Seether

For the song, see Seether (song).
Seether

Seether playing live at the DC101 Chili Cookoff in 2008
Background information
Also known as Saron Gas (1999–2002)
Origin Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
Genres
Years active 1999–present
Labels
Associated acts
Website seether.com
Members
Past members

Seether are a South African post-grunge and alternative metal band founded in May 1999 in Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa. The band originally performed under the name Saron Gas until 2002, when they adopted the Seether name. Disclaimer is their original album and major label debut. They gained mainstream popularity in 2002 with their US Active Rock number one single "Fine Again", and their success was sustained in 2004 with the single "Broken" which peaked at number 20 on the Billboard Hot 100. They have experienced continued success with number one hits on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart such as "Remedy", "Fake It", "Country Song" and "Words as Weapons".

History

Founding (2002–2003)

The band formed in 1999 under the name Saron Gas. In 2000, the band released an independent album called Fragile under their original name.[3]

Saron Gas had their origins in Johannesburg and the earliest days of the group saw their public appearances at parties, nightclubs, small-scale concerts and University venues, such as the University of Cape Town and the University of Stellenbosch, where they played for the lunch-time crowds in the Neelsie centre on the latter campus as late as the summer of 2001.[4]

As Saron Gas, the band released its first album, Fragile on Musketeer Records, in 2000 in South Africa. Upon achieving success on the South African music charts, Wind-up Records took an interest in Saron Gas' melodic-yet-heavy sound and signed them to the label. The band was asked to change their name due to Saron Gas being a homophone of sarin gas, a deadly nerve agent discovered (but never used in war) by Nazi Germany during World War II. The band changed its name to Seether after the Veruca Salt song of the same name.[4]

Beginning and Disclaimer (2002)

In 2002, Seether launched their first official album, Disclaimer, which earned the band three singles: "Fine Again", "Driven Under" and "Gasoline", in which only the first managed some repercussion. The year 2002 was very trendy for Seether. Since the release of Disclaimer, the band hasn't stopped touring. When near the end of Disclaimer Tour, the band decided to return to the studio to record their second album, a project that had to be delayed by almost a year, since at that time Seether was on world tour with Evanescence. "Fine Again" is also in the video games Madden NFL 2003 and 1080 Avalanche.

Success and Disclaimer II (2003–2004)

Following the release of Disclaimer, the band toured continually in order to increase sales and name recognition. A planned second album was delayed for nearly a year when Seether was selected as the support act for an Evanescence worldwide tour. Seether reworked their acoustic ballad, "Broken", as an electric ballad with guest vocals by Amy Lee of Evanescence. Favorable audience response led the band to record the revised version, with Lee on vocals. The track, along with a new song entitled "Sold Me", was featured on the soundtrack for the 2004 film, The Punisher, and became a major success for the band, particularly in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. A romance developed between Lee and Morgan during this time.

Morgan has stated that the reworking of "Broken" was due to the wishes of the record company, rather than those of the band.[5] An alternate version of the original album, with many of its songs remixed or rerecorded, was released in late 2004 and entitled Disclaimer II. The alternate version also featured eight extra tracks.

Karma and Effect, One Cold Night (2005–2006)

The band's follow-up album, Karma and Effect, was released in 2005. Originally titled Catering to Cowards, the name was changed at the record label's demand.[6] "Karma and Effect" debuted at number 8 on the US Billboard 200 album charts, and was certified gold in the US and Canada. The album spawned three singles, "Remedy", of which frontman Morgan has spoken fondly of, "Truth" and "The Gift". "Remedy" reached number 1 on the US Mainstream Rock Charts, Seether's first number 1 hit.

Seether released an acoustic CD/DVD set titled One Cold Night, recorded at Grape Street, in Philadelphia, on 22 February 2006. Morgan had been suffering from a stomach ailment, and decided to do an acoustic performance of their set rather than cancel the show. The exclusion of "Needles" and "Burrito" from the album is due to the label's desire that it contain no obscenities.[7]

Lead guitarist Patrick Callahan's departure from the band was announced on 16 June 2006. No reason was given, but he apparently did not enjoy Seether's new material. Shaun Morgan commented:

"Um... relieved a little... actually a lot. He was the guy in the band that was always our naysayer, and he was the negative energy as far as writing. I personally have no love lost, which is weird for some reason 'cause he was my friend for four years. But when he walked out, it kinda walked out with him."[5]

Morgan entered a rehabilitation program for alcoholism in August 2006, which forced the band to cancel a tour with Staind and Three Days Grace.

Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces (2007–2009)

Shaun Morgan, prior to the next album's debut, claimed that it would be more diverse than previous efforts. Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces was slated for an August release that was delayed until 23 October due to the suicide of Morgan's brother, Eugene Welgemoed. The album debuted at number 9 in the Billboard 200 album charts, and sold 57,000 copies in its first week. Its cover artwork featured "Candice the Ghost", and was illustrated by David Ho. The first single, "Fake It", reached the top position of the US Mainstream Rock Charts and Modern Rock Charts, and held that spot for at least 9 weeks on both charts. It became the theme for WWE's No Way Out (2008). "Rise Above This", written for Eugene Welgemoed, was released as a single and reached the No. 1 spot on the Modern Rock Tracks chart and No. 2 on its mainstream counterpart. The final single from the album was "Breakdown", the video of which was released on 12 November 2008 after a delay from its original 23 October scheduled release date. Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces won Seether's first South African Music Award, in the category "Best Rock: English", as well as their first MTV Africa Music Award for "Best Alternative Artist".

A tour launched in support of the album in early 2008 lasted much of the year. Troy McLawhorn, of Dark New Day, Evanescence, Sevendust, and doubleDrive, was hired as a touring guitarist on 15 February 2008. Bands Seether shared the stage with on the tour included Three Days Grace, Finger Eleven, Breaking Benjamin, 3 Doors Down, Skillet, Red, Papa Roach, Flyleaf, Econoline Crush and Staind. McLawhorn was afterwards made an official member of the band.

"No Shelter" appeared on the NCIS Official TV Soundtrack, released on 10 February 2009, and a version of Wham!'s "Careless Whisper" was made available for purchase as a digital or mobile download. The song was reportedly covered as a joke,[8] in which the band turned a "Cheesy 80s pop ballad" into a Hard Rock/Metal song in response to Wind-up's request that they record a Valentine's Day song. The music video for "Careless Whisper" premiered on 15 June 2009, and the song is included as an additional track on the reissue of Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces.

Seether supported Nickelback on their Dark Horse tour in March and April, 2009. Shaun and Dale confirmed in an interview on 2 March 2009 that, after the Nickelback tour, Seether would take the rest of year off to write and record the follow-up to Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces.[9] The band nevertheless gave performances through the remainder of the year, which included a date in Okinawa to play for American troops as part of a USO tour on 23 and 24 May at Camp Schwab, and then in MCAS Iwakuni on 26 May for the US Marines. Seether also made appearances at a number of festivals during the summer, including sets at the Chippewa Valley Music Festival and the Quebec City Festival, before the tour's conclusion at The Big E Festival, West Springfield, MA, on 4 October.

Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray and Seether: 2002–2013 (2010–2013)

The band spent several months recording in Nashville, Tennessee[10] with producer Brendan O'Brien,[11] then resumed touring in April 2010 with the intention of returning to the studio "in the first week of June" to complete the new record. Drummer John Humphrey confirmed in August that recording was completed, and the album was in the mixing process. He said that the band believed this album to be their best work, and that the songs are "very strong, melodic, and heavy at times."[12] Morgan confirmed the album's completion in September, and gave the expected release date as early 2011.[13] A new song, "No Resolution", was debuted on 4 September 2010, during a live show at the DuQuoin, IL State Fair.[14][15] McLawhorn and Humphrey, in a radio interview, announced that the new album would be titled Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray, and that it would be released in May. The album's first single, "Country Song", was released on 8 March in the US and on 4 April in the United Kingdom,[16] and the new album was released on 17 May 2011.[17] Seether reached their highest position on the US Billboard 200 Charts when Holding On to Strings Better Left to Fray rose to the Number 2 position. It also reached number one on the US Rock Albums, US Alternative Albums and US Hard Rock Album Charts.[18] Their single-week sales of 61,000 records was their best since Karma and Effect sold 82,000 copies in 2005.[19] Billboard named Seether the No. 1 Active and No. 1 Heritage Rock Artist of 2011.[20] A remix EP of the Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray album, titled Remix EP, was released on 7 February 2012.

Troy McLawhorn's departure from the band and return to Evanescence was announced on 8 March.[21][22] Seether performed live in Cincinnati, Ohio on 10 May, and in South Bend, Indiana on 11 May. Both concerts were recorded, and released as a limited edition CD set for each individual city.[23] Seether played main stage on the Uproar Festival alongside bands Avenged Sevenfold, Three Days Grace, Bullet For My Valentine, and Escape The Fate, and supported 3 Doors Down on their European tour from November to March.

On 3 September 2013, the band announced the name of a compilation album, titled Seether: 2002-2013. The album was released on 29 October 2013 as a 2-disc album, featuring some of Seether's greatest hits, unreleased demos, soundtrack songs and 3 all-new tracks, including a cover of Veruca Salt's "Seether" (the song that the band is named after).[24] "Seether: 2002-2013" also contains two new recorded songs ("Safe To Say I've Had Enough" & "Weak") and was produced by Brendan O'Brien.[25] The band released a 15-second demo clip for the song "Safe To Say I've Had Enough" on loudwire.com.[26] The band also carried out a small, semi-acoustic tour of Europe and South Africa.

On 30 November 2013 Seether released a 3-track single "Goodbye Tonight" featuring Van Coke Kartel & Jon Savage. The song is also featured on Deluxe edition of "Isolate and Medicate".[27]

Isolate and Medicate and upcoming seventh studio album (2014–present)

In a Twitter interview, Dale Stewart, the band's bassist, has confirmed that the band are writing songs for their upcoming album. Another confirmation that Seether are currently working on their new album, is a statement from leadsinger Shaun Morgan on the website Reddit.com which came during an AmA (askmeanything) interview, where he stated that band were "In the studio getting ready for our new album..." [28]

On 31 January 2014, the band posted a video on their YouTube channel in which frontman Shaun Morgan stated that the album was well underway and recording should be completed in about a week (as of the video post date).[29]

During a recent Twitter interview, John Humphrey, the band's drummer, stated that the upcoming album is due for a summer release. More details about the new album will be announced in "the next month or so".[30]

The week of 14 April, Seether put out a new song teasers via the app Snapchat, and Instagram. One of the songs is confirmed to be "Words As Weapons," while the other's presumed title is "My Disaster," which was a Snapchat exclusive teaser. Both "Words As Weapons" and "My Disaster" have teasers uploaded to YouTube.[31][32] Later, song clips of "Watch Me Drown",[33] "Keep the Dogs at Bay",[34] "Save Today"[35] and "See You at the Bottom"[36] were also revealed through band's official Instagram profile.

On 24 April 2014, it was revealed that the new album, Isolate and Medicate is set to be released on 1 July 2014, with the lead single, "Words as Weapons" slated for release on 1 May 2014.[37]

On 29 April 2014, Bryan Wickmann, band's longtime guitar tech, Isolate and Medicate cover art creator, and former Art Director of Schecter Guitar Research, was announced as the new touring guitarist.[38][39]

On 17 May 2014, the band performed their premier single, "Words as Weapons," from the album Isolate and Medicate, live at the Orbit Room in front of 1,700 fans.

The band released a music video for the album's second single, "Same Damn Life," on 30 October 2014. The video was directed by Nathan Cox.

On 29 April 2015, frontman Shaun Morgan confirmed in an official Reddit AmA interview that work on an upcoming album would begin in early 2016.

In late May and early June, Seether announced a slew of new European tour dates in September, along with several stops in the UK.

Later, on June 30, Seether released an interactive set of music videos for their single, "Nobody Praying for Me", which centered on perspective when it comes to discrimination and police. Morgan said of the video that "our goal in creating this video is for people to educate themselves and make an informed decision on their own, rather than being told by any media outlet saying, this is what you should be thinking, this is what is right. The whole point is to try and shift the way we look at things and to not always leap to our pre-conceived conclusions, which is mostly racially and profile-based, because that’s what we get fed all the time. I’ve been guilty of it too. It’s very unfortunate, and it’s getting worse instead of better".

On 7 July, Seether kicked off their summer tour with 3 Doors Down. On 13 September, Seether shared pictures of them recording a new album on social media. Seether announced in November that they are going to release their as-yet-untitled seventh album in January 2017.

Musical style and influences

Seether are heavily influenced by American grunge groups such as Nirvana[40] and Alice in Chains.[40] Allmusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote "Seether's lead singer/songwriter, Shaun Morgan, is an unabashed, unapologetic worshiper of Kurt Cobain, using Nirvana's sound as a template for Seether."[41] Seether have also been influenced by Deftones[40] and Nine Inch Nails.[40]

Awards and nominations

Awards Category Nominated Work Year of Award Result
MTV Africa Music Awards[42] Best Alternative Artist Seether 2008 Won
MTV Africa Music Awards[42] Artist of The Year Seether 2008 Nominated
South African Music Awards Best Rock: English Seether 2008 Won
Billboard charts[20] No. 1 Active Rock Artist Seether 2011 Won
Billboard charts[20] No. 1 Heritage Rock Artist Seether 2011 Won
Billboard charts[20] Active Rock Song of 2011 Country Song 2011 Won
Canadian Hot 100[20] Active Rock Song of 2011 Country Song 2011 Won
Mediabase[43] No. 1 Song of The Year (in terms of airplay) Country Song 2011 Won
Revolver Golden Gods Awards[44] Best Live Band Seether 2012 Nominated
Radio Contraband Indie Artist of the Year Seether 2012Nominated

Members

Current members
  • Shaun Morgan – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, acoustic guitar (1999–present)
  • Dale Stewart – bass guitar, backing vocals, acoustic guitar (2000–present)
  • John Humphrey – drums, percussion (2003–present)
Current touring members
  • Bryan Wickmann – lead guitar, backing vocals (2014–present)
Session members
  • Josh Freese – drums on Disclaimer and Disclaimer II (2002)
  • Amy Lee – vocals on "Broken" from The Punisher: The Album and Disclaimer II (2004)
  • Howard Benson – keyboards, programming on Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces (2007)
  • Space – guitar on Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces (2007)
  • Van Coke Kartel – musicians on "Goodbye Tonight" from Isolate and Medicate (2013–2014)
Former members
  • Johan Greyling – lead guitar (1999)
  • Tyronne Morris – bass guitar (1999–2000)
  • David "Dave" Cohoe – drums, backing vocals (1999–2002)
  • Nick Oshiro – drums (2002–2003)
  • Patrick "Pat" Callahan – lead guitar (2002–2006)
  • Troy McLawhorn – lead guitar, backing vocals (2008–2011)
Former touring members
  • Nic Argyros – drums (2002)
  • John Johnston – drums (2002)
  • Erik Eldenius – drums (2002)
  • Nick Annis – lead guitar (2002)
  • Kevin Soffera – drums, backing vocals (2003)
  • Brian Tichy – drums (April 2007)

Timeline

Discography

Main article: Seether discography

Studio albums as Saron Gas

Studio albums as Seether

References

  1. 1 2 Torreano, Bradley. "Seether". AllMusic. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  2. ↑ Taylor , Jason D. "Seether - Disclaimer". AllMusic. Retrieved July 1, 2015.
  3. ↑ Ramkissoon, Nikita (21 November 2013). "Seether's Dale Stewart: We're still a South African band". TimesLive. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  4. 1 2
  5. 1 2 "Seether feels the cold on". Fasterlouder.com.au. 18 July 2006. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  6. ↑ "Seether : Seether Frontman Shaun Morgan Is Very Angry". VH1.com. Archived from the original on 1 September 2009. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  7. ↑ "Seether". Frontrowking.com. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
  8. ↑ di monaco, lou. "NY Rock Music Examiner exclusive interview w/ vocalist Shaun Morgan of Seether". examiner.com. examiner.com. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
  9. ↑ "Broadcast Yourself". YouTube. Archived from the original on 22 October 2013. Retrieved 2010-09-19.
  10. ↑ "Troy McLawhorn of Seether Interview with Backstage Axxess". YouTube. Retrieved 2010-09-19.
  11. ↑ "Today's Dirt - Hard Drive/Hard Drive XL". Harddriveradio.com. Archived from the original on 19 July 2010. Retrieved 2010-09-19.
  12. ↑ Lee, Cindal (30 August 2010). "Seether's John Humphrey talks about tonight's show at the Fair - Minneapolis / St. Paul Music - Gimme Noise". Blogs.citypages.com. Retrieved 2010-09-19.
  13. ↑ jdms (3 September 2010). "Free Johnny Dare – Interview: Shaun Morgan – Seether Frontman". Freejohnnydare.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  14. ↑ "Seether live *NEW SONG* No Resolution, Duquoin". YouTube. Retrieved 2010-09-19.
  15. ↑ "Seether Set List". i1225.photobucket.com. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  16. ↑ "Country Song: Seether: Amazon.co.uk: MP3 Downloads". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  17. ↑ "Seether official website". Seether.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  18. ↑ "Music Charts, Most Popular Music, Music by Genre & Top Music Charts". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  19. ↑ "Music Charts, Most Popular Music, Music by Genre & Top Music Charts". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 "Seether Earns #1 Active Rock Song of the Year by Billboard". AlternativeAddiction.com. Retrieved 2013-02-24.
  21. ↑ "Updated: EX-SEETHER Guitarist Has NOT Rejoined EVANESCENCE - 11 Apr. 2011". Roadrunnerrecords.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  22. ↑ "EVANESCENCE Manager Denies Ex-SEETHER Guitarist Has Rejoined Band". BlabberMouth.
  23. ↑ "RockHouse Live Media Productions". Rockhouselive.com. Retrieved 2011-08-17.
  24. ↑ "2002-2013 – Album Coming October 29th!". Seether. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  25. ↑ "Twitter / SeetherOfficial: 3 new tracks so far. Names". Twitter.com. 2013-07-08. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  26. ↑ "Seether Share Song Snippet From Upcoming Album". Loudwire.com. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  27. ↑ "iTunes - Music - Goodbye Tonight - Single by Seether, Van Coke Kartel & Jon Savage". Itunes.apple.com. 2013-11-30. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  28. ↑ "I'm Shaun Morgan, lead singer of Seether. AMA. : Music". Reddit.com. 2013-12-10. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  29. ↑ "Studio Update from Shaun". YouTube. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  30. ↑ "Twitter / SeetherOfficial: @Zach_Taul Info about the new". Twitter.com. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  31. ↑ "Seether Sneak Peek". YouTube. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  32. ↑ "Sneak Peek 2". YouTube. 2014-02-20. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  33. ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  34. ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  35. ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  36. ↑ "Instagram". Instagram. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  37. ↑ "New Seether Album Out July 1st, First Single Slated For May 1st -Rock News-101 WRIF - Detroit - Everything That Rocks". Wrif.com. 2014-04-24. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  38. ↑ "Seether | Intro to Brian". YouTube. 2014-04-29. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  39. ↑ "SEETHER - Refining Their Sound - Screamer Magazine". Screamer Magazine. 2014-07-29. Retrieved 2014-08-13.
  40. 1 2 3 4 "Seether | Similar Artists, Influenced By, Followers". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  41. ↑ Stephen Thomas Erlewine (2007-10-23). "Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces - Seether | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
  42. 1 2 "The MTV Africa Music Awards". Tvsa.co.za. Retrieved 2013-02-24.
  43. ↑ "Seether's 'Country Song' Is Billboard's Active Rock Song of the Year". Loudwire.com. 2011-12-14. Retrieved 2013-02-24.
  44. ↑ Kory Grow (2 March 2012). "The 2012 Revolver Golden Gods". Revolver. NewBay Media, LLC. Retrieved 31 May 2012.
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