Underoath

Underoath: Lost in the Sound of SeparationLost in the Sound of Separation (2008)
Tooth & Nail Records

Reviewer Rating: 3.5

User Rating:

Contributed by: InaGreendaseBrian
(others by this writer | submit your own)
Published on December 2nd 2008It's truly confounding that Underoath chose to stick with Tooth & Nail for yet another album, when they could've easily been riding major label dough since 2005 (if not earlier). Sure, their sound is a little jarring for radio or MTV, but it's certainly FUSE-friendly; their last few albums have achi.

It's truly confounding that Underoath chose to stick with Tooth & Nail for yet another album, when they could've easily been riding major label dough since 2005 (if not earlier). Sure, their sound is a little jarring for radio or MTV, but it's certainly FUSE-friendly; their last few albums have achieved massive critical success; they've got the Christian leanings; and by this point, they've become arguably the biggest band of their metalcore genre.

Perhaps it's their creative ambition. Since 2004's They're Only Chasing Safety, which practically perfected the interlacing of the pop of guilty pleasure nuevo-emo with flashes of sheer aggression, they've seemingly become exponentially tired of the format and have played around with electronic flourishes and heavier tendencies ever since. Lost in the Sound of Separation, while certainly not the most perfected result of this creativity, is an electrified, ambitious and very accomplished effort.

"Breathing in a New Mentality" opens with deceiving lo-fi drum slams before it becomes all juggernaut guitar scowls and low howls. The first clean vocal line of the album doesn't come until nearly two minutes into the next song, "Anyone Can Dig a Hole But It Takes a Real Man to Call It Home," and it's a symbol for the entire album; lead screamer Spencer Chamberlain has taken even more of the vocal reigns, letting drummer and backup vocalist Aaron Gillespie focus more on his kit. When Gillespie does join in, it's much more punctual than on 2006's Define the Great Line; his best show comes in tracks like "We Are the Involuntary," "Coming Down Is Calming Down" and the more uptempo "Desperate Times, Desperate Measures," where, despite sounding an awful lot like Saosin's Cove Reber, his yelps provide a welcome cleansing contrast.

More production tricks litter "A Fault Line, A Fault of Mine," but one will really take notice when the strikingly unique and surprisingly long "Emergency Broadcast :: The End Is Near" comes next. It's nearly six minutes and moves from one passage to another in impressive acts of restraint; an ominous, bellowing chorus soon gives away to a ragged climax that recalls Isis at their best. The skittering programming and creepy gang singing towards its close on "The Only Survivor Was Miraculously Unharmed" resemble Fear Before the March of Flames' similarly experimental The Always Open Mouth.

The moody underpinnings of Define the Great Line made it a seemingly darker counter to Chasing Safety's sunnier bursts, and the band clearly progress here in the direction of the former. Chamberlain is often locked in a struggle with God over his very publicized drug habits of last year, and the music matches it perfectly. Sure, agnostics and atheists might prop up questions of validity for one certain aspect of this lyrical struggle, but Chamberlain's habits were actually real, and it makes narrative lines like "Every motion is paranoid and paralyzing" and "The floors are shaking" truly come alive.

Never heavy for the sake of heavy and rarely experimental for the sake of the same, Lost in the Sound of the Separation may not be a consistently astounding opus, but to say it isn't often mesmerizing and provides a number of impressive left turns and challenges would be baseless denial.

STREAM
The Only Survivor Was Miraculously Unharmed
Desperate Times, Desperate Measures

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Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not respon sible for them in any way. Seriously.

Allular (December 4, 2008)

"A "credible" metalcore album doesn't exist. It is completely oxymoronic and counterintuitive. The only exception to this statement is Shai Hulud. The ONLY exception."
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Wow, how musically ignorant can you get? Sure, I like Shai Hulud, but to say that they are the ONLY band to put out credible metalcore albums is riddiculous! So, "We are the Romans", "When Forever Comes Crashing", "Protestant" or "Fixation on a Coworker" aren't legitimate?? Get real.
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A-fr eakin-greed.

Allular (December 4, 2008)

First of all, if you're perceiving this album as 'gutsy' on the basis that the band have a christian audience, the definition of gutsy has just been taken to a whole new level of banal.... second of all, i don't see what 'honesty' has to do with my previous post? If i was a racist and i made an album about sending all the foreigners home, would you still celebrate it because it was coming from my heart? my point is, honesty is subjective.
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The album is gutsy even they are Christian or not. Battling drug addiction is an issue that hasn't been sung about too much in any genre. When it is, it should be called for what it is, which IS honest. It's just the fact that they ARE Christian makes it much more of an unrelenting record subject-wise.

If you did make an album about sending foreigners home (which sounds a lot like a Vandals song), I wouldn't celebrate your hypothetical opinion but I would still call it honest. If you don't like this band for their music and/or beliefs, that's fine. Not saying you have to. But at least have enough open-mindedness to call a kettle black, regardless of who is making a record.

Thus_Spoke_Sean (December 4, 2008)

my understanding is that the reason bands like underoath and norma jean are still on solid state is that the standard deal at that illustrious label is for five records. i could be wrong though.

can't say for Norma Jean, but I know that Underoath were free agents after Define, took a bunch of major label meetings and elected to stay at Solid State.

sugarfull (December 4, 2008)

@GTscoob: Write your own. That's the great thing about Punknews.

mikelagglesby (December 4, 2008)

my understanding is that the reason bands like underoath and norma jean are still on solid state is that the standard deal at that illustrious label is for five records. i could be wrong though.

GTscoob (December 4, 2008)

How come there isnt a review for the only good Underoath albums? Changing of Times >>> anything Underoath will ever put out again

ak3punk (December 3, 2008)

Great album, I think I like it better than the last. I enjoy how this band has been able to "keep it real" by not going the route of making super polished sing along songs, which is what they could have sounded like after "...Chasing Safety....".

This music is brutal, spastic, and incredibly enjoyable. It made its way into my top 10 this year..

cyborgfrance (December 3, 2008)

"Perdition City" mostly. It'd be weird if it was "Kveldssanger" a.k.a. their folk album.

Ulver rule. haven't listened to them in a while, though.

sugarfull (December 3, 2008)

Which Ulver? Older, more black metal stuff or newer electronic stuff?

cyborgfrance (December 3, 2008)

I've been meaning to check this out for a while. Good review, mind.

oh, and on music to fuck to: Ulver.

Thus_Spoke_Sean (December 3, 2008)

genre-redefining

scott could you elaborate on this? seriously, not flame bait. i think this heavier than most of their peers, and there are some interesting bass movements but....

on the whole "honesty" issue: I think that if you listen to this band, like seriously gave them a listen. like listened to either of their past two ablums a few times, you would find that they sound like a band who has grown into their own, and are creatively comfortable pushing boundries.

Their sound is much, much more "honest" than say The Devils Wears Prada, who sound exactly like what they are. A young band with limited exposure and experience who are late to game, making a mockery of a genre (without personally realizing it, im sure).

ChadReligion (December 3, 2008)

Underoath doesn't like porn so I have nothing good to say about them, and Sorry, But The Murder City Devils play music that is way better to fuck to than Botch.

inagreendase (December 2, 2008)

Brian, your review reads way higher than the score you gave it. What gives?

I guess I just can't emphasize enough that the album didn't really make me go "holy shit" all the way through. It's more of a "pretty awesome" all the way through.

brown (December 2, 2008)

Someone said Botch. I love botch. Botch is the greatest band to make sexmaking to music ever.

DarthNader (December 2, 2008)

Sipper!

freesandwich (December 2, 2008)

oh yeah and scott heisel cant even drink a beer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBdYqNCEx-U

sugarfull (December 2, 2008)

"A "credible" metalcore album doesn't exist. It is completely oxymoronic and counterintuitive. The only exception to this statement is Shai Hulud. The ONLY exception."

Wow, how musically ignorant can you get? Sure, I like Shai Hulud, but to say that they are the ONLY band to put out credible metalcore albums is riddiculous! So, "We are the Romans", "When Forever Comes Crashing", "Protestant" or "Fixation on a Coworker" aren't legitimate?? Get real.

freesandwich (December 2, 2008)

whoops i meant maverick. there are too many scotts here!

freesandwich (December 2, 2008)

Score is for the_other_scott

mikexdude (December 2, 2008)

*Mentions dinosaurs*

*Hates on Scott*

Score is for Gaslight Anthem and Botch.

fallingupwards84 (December 2, 2008)

lol at jesus riding into bethlehem on a t-rex

crackpotdemagogue (December 2, 2008)

scott, are you intending to come across as pretentious and attention seeking or is this purely coincidental? Man, every time you hit your keypad, the smell of shit gets even more fucking putrid.

You thought civil war was mediocre, and you don't understand why people like dead to me so much - yet you categorise a christian metalcore album by a band called underoath (who's lyrics are akin to pouring acid in your eyes) as an "absolutley killer record."

How can you sleep at night?

bxbomber (December 2, 2008)

hmm christian cokeheads

mattramone (December 2, 2008)

Scott, this band believes Jesus rode into Bethlem on a T Rex. There's no way anything they do could be groundbreaking, unless it's sucking harder than anyone before them.

PS - tabs

fallingupwards84 (December 2, 2008)

i liked Define the Great Line, but im not too motivated to listen to this one. we'll see.

oh, and dinosaurs

maverick (December 2, 2008)

Absolutely killer record. Completely uncompromising and genre-redefining. Brian, your review reads way higher than the score you gave it. What gives?

-Scott

wonton (December 2, 2008)

Score is for dinosaurs.

King_Rodney (December 2, 2008)

At least it's not Lil' Wayne. Thank the Lawd!

chrisafi (December 2, 2008)

Lil Wayne must be the most referenced artist on these boards this week. Bizzare.

Underoath....hmmm, they are kind of like the least of the great evil that is christian hard/metalcore, but that doesn't really make them much. They have something though

DarthNader (December 2, 2008)

lil wayne > this

xshoutoutx (December 2, 2008)

Oh and by the way...

To Allular:

A "credible" metalcore album doesn't exist. It is completely oxymoronic and counterintuitive. The only exception to this statement is Shai Hulud. The ONLY exception.

xshoutoutx (December 2, 2008)

The only thing this band is good for is a good laugh. They are the biggest joke since God... so that correlates perfectly to what they embody. I seriously almost pissed my pants when I found out they dropped off warp tour like 2 years ago because Fat Mike made fun of them soooo much.

Score is for Fat Mike making these bible-bangers quit warp tour. Maybe if enough people join in, they will eventually just quit music altogether! What do you say punknews? Lets give it a shot, lets cyber-bully and make fun of this band till their saved souls can't take the criticism any longer and they just altogether dismantle!

red_eye_inc (December 2, 2008)

Weird that this is the highest rated record on metacritic right now but it's somehow not on their list of recent top rated records. It got a 92. To put that in perspective, tv on the radio got 88 and critics get off really hard on those guys.

crackpotdemagogue (December 2, 2008)

This is honest music, whether you agree to their beliefs or not. It takes more guts to sing about this in context of who their audience is rather than a punk rock band singing against the government/religion/whatever that'll easily get you stoked.

First of all, if you're perceiving this album as 'gutsy' on the basis that the band have a christian audience, the definition of gutsy has just been taken to a whole new level of banal.... second of all, i don't see what 'honesty' has to do with my previous post? If i was a racist and i made an album about sending all the foreigners home, would you still celebrate it because it was coming from my heart? my point is, honesty is subjective.

Allular (December 2, 2008)

I agree that Define The Great Line was probably more of a solid album all the way through but there's some legitimately cringe-worthy moments. For which I'll bring up this idiotic quote.

"dissapointed to see an absence of critical focus on the idiocy of this band's lyricism, shultz. The ridiculously fatalistic vibe of the song titles alone is bad enough, but it gets worse. The lyrics are cowardly and the band is ignorant - "lord have mercy, have mercy on us all, " and "there's a calling ahead" cries the vocalist. oh please."

Are you kidding? How many records have you heard this year about battling drug addiction, let alone Christian records? This is honest music, whether you agree to their beliefs or not. It takes more guts to sing about this in context of who their audience is rather than a punk rock band singing against the government/religion/whatever that'll easily get you stoked.

Anyways.

There are some great moments on this record. All of these awful, Rise Records hardcore bands need to take a lesson from these dudes on how to make a legitimately creative, honest and credible "metalcore" record.

danpib08 (December 2, 2008)

There is nothing good about Underoath

RRK (December 2, 2008)

Score is for the review of the record.

Few reviews on this site are as competently written as your Underoath reviews. If not for your review, I never would have given Define the Great Line a listen, but I did and I loved it.

crackpotdemagogue (December 2, 2008)

dissapointed to see an absence of critical focus on the idiocy of this band's lyricism, shultz. The ridiculously fatalistic vibe of the song titles alone is bad enough, but it gets worse. The lyrics are cowardly and the band is ignorant - "lord have mercy, have mercy on us all, " and "there's a calling ahead" cries the vocalist. oh please.

the Lil Wayne review caused a shitstorm - this is deserving of a shit-armagedon.

douglas_is_rad (December 2, 2008)

Currently awaiting an influx of idiots all saying "dinosaurs" and "bible study". I haven't listened to the album but I thought this was a solid review, you have to at least give credit where credit is due, they've stuck with an indie label for longer than I expected to.

Thus_Spoke_Sean (December 2, 2008)

Seven sounds right to me. I dont think this is as consistently good as Define but it's pretty solid.

Strangely they have become the best band playing modern metalcore.

freesandwich (December 2, 2008)

fuck this band.

GlamBalam (December 2, 2008)

I don't like this band so my rating doesn't really count..

mattramone (December 2, 2008)

Wasn't this already reviewed?