Details.
103.3 The Edge Presents: Seether with special guests Tremonti and Red Sun Rising

• Date
  Tuesday, May 5, 2015
• Time
  6:00pm
• Address
  1711 Main Street Niagara Falls, NY 14305
• Tickets
  Buy Tickets NOW
• Tel.
  716.205.8925

Description.

All Ages Event. Anyone under 16 Must be accompanied by an adult 18+.

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SEETHER - Isolate and Medicate

BIOGRAPHY

On their sixth full-length album Isolate and Medicate, multi-platinum alternative rock trio Seether – Shaun Morgan [vocals, guitar], Dale Stewart [bass, backing vocals], and John Humphrey [drums] – strip their trademark melodic thrash to its core and deliver the most poignant, passionate, and powerful record of their illustrious career. With rigorous minimalism and maturity, chief songwriter Shaun Morgan – long one of rock’s most unheralded melodists, has become a composer of deep emotion and clear-eyed vulnerability. The band too has developed into one of rock’s most fearsome units, playing with precision, grit and authority, yet still light on their feet. After 15+ years of hardscrabble success, it’s evident that Seether felt like survival was not enough. They had something to prove with this new album – somewhere farther to go.

One reason for the new approach must surely be Seether’s close partnership with ace producer Brendan O’Brien (Springsteen, Pearl Jam). More like a member of the band than a hired gun, O’Brien repeatedly championed Morgan as one of music’s most gifted songwriters and vocalists and Seether as one of rock’s most extraordinary bands. His unrelenting faith in their talent and potential has been something of a North Star for Seether, helping them struggle through and outlast some very dark times.

Recognizing that he needed to limit distractions, in early 2013 Morgan went about constructing a refuge in his New Hampshire home – a space where these new songs could develop and take shape. “I actually built a room that I could write in,” he recalls. “I personally pulled out the carpet, put in wood flooring, decorated, and painted. After getting off the road, it was a process of preparation to get the environment just right. I made a place that I felt comfortable and creative in. I was able to be safe and isolated, concentrating on writing music instead of dealing with the distractions that come with daily life.”

Lyrically, Morgan has never been afraid to look his demons in the eye. The people in these songs confront the truth with simmering rage; it’s the fuel they need to make them feel alive. “The whole record is a collection of diary entries,” Morgan revealed. “It’s just where I’m at and what I’m going through. I’m writing songs about getting through whatever situations I’m in at the time. These songs deal with relationships and life situations.”

Morgan emerged with a collection of fleshed-out ideas that the musicians honed during rehearsals together in drummer John Humphrey’s native Oklahoma. By the time they assembled with O’Brien to record the album at Hollywood’s Henson Studios in January 2014, their vision had clearly come into focus.

“It felt so natural,” explains Humphrey. “When we get together, there’s an indescribable chemistry. That’s all over this album. The three of us can jam together and finish a song pretty quickly. We were really focused. These guys are my second family. We’re tight musically and otherwise.”

The band cut the entire album in sixteen days. The swift recording pace did not allow them to smother the tracks with overproduction, but rather gave the songs a chance to breathe. On working with O’Brien, bassist Dale Stewart enthused, “He’s like a fourth band member at this point. We understand each other. He likes to get in there and work quickly and he encourages us to be ourselves. We often followed our first instinct. That allowed us to capture the moment.”

The album opener, “See You At The Bottom,” quickly locks in with brutal force as Morgan’s Beatles-meets-Nirvana wail comes screaming out of the speakers. From there, the album never lets up.

Gnashing riffs underpin another infectious chorus on the virulent first single, “Words As Weapons.” Morgan’s remarkable ear for indelible melodies is truly the band’s secret weapon. It’s what makes Isolate and Medicate so damn listenable. Morgan makes unrelenting despair a fun listen.

“Same Damn Life” – a boiling rejection of suburban sprawl juxtaposed against Morgan’s surgery falsetto – is a pop metal surprise. “I always felt like there was something there,” Morgan said of the song. “It started from a riff and went into a vocal idea. I’m a big fan of The Beatles. It’s fun to do something with that pop element. Those are the songs that stick with you.”

The album’s centerpiece, “Crash,” is quite possibly the most beautiful song Seether has ever recorded. Gorgeous vocal lines and warm, fuzzed-out guitars cascading into pulsating wall-of-sound atmospherics mark an undeniable creative peak for the band. “It’s different from what we’ve done in the past and that excited all of us,” Stewart says. “It doesn’t follow the stereotypical formula. It’s pretty. It’s heavy. It’s emotional and deep.”

Another reason for the band’s fresh outlook is the strong support and enthusiasm they feel from new label partners The Bicycle Music Company/Concord Music Group. The brothers-in-arms feel was galvanized with their new team. “In one of our first meetings with the label, we played everybody five or six completed songs,” Morgan remembers. “This marked the first time anybody outside of the band and Brendan listened to it. Afterwards, everybody was really excited and happy. Seeing the level of enthusiasm was great. That felt like the moment everything came together. It was a rebirth, in a sense.”

Seether has worked tirelessly to reach this point. The hard rocking outfit originally from Pretoria, South Africa has now released eight albums in all, two of which have gone Platinum and two more that are certified Gold along with a live concert DVD that has sold over 500,000 units – for total worldwide sales in excess of 4.5 million. The consistent hit makers have quietly amassed eleven #1 singles and seventeen Top 5 multi-format hits resulting in singles sales that top seven million – a level of success few artists working today can match. Seether has averaged 120 performances a year, crisscrossing the globe, emerging into headlining mainstays and featured performers on many of the world’s biggest rock festivals.

Isolate and Medicate will undoubtedly resonate deeply with the group’s fiercely loyal fans. “I hope everybody can feel this,” concludes Humphrey. “It’s a special album for us, and we put everything we had into it.”

Morgan completes the sentiment, “I want them to walk away having enjoyed the music. I want them to get the same emotional sense and happiness we feel listening to it. It’s so important and tied to memories we’ve all had. When somebody listens, it’ll hopefully make them feel good. They will know they’re not alone. That’s the reason we do it.”

All I Was reveals another side of Mark Tremonti. The Grammy Award-winning guitarist’s style remains instantly recognizable. It’s nearly impossible to forget his riffs in multi-platinum rock juggernaut Creed or his scorching fretwork with the critically acclaimed, fan favorite Alter Bridge. Having sold over 40 million records worldwide, this is the man behind massive hits like “My Own Prison”, “Higher”, and “Isolation”—just to name a few. There are a myriad of reasons why Guitar World dubbed him “Guitarist of the Year” three consecutive years in a row, and he ranked as the “fourth greatest heavy metal guitarist ever” in Total Guitar. You might think you know him from all of that, but you haven’t heard Tremonti unleashed like this.

Assuming both vocal and six-string duties on his long-awaited solo debut, he thrashes with a fierce intensity that’s remarkably heavy and instantly infectious. Flanked by rhythm guitarist Eric Friedman and drummer Garrett Whitlock, Tremonti engages an incendiary metallic assault that’s relentless from the first moment until the last, burning down all expectations in its path.

In many ways, Tremonti returned to his roots for All I Was. Growing up on the likes of Pantera and Metallica, heavy metal has always had a very special place in his heart. However, he never had the avenue to truly follow those impulses to the fullest until now.

“From day one in Creed, I’d pull out metal riffs and the guys would remind me that we weren’t Slayer,” he laughs. “Over the years, our sound got heavier. Then, Alter Bridge became even heavier than Creed. That’s my foundation. It’s a style that I’m really comfortable with. Now, there are no holds barred. I figured the solo album was my opportunity to get that part of myself out there without losing the sense of melody I’ve worked so hard to achieve.”

That’s exactly what he did on All I Was. While Alter Bridge frontman Myles Kennedy was on the road with Slash in early 2011, Tremonti hunkered down in his home studio and began assembling what would become the album. As he continued to rehearse with Friedman and Whitlock, the shredder came into his own as a vocalist. Of course, he’d always sung melodies in both of his other bands, but this was a whole new challenge.

“When you’re singing backup, you can’t really let loose and put too much character into the vocal line,” he reveals. “I spent a lot of time practicing with the guys and rehearsing, and I finally developed the confidence to go in and do this.”

In between touring, he collaborated with producer and longtime friend Michael “Elvis” Baskette [Chevelle, Alter Bridge] on recording. Together, they achieved a sound that’s powerful and potent. “Whatever he does sounds incredible,” he says of Elvis. “I trust him so much at this point. He’s very honest when it comes to producing, and he’s a phenomenal engineer. He always pushes me.” Tremonti also has a long history with Friedman and Whitlock as well, having co-produced their debut album with Submersed. “Garrett and I have a lot in common when it comes to our roots,” he elaborates. “Eric is like a little brother to me. We have a great time together. We’re all huge fans, and music is our life. We wake up wanting to play and go to sleep wanting to play. We’re all on the same page.”

You can hear it loud and clear on the album. Songs like “Brains” balance speed metal shredding with anthemic choruses. Tremonti also opened up like never before on the lyrics, dealing with betrayal, isolation and ultimately starting anew.

Groove-driven album opener “Leave It Alone” set the tone for All I Was thematically. He goes on, “It’s about the walls you build up walls over the years and the lessons learned. So, as soon as you get any indication that someone is going to do you wrong, you turn the other way.”‘

“The Things I’ve Seen” imagines a similar story, but he tells it via vulnerable vocal delivery, haunting guitar soundscapes, and hypnotic harmonies. The songwriter elaborates, “It really targets two-faced people. When you chase down a dream and are betrayed at the end, that experience completely changes you as a person. You can curl up and become jaded.”

With one listen to All I Was, it’s clear that hasn’t happened to Tremonti though. In fact, the songs brandish a youthful fire that blazes brightly. He urges listeners to stand up and fight with the pummeling thrash of “Wish You Well” and he pleads for a fresh start on “A New Way Out”. “The world seems like it’s in such a bad place and that track cries out for a better way. There is hope.”

As for the title of the album, it’s got a deeper meaning for its architect. He divulges, “It’s about being a shell of what you used to be. In life, you can start off with a mentality that nobody can hold you back. As you grow up, you work your way through troubles and fight life’s battles the best you can. How you come out on the other side is up to you.”

In addition, Tremonti’s gone independent once again for All I Was. “At first, I was just going to put a couple of tracks online when I had the time. As we got deeper into the album, we realized that we had to get it out there properly and tour it. We’re going to give it all we’ve got.”

The record is available via FRET12 Records. FRET12 is the online guitar hub that Tremonti founded with his brother Daniel Tremonti and Tom Stanley in 2008. Further keeping it in the family, his cohort in Creed and Alter Bridge, Brian Marshall, will assume touring bass duties.

Ultimately, the album remains as pure as Tremonti’s love for music. “I hope people have fun listening to All I Was and want to see it live,” he concludes. “This record is heavier than anything I’ve done, but it’s still a fun record. I hope it makes people want to go out, face the world.” Just like he continues too…

All I Was is everything Mark Tremonti is and so much more.

— Rick Florino, April 2012