They're Only Chasing Safety

Underoath released their third studio album The Changing of Times in February 2002.[7] It was the band's first release through Solid State Records; it marked a line-up change with the appearance of guitarist Timothy McTague and bassist William Nottke. The latter was replaced by Grant Brandell, and guitarist James Smith was brought in. While in the midst of the 2003 Warped Tour, vocalist Dallas Taylor dropped off the trek.[8] My Synopsis frontman Matt Tarpey stood in for him for some shows.[9] Taylor officially left the band in October 2003; Brandell said this was due to personal issues that hampered the band's frequent touring schedule.[10][11] Former This Runs Through vocalist Spencer Chamberlain, who was the roommate of keyboardist Christopher Dudley's girlfriend, was then asked to temporarily fill in for a few performances.[11][12] He officially joining Underoath in January 2004; they recorded their next album a month later.[12]

Underoath worked with producer James Paul Wisner for their past two albums were wanted to work with someone else. They had two other producers in mind, but due to timing conflicts, they were unable to meet those two, and opted to return to Wisner instead.[13] Sessions were done with Wisner acting as engineer at his home studio Wisner Productions.[14][15] His neighbor was repeatedly bagging on Wisner's door as the room Underoath used to record guitars shared a wall with the neighbor. As they learned the neighbor was a nruse and worked nights, they had to switch to different rooms, which facilitated the need to re-recording half of the songs.[15] Matt Goldman recorded programming and Aaron Marsh's additional vocals.[14] Both Chamberlain and Gillespie blew their voices during the recording; for the latter, he was briefly hospitalized due to blisters forming on his tonsils.[16] J.R. McNeely mixed the recordings at Compound Studios in Seattle, Washington, before they were mastered by Troy Glessner at Spectre Studios.[14]

Although Underoath has been described as metalcore,[17][18] a review by Alex Henderson of AllMusic classifies They're Only Chasing Safety as an alternative rock style which could be described as screamo, post-hardcore, or melodic hardcore.[1] According to Henderson, "this screamo/post-hardcore/melodic hardcore approach is quite different from full-fledged metalcore; while metalcore units like Hatebreed, Brick Bath, and Finland's notoriously ferocious Rotten Sound go right for the jugular, Underoath and similar bands prefer to mix honey with vinegar."[1] In another review, Andrew Segal of Cross Rhythms describes the album as nu metal, and said that, while on the heavier side of the rock scale, the album is well produced and "shows more signs of intelligence than the [nu-metal] genre is often credited with."[19]

Andrew Sacher for a retrospective piece in Brooklyn Vegan referred to it as "one of melodic metalcore's biggest mainstream breakthroughs".[6] Henderson said the references to Christianity were more subtle on They're Only Chasing Safety than anything from the band's contemporaries.[1] Brian Flota in his book The Politics of Post-9/11 Music noted that unlike other Christian acts, Underoath referred to Jesus by name, whereas others would refer to the figure by "Him".[20] The poppiest tracks on the album were written when Taylor was still a member, such as "Reinventing Your Exit".[10] Gillespie was given more vocal presence to contrast Chamberlain's screams.[21]

McTague used "Your New Aesthetic" (1999) by Jimmy Eat World as a template for "A Boy Brushed Red Living in Black and White".[22] The band tried to best the demo version's drum break. After some unsuccessful attempts, they lifted the loops from the demo (which they had made with Goldman) onto the final album version.[23] "Reinventing Your Exit" evokes the material of Hawthorne Heights; it evolved out of the Taylor-sung track "Heatherwood".[24][25] "The Blue Note" is an interlude was made in an hour and consisted of two layered stock loops. [26] "It's Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door" is a murder ballad that features 1980s-esque electronic parts, and overall recalled the work of the Used.[5][24][27] It also included a choir during the bridge section, which was loaned from a local church. McTague said the choir was persuaded to take part after the band misled them on the song's meaning.[15]

With "Down, Set, Go", the band attempted to emulate the style of Brand New's Deja Entendu (2003), which they were enamored with.[15] For the ending of "I'm Content with Losing", McTague's part was done in the vein of the Casket Lottery.[28] "Some Will Seek Forgiveness, Others Escape" is reminiscent of the work of Copeland, and was intended to show Underoath "wearing their hearts on their sleeves".[15][29] McTague said the song deals with a person "realizing the error of [their] ways, asking for forgiveness and making a vow to start over and do what's right".[30] Unlike the rest of the songs on the album, the track was started and finished within half an hour. Marsh's part during it dealt with him having "both feet out the door with Christianity".[15] "I've Got Ten Friends and a Crowbar That Says You Ain't Gonna Do Jack" was written and recorded for the album's 2005 reissue.[31]

Underoath toured throughout 2004 and 2005 for They're Only Chasing Safety.

In March and April 2004, Underoath toured across the US as part of the Solid State Tour,[32] followed by a handful of shows with From First to Last.[33] On April 21, 2004, They're Only Chasing Safety was announced for release in two months' time. In addition, "Reinventing Your Exit" was posted on the band's Purevolume profile. They're Only Chasing Safety was released on June 15, 2004 through Solid State.[34] The artwork features Julie, wife of designer Kris McCaddon, wearing an oxygen mask.[3][10][15] McCaddon had to come up with a cover with little budget, and hired his wife for a photoshoot instead of hiring a model.[15] In June 2004, they embarked on a US tour with Eighteen Visions, and appeared at that year's Hellfest and on a small stage at Warped Tour.[16][35][36] Over the course of Warped Tour, the band drew increasing crowds, and at one point matched the same size as one of the tour's headliners, the Used.[16] Underoath initially planned to support Senses Fail, but had to pull out when Chamberlain got married.[37][10] They instead went on their own tour, dubbed the Get Awesome Tour, with Stretch Arm Strong and the Chariot.[38]

Following this, they supported Coheed and Cambria on their headlining US tour.[39] "Reinventing Your Exit" was released to radio on February 22, 2005; the music video for the song was filmed in Brooklyn, New York City.[40][41] Underoath wanted "A Boy Brushed Red Living in Black and White" as they felt it was more representative of the album's sound, while Solid State Records opted for something closer to The Changing of Times track "When the Sun Sleeps".[42] The radio edit of "Reinventing Your Exit" had Chamberlain's vocals lower in the mix and cut the breakdown.[43] Underoath performed on the first Taste of Chaos tour, appearing on the East Coast dates in February and March 2005.[44] They appeared at the South by Southwest music conference, and headlined the Total Badical Tour, which ran into May 2005, and featured support from Fear Before the March of Flames, the Chariot, Hopesfall and These Arms Are Snakes.[45][46] Towards the tour's conclusion, Underoath appeared at The Bamboozle and Cornerstone Festivals.[47] Following this, they went on a tour of Europe, which featured a performance at Download Festival, and then appeared on Warped Tour in June and July 2005.[48][49]

On August 23, 2005, the music video for "It's Dangerous Business Walking Out Your Front Door" was posted on MTV's website.[50] It was filmed in Hollywood with director Josh Graham; it stars the band performing in a forest after having been involved in a car crash.[48] The band played a few US shows with Silverstein, prior to a Canadian tour in September 2005 with the Used and Alexisonfire.[50][51] On October 4, 2005, the album was re-released through Tooth and Nail Records as a special edition, which included four bonus tracks, a bonus DVD, and new artwork and packaging designed by Converge's Jacob Bannon.[52][53] In October and November 2005, the group supported Thrice on their headlining US tour.[54] Underoath closed out the year playing a four-date tour dubbed Come & Live; profits from each show benefitted a separate charity.[55]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Cross Rhythms	[19]
Jesusfreakhideout	[62]
Music Emissions	[4]
Metal.de	7/10[63]
Sputnikmusic	2.5/5[24]

They're Only Chasing Safety was met with favorable reviews from music critics. Henderson said the band "do a decent job of integrating the honey and the vinegar" on the album, with Chamberlain having a "firm grasp of the sort of good cop/bad cop and heaven/hell contrasts that characterize a screamo disc" as this album.[1] Segal wrote that album had a "few good surprises which certainly make it merit more than just one listen", as its varied instrumental "largely set it melodically apart from a genre where people are often prone to detuning their instruments". Though he noticed some "moments that are a ittle 'samey'," it was overall a "well produced album that [...] shows more signs of intelligence than the genre is often credited with".[19] The staff at HM Magazine saw it as a band evolving as they incorporate more melody, and "while it has ups and downs as a complete album, several songs approach greatness".[29] Jesusfreakhideout staff writer Josh Taylor saw it as the band's most "accessible [release] to those not even interested in the genre", and while it was "not quite as heavy as previous ventures, [.. the album] is, hands down, one of the best releases of 2004".[62]

Len Nash of The Phantom Tollbooth noted that the band had change styles to emo, which would serve as a "better position to compete against many mainstream artists". He added that despite the album be "'emotic' in nature, Underoath still jams out".[2] Lollipop Magazine's Adrian Bromley saw it as "[g]eneric mediocre metalcore, for the most part, save for the techno/keyboard bits used on certain songs".[64] musicOMH reviewer Vik Bansal also pointed out the musical shift to emo, and said the album "does little to raise the heartbeat or send frissons down the spine". He added that Chamberlain’s vocals "sit at odds with the music", and proposed that if Chamberlain sung more, he would have compared Underoath to labelmates Dead Poetic.[5] Sputnikmusic staff member Damrod wrote that while the "musical work is solid, it can not convince me completely. This is mainly because the sound is so similar to many other bands popular in the genre".[24] Punk Planet's Scott Morrow wrote that apart from a "few legitimately decent moments", he struggled to sit through the album, citing the "trite and whiny singsong sound and can't-you-hear-the-pain-in-my-voice? screams".[65]

As of 2005, They're Only Chasing Safety sold more than 218,000 copies, with the re-release selling an additional 279,000 copies, making a combined sales of more than 500,000 copies in the US alone.[66] They're Only Chasing Safety was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America in December 2011.[67]

In 2005, the album was nominated for a Dove Award for Rock Album of the Year at the 36th GMA Dove Awards.[68]

All music by Underoath. All lyrics written by Aaron Gillespie and Spencer Chamberlain, except where noted.[14]

Personnel per booklet.[14]

Citations

Sources

• They're Only Chasing Safety at Solid State Records' website