorded Enigk's part while Gillespie was busy touring with Underoath.[ J.R. McNeely mixed almost every track (except for "Say This Sooner") with assistant Lars Katz at Compound Recording. "Say This Sooner" was mixed by ]David Bendeth
David Jonathan Bendeth (born 17 June 1954) is a multi-platinum award-winning record producer.
Early life
David Bendeth was born on 17 June 1954 in Stoke Newington, Hackney, London, England. He attended Parkhill School in Ilford, London and in ...
with engineer Dan Korneff
Dan Korneff is an American music producer, mixer, and engineer based in Long Island, New York. Former owner of House of Loud Studios, he has worked with several prominent rock bands, most notably Breaking Benjamin, Paramore, Papa Roach, Lamb ...
at the House of Loud in Elmwood Park, New Jersey. John Bender handled additional vocal recording at the same studio. The recordings were then mastered by 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 ...
at Sterling Sound in New York City.[
]
Composition
Musically, the album has been described as alternative rock,[ ]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 ...
,[ ]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 ...
,[ coming across as less aggressive in both the music and vocals than Underoath's screamo stylings.][ Though Gillespie received writing credit for all of the songs,][ Underoath guitarist Tim McTague helped him write one of the tracks.][ Gillespie performed nearly all the instrumentation on the record. Sprinkle contributed additional guitar and keyboards; Kevin Suggs adds ]pedal steel guitar
The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...
.[ Discussing "Say This Sooner", Gillespie said: "I've had struggles along the way rowing up in the Deep South But I am very much informed by Southern values and I think the songs speak to that."][ ]Alternative country
Alternative country, or alternative country rock (sometimes alt-country, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative), is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that differ significantly in style ...
-influenced[ "Dirty and Left Out" was written after Gillespie and Sprinkle was listening to '' Ocean Beach'' (1995) by Red House Painters.][ The track, along with "Amazing Because It Is", serves as a declaration of his Christian faith.][
"Amazing Because It Is" sees Gillespie emulating the vocal style of ]Dashboard Confessional
Dashboard Confessional is an American rock band from Boca Raton, Florida, led by singer Chris Carrabba. The name of the band is derived from the songThe Sharp Hint of New Tears off their debut album, ''The Swiss Army Romance''.
History
Early h ...
's Chris Carrabba
Christopher Ender Carrabba (born April 10, 1975) is the lead singer and guitarist of the band Dashboard Confessional, lead singer of the band Further Seems Forever, and is the vocalist for the folk band Twin Forks.
Early life and education
Born ...
,[ and features horns (performed by John Painter) and cello (performed by Matt Slocum), which were arranged by Slocum.][ Gillespie went to a church, which invited their youth groups] at Calvary Fellowship (based in Mountlake Terrace, Washington) to add a choir[ singing "]Amazing Grace
"Amazing Grace" is a Christian hymn published in 1779 with words written in 1772 by English Anglican clergyman and poet John Newton (1725–1807). It is an immensely popular hymn, particularly in the United States, where it is used for both ...
" as the chorus.[ "Everyone Here Smells Like a Rat" has a mixed ]Thursday
Thursday is the Names of the days of the week, day of the week between Wednesday and Friday. According to the ISO 8601 international standard, it is the fourth day of the week. In countries which adopt the "Sunday-first" convention, it is the fi ...
-meets-Oasis
In ecology, an oasis (; ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment'ksar''with its surrounding feeding source, the palm grove, within a relational and circulatory nomadic system.”
The location of oases has been of critical imp ...
vibe to it, and features guest vocals and bass additions from the Starting Line
The Starting Line is an American pop punk band based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that formed in 1999.
History
Early years (1999–2001)
In 1999, the band that would become The Starting Line was initiated in Churchville, Pennsylvania via an e ...
frontman Kenny Vasoli
Kenneth Robert "Kenny" Vasoli is an American singer and musician from Pennsylvania. Vasoli is currently the lead singer and songwriter of The Starting Line, Person L, and Vacationer.
Biography
Kenneth "Kenny" Robert Vasoli was born May 20, 198 ...
.[ Vasoli also contributes bass to the album's title-track "Southern Weather".][ "Never Say "I Told You So"", which has guest vocals from Sprinkle,][ and "Call Back When I'm Honest" are musically reminiscent to songs on ]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 ...
's ''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). Closing track "Everything That Makes Me Sick" begins with carnival-esque sounds before the guitars start.[
]
Release
On November 28, 2006, "Southern Weather" was made available for streaming via the band's Myspace profile. In January 2007, the band went on their first tour, a US headlining tour with support from Forgive Durden
Forgive Durden was an American indie rock band from Seattle, Washington, United States. They got their name from the novel ''Fight Club''. They were signed to Fueled by Ramen. Fueled by Ramen released Forgive Durden's first full-length album, ''W ...
and . The group's touring line-up consisted of Gillespie, guitarists Jay Vilardi and Dusty Redman, bassist Alex Aponte and drummer Kenny Bozich. Vilardi was friends with Underoath's drum tech and lived in Gillespie's area; Vilardi recruited the other members,[ except for Bozich, who was discovered by Gillespie's wife at a church.][ On January 31, ''Southern Weather'' was announced for release in April, and its track listing was revealed.] "Say This Sooner" was posted online on February 7, before being released as a radio single on February 13.
On February 28, "I Mostly Copy Other People" was made available for streaming. A music video was released for "Say This Sooner" in March; it features Gillespie traveling through time, and received heavy rotation 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 ...
.[ The clip was directed by Shane Drake and filmed in Southern California.][ ''Southern Weather'' was made available for streaming on March 25, before being released as a joint venture between Tooth & Nail and major label ]Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...
on April 3.[ Following this, the band supported ]Saves the Day
Saves the Day is an American Rock music, rock band from Princeton, New Jersey, formed in 1997. The band currently consists of lead vocalist and guitarist Chris Conley, guitarist Arun Bali, and bassist Rodrigo Palma.
After forming under the nam ...
and Say Anything Say Anything may refer to:
Film and television
* '' Say Anything...'', a 1989 American film by Cameron Crowe
* "Say Anything" (''BoJack Horseman''), a television episode
Music
* Say Anything (band), an American rock band
** ''Say Anything'' (alb ...
on a small number of dates. In April and May, the band supported Paramore on their tour of the US, and appeared at The Bamboozle
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 ...
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 ...
s.[ From late July to mid July then late July to late August, the band went 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 ...
.
Following the tour's conclusion, the group went on a headlining tour in August and September, with support from Meg & Dia
Meg & Dia is an American rock band formed in 2004. It was founded by sisters Meg and Dia Frampton before becoming a five-piece act (renamed Cowards Courage and released the CD ''Straight Out of a Story Book in Las Vegas'') where they started, ...
and former Beloved
Beloved may refer to:
Books
* ''Beloved'' (novel), a 1987 novel by Toni Morrison
* ''The Beloved'' (Faulkner novel), a 2012 novel by Australian author Annah Faulkner
*''Beloved'', a 1993 historical romance about Zenobia, by Bertrice Small
Film
...
frontman Josh Moore. A music video was released for "Southern Weather" on September 26 and the song was released to radio on October 2. In November, the group supported the Starting Line
The Starting Line is an American pop punk band based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that formed in 1999.
History
Early years (1999–2001)
In 1999, the band that would become The Starting Line was initiated in Churchville, Pennsylvania via an e ...
and Paramore
Paramore is an American rock band from Franklin, Tennessee, formed in 2004. The band currently consists of lead vocalist Hayley Williams, guitarist Taylor York and drummer Zac Farro. Williams and Farro are founding members of the group, whil ...
on their co-headlining US tour. The band performed alongside the Starting Line for a few shows in December. In May and June 2008, the band went on a US tour alongside Emery, Envy on the Coast and Army of Me. "Dirty and Left Out" and "Amazing Because It Is" were reworked for the group's Christmas EP ''No Gift to Bring'' (2008).
Reception
Commercial performance
''Southern Weather'' debuted at No. 39 on the US ''Billboard'' 200, selling about 29,000 copies in its first week. As of June 2007, the album has sold 72,000 copies in the US. "Say This Sooner" has also been released to mainstream radio and has reached as high as No. 7 on Modern Rock Tracks
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 ...
.
Track listing
All songs written by Aaron Gillespie.[
]
Personnel
Personnel per booklet.
The Almost
* Aaron Gillespie
Aaron Roderick Gillespie (born July 18, 1983) is an American musician, best known for being the original and current drummer and clean vocalist for the metalcore band Underoath and the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the alternative rock ...
– lead vocals, all instruments except where noted
Additional musicians
* 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 ...
– additional guitar, keyboards, guest vocals (track 9)
* Kevin Suggs – pedal steel guitar
The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...
* Matt Slocum – horns and string arrangement (track 7), cello (track 7)
* John Painter – horns (track 7)
* The Youth Group at Calvary Fellowship – choir (track 7)
* Kenny Vasoli
Kenneth Robert "Kenny" Vasoli is an American singer and musician from Pennsylvania. Vasoli is currently the lead singer and songwriter of The Starting Line, Person L, and Vacationer.
Biography
Kenneth "Kenny" Robert Vasoli was born May 20, 198 ...
– guest vocals (track 4), bass guitar (tracks 4 and 5)
* Jeremy Enigk
Jeremy Enigk (; born July 16, 1974) is an American singer-songwriter, vocalist and guitarist / multi-instrumentalist. He is known as a solo artist, a film score composer, and as the lead vocalist, bassist, rhythm guitarist and keyboardist of the ...
– guest vocals (track 3)
Production
* Aaron Sprinkle – producer, recording
* Zach Hodges – additional engineering
* J.R. McNeely – mixing (except track 1)
* David Bendeth
David Jonathan Bendeth (born 17 June 1954) is a multi-platinum award-winning record producer.
Early life
David Bendeth was born on 17 June 1954 in Stoke Newington, Hackney, London, England. He attended Parkhill School in Ilford, London and in ...
– mixing (track 1)
* Dan Korneff
Dan Korneff is an American music producer, mixer, and engineer based in Long Island, New York. Former owner of House of Loud Studios, he has worked with several prominent rock bands, most notably Breaking Benjamin, Paramore, Papa Roach, Lamb ...
– mixing engineer
* John Bender – additional vocal recording
* Lars Katz – mixing assistant
* 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 ...
– mastering
* Parker Young – photography
* Siesta – design
References
{{Authority control
2007 debut albums
The Almost albums
Virgin Records albums
Tooth & Nail Records albums
Albums produced by Aaron Sprinkle