Anberlin Band • Page 241

Yep, their eps were solid. Love Lacerate.

 

The more I think about it, the more if it was just an honest statement when they decided to change the band to be Anberullins, I woulda been more ok with it.

Someone saying they were disappointed at the live show and a band member replying "No refunds" is what just doesn't set well with me. And this is like a top 20 band all time for me, I love this band, just do not care at all for this variation of them and it bums me out what I've seen.

 

Yeah, they seem to be trying to play both sides. They are promoting these shows with no mention of a new singer, but they are also getting upset at fans who feel tricked. You can't have it both ways. Either promote it as Matty touring, so casual fans know what they are getting into and make the decision, or don't give the fans shit when they are dissapointed

 

That’s what gets me the most. I’d be unhappy with this direction regardless, but it’s the way they’re handling it, particularly the way they’re treating fans, that’s really rubbing me the wrong way.

 

I was really struggling with being "upset" with the band and whether or not I even had the right to be upset, but everyone's comments have helped put it into words for me.

 

I don't love any of this...from a marketing strategy I can see how it maybe makes sense...and them re-recording a few NTFP songs, sure...

But for some reason it feels particularly sinful to me for them to have Matty re-record Dance Dance Christa Paffgen. For me that song can only be Stephen. It is the essence of what he is as a singer.

 

It's also a song he's repeatedly said is his favorite/most meaningful Anberlin song

 

that podcast Nate hosts where he had Matty on was kind of my breaking point. their early comeback material was some of their strongest, and for Nate to essentially say it was "too artistic" and just revert to making "Anberlin [music] that sounds like [old school] Anberlin" (based on Matty's suggestion) - combined with how they've handled public reception to the change (another thing they kind of scoff at on that podcast) - all just feels juvenile.

again, if they're changing the lineup, i get the idea of maybe doing a song that emulates that older sound, but to essentially use this opportunity to revert to the safest, most generic version of yourselves (with a generic vocalist in tow) feels more like a cash grab than anything else.

if they'd been more upfront about what's happening with the sound and structure of the band, maybe this conversation would be a lot different. but if there's no plan or you do "whatever feels good in the moment", then people are gonna be disappointed when they expect one thing and get something else entirely.

 

Nate really said that?!?! That the EPs were "too artistic," yikes that is hard to hear

 

especially when by all accounts he was kinda spearheading that direction

 

yup. and the way he said it made it sound like he was being pretentious, as if Matty's suggestion to emulate old Anberlin was humbling. it's just ridiculous.

 

Just the touring singer, guys!

 

This probably seems like an overreaction, but I sold the boxset and have no regrets. I still love those albums, but part of the awesome thing about breaking out the boxset was reading each member's blurbs about each album, and these statements specifically ring so hollow now that I didn't even care to own it anymore.

 

Same, but I sold mine the moment I had heard some rumors they were gearing up for a comeback. I just knew they were going to release new material and that the boxset would no longer be "complete". I kinda wish I had held onto it because it's worth a good chunk of change on Discogs now.

 

I don’t know if it’s funny or just plain depressing.

 

I remember thinking albums like Lowborn and to a lesser extent Vital might get more of the love they deserve in setlists after they learned all the songs for the livestreams

lol

 

On the plus side, all the controversy with Matty has me listening to the Silverline and Convinced EPs for the first time that I remember. Some good material here

 

I try not to think too much about band’s managing their legacies, “cash grabs,” tying a band’s identity to specific members, etc etc and I try to recognize that bands’ opinions and strategies and goals can change (though anberlin have always required us to be really charitable to take things they say at face value), but the annoying part for me is that even from a marketing perspective this just doesn’t make sense to me.

I’m sure there are plenty of people that like both bands, matty’s voice aside it’s not that surprising of a crossover, and I appreciate that the larger emo community is having more time in the sun again, but there is nothing they can do with NTFP or old school music that’ll make it hit like it did in the scene’s heyday/during our formative years. It just doesn’t sound sustainable and to waste resources trying to hit this target audience feels silly. Even if you like the re-record, is anybody, anberlin or MMF fan, going to listen to it more than once or twice? Beyond a month? I mean I don’t even listen to most faithful re-recordings/remasters/etc from bands without singer changes. I feel like the target audience of people who like MMF enough to listen to matty do covers of songs they’ve had 20 years to learn to enjoy but didn’t, plus people who are casual enough fans of anberlin to not mind hearing a different voice on old songs, plus new fans to either band that want modern production on 2004 music is painfully small. We’re seeing bands release music trying to capture nostalgia magic in new music and by and large it just doesn’t seem to be that good of a strategy. Granted a lot of bands also struggle to expand their audience with sound changes, I get the concern with being too artsy (wtf man) but again this just doesn’t seem like the best use of time or resources to maximize the bands longevity. Not like you have to worry about making music too artsy with matty anyway.

 

Listening to the album now guys.... Let you know my thoughts

 

Yeah the vocals....

 

The branding also has felt so odd... Matty is the singer for the band, but it's still always "ft. Matty Mullins" for the new tracks with him, and the new album is on Apple as "Nevertake (feat. Matty Mullins)". I understand on streaming, if Matty was tagged as a second artist on each track, some bands do that so it shows up on both artist's pages. But this is different, there is no algorithmic reason to put "feat. Matty Mullins" as part of the album name. Sometimes their emails say "feat. Matty Mullins" sometimes it isn't mentioned at all.

It's incredibly minor, the way metadata is listed, but I just find it to be another thing to add to the list of oddities

 

God, this version being titled "A Feel Good Drag"

 

Shout out to the guitar solo at the end of Dance, Dance. Goes unnecessarily hard

 

I mean, this whole thing sounds…fine. But I would never listen to this over the original. I even prefer Aaron sprinkles production on the original to this.

 

The artwork seems weird, like it doesn't fit the vibe of the album at all