Saosin is a rock band originally hailing from Newport Beach,
California
, formed in 2003. The
band currently consists of vocalist Cove Reber, guitarists
Beau Burchell and Justin Shekoski, bassist
Chris Sorenson, and drummer Alex Rodriguez. The band is known for
their elements of
Heavy Metal
sound they have mixed with
Alternative
Rock and
Post-Hardcore
vocals
The band recorded their first E.P
Translating the Name with original
singer,
Anthony Green.
However,
Green left the band following the decision of the band to sign up
to a commercial label, Capitol
. New
singer Cove Reber fronted the band as they recorded their
self titled debut album which garnered
critical acclaim.
Their second studio album,
In
Search of Solid Ground was released on 8 September 2009 on
Virgin and contains three re-recorded
tracks off their
The Grey
EP.
Origin of name
Anthony Green, the former
vocalist, had initially suggested the name "Saosin" for the band.
Saosin means “small heart” as well as "be careful" in Chinese (小心
xiao xin). The word comes from a 15th century proverb about fathers
telling their sons who are being married off for money not to get
emotionally involved with their wives, (who could die at any time.)
Green explained the meaning behind this as being a reference to the
fact that nothing is eternal, and that it is a mistake to become
overly attached to any one thing, because that thing will
eventually be lost. Whilst Green's interpretation of the word 小心
xiao xin is obscure, 小心 xiao xin is generally used in Chinese as a
means to express caution. Green had previously used "Saosin" as a
track name in his high school band, Audience of One's CD,
I
Remember When This All Meant Something.
History
Formation and Translating The Name (2003–2004)
The original lineup for Saosin, consisting of Burchell, Shekoski,
Sorenson and former vocalist Anthony Green, was formed in the
summer of 2003. On June 17, the band released their first
commercial production, the
EP
Translating the Name.
It was an immediate success and was immensely popular on online
forums and music sites.Saosin first became popular through
promotion and exposure through the
Internet. They became known for their distinct
musical styles long before their first studio-length album was
released, and were popularised on social networking and music sites
such as
MySpace.
Studio drummer Pat McGrath and bassist Zach Kennedy left the band
early on. Kennedy left for personal reasons, and he wanted to
pursue a career in art. He was later replaced by
Chris Sorenson. McGrath, who was a former
drum technician for American thrash metal band
Slayer, was never properly with the band; according
to Burchell, he was hired only for the recording for the EP, as
Alex Rodriguez had promised his band at the time
Open Hand he would finish recording with them,
then joined Saosin after the release of
Translating the
Name. Shortly after the EP's release, Saosin went on a U.S.
tour with bands
Boys Night Out and
Anatomy of a Ghost.
In February 2004, the band's vocalist
Anthony Green left Saosin and later
formed the band
Circa Survive. Green
was very homesick and said he was missing his family. Green was
also disenchanted with Saosin, evidenced by the use of cryptic
imagery in the lyrics of the
Translating the Name EP to
convey his displeasure with the direction of Saosin. The other
bandmembers did, however, finish their
Warped Tour obligation with
Story of the Year's
Philip Sneed taking the mic. A public,
nationwide audition then took place.
New singer and Saosin EP (2004–2006)
After the audition process and several guest vocalists on demos,
the then 19-year-old Cove Reber, previously the vocalist of the
unsigned local bands Mormon in the Middle and Stamp Out Detroit,
was announced as their new permanent lead singer. Reber had sent in
his demo tape, which was an acoustic demo with "
Mookie's Last Christmas". The demo
has since leaked onto the internet. It is widely speculated to have
included a few songs from
Translating the Name. When Beau
Burchell first heard the demo, he thought it was Anthony playing a
trick on them, for Reber's vocal stylings were very similar to
those of Green's when the demo was originally recorded.
Reber's addition to the band was difficult, for the more
experienced Green was the center piece of the band in the eyes of
Saosin's fans. Many fans consider the time with Green to be
something entirely different from what the band is today. There are
still distinct fans of both eras (Green Era/Reber Era) debating on
which is a better fit for the band as a whole.
Saosin played the
Taste of Chaos tour
the following winter.
Saosin was signed to Capitol Records in March and toured the United States with the
Warped Tour for the second time.
That summer, they released the
Saosin
EP. At first it was intended to be a free sampler, but
Capitol Records would not allow this and released it as an EP. It
contained demo versions of songs later recorded on their first full
length album. A video to their new single "Bury Your Head" was
filmed during the tour. The band continued touring for the rest of
2005, opening for
Avenged
Sevenfold and
Coheed and
Cambria.
Saosin LP and Come Close (2006–2008)
After a respite from touring between February and June, the
Warped Tour 2006 and numerous demos
and compilation appearances, Saosin released their first
full-length album
Saosin on
September 26, 2006. The well-known music producer
Howard Benson was hired for the production of
the album. Benson had worked with several major rock bands such as
My Chemical Romance and
Blindside. The album sold over 35,000 copies in
its first week. The record saw the band writing softer songs such
as "You're Not Alone".
During the rest of 2006, Saosin toured on the International
Taste of Chaos Tour, playing their
first shows outside of America. They also toured the United States
with
Bleeding Through and
Senses Fail. They kept on touring for the whole
year of 2007, beginning with a tour with
Senses Fail,
Alexisonfire,
The
Sleeping and
Drop Dead,
Gorgeous. Saosin also invited the non-profit organization
Invisible Children for a portion
of the tour. In February they joined the
Taste of Chaos 2007. Between April and
June they toured in Europe, Australia, Japan and Indonesia.
When Saosin returned home they continued their headlining tour with
Poison the Well,
The Receiving End of Sirens,
Fiore and Flight 409. In the later summer of
2007, they were part of
Linkin Park's
Projekt Revolution tour.After
this they headlined yet another tour in USA and Canada with
Alexisonfire,
Envy on the Coast,
Norma Jean and The Dear and Departed.
Concert
footage was recorded during the tour stop on November 3, 2007 at
The Theater of Living Arts in Philadelphia
, Pennsylvania
. The concert footage was compiled for a live
album and concert movie entitled
Come Close.
Saosin toured from January 21 to February 8, 2008 with
Armor for Sleep,
Meriwether, and
The Bled;
from February 9 to February 16
Fear
Before joined the tour. They went to Australia between February
and March, after which they performed in Singapore on March 7 as
the opening performance for Incubus on their Light Grenades Tour.
On their way home they also visited Bali, Hawaii and Mexico. After
two final shows at home in California in April, they took a six
month break from touring.
The Grey EP and In Search of Solid Ground
(2008–present)
Saosin returned to touring in October 2008 alongside
Underoath and
The Devil Wears Prada.
In early 2009, they started recording their new album with producer
Butch Walker. They partnered with
Hurley to broadcast the
recording process live on Hurley's website.
Saosin released a new EP titled
The Grey
EP on October 14, 2008. The EP was sold on tour and on
iTunes and featured three new demos, as well
as an acoustic version of "Come Close". The purpose of
The Grey EP was to show demos they had
been recording; a similar manner in which the
Saosin EP contained demos for their debut
LP.
Saosin released
In Search
of Solid Ground on September 8, 2009. Two songs were
released as a download to anyone who bought a shirt, and a digital
pre-order. The songs were "On My Own" and "Is This Real". These two
songs were released as singles on iTunes August 4, 2009. On August
5 a new song titled "Changing" was made available for streaming on
the internet. The single was then put up for download on iTunes
August 11. Another track titled "The Worst of Me" was also released
as part of a free Warped Tour song package on
hurley.com/warpedtour. The song "Why Can't You See?" was made
available on Last.fm.
Their most recent song "Move Slow" was released on the TV show
NCIS's original sountrack.
Members
Current
- Cove Reber - lead vocals (2004-present)
- Beau Burchell - guitars/harmony
vocals (2003-present)
- Justin Shekoski - guitar/harmony vocals (2003-present)
- Chris Sorenson - bass/keyboards/screaming vocals
(2003-present)
- Alex Rodriguez - drums/percussion (2003-present)
Former
- Anthony Green - lead
vocals (2003-2004)
- Zach Kennedy - bass (2003)
- Pat Mcgrath - drums/percussion (2003)
Discography
Studio albums
References
External links
Wikis
Quiz
Map
Search