Unearth
Unearth in 2006 (from left to right: Buz McGrath, Mike Justian, Trevor Phipps, Ken Susi and John Maggard).
Background information
Origin	Wakefield, Massachusetts, USA
Genres	Metalcore
Years active	1998–present
Labels	Metal Blade, Eulogy, Endless Fight
Associated acts	Lamb of God, Killswitch Engage, Every Time I Die, Hassan I Sabbah
Website	www.unearth.tv
Members
Ken Susi Trevor Phipps Buz McGrath John Maggard Nick Pierce
Past members
Derek Kerswill Mike Justian Chris Rybicki Mike Rudberg

Unearth is an American metalcore band from Winthrop, Massachusetts. Formed in 1998, the group has released five studio albums. Their fourth record, The March was released on October 14, 2008 meeting with high positive reception by many. Their fifth album, Darkness in the Light, was released July 5, 2011.

History[link]

Early career (1998–2002)[link]

Unearth was formed by Trevor Phipps, Buz McGrath, Ken Susi, Mike Rudberg, and Chris Rybicki in Eastern Massachusetts in 1998. The band began as Point 04 (containing McGrath, Rudberg, and Rybicki), and Susi was recruited soon afterwards. The band attempted to recruit Phipps while he recovered from appendicitis, but Phipps was reluctant to join. However, when Phipps showed up to a jam session for one of Susi's side bands, Unearth was practicing instead, and Phipps agreed to join after hearing the song "Shattered by the Sun." The name "Unearth" was coined by drummer Mike Rudberg as he wanted the band to "Unearth" a new sound in the metal and hardcore world. On the small independent label, Endless Fight Records, they released their first EP called Above the Fall of Man in May 1999. Unearth then signed to Eulogy Recordings to release The Stings of Conscience in 2001 and the Endless EP in 2002. During the process of Endless, Chris Rybicki left the group and was replaced by John Maggard.

[edit] The Oncoming Storm (2003–2005)

After playing tours and festivals like the New England Metal and Hardcore Festival with Unearth, Mike Rudberg departed from the group days after their performance at The SXSW in 2003, having performed the show in the nude.^[1] Also Buz McGrath left for personal problems but came back shortly after. The rest of Unearth would then use Tim Mycek of Sworn Enemy as temporary replacement drummer and Kia Eshghi of Rumi on guitar. Before Buz returned, Mike Martin from All That Remains also filled in for him. After Buz's return, Adam D from Killswitch Engage also filled in on drums for the last 2 months of the year.

With Buz McGrath and new permanent drummer Mike Justian, of The Red Chord and previously post-hardcore band Hassan I Sabbah, Unearth released The Oncoming Storm through Metal Blade Records on June 29, 2004. That summer, they played at Ozzfest and would later begin touring with Killswitch Engage, Shadows Fall, and Lamb of God for MTV's Headbangers Ball United States tour. They would also tour with Slipknot the next year. In 2005, Unearth performed in the first ever Sounds of the Underground tour with numerous bands like Norma Jean, Gwar, and All That Remains.

[edit] In the Eyes of Fire (2006–2008)

In early 2006, they began writing their next album. After the writing process, they recorded III: In the Eyes of Fire with well-known heavy metal producer Terry Date at Seattle. This latest coup was yet another landmark in their blossoming career, a fact the band were quick to acknowledge: "Working with Terry Date is another amazing feat for us on a growing list of accomplishments".^[2] As they finished their latest album, they performed at Ozzfest for the second time, including songs from the album even though it was not destined for release until August 8, 2006. During the release, they began their headlined Sanctity of Brothers tour with Bleeding Through, Animosity, Through the Eyes of the Dead and Terror. After participating in Japan's Loud Park festival, Unearth and Slayer toured together all around the U.S. in early 2007 on the Christ Illusion tour. They headlined a European tour in the beginning of 2007 with Job for a Cowboy, Despised Icon, and DÅÅTH. Which was followed by a U.S. & Canadian tour with Dimmu Borgir, DevilDriver and Kataklysm that began in the middle of April. It was during this tour that drummer Mike Justian was fired from the band for numerous reasons. To fill in for the rest of the tour, Gene Hoglan of Strapping Young Lad was recruited. They played in the 2007 Download Festival with Seemless/Kingdom of Sorrow/studio drummer Derek Kerswill who has since joined the band officially.

The band's live DVD Alive from the Apocalypse was released on March 18, 2008, and debuted at #13 on the Billboard Top Music Video Chart, with sales around 1,800. It was also certified gold in Canada a week after its release.

[edit] The March (2008–2010)

On October 14, 2008, Unearth released their fourth album, entitled The March. The album features a re-recorded version of the song "The Chosen", which they contributed to the album Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters Colon the Soundtrack. The band recently completed a tour with Gwen Stacy, The Acacia Strain, Whitechapel and Protest the Hero. They have completed the Never Say Die Club Tour with Parkway Drive, Architects, Despised Icon, Protest the Hero, Whitechapel and Carnifex. They have also completed the Metal Hammer Defenders of the Faith tour with other acts such as Lamb of God, Dimmu Borgir and Five Finger Death Punch

As of early 2009, it has been confirmed that The March has sold more than 100,000 copies worldwide.^[3] In March 2010, Unearth confirmed that they will be playing the Download Festival opening the festival on the Maurice Jones Stage (formerly known as Main Stage) along with Killswitch Engage, 36 Crazyfists and Them Crooked Vultures.

On September 20, 2010 it was announced that former bassist, Chris Rybicki was killed in a car accident provoked by an intoxicated woman. He was 39 years old.^[4]

Unearth just completed a North American tour with As I Lay Dying, All That Remains and Carnifex and will head to Europe for the 10 day "Persistence Tour" in December 2010. On October 25, 2010, Unearth issued a statement saying they and Derek Kerswill had amicably parted ways. The band stated there is no bad blood towards Kerswill, and that the situation is purely based on musical differences. Justin Foley will fill in for drums for their new album.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Darkness in the Light (2011-present)

In January and February 2011 the band entered the studio to work of the fifth studio album entitled "Darkness in the Light." The album is being produced by Times of Grace and Killswitch Engage's guitar player Adam Dutkiewicz and drums are being tracked by Killswitch Engage's drummer Justin Foley. On the Metal Injection LiveCast on Wednesday, April 13 Buz McGrath was the special guest.^{[citation needed]} He discussed the new album and released the title "Darkness in the Light" and said the album is due to be released late June or early July. He mentioned that it was vocalist's Trevor Phipps best effort on all the Unearth albums.^{[citation needed]}

On January 31, 2011, the band was announced to be a part of the 2011 Mayhem Festival on the Jägermeister stage. Other bands billed are Godsmack, Megadeth, In Flames, and Machine Head.^[5]

Musical influences[link]

Band members mentioned in an interview with Metal Hammer that their key influences are Pantera, Slayer, Metallica, Earth Crisis, In Flames, and At the Gates. Their musical style has been described as being essentially metalcore.^[6][7]

In an interview on MTV Headbangers Ball accepted influences of Anthrax, Testament and Iron Maiden.

Band members[link]

Unearth in Barcelona (2010).

Current members

• Buz McGrath – guitars (1998–present)
• Trevor Phipps – lead vocals (1998–present)
• Ken Susi – guitars, backing vocals (1998–present)
• John "Slo" Maggard – bass guitar, keyboards, backing vocals (2001–present)
• Nick Pierce – drums, percussion (2012–present)

Former members

• Chris "Rover" Rybicki – bass (1998–2001)
• Mike Rudberg – drums, percussion (1998–2003)
• Mike Justian – drums, percussion (2003–2007)
• Derek Kerswill – drums, percussion (2007–2010)

Studio/Touring

• Justin Foley – drums, percussion (2011)
• Gene Hoglan – drums, percussion (2007)
• Adam Dutkiewicz – drums, percussion (2003)

Discography[link]

Studio albums

• The Stings of Conscience (2001)
• The Oncoming Storm (2004)
• III: In the Eyes of Fire (2006)
• The March (2008)
• Darkness in the Light (2011)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website

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There are many people in history who are commonly appended with the phrase "the Great", or who were called that or an equivalent phrase in their own language. Other languages have their own suffixes such as e Bozorg and e azam in Persian and Urdu respectively.

In Persia, the title "the Great" at first seems to be a colloquial version of the Old Persian title "Great King". This title was first used by the conqueror Cyrus II of Persia.^[1]

The Persian title was inherited by Alexander III of Macedon (336–323 BC) when he conquered the Persian Empire, and the epithet "Great" eventually became personally associated with him. The first reference (in a comedy by Plautus)^[2] assumes that everyone knew who "Alexander the Great" was; however, there is no earlier evidence that Alexander III of Macedon was called "the Great".

The early Seleucid kings, who succeeded Alexander in Persia, used "Great King" in local documents, but the title was most notably used for Antiochus the Great (223–187 BC).

Later rulers and commanders began to use the epithet "the Great" as a personal name, like the Roman general Pompey. Others received the surname retrospectively, like the Carthaginian Hanno and the Indian emperor Ashoka the Great. Once the surname gained currency, it was also used as an honorific surname for people without political careers, like the philosopher Albert the Great.

As there are no objective criteria for "greatness", the persistence of later generations in using the designation greatly varies. For example, Louis XIV of France was often referred to as "The Great" in his lifetime but is rarely called such nowadays, while Frederick II of Prussia is still called "The Great". A later Hohenzollern - Wilhelm I - was often called "The Great" in the time of his grandson Wilhelm II, but rarely later.

Rulers[link]

• Abbas I of Persia (1571–1629), Shah of Iran
• Akbar (1542–1605), ruler of the Mughal Empire of South Asia, mainly India
• Alain I of Albret (1440–1522), French aristocrat
• Alexander the Great (356-323 BC), King of Macedonia, Persia, Greece, Egypt, and all of Mesopotamia
• Alexander I of Georgia (1386–1446), King of Georgia
• Alfonso III of León (c. 848-910), King of León, Galicia and Asturias
• Alfred the Great (848/849-899), King of Wessex
• Antiochus III the Great (c. 241–187 BC), ruler of the Seleucid Empire
• Ashoka the Great (c. 304–232 BC), Indian emperor of the Maurya dynasty
• Ashot I of Iberia “the Great”(died 826/830), presiding prince of Iberia (modern Georgia),
• Askia Mohammad I (c. 1442–1538), ruler of the Songhai Empire
• Bhumibol Adulyadej (born 1927), King of Thailand
• Bolesław I Chrobry (967-1025), sometimes called "the Great", first King of Poland
• Bruno the Great (925–965), Archbishop of Cologne and Duke of Lotharingia (also listed in the following section)
• Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke (1736–1809), founder and ruler of the Rattanakosin Kingdom (in what is now Thailand)
• Cnut the Great (c. 985 or 995-1035), King of Denmark, England, Norway and parts of Sweden
• Casimir III the Great (1310–1370), King of Poland
• Catherine the Great (1729–1796), Empress of Russia
• Chandragupta II (reigned 375-413/415), also known as Vikramaditya, ruler of the Gupta empire in India
• Charlemagne (died 814), King of the Franks and Emperor of the Romans
• Chulalongkorn (1853–1910), King of Siam (now Thailand)
• Chlothar II (584-629), King of Neustria and King of the Franks
• Conrad, Margrave of Meissen (c. 1097-1157), Margrave of Meissen
• Constantine I (c. 272-337), Roman emperor
• Cyaxares the Great (c. 625-585 BC), third king of Media
• Cyrus the Great (c. 600 BC or 576 BC–530 BC), founder and ruler of the Persian or Achaemenid Empire
• Darius the Great (550 – 486 BC), third ruler of the Persian Empire
• Devapala (died 850), ruler of the Pala Empire in the Indian subcontinent
• Dionysius I, Greek tyrant of Syracuse^[3]
• Ferdinand I of León and Castile (c. 1015–1065), King of León and Count of Castile
• Frederick the Great (1712–1786), King of Prussia
• Genghis Khan (1162?-1227), founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire
• Gero (c. 900–965), ruler of Marca Geronis, a very large march in Europe
• Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden (1594–1632), King of Sweden, founder of the Swedish Empire, and noted military leader
• Gwanggaeto the Great, King of Goguryeo, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea^[4][5]
• Hanno the Great, the name of three leaders of Carthage, in the 4th, 3rd, and 2nd centuries BC
• Henry I, Duke of Burgundy (946–1002)
• Henry IV of France (1553–1610), King of France and King of Navarre
• Herod the Great (73/74 BC-4 BC), King of Judea
• Hugh the Great (898-956), Duke of the Franks and Count of Paris
• Hugh Magnus of France (1007–1025), co-King of France
• Hugh I, Count of Vermandois (1057–1101)
• Humphrey I de Bohun (died c. 1123), Anglo-Norman aristocrat
• Ivan III of Russia (1440–1505), Tsar of Russia
• John I of Portugal (1358–1433), King of Portugal and the Algarve
• John II of Aragon (1398–1479), King of Aragon and, through his wife, King of Navarre
• Justinian I (483-565), Byzantine Emperor
• Kamehameha I (c. 1758-1819), first King of Hawai'i
• Kanishka (died c. 127), ruler of the Kushan Empire in Central Asia and parts of India
• Kvirike III of Kakheti (1010–1029), King of Kakheti in eastern Georgia
• Kublai Khan (1215–1294), Mongol ruler in the 13th century and Emperor of China; founder of the Yuan Dynasty
• Llywelyn the Great (c. 1172–1240), Prince of Gwynedd and de facto ruler of most of Wales
• Louis I of Hungary (1326–1382), King of Hungary, Croatia and Poland
• Mangrai the Great (1238–1317), Lanna, northern Thailand
• Emperor Meiji (1852–1912), Emperor of Japan
• Mircea I of Wallachia (1355–1418)
• Mithridates II of Parthia (died 88 BC), ruler of the Parthian Empire (in present day Iran)
• Mithridates VI of Pontus (134 BC–63 BC), ruler of Pontus and the Bosporan Kingdom
• Mstislav I of Kiev (1076–1132), Grand Prince of Kievan Rus
• Naresuan (1555–1605), King of Ayutthaya
• Narai (1633–1688), King of Ayutthaya (in what is now modern Thailand)
• Odo the Great (died c. 735), Duke of Aquitaine
• Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (912-973)
• K'inich Janaab' Pakal (603-683), ruler of the Mayan city-state of Palenque
• Parakramabahu I of Polonnaruwa (1123–1186), King of Sri Lanka
• Peter Krešimir IV of Croatia (died 1075), King of Croatia
• Peter the Great (1672–1725), Tsar of Russia
• Peter III of Aragon (1239–1285), King of Aragon and King of Sicily
• Pompey (106 BC-48 BC), military and political leader of the late Roman Republic, rival of Julius Caesar
• Radama I (1793–1828), first king of greater Madagascar
• Raja Raja Chola I (c. 947-1014), Indian emperor of the Cholas.^[6][7][8]
• Rajendra Chola I (reigned 1014–1044), Tamil King of India
• Ramesses II (reigned 1279 BC – 1213 BC), considered the greatest pharaoh of Ancient Egypt
• Ram Khamhaeng (around 1237 to 1247-1298), King of Sukhothai (in present day Thailand)
• Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona (1082–1131), also Count of Provence and various other counties
• Rhodri the Great (c. 820–878), King of Gwynedd (in present day Wales)
• Roman the Great (after 1160-1205), Grand Prince of Kiev
• Saladin (c. 1138-1193), Kurdish Sultan of Egypt and Syria, founder of the Ayyubid dynasty, and victor over the Crusaders
• Samudragupta (c. 335–375), ruler of the Gupta empire in the Indian subcontinent
• Sancho III of Navarre (c. 992-1035), King of Kingdom of Navarre
• Sargon of Akkad (died c. 2215 BC), ruler of the Akkadian Empire
• Sejong the Great (1397–1450), Korean king^[9]
• Shapur II (309-379), king of the Sassanid Empire, Persia
• Simeon I of Bulgaria (864/865-927), ruler of the First Bulgarian Empire
• Stephen III of Moldavia (1433–1504), Prince of Moldavia (Romania)
• Stephen Uroš IV Dušan of Serbia (c. 1308-1355), King of Serbia and Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks
• Taksin (1734–1782), King of the Thonburi Kingdom (Thailand)
• Tamar (1160-1123), Queen of the Georgian Empire
• Timur (1336–1405), better known as Tamerlane, founder of the Timurid Dynasty
• Theobald II, Count of Champagne (1090–1151), Count of Blois and of Chartres as Theobald IV, Count of Champagne and of Brie
• Theodoric the Great (454-526), King of the Ostrogoths, regent of the Visigoths and a viceroy of the Byzantine Empire
• Theodosius I (347-395), Roman emperor
• Tigranes the Great (140-55 BC), Emperor of Armenia
• Tiridates III of Armenia (285-339), King of Armenia
• Umar (c. 586 to 590–644), second caliph of the Muslim Empire
• Valdemar I of Denmark (1131–1182), King of Denmark
• Valentinian I (364-375), Roman Emperor
• Vladimir I of Kiev (c. 958-1015), ruler of Kievan Rus
• Vytautas (c. 1350-1430), archduke of the Lithuanian Grand Duchy
• William I, Count of Burgundy (1020–1087), Count of Burgandy and Mâcon
• William V, Duke of Aquitaine (969-1030), also Count of Poitou
• Xerxes I (519-465 BC), King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire (Persia)
• Yu the Great (c. 2200-2100 BC), legendary ruler in ancient China

Religious figures[link]

• Abraham the Great of Kashkar (ca. 492-586), monk and saint of the Assyrian Church of the East
• Abraham Kidunaia (died c. 366, hermit, priest, and Christian saint of Mesopotamia
• Albertus Magnus (1193/1206–1280), medieval German philosopher and theologian
• Anthony the Great (c. 251–356), early Christian saint of Egypt
• Babai the Great (c. 551–628), Assyrian church leader
• Basil of Caesarea (330-379), Greek bishop and theologian
• Bruno the Great (925–965), Archbishop of Cologne and Duke of Lotharingia (also listed in the previous section)
• Euthymius the Great (377-473), abbot and Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox saint
• Gertrude the Great (1256-c. 1302), German Benedictine, mystic, theologian and Roman Catholic saint
• Pope Gregory I (c. 540-604)
• Hiyya the Great, 3rd-century rabbi, Palestine
• Pope John Paul II (1920–2005)
• Pope Leo I (c. 391 or 400-461)
• Macarius of Egypt (c. 300-391), Egyptian hermit
• Pope Nicholas I (c. 800-867)
• Photius I of Constantinople (c. 810–c. 893), Eastern Orthodox saint and Patriarch of Constantinople
• William of Maleval (died 1157), founder of the Catholic congregation of Williamites

Other[link]

• Beli Mawr, a figure in medieval Welsh literature and genealogies
• Emmy the Great, folk singer
• Matteo Rosso the Great, Roman politician and father of Pope Nicholas III
• Prokop the Great, Hussite general in Bohemia

See also[link]

• Epithet
• List of monarchs by nickname
• List of nicknames of European Royalty and Nobility: G-I
• James, son of Zebedee, also known as James the Greater, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus
• Ajax (mythology), called Ajax the Greater
• Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, whose common honorific "Mahatma" means "Great Soul"

Notes[link]