ATP! Album Review: Underoath - Anthology: 1999 - 2013
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last fourteen years, everyone – even people who weren’t dedicated UØ fans – knows how substantial the band’s impact on alternative rock music is. Underoath undoubtedly made the dual unclean/clean vocalist technique a favorite among aspiring metalcore musicians. And their idea of having two singers, one solely on vocal duties (Spencer Chamberlain) while the other sings and plays drums (former member Aaron Gillespie), opened musicians’ eyes to the numerous ways a band can be constructed.
To give themselves and their fans some closure, Underoath is embarking on a short farewell tour in January 2013. Accompanying this tour is their last release, an Anthology of what they consider to be their most notable songs. The album works as a backwards timeline, starting with the last two Underoath songs ever recorded and ending with the first track from their rare debut album, "Act of Depression" (1999). Most Underoath fans are familiar with the last fifteen tracks on the Anthology, but it’s the first two, in conjunction with the farewell tour, that give them a perfect parting gift before the band retires.
The band does not stray from their unique brand of normalcy for the new songs. Neither one of them sounds foreign to a typical Underoath anthem; the first of the final two tracks is both appealing and familiar sounding. 'Sunburnt', which clocks in at roughly five minutes, is the more aggressive of the two tracks. Chris Dudley’s programming starts the song off, prolonging the suspense, and crescendos into a sudden burst of energy from all parts. Tim McTague and James Smith perform with 'Disambiguation' (2010)-style guitar melodies on this one while drummer, Daniel Davison, keeps the pace moving at a relentless rate. The instruments build up alongside Chamberlain’s vocals and peak during the chorus. Chamberlain, who has been looked up to by aspiring vocalists for well over a decade now, breaks the boundaries he may have set for himself from way back in his "They’re Only Chasing Safety" (2004) days. He delivers a bone-chilling performance in the chorus of 'Sunburnt', reaching octaves with such ease- a feat that may have been impossible when he first joined the band.
'Unsound', the last of the two new tracks, combines the darker, slower songs from Underoath’s previous releases with their mellow and slightly calmer contemporaries from 'Disambiguation' (“Driftwood”). Once again, Davison and bassist Grant Brandell violently drive the song into the ground with their resounding rhythms. The overall tone of 'Unsound' parallels 'Paper Lung' ("Disambiguation") with its slower beats across each section of the song along with the heavy timbre of the guitars. This scream-less track lets Chamberlain’s powerful singing voice shine. Similar to 'Sunburnt', Chamberlain continues to hit these perceivably unreachable notes particularly during the chorus. As he belts out the phrase, “I never wanted this,” fans cannot help but sing it back to Chamberlain because of the melodic element, but also to tell the singer that they were not expecting- and most certainly never wanted- the band to part ways.
There is no denying that Underoath gave so much to build and learn from since their inception. They have consistently composed timeless music that will continue to impact young and aspiring musicians for years to come. Although their disbanding is a dismal thought, the "Anthology" album celebrates their fourteen-year legacy and makes the sad news a little less bitter.
5/5
Melissa Jones
"Anthology: 1999 - 2013" is out now via Solid State Records.
