A Change of Pace is an American five piece

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

band from Peoria,

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, United States. The band was on both the 2005 and 2006

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 touri ...

Biography

A Change of Pace formed in 2001 when singer Torry Jasper and drummer Jonathan Kelly began playing together in freshmen year of high school (while attending Centennial High School). In 2003, after a few years of jamming and playing small local shows, bassist Johnny Abdullah and guitarist Adam Rodgers joined the band. From there they were discovered by manager Jorge Hernandez, and within a few months they were signed to Immortal Records in August 2004, and released their EP ''Change Is The Only Constant''. In 2005 the band released their first full-length album, ''An Offer You Can't Refuse'', and landed a spot on the

. Between October and December 2005, the band embarked on the Myspace Fall Tour across the US. In June 2006, ''Prepare the Masses'' was announced, and later released on August 15, 2006. In between this, the band appeared on Warped tour again. The band also added a fifth member to the band, Dan Parker (previously in Don't Let Go). They then went on tour with Roses Are Red. In November 2006, they toured the US with Paulson and InMemory. In March and April 2007, A Change of Pace went on a tour with

Quietdrive Quietdrive is an alternative rock band based in Hopkins, Minnesota, USA, that was formed in 2002. Quietdrive released their first album, '' When All That's Left Is You'', on May 30, 2006, on Epic Records. In April 2008, Quietdrive left Epic Record ...

the Classic Crime The Classic Crime is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 2004. The band's current lineup consists of Matt MacDonald (vocals, guitar), Alan Clark (bass), Robert "Cheeze" Negrin (guitar), and Paul "Skip" Erickson (drums, vo ...

, Sullivan, and thebleedingalarm. They then supported Paulson on their headlining tour in June 2007. On June 1, 2008 the band announced that they had parted ways with former vocalist Torry Jasper, and announced a new lead singer, Micah Bentley. They also announced the release of their EP, ''Just No Better Way''. With new singer Micah Bentley they have adopted a lighter tone to their music, contrasting drastically with their previous singer Torry Jasper who screamed vocals in the older material. The band released their third and final album, entitled ''It Could Be Worse'' on February 22, 2011.

Breakup and departure of Micah Bentley

On March 13, 2011, drummer Jon Kelley announced via

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that after 10 years, A Change of Pace was calling it quits. Their last show, "A Change of Pace Farewell Show", took place on April 22, at The Clubhouse in Tempe. Opening bands included Greeley Estates, Desole, It's Like Love, and In It for Storms. In April 2011, A Change Of Pace played their final show with singer Micah Bentley as he began to prepare for his solo career.

Reunion, new album and return of Torry Jasper

On Christmas Day 2011, A Change Of Pace was asked to reunite with Torry Jasper and play the ‘South By So What’ festival in Dallas, Texas on March 17 of 2012. After several discussions, the band agreed to perform at the festival with other acts such as The Early November, Motion City Soundtrack, HelloGoodbye and Cartel. After several meetings, the band decided to work on an album with Torry Jasper. However, this album was never released.

''Prepare The Masses'' 10th anniversary shows and second breakup

In May 2016, the band announced two concerts to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of ''Prepare The Masses'', the first show which took place on July 30, 2016 at The Pressroom in Phoenix, AZ and the second show took place at the Chain Reaction in Anaheim, CA on August 6, 2016. On August 5, the band announced that the show at the Chain Reaction would be their last.

Second reunion

In February 2019, the band posted a cryptic date June 22 to their social media pages. The band later revealed they would be headlining the first "Pop Punk Nite" at The Van Buren in Phoenix, AZ on June 22.

Post-breakup

In 2011, Micah Bentley married Ashley Bentley. Bentley currently lives with his wife in Peoria, Arizona where he continues to write music for his new project. This new project is called "Micah and His Friend". Jonathan Kelley graduated from medical school at

Midwestern University Midwestern University (MWU) is a private medical and professional school with campuses in Downers Grove, Illinois and Glendale, Arizona. As of the 2020-21 academic year, a total of 2,987 students were enrolled at the Downers Grove campus and ...

in Glendale, Arizona and is currently completing an

emergency medicine Emergency medicine is the Medical specialty, medical speciality concerned with the care of illnesses or Injury, injuries requiring immediate medical attention. Emergency physicians (often called “ER doctors” in the United States) continuous ...

residency at Maricopa Medical Center. Torry Jasper has a new band called "Video Head System" and tends bar at your local teppanyaki restaurant. Dan Parker currently works as a record producer. Johnny Abdullah married Nicole Castleman in 2017 and has since moved to Wenatchee, Washington. They welcomed their first son in December of 2019.

Style and influences

A Change of Pace's music is drawn from a number of different bands, ranging from pop bands such as

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

, to

metal A metal (from ancient Greek, Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, e ...

bands such

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. The band helped def ...

and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ...

and to the piano pop/rock of artists such as

Five for Fighting Vladimir John Ondrasik III (born January 7, 1965), also known by his stage name Five for Fighting, is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. He is best known for his piano-based soft rock ballads, such as the top 40 hits " Superman (It's No ...

and

Ben Folds Benjamin Scott Folds (born September 12, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and composer, who is the first artistic advisor to the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., since May 2017. Folds was ...

.A Change Of Pace Biography
. Sing365.com. Retrieved on 2010-10-26. The band however cites their major influence 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 mainstream or commercial ...

band

Third Eye Blind Third Eye Blind is an American rock band formed in San Francisco, California, in 1993. After years of lineup changes in the early and mid-1990s, the songwriting duo of Stephan Jenkins and Kevin Cadogan signed the band's first major-label reco ...

. They have also been noted by AllMusic reviewer Jo-Ann Greene as showing: "the sparkle of U2, the attitude of

Green Day Green Day is an American rock band formed in the East Bay of California in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, together with bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt. For most of the band's career, they have been a ...

, a stinging

arena rock Arena rock (also known as AOR, melodic rock, stadium rock, anthem rock, pomp rock, corporate rock and dad rock; ; ) is a style of rock music that originated in the mid-1970s. As hard rock bands and those playing a softer yet strident kind of po ...

-styled lead guitar solo, and a splash of new wave synth, deftly delivered by Dave Holdredge." Prepare the Masses - A Change of Pace AllMusic (2006-08-15). Retrieved on 2010-10-26. AllMusic commented on how all members of the band shared a love for

and

leading to A Change of Pace's style being described as "explosive, pop-edged alternative rock". A Change of Pace AllMusic. Retrieved on 2010-10-26. Reviews have cited them as showing influence from a variety of rock genres including:

,A Change Of Pace reviews, music, news
Sputnikmusic.com, Retrieved on 2010-10-26.

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 be ...

, screamo,

melodic hardcore Melodic hardcore is a broadly defined subgenre of hardcore punk with a strong emphasis on melody in its guitar work. It generally incorporates fast rhythms, melodic and often distorted guitar riffs, and vocal styles tending towards shouting and ...

,Anderson, Rick. (2005-03-22) An Offer You Can't Refuse - A Change of Pace AllMusic. Retrieved on 2010-10-26.

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, ear ...

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest ha ...

, punk rock and

indie rock Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the music they produ ...

Band members

*Torry Jasper:

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

(2001–2008; 2012–2016; 2019), rhythm guitar (2001-2006) *Jonathan Kelley:

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

(2001–2016; 2019) *Johnny Abdullah:

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

, vocals (2001–2016; 2019) *Adam Rodgers:

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 fe ...

(2001–2016; 2019) *Dan Parker:

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 ...

, vocals (2006–2016; 2019) ;Former *Micah Bentley:

(2008–2011; 2016)

Discography

Studio albums

*''An Offer You Can't Refuse'' (2005) *''Prepare the Masses'' (2006) U.S. No. 156 *'' It Could Be Worse'' (2011)

EPs

*''Change Is the Only Constant'' (2003) *''Just No Better Way'' (2008) *''In This Together'' (2009) *''The B-Sides'' (2013)

Compilations

*''

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'' (2005) *'' A Santa Cause: It's a Punk Rock Christmas'' (2006) *''Rockin' Romance ''(Summer Girls - LFO Cover) (2009)

Demos

*''Connect Set'' (2000)

References

External links

Official website
* A Change of Paceat

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

A Change of Pace
on

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

{{DEFAULTSORT:Change Of Pace, A American pop punk groups American post-hardcore musical groups Alternative rock groups from Arizona Musical groups established in 2002 People from Peoria, Arizona 2002 establishments in Arizona