''What Separates Me from You'' 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
A Day to Remember
A Day to Remember (often abbreviated ADTR, and previously known as End of an Era) is an American rock band from Ocala, Florida, founded in 2003 by guitarist Tom Denney and drummer Bobby Scruggs. They are known for their amalgamation of meta ...
, and their third and final for
Victory Records
Victory Records is a Chicago-based record label founded by Tony Brummel. It operates a music publishing company called "Another Victory, Inc." and is the distributor of several record labels. It has featured many prominent artists including Thur ...
. Originally planned for release in late-October 2010, the album was delayed by a few weeks until mid-November. ''What Separates Me from You'' was released on November 15, 2010, in the UK, and on November 16 in the US. The album, which was recorded mainly at The Wade Studios in
Ocala, Florida
Ocala ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marion County within the northern region of Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city's population was 63,591, making it the 54th most populated city in Florida.
Home to ...
, from May to July 2010, was the first to feature guitarist Kevin Skaff. The album was produced mostly by
Chad Gilbert
Chad Everett Gilbert (born March 9, 1981) is an American musician and record producer. He is best known as a founding member of the rock band New Found Glory, for whom he plays lead guitar, sings backing vocals, and composes music. He was also ...
, with help from
Andrew Wade
Andrew Robert Wade (born August 4, 1984) is an American recording engineer and music producer.
Early years and A Wish for Marilynne (2002–2006)
In August 2002, Wade started playing guitar and singing lead vocals in Christian rock/emo band A W ...
and the band's vocalist,
Jeremy McKinnon
Jeremy Wade McKinnon (born December 17, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer, best known as a founding member and the lead vocalist of A Day to Remember. He has produced full-length albums for The Ghost Inside, Neck Dee ...
. "
All I Want" was released as the first single. It reached number 12 on the U.S.
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 ...
chart and number 25 on the
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 ...
chart.
The album debuted on the U.S.
''Billboard'' 200 at number 11, and number 1 on several charts:
Top Hard Rock Albums
The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...
,
Top Independent Albums
The Independent Albums chart (previously titled Top Independent Albums) ranks the highest-selling independent music albums and extended plays (EPs) in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published weekly by ''Billboard'' magaz ...
,
Top Modern Rock/Alternative Albums
The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the '' ...
in the U.S. and the Rock Album Chart in the UK. The band played two songs from the album on their national TV debut in January 2011, and then went on The Game Changers Tour to help promote the album; shortly afterwards
touring worldwide in support of the release. Two later singles off the album charted: "
All Signs Point to Lauderdale
"All Signs Point to Lauderdale" is the second single from A Day to Remember's fourth album, ''What Separates Me from You'', released on June 7, 2011.
Music and lyrics
Lead vocalist, Jeremy McKinnon wrote the lyrics, while the music was written by ...
", released in May, reached number 32 on the
Hot 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 ...
chart, and
radio single
In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separate ...
"
It's Complicated", released in October, peaked at number 34 on the same chart. ''What Separates Me from You'' was met with generally favorable reviews, with critics praising the album's sound. The album was certified Gold by the
RIAA
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
in March 2016, and "All I Want" was certified gold in August. The album was certified Silver in the UK by the
BPI.
Background
While the band was touring ''
Homesick'' (2009), a line-up change occurred
when guitarist
Tom Denney
Tom or TOM may refer to:
* Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name)
Characters
* Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head''
* Tom Beck, a character ...
wanted to settle down.
Four Letter Lie
Four Letter Lie was an American post-hardcore band from Minneapolis, Minnesota.
History
The group formed in 2004 and quickly released an EP entitled ''Her Escape'' in May 2005. They followed the release with a heavy tour schedule, which included ...
guitarist Kevin Skaff was added in his place;
[ Denney, however, was retained to work with the band behind the scenes.] All of the songs for ''What Separates Me from You'' were written while the band were touring in 2009 and 2010, and as early as March 2010, vocalist Jeremy McKinnon
Jeremy Wade McKinnon (born December 17, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer, best known as a founding member and the lead vocalist of A Day to Remember. He has produced full-length albums for The Ghost Inside, Neck Dee ...
stated that A Day to Remember already had "all of the pop/punk song ideas written ..And we're then going to write five heavier songs".
Music and lyrics
Styles and amount of material
Musically, the album has been described as 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 ...
, 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 ...
,[ and ]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 ...
. Guitarist Neil Westfall said in a 2010 interview with Alter the Press!: "We've written a few jams, we're always constantly writing, like I think we wrote some parts the other day." Westfall also said once the band return home from touring, they were "going to drop everything and start writing and doing pre-production full time."[ At this point, the band had ten songs and were trying to condense them into five, then planning to write five more.][ Westfall said the band completed the final "few songs when we were back home with Tom (Denney) and Chad (Gilbert)."] On the pace of writing, McKinnon said: "It seems like a really fast thing that has happened but we've been constantly working on it the entire time."[ On the songs themselves, he said: "the pop-punk stuff has a darker edge to it. I wrote it like that, it's still pop-punk but with a darker edge".][ The album was influenced by ]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 ...
's ''What It Is to Burn
''What It Is to Burn'' is the debut album by American rock band Finch. It was released on March 12, 2002, through MCA and Drive-Thru Records. After finalizing their line-up, Finch signed to Drive-Thru. Recording for the album took place between ...
'' (2002). The album "came together song by song" as McKinnon mentioned, with the band coming up with 15–16 song ideas. McKinnon stated in an interview with Rocksound
''Rock Sound'' is a British magazine that covers rock music. The magazine aims at being more "underground" and less commercial, while also giving coverage to better-known acts. It generally focuses on pop punk, post-hardcore, metalcore, punk, e ...
that there's songs "that didn't make this record that we're saving."[ There is a track on the album that was previously written for ''Homesick''.][
When asked about how he comes up with song titles, McKinnon said: "I've got my iPhone, and I go on my notes and every time I see something I like I write it down, so a lot of the time titles are something that mean something to us only, or to someone I know only."][ He called ''What Separates Me from You'' "the slowest for stuff like that", when referring to song titles.][ Westfall said that the album's title and the songs' subjects were about "Separating your self from your peers and really coming into your own."][ McKinnon said ''What Separates Me from You'' was "a lot more personal and darker" than ''Homesick'',][ and that it was "a natural progression of what we were doing" with "the same core" as the band's preceding albums.] Asked whether the album reached new heights, he said it "was definitely the next step" for the band.[ However, the band originally had no idea on how the album would turn out: "It was a little bit all over the place, because of me coming in, Tom ]enney
Bas-Intyamon ( frp, Bâs-Enque-amont) is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Gruyère (district), Gruyère in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Fribourg (canton), Fribourg in Switzerland. The villages of Enney, Es ...
leaving and all this new stuff that was going on", as stated by guitarist Kevin Skaff. Skaff said that McKinnon originally really wanted to name the album ''Always the Hard Way'', but later realized that the hardcore band Terror had already used that title for an album.[
]
Tracks 1–5
It was important to the band that "Sticks & Bricks" opened the album, as it was an "in-your-face" song. McKinnon said in an interview with USAToday
''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
that the opening lyric ("''I am fueled by all forms of failure''") was "100% directed at everyone who ever doubted our band".[ He stated that it "is one of the meaner, heavier songs that we've ever done as a band."][ " All I Want" is "about being in a band",][ according to McKinnon, and was one of the final songs written for the album.][ The song came about from an idea by McKinnon that he expanded on guitar in the middle of recording for the album, and wrote most of it in one night.][ A rough version was recorded between McKinnon and producer ]Chad Gilbert
Chad Everett Gilbert (born March 9, 1981) is an American musician and record producer. He is best known as a founding member of the rock band New Found Glory, for whom he plays lead guitar, sings backing vocals, and composes music. He was also ...
before the band had arrived at the studio.[ McKinnon said the song was more of a "singing version" of the band's song "I'm Made of Wax, Larry, What Are You Made Of?".][
" It's Complicated" was written while the band were abroad in Amsterdam; the original version differed significantly from the final version.][ ]Andrew Wade
Andrew Robert Wade (born August 4, 1984) is an American recording engineer and music producer.
Early years and A Wish for Marilynne (2002–2006)
In August 2002, Wade started playing guitar and singing lead vocals in Christian rock/emo band A W ...
flew out to the band in an attempt to work on the song immediately.[ "This Is the House That Doubt Built" was one of the first to be written for the album, written almost in one sitting while McKinnon had his acoustic guitar with him,][Alternative Press 2010, p. 44] while the band was abroad.[ "2nd Sucks" was about people who viewed being in a band as being a sort of competition.][
]
Tracks 6–10
"Better Off This Way" was one of the first written for the album, and re-written "at least 3 different times".[ The song was the final one finished for the album.][ The title for "]All Signs Point to Lauderdale
"All Signs Point to Lauderdale" is the second single from A Day to Remember's fourth album, ''What Separates Me from You'', released on June 7, 2011.
Music and lyrics
Lead vocalist, Jeremy McKinnon wrote the lyrics, while the music was written by ...
" came from an occasion when McKinnon and bassist Joshua Woodard were in a rough neighborhood in West Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lagoon. The populati ...
.[ A piece of the song came from a recording session for ''Homesick'' when Gilbert said he had an idea for the ]melody
A melody (from Greek language, Greek μελῳδία, ''melōidía'', "singing, chanting"), also tune, voice or line, is a Linearity#Music, linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most liter ...
, which McKinnon took a while to write over: "Chad had a cool idea, vocally, for something".[ In an interview with PopCrush in 2011, McKinnon said the song was when you get the "feeling like you're stuck in a place that's leading you nowhere" and "standing up for yourself and taking charge of your life."] "You Be Tails, I'll Be Sonic" was written with the band's former guitarist, Tom Denney
Tom or TOM may refer to:
* Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name)
Characters
* Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head''
* Tom Beck, a character ...
;[ the song was made up of several separate pieces from different song ideas, with a chorus McKinnon had re-written 4 times.][
Referring to "You Be Tails, I'll Be Sonic", Skaff said that the song's title—a reference to Tails and ]Sonic
Sonic or Sonics may refer to:
Companies
*Sonic Drive-In, an American drive-in fast-food restaurant chain
*Sonic (ISP), an Internet provider and CLEC, serving more than 100 California communities
*Sonic Foundry, a computer software company whic ...
from the video game series
This is a list of video game franchises, organized alphabetically. All entries include multiple video games, not counting ports or altered re-releases.
0–9
*''1080° Snowboarding''
*''1942''
*''3D Ultra Minigolf''
*'' 3-D Ultra Pinball''
*''7 ...
—had "really came out of nowhere."[ McKinnon said the song is a "more personal song ..It discusses how the choices I've made to put my best foot forward in my career, in a sense, have really done damage to my personal life."][ Both "You Be Tails, I'll Be Sonic" and "Out of Time" talk about "how I feel like I'm doing what I want with my life, but I think, "Wow, I just did something that really affected me.""][ "Out of Time" was also one of the first songs written for the album, and was written while the band was in Australia.][ McKinnon said the song was the most personal on the record.][ Skaff had a major hand in writing "If I Leave".][ The song describes "different things you got through being on the road" and "a relationship ending when you're not really around enough to actually take care of it in person."] On being asked whether he knew it would be the final song on the album, McKinnon said "It just felt right ..seemed like a good ending".[
]
Recording
Before showing the songs to the band, McKinnon and Skaff worked on them alone.[ When the pair had all of the song ideas, they worked on them as a full-band,][ with pre-production being undertaken in, as Skaff commented, "a makeshift studio"][ by ]Andrew Wade
Andrew Robert Wade (born August 4, 1984) is an American recording engineer and music producer.
Early years and A Wish for Marilynne (2002–2006)
In August 2002, Wade started playing guitar and singing lead vocals in Christian rock/emo band A W ...
.[ Woodard commented that the band had "been going in from 11am until 9pm and all we do is sit around and play."] Between demoing the songs, and their final forms on the album, Woodard said "crazy things were happening – verses became choruses", with Chad Gilbert
Chad Everett Gilbert (born March 9, 1981) is an American musician and record producer. He is best known as a founding member of the rock band New Found Glory, for whom he plays lead guitar, sings backing vocals, and composes music. He was also ...
assisting the band with arrangements and writing.[ As the band thought they were getting better as ]songwriters
A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...
, Woodard stated, "it's getting more heavy and more pop."[ One song that the band recorded was "screwed up really bad and it didn't make the record", as Skaff comments, as the group recorded it at a fast pace and when McKinnon tried to "sing it was like rap music. mitates rap singingAnd we were like 'that's not good'."] Asked if the band would use it as a possible 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 ...
, Skaff said "its possible ..might use it for the next record or something like that."[
''What Separates Me from You'' was recorded from May to July 23, 2010, in three locations, per the album booklet: The Wade Studios in ]Ocala, Florida
Ocala ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Marion County within the northern region of Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city's population was 63,591, making it the 54th most populated city in Florida.
Home to ...
, The Back of a Bus with No AC in Germany and A Closet in New Jersey,[ the latter of which being where the backing vocals for "All Signs Point to Lauderdale" were recorded.][Moseley 2013, p. 57] The album 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 ...
and 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 ...
, and produced by Gilbert with assistance by Wade and McKinnon.[ Wade also produced the band's previous album, ''Homesick''.] It was the first album featuring Skaff on guitar, following Tom Denney's departure after ''Homesick''. "All I Want", "It's Complicated", "This Is the House That Doubt Built" and "If I Leave" were mixed by Bendeth, while the rest of the album tracks were mixed by Korneff.[ Mastering for the album had taken place at ]Sterling Sound
George Marino (April 15, 1947 – June 4, 2012) was an American mastering engineer known for working on albums by rock bands starting in the late 1960s.
Biography
Marino was born on April 15, 1947, in the New York City borough The Bronx. He at ...
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 ...
.[
]
Release
In July 2010, it was announced that the band would bring out the album in October. The album's title and cover art were revealed by the band in a live video via Victory Record's official website on September 21.[ On the same day, the album was available for pre-order. McKinnon later said in an interview that the album's cover was meant "to be a little more serious. It has the vibe of a painting." Featured on the album cover is the band's ex-guitarist Denney, video director Drew Russ, and producer Gilbert. A supposed track listing for the album was posted on the internet with mentions of guest appearances by Ed McRae and Florence Welch, from ]Your Demise
Your Demise were a British hardcore punk band from St Albans, England, formed in 2003. They shared stages and toured worldwide with the likes of Comeback Kid, Basement, Trapped Under Ice, Man Overboard, Enter Shikari, Parkway Drive, A Day to ...
and Florence and the Machine
Florence and the Machine (stylised as Florence + the Machine) are an English indie rock band that formed in London in 2007, consisting of lead vocalist Florence Welch, keyboardist Isabella Summers, guitarist Rob Ackroyd, harpist Tom Monger, and ...
respectively. McKinnon said it wasn't the true track list, then proceeded to post the actual track list on October 13. On October 1, the band held a contest, to tie in with the release of the album, where fans could win their catalog on vinyl and a signed copy of the album. The group released a short preview of new song "2nd Sucks" on October 6. On October 7, the album's first single, "All I Want", was debuted on KROQ
KROQ-FM (106.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Pasadena, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by Audacy, Inc., it broadcasts an alternative rock format known as "The World Famous KROQ" (pronounced "kay-rock").
The stat ...
Radio. The single was officially released on October 12. As the choice of a single, Westfall said "All I Want" "was a great transition song from ''Homesick''".[ On October 21, a full version of "2nd Sucks" was posted for streaming on Victory's Facebook page.
Originally set for release on October 26, 2010, the album was delayed until November 15 in the UK and the proceeding day in the U.S.] The album was leaked a few days prior to release. A listening party for the album was held at The Hard Rock Hotel in Chicago on November 15 for a small number of fans, which was followed by a Q&A session with the band. On January 6, 2011, the band released the music video for the single "All I Want".[ The video, which was filmed back in October 2010,][ features members from numerous musical groups.] On January 11, 2011, the band made their national television debut while performing the songs "All I Want" and "Better Off This Way" on Jimmy Kimmel Live!
''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. The nightly hour-long show debuted on January 26, 2003, at Hollywood Masonic Temple in Hollywood, Los ...
. Skaff recalled the TV performance as "fun", calling Jimmy Kimmel
James Christian Kimmel (born November 13, 1967) is an American television host, comedian, writer, and producer. He is the host and executive producer of ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'', a late-night talk show that premiered on ABC on January 26, 2003, ...
"a good guy", and "a great experience" to be on Kimmel's show.[ Beginning in March, to help promote ''What Separates Me from You'', the band went on The Game Changers Tour. The band performed over half of the new album while on The Game Changers tour.] McKinnon commented: "The new songs live have worked great."[
On April 16, 2011, A Day to Remember released a special for ]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 ...
, which was an exclusive limited edition 7" vinyl
In music, a single is a type of Art release#Music, release, typically a song Sound recording, recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for record sales, sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most ca ...
of "All I Want". "All Signs Point to Lauderdale" impacted radio on May 24. The band filmed the music video for "All Signs Point to Lauderdale" in one day in Los Angeles when the group had a day-off from touring;[ it was released through ]MTV2
MTV2 (formerly M2) is an American pay television Cable television, channel owned by the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global.
The channel launched initially as an all-music video service, once the original MTV had started to sh ...
on June 7. It was revealed in September that " It's Complicated" would be released as the third single from the album on October 25, though it was only released as a radio single. "2nd Sucks" would become the band's third music video off the album. A promotional CD of "This Is the House That Doubt Built" was released on December 19. The band played an acoustic version of "It's Complicated" for MTV on February 14, 2012. The music video for "2nd Sucks" was released on February 27, 2012.
Further releases and song appearances
Vinyl editions were released on December 6, 2010. Several tracks from the album have appeared in 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 ...
's show ''Jersey Shore
The Jersey Shore (known by locals simply as the Shore) is the coastal region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. Geographically, the term encompasses about of oceanfront bordering the Atlantic Ocean, from Perth Amboy in the north to Cape May Po ...
''. Another vinyl pressing, this time on white vinyl, was released on December 27. Two tracks were featured on various artist compilations: "All Signs Point to Lauderdale" on SideOneDummy
SideOneDummy Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1995 by Bill Armstrong and Joe Sib. The label began as a way for them to release music for their friends' bands. Thereafter SideOneDummy launched the care ...
's ''Warped Tour 2011 Tour Compilation'' and "If I Leave" on the Victory compilation ''Victory Records 2012 New Music Sampler''. Six of the album's ten tracks are currently available on the ''Rock Band
A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guita ...
'' games: "2nd Sucks", "All I Want", "All Signs Point to Lauderdale", "Better Off This Way", "Sticks & Bricks", and "It's Complicated".
Reception
''What Separates Me from You'' received generally favorable reviews. James Christopher Monger of 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 ...
said, " tis whiney, petulant, immature, hopeless, and thoroughly addicting, as the ten songs contained within the gatefold packaging ..are as immaculately crafted and engaging as they are blindingly self-absorbed." Brendan Manley from Alternative Press
Alternative press may refer to:
Individual publications
* ''Alternative Press'' (magazine), an American music magazine
Alternative journalism
* Alternative media
** Alternative media (U.S. political left)
** Alternative media (U.S. political ri ...
wrote, "The vitriolic delivery seems sincere, but even if you don’t buy into all of the personal/emotional factors underpinning ''Separates'' (smack-talking the smack-talkers/a recent, devastating breakup/assorted perils of touring), the album simply ''kills''." Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic is an American music community website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites. The format of the website is unusual in that it includes both professional and amateur c ...
called the album "Homesick Pt. 2 is (a little) better than Homesick Pt. 1".[
However, Christine Caruana of Loud Online said, " tis very much typical of its genre. Lyrics filled with standard teenage angst, fast, distorted guitars and heavy, yet boring, drum fills to imitate a metal sound."] While Dan Rankin of Blare Magazine said the album was "essentially just another fat kid on the already rusty trampoline that is this genre."[ Brooke Daly of Tastemakers said that the album was one of the band's "more solid releases" with less repetition than on ''Homesick''. Despite "taking on a poppier sound" being risky in his opinion, the band managed to "pull it off".] Jacob Testa, for Mind Equals Blown, noted that he found himself "wanting to listen to it again and again", saying that the album featured "a lot of creativity and maturation".
Amy Bangs of ''Rock Sound
''Rock Sound'' is a British magazine that covers rock music. The magazine aims at being more "underground" and less commercial, while also giving coverage to better-known acts. It generally focuses on pop punk, post-hardcore, metalcore, punk, e ...
'' stated, "while cynics will call a poppier foundation too commercially driven, their (musically) upbeat moments make it clear how creative they’ve been with arrangements and production, making no two verses, choruses or breakdowns sound alike." ''Punknews.org'' was less positive stating, "every chorus has a catchy hook; every breakdown sounds the same; and the lyrics are pretty terrible."[
]
Commercial performance and accolades
The album peaked at number 11 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200, becoming A Day to Remember's personal best, as ''Homesick'' peaked at number 21.[A Day To Remember Scores Memorable Debut on Billboard 200](_blank)
''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 ...
''. Retrieved September 9, 2012. The album also charted at number 1 on the UK Rock Album Chart,[ number 66 on the ]UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
, number 24 on the ARIA 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 ...
in Australia, and number 4 on the German Newcomer Chart. "All I Want" charted on both Billboard's Hot 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 ...
and 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, at number 12 and number 25, respectively. "It's Complicated" charted on the Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart, at number 34.[ The album had sold 80,000 copies as of December 2010,] with 152,000 copies in the U.S. as of April 2011,[ and 300,000 copies by January 2013. In March 2016, ''What Separates Me from You'' was certified gold in the U.S. In August, "All I Want" was certified gold.] In December, the album was certified silver in the UK.[ ''Enter'' A Day to Remember ''in the field'' Search. ''Select'' Artist ''in the field'' Search by. ''Click'' Search]
The album was voted by fans as number 3 of Kill Your Stereo's Album of the Year 2010. Matt Heafy
Matthew Kiichi Heafy (born January 26, 1986) is an American musician, best known as the guitarist and lead vocalist for heavy metal band Trivium. He was also the lead vocalist for the band Capharnaum, along with Trivium's former producer Jason ...
, frontman and guitarist of the metal band Trivium
The trivium is the lower division of the seven liberal arts and comprises grammar, logic, and rhetoric.
The trivium is implicit in ''De nuptiis Philologiae et Mercurii'' ("On the Marriage of Philology and Mercury") by Martianus Capella, but the ...
, listed the album as the 6th best album of 2010. Trey Treman of Shadows Chasing Ghosts ranked the album one of his top 15 albums of 2010. "All Signs Point to Lauderdale" charted on both of these charts, but at number 32 and number 48, respectively.[ "All Signs Point to Lauderdale" was voted as number 10 in the "10 Best Rock Songs of 2011" by ]AOL Radio
AOL Radio powered by Slacker (formerly AOL Radio powered by CBS Radio, and prior AOL Radio featuring XM) was an online radio service available in the United States only. It had over 200 free internet radio stations.
History
Roots
AOL Radio ...
. Cleveland.com
''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. In fall 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily and 15th on Sunday.
As of Ma ...
ranked "All Signs Point to Lauderdale" at number 59 on their list of the top 100 pop-punk songs.
Track listing
All lyrics written by Jeremy McKinnon
Jeremy Wade McKinnon (born December 17, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer, best known as a founding member and the lead vocalist of A Day to Remember. He has produced full-length albums for The Ghost Inside, Neck Dee ...
, except "2nd Sucks".[
]
Personnel
Personnel per booklet.
;A Day to Remember
*Jeremy McKinnon
Jeremy Wade McKinnon (born December 17, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer, best known as a founding member and the lead vocalist of A Day to Remember. He has produced full-length albums for The Ghost Inside, Neck Dee ...
— vocals
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...
*Joshua Woodard — bass
*Neil Westfall — 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
*Alex Shelnutt — 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 ...
*Kevin Skaff — 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 ...
, 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 ...
;Production
*Chad Gilbert
Chad Everett Gilbert (born March 9, 1981) is an American musician and record producer. He is best known as a founding member of the rock band New Found Glory, for whom he plays lead guitar, sings backing vocals, and composes music. He was also ...
— producer
*Andrew Wade
Andrew Robert Wade (born August 4, 1984) is an American recording engineer and music producer.
Early years and A Wish for Marilynne (2002–2006)
In August 2002, Wade started playing guitar and singing lead vocals in Christian rock/emo band A W ...
and Jeremy McKinnon — co-producers
*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 engineer
A mixing engineer (or simply mix engineer) is responsible for combining ("mixing") different sonic elements of an auditory piece into a complete rendition (also known as "final mix" or "mixdown"), whether in music, film, or any other content of a ...
*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
*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 engineer
A mastering engineer is a person skilled in the practice of taking audio (typically musical content) that has been previously mixed in either the analog or digital domain as mono, stereo, or multichannel formats and preparing it for use in distr ...
*Andrew Wade — engineer
Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...
*Jeremy McKinnon — art direction
*Rob Dobi — digi pack illustrations
*Mike Cortada — inside booklet
*Doublej — layout
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
; Footnotes
; Citations
;Sources
*
*
*
*
External links
''What Separates Me from You''
at 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 ...
(streamed copy where licensed)
{{Authority control
A Day to Remember albums
Victory Records albums
2010 albums
Albums produced by Chad Gilbert
Albums produced by Jeremy McKinnon
Albums produced by Andrew Wade