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Eternal Blue is the debut studio album by Canadian heavy metal band Spiritbox. It was released on September 17, 2021, through Pale Chord Records in partnership with Rise Records. Produced by Dan Braunstein, work began on the album in October 2020 in Joshua Tree, California, and was finished by February 2021. The album proved an immediate chart success for the band, recording entries in seven countries. In advance of the record's release, five songs became singles: "Holy Roller", "Constance", "Circle With Me", "Secret Garden", and "Hurt You".

Background

Before co-founding Spiritbox, singer Courtney LaPlante and guitarist Mike Stringer were both in Iwrestledabearonce. In late 2015, they decided to quit the band. LaPlante and Stringer had each replaced a previous member of Iwrestledabearonce, and were never comfortable with that status in the band; the two also desired to pursue a new personal and creative direction. LaPlante and Stringer got married in 2016. On October 9, 2017, the husband and wife duo announced the launch of their new project named Spiritbox.

As Spiritbox, the couple released a seven-song self-titled debut extended play on October 27, 2017, preceded by the single "The Beauty of Suffering". Former Iwrestledabearonce bandmate Mikey Montgomery served as the band's first drummer to record the EP. The band was later joined by Bill Crook of the pop-punk band Living with Lions as bassist, and Shreddy Krueger drummer Ryan Loerke became the band's first permanent drummer. The band shared five singles which were eventually compiled into an EP titled Singles Collection on April 26, 2019, followed by the non-album singles "Rule of Nines" and "Blessed Be" in 2019 and 2020. Loerke would depart from Spiritbox in 2020, and was subsequently replaced by Philadelphia-based drummer Zev Rose. The band members met Rose only two days before the band began touring with him.

Composition

Spiritbox employed several heavy metal-based musical styles on Eternal Blue. Critics have identified the style on the album as metalcore, post-metal, and djent. They have also been labelled as "post-metalcore". Near the release of the record, LaPlante herself defined the musical genre of Spiritbox as metalcore. The band's use of the digital synthesizer provided a unique sonic aspect to the album, and LaPlante makes use of both screaming and singing throughout the record.

Recording and release

Spiritbox first found critical and commercial success with the release of the single "Holy Roller" in July 2020. It debuted at No. 25 on Billboard Hot Hard Rock Songs. The song's original version spent seven weeks as No. 1 on Sirius XM Liquid Metal's Devil's Dozen, and was deemed the best song of 2020 by the station's listeners. In September 2020, Spiritbox announced that they had signed with Rise Records, as part of the label's partnership with Pale Chord Records. The band subsequently released a remix of "Holy Roller" in October, which featured Ryo Kinoshita of Crystal Lake. The "Holy Roller" remix version spent five weeks as No. 2 on Sirius XM Liquid Metal's Devil's Dozen.

The songwriting for the band's debut album was disrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic; eventually, the band reconvened in Joshua Tree, California, to continue working in "their own bubble" over a five-month period. The band set a deadline of April 2021 to finish work on the album so it could release by the end of 2021. In December 2020, Spiritbox debuted "Constance"; that same month, a Kerrang! reader's poll voted Spiritbox as "Best New Band".

Track listing

References

1. ^ Derdeyn, Stuart (September 1, 2021). "Spiritbox casts a spell on hard rock audiences". Vancouver Sun. Archived from the original on September 13, 2021. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
2. ^ Coare, Sam (May 2021). "Believe The Hype: Spiritbox are the hottest band in the world". Kerrang!. Archived from the original on July 1, 2021. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
3. Richardson, Jake (July 3, 2019). "Spiritbox is where serene art-rock + metal savagery meet". Loudwire. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
4. "Iwrestledabearonce members launch new project". Lambgoat. October 9, 2017. Archived from the original on April 11, 2021. Retrieved September 21, 2021.
5. Redrup, Zach (October 11, 2017). "News: Spiritbox announce debut self-titled EP, out October 27th 2017!". Dead Press!. UK. Archived from the original on September 19, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
6. "Courtney LaPlante (Interview)". Granny Smith (in French). January 16, 2018. Archived from the original on September 22, 2021. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
7. Cau, Giovanni (July 5, 2020). "Spiritbox, guarda il video ispirato a 'Midsommar'" [Spiritbox, watch the video inspired by 'Midsommar']. Metal.It (in Italian). Archived from the original on September 22, 2021. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
8. ^ "Spiritbox Releases Video For New Song 'Circle With Me'". Blabbermouth.net. April 30, 2021. Archived from the original on May 5, 2021. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
9. ^ "Spiritbox: Tout Savoir sur le Groupe" [Spiritbox: Know Everything About the Group | 2016−present]. Hard Force Magazine (in French). Paris. n.d. OCLC 32640105. Archived from the original on September 18, 2021. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
10. Redrup, Zach (March 12, 2019). "News: Spiritbox detail EP of 2018/2019 singles!". Dead Press!. UK. Archived from the original on September 19, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
11. "Spiritbox debut new song and music video". Lambgoat. December 2, 2019. Archived from the original on September 19, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
12. Brown, Paul (September 16, 2021). "Courtney LaPlante Clarifies Drummer Zev Rose's Position within Spiritbox". Wall Of Sound. Archived from the original on September 20, 2021. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
13. "Album Review: Spiritbox – Eternal Blue". New Noise Magazine. September 13, 2021. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
14. ^ Beebee, Steve (September 16, 2021). "Album review: Spiritbox − Eternal Blue". Kerrang!. Archived from the original on September 16, 2021. Retrieved September 17, 2021. Irresistible post-metallers Spiritbox...
15. ^ Morin, Max (August 23, 2021). "Spiritbox Want to Be the '2 Chainz of Metalcore'". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on August 24, 2021. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
16. The following critics called Eternal Blue post-metalcore:
    • Leivers, Dannii (September 14, 2021). "Spiritbox's Eternal Blue..." Metal Hammer. Archived from the original on September 19, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
    • Morin, Max (September 17, 2021). "Album Review: Spiritbox Eternal Blue". Metal Injection. Archived from the original on September 17, 2021. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
    • Oran (July 15, 2020). "Feature Interview - Spiritbox". Overdrive. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
17. Katsiaficas, Nathan (September 15, 2021). "Spiritbox: Eternal Blue". Outburn. Archived from the original on September 19, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
18. Garland, Robert (September 18, 2021). "Spiritbox: Eternal Blue". Sputnikmusic. Archived from the original on September 19, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
19. Morin, Max (September 17, 2021). "Album Review: Spiritbox Eternal Blue". Metal Injection. Archived from the original on September 17, 2021. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
20. ^ Bezer, Charley (December 4, 2020). "Spiritbox Release Video For Remix Of 'Holy Roller' Feat. Ryo Kinoshita Of Crystal Lake". ArchCity.Media. Archived from the original on May 2, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
21. Redrup, Zach (September 24, 2020). "News: Spiritbox sign with Rise Records!". Dead Press!. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
22. "Spiritbox Release Video For Remix Of 'Holy Roller' Feat. Ryo Kinoshita Of Crystal Lake". October 5, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
23. "Spiritbox Dedicate Emotional 'Constance' Video to Late Grandmother + Elders With Dementia". December 4, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
24. "The 2020 Readers' Poll Results: What music has ruled your year?". Kerrang!. December 30, 2020. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved September 17, 2021.