New Surrender is the fourth studio album by American alternative rock band Anberlin, released on 30 September 2008. It is the band's first album on a major label, after signing with Universal Republic Records on 16 August 2007. The album peaked at number 13 on the Billboard 200 and 5 on the Billboard Top Modern Rock / Alternative Albums chart.

Anberlin went into record their fourth album only 12 months after the 2007 release of their third, Cities. The album was recorded at NRG Recording Studios in North Hollywood, California, in early 2008 by producer Neal Avron. The first single from the album, "Feel Good Drag" was originally set to be released to radio prior to the album on 18 August 2008, but was pushed back to 26 August.

Background

Pre-production

Anberlin set about doing two weeks of pre-production for New Surrender, a significant amount more than the four days they did with Cities. Guitarist Joseph Milligan said the pre-production comprised them "playing in a room, playing all the new songs together and working on parts together. We would tweak things here and there." He also said the extra time allowed more input from the other band members, "everybody tossed in ideas. It was something we had never really had before. It was definitely a group effort." The two weeks enabled Milligan and fellow guitarist Christian McAlhaney to weed down the original 24 songs they had, to just 17, before moving into the studio and tracking 15.

Writing and production

Lead vocalist Stephen Christian, who is also the main lyricist for Anberlin, has said that he wrote a portion of the fourth album while on a trip to New Orleans, at a small cafe named Kahve. Christian said "the pressures were immense" after signing with Universal, and that he had a "minor breakdown" leading him to "run away to New Orleans" in February to write a couple of songs for the record. Reminiscing over the experience he added, "the songs that came from the trip, inspired by New Orleans, are like none other before".

In an interview with Hurley Blog, Stephen Christian stated his top five lyrical influences for the album have been: "1. The war (in Iraq) 2. Revelations/conspiracy theories 3. Recent news that one of our close friends has been diagnosed with what could be a terminal disease 4. My time spent in New Orleans 5. My current relationship." Rhythm guitarist Christian McAlhaney has made his debut as a songwriter on the album; Stephen Christian said "He is an incredible counterpoint to Joseph Milligan and has written several songs that are going to be on this record!.".

After years of work with friend and producer Aaron Sprinkle, the band opted for change and along with Universal Republic, selected notable producer Neal Avron. Avron has been involved in the genre for years, producing albums for Yellowcard, New Found Glory and Fall Out Boy. The band completed pre-production on February 11–29, 2008, cutting down from the original 26 songs to just 15,

incidently by turning four songs into a single one.

The actual recording and production took place at multiple studios in Hollywood, California, under Avron throughout March and early April 2008. The first recording took place at Swing House Recordings in West Hollywood, followed by NRG Recording Studios in North Hollywood, where they completed at lot of the drum tracks and began the bass and guitar tracks. Finally they completed recording at The Boat Studio in Silver Lake, where the main focus was the vocals.

The band stated in a webchat session with AbsolutePunk.net that they would be using a wide range of instruments including the sitar, this claim was later declared as a joke, with Joseph Milligan saying, "It was a joke! There’s no sitar! Now I kind of wish there was so that we could actually say that!"

Title

The album's mysterious title has been explained multiple times by Anberlin's lyricist Christian. He has said the title explains people's need to give things up to change, "In everybody's life, there's something they know they have to give up... There's something they have to change or take care of in their lives to progress to the next step." His original explanation on the band's Myspace blog quickly spread across music news sites, with them reporting his insight on the title and how "we must change, not because we want to, but because we desperately have to."

Christian alluded to the title's power, "I think it's a motivational speech, in two words... Hopefully, is that motivational speech in 40 minutes."

Promotion

Pre-order

A pre-order for the upcoming album was available throughout the 2008 Warped Tour in the US. Anberlin was showcasing their new material on the main stage for the entire tour, with the pre-order coming with a USB device on a wristband. The USB contained a direct link to a digital download of the album, available on the release date September 30, 2008. The USB also had four exclusive tracks, including an alternate acoustic remix of "Breaking", and remixes of "Hello Alone", "The Unwinding Cable Car" and "The Feel Good Drag".

"Compound Lockdown"

In response to some fans who claimed Anberlin was selling out, the band members released a music video called "Compound Lockdown". Christian McAlhaney introduced the video by saying that Anberlin "likes money a lot" and was going in a different direction, more towards a "hip-hop, thug rap, dirty south kind of thing". The song "Drop Dat (Did You?)" comes on next, displaying Stephen Christian and the members of Anberlin, accompanied by Vic of Pierce the Veil and members of Four Year Strong, rapping to the song. This, of course, is meant to be taken lightly as a joke.

Reception

Critical reception

New Surrender received a mainly positive response from reviewers, with many alluding to the fact it is their major label debut, and has been successful musically. Allmusic's Jared Johnson gave the album 4.5/5, calling New Surrender Anberlin's "best sense of direction yet" and said the album wasn't "as much a diversion as it is a realization of their potential to finally seize the full emo spirit in all its glory". Jesus Freak Hideout said, "Much respect is deserved and given to Anberlin for making the always-risky move to a major record company... Through the differences you will find, you will see these changes are not necessarily negative. At the heart of this album, you know it's still Anberlin." AbsolutePunk.net writer Blake Solomon said he "was forced to deal with some devastating news: Anberlin has signed to a major label," going onto reveal, "Of course it’s just my luck that New Surrender rocks with the force of Blueprints (for the Blackmarket) and smarts of Never Take Friendship Personal."

Patrol Magazine's David Sessions gave the album a 7.1/10, after being especially impressed by the opening track. "Like last time, New Surrender opens with a stunning, rocketing, riot-igniting send-off, except that “The Resistance” knocks “Godspeed” flat on its back, immediately demanding to be named Best Anberlin Track Ever."

Chart performance and sales

In the week of its release, New Surrender sold 36,000 units, entering the Billboard 200 at the number 13 position, surpassing the number 19 peak reached by Cities. It was also announced that the album had debuted at number five on the Billboard Top Modern Rock / Alternative Albums chart, number one on the Top Christian Albums chart, number six on the Top Digital Albums chart. and peaked at number five on the top iTunes albums chart. New Surrender came in at number 85 on the Australian ARIA charts.

In its first two weeks, New Surrender sold over 45,000 copies in the United States alone. The album held its ground in the Billboard 200, staying in the top 100 for three weeks, coming in at number 50 in week two and 79 in week three.

Singles chart positions

Release history

Personnel

*Stephen Christian – Vocals, guitar, piano, synthesizer

*Joseph Milligan – Guitar

*Nathan Young – Drums

*Christian McAlhaney – Guitar

*Deon Rexroat – Bass

*Neal Avron - Production, keyboards, programming, engineering, string arrangements, mixing

*Nate Albert - A&R

*Jordan Butcher - Art direction, design

*Dave Colvin - Assistant engineer

*Mike Fasano - Drum technician

*Samuel Fischer - Violin

*Nicolas Fournier - Mixing assistant

*Kyle Griner - Management

*Ted Jensen - Mastering

*Mike Laza - Assistant engineer

*Tom MacKay - A&R

*Sean Mackin - Orchestration, string conductor

*James Minchin - Photography

*Ginger Murphy - Cello

*Sara Parkins - Violin

*Alyssa Pittaluga - Assistant engineer

*Anna Stafford - Violin

*Erich Talaba - Engineer

*Amy Wickman - Violin

References

;General

*

;Specific

Category:Anberlin albums

Category:2008 albums

pt:New Surrender

Artist/Band Information

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.

Anberlin continued its rise to prominence whilst 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. The band's first album on the major label was released in 2008, titled New Surrender. The album peaked at number 13 on the Billboard 200, 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 had sold over 700,000 albums

History

SaGoh 24/7 & the inception 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, Hutson left the band to start a family, and Nathan Young was brought in as a replacement.

Christian, Milligan and Rexroat began working on a side project, marking the beginning of the end for SaGoh 24/7. The side project's sound transformed after a suggestion from Milligan to develop more of a rock sound for Anberlin. They used money left over from shows they had performed previously and teamed up with producer Matt Goldman to record five demos. The demos that were then posted on PureVolume (which was mp3.com at the time), sparked attention from record labels, both major and independent. However, with advice from friends including Chad Johnson, and Timmy McTague from Underoath, the band signed with Tooth & Nail Records.

First two albums (2002-2005)

AnberlinDeonRexroat.jpgthumbrightBassist Deon Rexroat performing at Purple Door in August 2007

Out of the five demos Anberlin recorded with Matt Goldman, three were eventually chosen to be reworked for the band's debut album, the lead single "Readyfuels", "Driving" (later renamed "Autobahn") and "Foreign Language". Another song, "Embrace the Dead", was also recorded as a demo track and is often mistaken as an Anberlin song, however, the song didn't make it onto the band's debut album as it didn't constitute the stylistic direction the band wanted to head in.

After hearing demos from the band Acceptance, Anberlin chose to record their debut album with the same producer, Aaron Sprinkle, a relationship that would last the entire duration of their time with Tooth & Nail Records. Barely a year after their formation, their first album as a new band was entitled Blueprints for the Black Market (2003). It failed to chart, but spurred on by their debut single, "Readyfuels", the album sold over 60,000 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. After several failed replacements, Nathan Strayer from The Mosaic took over rhythm guitar duties.

Anberlin released their follow up to Blueprints, Never Take Friendship Personal, in early 2005, again produced by Aaron Sprinkle. Charting at #144 on the Billboard 200, 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)

Anberlin.jpgthumbleft150pxPerforming in Las Cruces, NM at the 2007 Warped TourAnberlin'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.Kohli, Rohan.

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 (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.

In mid-2009 the band 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 revealed that they plan to start writing the follow up to New Surrender in the summer, but the release date is undetermined, as the band plans to give the new material the time and effort that it needs. They also undertook an Australian tour in August, alongside The Academy Is....

In September 2009, the band announced they are touring the US with Taking Back Sunday and The All-American Rejects in the fall. Anberlin's former label Tooth & Nail Records also announced the release of a 34 song compilation album titled Anberlin: The Anthology. The album was released on November 17, 2009 and included all of the songs from their first three studio albums, and contained bonus material.http The band has since released a statement saying that they had not endorsed the release of the album, with it being "100% a Tooth & Nail driven release."

On October 1, 2009 the band announced via MySpace that a b-side from New Surrender, "A Perfect Tourniquet", will be released on the soundtrack for the TV show 90210. On the same day they announced that they will release a deluxe edition of New Surrender on December 15, 2009. The cover of New Order's "True Faith" is set to be released to radio airplay on November 17, the same day as the release of Anberlin: The Anthology.http

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 of 2010.

During a concert in New York on June 3rd, Stephen announced that the release date for the new album would be September 21, 2010, which he then confirmed on his Twitter on June 4th. The band also debuted 2 new songs from the upcoming album at the New York show; the first single 'Impossible' and 'We Owe This to Ourselves'. The first single, 'Impossible', from the upcoming album titled Dark is the Way, Light is a Place to be released September 21, 2010, and will go to radio play on July 12.

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.".Stavrinos, Nicole. 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."

Further adding to the mystery, in a podcast with Alternative Press Magazine (#29), it was revealed that there is actually no story behind the name Anberlin, when the band sat down to think of names, 'Anberlin' just came to lead singer Stephen, and it was decided that would be the band name until they could think of something better.

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." Elsewhere, Christian has remarked, " affects every single aspect of my life, but I'm not a preacher, I'm an entertainer."

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 religious 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

DeonRexroat.jpgthumb150pxDeon Rexroat performing at House of Blues, 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 – 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)

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.

References