I dunno, the comment feels pretty clear to me. A user asked if Matty is recording new music with Anberlin or just touring and Anberlin replied that it's "a mix" with no rules. Pretty clear to me...
if Matty is recording with them, i really hope it's not a 1:1 tradeoff. either have Stephen do the majority of the vocals or just have Matty show up on several songs as a co-vocalist.
They announced Stephen’s “final” show for now. Dec 14 in Tampa. If I wasn’t moving I would absolutely be there. But if I’m still in Florida then, kill me.
It is kinda wild to think about how their whole spin on breaking up in 2014 was to reserve their legacy and go out on top, not fade out, etc. And now they're doing the exact opposite.
Nah. They're gonna be a nostalgic act with a different lead singer. It doesn't take time to see where this is going.
yeah, i've got no interest in this verison of Anberlin involving Matty. Won't attend those shows and won't listen to songs with only his vocals. that's just a flat-out no for me. Best of luck to them on this venture, but Anberlin without Stephen isn't Anberlin. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I mean, we just got 2 incredible EP's. Both were a significant step in a different direction and it seems like they'll be continuing to push the envelope. I don't see anything leading to "nostalgia act".
Yeah I really like the EP's, but when it comes to the live show that's definitely leading to a "nostalgia act".
another thing i thought of: he's not a perfect lyricist, but Stephen's writing is also one of the defining qualities of the band. are they gonna have Matty writing lyrics for the songs he's on? if so, that might actually push me out. again, i've maybe only heard like 2 or 3 MMF songs, but i did make the mistake of hearing his first solo album years back, and the lyrics were fucking terrible, even for something being marketed as a Christian album.
Honestly that would've ruled, his voice is much more closer to Stephen's than Matt Mullins. I used to be a big fan of Memphis May Fire's early stuff but I really can't envision Matt on any of Anberlin's songs... his voice is just so tonally different. Instead of mixing his voice and Stephen, I wish they gave Christian a bigger vocal presence. I mean, they already started doing that on the latest EP. Why not continue in that direction? Odd development, although I can't say I'm surprised by Stephen's decision to step away from the touring life as it fits with where his head was at before Anberlin's initial break up. There's a recent podcast in which he lays it all out about Anberlin's final years and it makes this new announcement not surprising to me.
After their final tour in 2014, they should not be advertising anything as "final," even if it's qualified by "indefinite" this time. Like, if they tour in the US next year, there's no way Stephen doesn't pop up from time to time.
"We'll Live Forever" turning into "Adapt Or Die" kinda sums it up, depressingly... Might as well just be "We Do What We Want"
As someone who's been a fan of the band since Blueprints, I'm still bitter that Anberlin has evolved into this unrecognizable hardcore, Underoath-wannabe band. The elements of this band that I fell in love with are just... gone. Similar feelings to when Twitter took down the bluebird.
I mentioned in the tour thread that I never thought Anberlin was a great live band, but now I kind of regret not traveling for a Cities show last year.
Anberlin have great energy live, though not my favorite sounding live band. A lot of that is due to Stephen.
Phil filling in for Anthony Green with Saosin back when it was just the OG EP out was the stuff of legends.
Closest parallel I can think of here oddly enough is Hot Water Music. Chris Wollard (co-vocalist with Chuck Ragan) stepped away from touring, but continued to write and record, and they brought in Chris Cresswell from The Flatliners to fill in for tours. Eventually, Chris joined the band full-time (with the original Chris still involved), contributing just instrumentation to his first album appearance, and then full writing and a lead vocal performance on the latest. The biggest difference here is that I'm pretty sure the HWM fan base was stoked on Chris lol.