Anberlin is an American alternative rock band from Winter Haven, Florida, formed in 2002. Since the beginning of 2007, the band has consisted of lead vocalist Stephen Christian, bassist Deon Rexroat, lead guitarist Joseph Milligan, drummer Nathan Young and rhythm guitarist Christian McAlhaney.
Members of Anberlin originally formed a band under the name SaGoh 24/7 in the late 1990s, releasing two studio albums before disbanding, with the members having a change in musical direction and name. Anberlin was formed in 2002; within a year of forming, they had signed with semi-independent record label Tooth & Nail Records and released their debut album, Blueprints for the Black Market. In 2005, the band released their second album, Never Take Friendship Personal, selling in excess of 150,000 copies. The band continued its rise to prominence while enjoying a loyal MySpace following and averaging well over 200 live shows per year. The band's third album, Cities, was released in 2007, and became their first album to reach the top 20 of the Billboard 200, selling 34,000 copies in its debut week.
After three studio albums and five years with Tooth & Nail Records, Anberlin announced their signing with major label Universal Republic Records in August 2007. with the first single, "Feel Good Drag", claiming number one on the Alternative Songs chart, after 29 weeks in the chart. Prior to the release of their fifth studio album, Dark Is the Way, Light Is a Place, Anberlin has sold over 700,000 albums.
History
SaGoh 24/7 and the origins of Anberlin (1998–2002)
Lead singer
Stephen Christian met bassist
Deon Rexroat while they were both in high school, and they formed a punk band called SaGoh 24/7. Drummer Sean Hutson and guitarist
Joseph Milligan joined the group as well. The band released two albums,
Servants After God's Own Heart (1999), and
Then I Corrupt Youth (2001), both under Rescue Records. After the albums sold only 1,300 units, Through steady touring with other bands in their label and heavy internet promotion, Anberlin was amassing a dedicated fan base early on.
Rhythm guitarist Joey Bruce was eventually ejected from the band. According to Christian, he was "all about sex and drugs", and was going in a different direction than the rest of the band. the album brought the band a step closer into the mainstream. NTFP was generally more well received by critics than Blueprints for the Black Market, and garnered favorable reviews. Before its release, the band promoted the album by releasing a track per week on their PureVolume and MySpace website accounts, as well as on their own website. Two singles were released from the album: "A Day Late" and "Paperthin Hymn". Both were reasonably successful on alternative rock radio, with the latter peaking at the #38 position on the Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart.
Anberlin participated in a number of compilations during this time, recording covers of Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone", Depeche Mode's "Enjoy the Silence," and the song "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)".
Cities and Lost Songs (2005–2007)
at the 2007 Warped Tour]]Anberlin's third album produced by Aaron Sprinkle was released in early 2007 under the title
Cities. It sold 34,000 copies in its first week of release, debuted at #19 on the Billboard 200 chart, and, like their previous album, received fairly positive reviews from critics. Before the release of
Cities, the band released
Godspeed EP exclusively on
iTunes in late 2006 to give a preview to the new album. In support of the album, Anberlin held their first headlining tour, supported by
Bayside,
Meg & Dia and
Jonezetta.
In an interview about the album, Christian commented that the lyrics throughout the band's discography are progressively becoming more mature. "The first CD (Blueprints for the Black Market) was childish in the manner that it was Man vs. World in the lyrics. The second (Never Take Friendship Personal) was Man Vs. Man. Cities is more adult in the manner that it's Man Vs. Self. Cities was the #1 most anticipated album on Jesus Freak Hideout's Most Anticipated Albums of 2007.
Three to four weeks before the release of Cities, it was announced that guitarist Nathan Strayer amicably left the band to go back to The Mosaic and that Christian McAlhaney, formerly of the band Acceptance, would take over as the new guitarist.
A compilation album of unreleased material, called Lost Songs, was released on 20 November 2007. It features B-sides, demos, covers, and acoustic versions of their previous songs as well as other tracks recorded at AOL Sessions.
Universal Republic signing and New Surrender; Blueprints... (2007–2009)
The band signed to
Universal Republic Records on 16 August 2007, and soon after began to write material for their major-label debut, entitled
New Surrender, which was released on 30 September 2008. This is the band's first album to not be distributed through
Tooth & Nail Records or produced by Aaron Sprinkle. The first song to be heard from the new album was tentatively titled "Bittersweet Memory" during its initial live performances; it was later renamed to "Breaking" with an acoustic remix of the song included on USB wristbands sold exclusively during the 2008 Warped Tour. On 11 July 2008, the band showcased a second new song called "Disappear" on their
MySpace profile. The first actual single from the album was the re-recorded "
Feel Good Drag" which was set to go to radio on 18 August - eventually being released on 26 August.
The band booked eight weeks of recording sessions with famed producer Neal Avron (New Found Glory, Yellowcard, Fall Out Boy) in early February 2008. Stephen Christian stated in an interview, "We're very excited about working with Neal; I think our fans are going to be pleased when they hear the final result." Christian also discussed the difficulties in writing this record. "When you try to write 29 songs lyrically you find yourself topically working in circles; I only go through so much in one year, but needlessly I have dedicated myself to begin searching books, art, and friends for new directions." During the recording process, the band set up a live webcam in the studio so fans could watch them record the album via the band's MySpace profile. New Surrender was placed at the number two spot on Jesus Freak Hideout's 25 Most Anticipated Albums of 2008.
In the week of its release, the album sold 36,000 units, entering the Billboard 200 chart at number 13. It also placed at Number Five on the Top Current Rock chart, according to a Universal Republic press release. In support of the album, the band embarked on a fall headlining U.S. tour alongside Scary Kids Scaring Kids, Straylight Run, and There For Tomorrow. Kyle Flynn, formerly of the band Acceptance, joined the band while on tour doing keys, loops, acoustic guitar, and background vocals. The band then traveled to the United Kingdom where they supported Elliot Minor and played a handful of headlining shows with Furthest Drive Home and Data.Select.Party.
Anberlin went into the studio to record several tracks, including a cover of the New Order song "True Faith", which was made available online. The band also recorded a cover of the Danzig song "Mother", which they performed during an interview with Billboard. After supporting Taking Back Sunday throughout May and June 2009, the band planned to start writing the follow up to New Surrender in the summer, but the release date is undetermined, as the band would give the new material the time and effort that it needs. They also undertook an Australian tour in August, alongside The Academy Is.... A b-side from New Surrender, "A Perfect Tourniquet", was be released on the soundtrack for the TV show 90210. The cover of New Order's "True Faith" was released to radio airplay on November 17, the same day as the Tooth & Nail release Blueprints for City Friendships: The Anberlin Anthology. Blueprints... is a 33 song, 3-CD set including all the songs from their Tooth & Nail studio albums.
Dark Is the Way, Light Is a Place (2010–present)
In an interview with the
South Florida Sun-Sentinel in December 2009, it was revealed by lead singer Stephen Christian that the band were tentatively due to enter the studio in the beginning of 2010, with a release probable later in the year. He said "it looks like we are going to go to the studio in January, February or March, right around that time". Drummer
Nathan Young stated that the album would be "less poppy" and "darker". Christian posted on his
Twitter account in December 2009, that his choice for an album name was "a go" but did not reveal the name.
The band entered Blackbird Studios, Nashville, to begin recording the album in March 2010. It was announced on March 3 that the band would be working with Grammy Award winning producer, Brendan O'Brien. The tracking of the album was completed on April 9, with mixing commencing on April 13, 2010. In an April 2010 interview with MyMag, Christian stated that the album's release date is "looking like late July or early August" 2010. However, in a May 2010 interview with Spin Magazine, McAlhaney stated that the album would be released in September 2010.
In early June 2010, the album's release date was confirmed to be September 21, 2010. The band also began exposing their new music, with videos of live performances of the album's songs appearing online. A press release revealed on June 17 that Anberlin's fifth studio album would be titled Dark Is the Way, Light Is a Place, taking its title from a line in Dylan Thomas’ "Poem on His Birthday". Along with the disclosure of a track listing, the press release also announced the album's lead single, "Impossible", which went to radio play on July 12, 2010.
When asked about the possible impact of the new album, Stephen replied 'I feel like we're on the brink of something... either world domination or destruction, but either way we're on the brink'.
Origin of name
Anberlin lead vocalist Stephen Christian has stated different origins of the band's name in various interviews, for example that he had long planned to name his first daughter Anberlin. Struggling to find a name for the band, Stephen suggested it; "We were all sitting around trying to come up with a name. None of us were married or had kids, but one day I was going to name my daughter Anberlin, so I figured we could name the band that until we thought of something better. So we chose Anberlin and no one has thought of anything better." He stated he was no longer going to use Anberlin to name his first daughter, however he said, "If I ever have a daughter and name her Anberlin, she'll think she was named after the band instead of the other way around." A fan in Sacramento named her daughter "Riley Anberlin," and had a chance to introduce her to Stephen before a show at The Underground in 2007. Christian had also stated in another interview that the band's name was created when he was thinking about cities in Europe he wanted to visit. In his mind he listed "London, Paris, Rome, and
Berlin." Christian thought that "And Berlin" would be an appropriate name for a band, and so when the band was looking for a name Christian suggested "And Berlin," which was then modified to "Anberlin."
Christian has since retracted those comments admitting that when the band first started, in interviews they "would take turn making stories about how it came to be" as a joke, as he believed the actual origin of the band name wasn't interesting enough. Christian said there was a story about how his grandfather had "saved a little girl from a World War II bombing... her name was Anberlin" and that they had hit a dog, which had the name Anberlin, with the stories getting more diverse, it was decided they reveal the true origin. He has said the "real" name came from the Radiohead song "Everything in Its Right Place", stating that "There are several stories that have circulated on the internet, but the actual story is when I was in college my favorite band was Radiohead; on one of their songs off the record Kid A there is a background noise on the song "Everything in Its Right Place" (about 2 minutes 31 seconds into the song). While Thom (Yorke) is singing try to say I always thought the background noise sounded like Anberlin, I always thought that Anberlin would have been a great band name and well...it was/is."
Status as a Christian musical group
Over the years, many fans, critics, and other members of the media have consistently characterized Anberlin as a
Christian band. However, Stephen Christian stated in an interview that their faith is more complicated than a simple label: "I think we're categorized like that a lot because we're on
Tooth & Nail Records, which, years ago, was known as a Christian label and never lost that reputation. I don't care who listens to our records. If it helps people in whatever circumstances they're in, that's amazing, but I definitely don't classify us as a Christian band."
Despite these statements and others of the like, multiple sources list the band as part of the Christian rock genre, and some Anberlin song lyrics do contain christian references. Furthermore, the band appears at Christian music festivals such as Parachute Music Festival and their songs have been included on Christian rock compilation CDs and DVDs. They are also played on the Gospel Music Channel.
Anberlin has also been repeatedly featured in Christian rock magazine HM (Hard Music, which was originally the fanzine Heaven's Metal). Christian submitted a letter to the magazine, criticizing the avowedly Christian punk band the Knights of the New Crusade for a promotional image that represented a "black mark on the face of Christianity".
Christian has also said in an interview with Lightforce radio how the band tries to "step out of the bubble" and referred to themselves as being part of Christian music. He discussed in detail what Christians should do in their lives: love and embrace others as Jesus would as well as show God's grace to others. He mentioned as well how the band Fall Out Boy said in an interview that they did not really know much about Jesus until Anberlin toured with them.
In an interview with Smartpunk, drummer Nathan Young commented, "The thing is, some bands that are trying to get out of the Christian market, they get bummed out by questions about it. I don’t really mind it, because I’m a Christian, and I’m okay talking about it. With the whole term 'Christian Band,' I don’t understand how a band can be Christian. We get the question, 'Is Anberlin a Christian band?' and it’s like, yeah, Anberlin is — as humans".
Members
,
Cleveland, in April 2007]]
;Current
Stephen Christian – lead vocals (2002—present)
Joseph Milligan – lead guitar, backing vocals (2002—present)
Deon Rexroat – bass (2002—present)
Nathan Young – drums (2002—present)
Christian McAlhaney – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2007—present)
Kyle Flynn (touring member) – guitar, keyboard, backing vocals (2008—Present)
;Former
Nathan Strayer – guitar, backing vocals (2004—2007)
Joey Bruce – guitar (2002—2004)
Randy Torres (touring member) – guitar, keyboard, percussion, backing vocals (2010)
Discography
Studio albums
2003: Blueprints for the Black Market
2005: Never Take Friendship Personal
2007: Cities
2008: New Surrender
2010: Dark Is the Way, Light Is a Place
Side projects
Anchor & Braille
Stephen Christian formed an
acoustic side project,
Anchor & Braille. The project was originally a joint venture with
Aaron Marsh of the band
Copeland; however, Marsh will reportedly not feature on the project's debut album, entitled
Felt, although he did produce it. The project first yielded a 7" vinyl, and
Felt was released on August 4, 2009.
Work with organizations
Anberlin has a history of working closely with a range of charity and community support organizations. Christian founded the organization
Faceless International to raise awareness about issues surrounding
human trafficking and social issues. The band's fall 2010 tour included Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee, which raises money to help impoverished communities. The band has also had a long association with
To Write Love on Her Arms; the organization was involved in the
Cities tour, and has released a T-shirt featuring a photograph taken by Young.
References
External links
Anberlin.com
Category:American alternative rock groups
Category:2000s music groups
Category:2010s music groups
Category:American Christian rock groups
Category:Musical groups from Florida
Category:Tooth and Nail Records artists
Category:Musical groups established in 2002
![Alex Kapranos of post-punk revival group Franz Ferdinand. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, several alternative rock bands bands emerged, including The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand, Interpol, The Rapture and Muse[citation needed], that drew primary inspiration from post-punk and New Wave, establishing the post-punk revival movement.](http://web.archive.org./web/20110322050028im_/http://cdn.wn.com/pd/e7/eb/609056406b5bae117bf6c5150b20_grande.jpg "Alex Kapranos of post-punk revival group Franz Ferdinand. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, several alternative rock bands bands emerged, including The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand, Interpol, The Rapture and Muse[citation needed], that drew primary inspiration from post-punk and New Wave, establishing the post-punk revival movement.")
![Alex Kapranos of post-punk revival group Franz Ferdinand. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, several alternative rock bands bands emerged, including The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand, Interpol, The Rapture and Muse[citation needed], that drew primary inspiration from post-punk and New Wave, establishing the post-punk revival movement.](http://web.archive.org./web/20110322050028im_/http://cdn.wn.com/pd/e7/eb/609056406b5bae117bf6c5150b20_thumb.jpg "Alex Kapranos of post-punk revival group Franz Ferdinand. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, several alternative rock bands bands emerged, including The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand, Interpol, The Rapture and Muse[citation needed], that drew primary inspiration from post-punk and New Wave, establishing the post-punk revival movement.")
