Cold Day Memory
Encyclopedia
Cold Day Memory is the eighth studio album by American alternative metal
band Sevendust
released on April 20, 2010. This album marks the return of guitarist Clint Lowery
who previously left Sevendust in 2004 to work with Dark New Day
. The album debuted at 12 on the Billboard 200
, sold about 27,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release, This is their best performance on the Billboard 200 chart ever.
, who had produced other albums for successful rock acts such as Disturbed, Staind
, Finger Eleven
, and 3 Doors Down
. Clint Lowery's brother Corey Lowery
(ex-Stereomud
& Dark New Day
, currently of Eye Empire
) also aided the band in their recording process. The band re-launched their official website with a new design to promote the album. Stepping out of the box from regular recording sessions the band showed the fans how the album was created, with virtually every step of the process being chronicled through a series of video blogs, which were posted on the revamped official site and accompanying YouTube
channel. These near-daily "vlogs" that the band posted on the site consisted of updates on the progress of the new album, as well as footage of the band mates living in the new "house" in which they were recording from.
Guitarist Clint Lowery, who rejoined Sevendust in March 2008, commented, "This record personally has been one of the most difficult, but most rewarding records I've ever worked on. I put a lot of pressure on myself to contribute good material to the guys after being gone for last three records and that helped me focus more than I ever had." Added Witherspoon, "I feel this album shows new growth for the band. We're very happy to have Clint back and are looking forward for everyone hearing the magic that's made when we're all together!"
called it "a more personal experience to him" due to the events that transpired in the last twelve months as sometimes he would have trouble coming up with words, and would often write gibberish. Rose was the primary writer, but all five members of the band contributed. While Rose focused on more distressing issues, Witherspoon (who had just become a father) focused his lyrics on responsibility and commitment. The album's first single, "Unraveling", was co-written by Clint Lowery and is about the collapse of a relationship, while "Confession" indirectly addresses Lowery quitting and returning to the band. On Lowery's return, Rose spoke "Since we all write, it's hard to tell exactly what each song is about, but we like to leave it up to the listeners to decide for themselves," Rose says. "It's funny because in the end you almost don't know what you wrote. I remember telling John one time, 'Dude, that was an amazing line you wrote,' and he went, 'What are you talking about? You wrote that.' We wanted to change the template completely from what we did with our last album, 'Hope And Sorrow'. We were going, 'Let's bring back those other elements Clint brought in that made us what we were.' So we sort of made a silent agreement that we were going to let Clint run wild. We said we'll jump in when it's time, but if you've got an idea let's go with it."
During the recording process, the band would leave the studio to perform several shows, and then return afterwards; a process that Lowery was initially against at first. Witherspoon commented it was "a tedious process."
On January 31, 2010, Sevendust posted this on their official website: "It's getting close to time to previewing a new song for all of you. Keep an eye out this week and next for a new song that we will post for everyone that has been waiting. We wanted to release a preview to the hardcore fans that have been with us, and give you a taste of what's to come. Still putting together the final touches, but the second the song is ready we'll have it up for all to hear. We want you to have something fresh to listen to to gear up for the new tour coming in February."
The second single "Forever
" (then titled Forever Dead) was made available for streaming on the band's official MySpace page and Youtube account on February 5, 2010. That same day, "Unraveling" made its debut on Sirius XM's Octane station. The track "Forever" was made available for purchase on the iTunes Store
on March 30, 2010.
It wasn't until recently that Sevendust began streaming their entire album over the radio. With the exception of "Better Place", every other song received some playing time on local rock stations. On April 18, 2010 the album was leaked on various P2P networks and file sharing sites.
focused on the significance of Clint Lowery's return to the band, saying that "...the reunion with Lowery immediately proves to be a huge step forward for the veteran quintet." Colgan goes on to say that the album "...has the energy and vitality of the band’s older work, but it also has exponentially greater musicianship and subtlety, the kind that only a veteran band can achieve."
The album did receive some level of criticism, though. thenewreview.net stated "With songs like 'Ride Insane' 'Here and Now' and 'Nowhere', I became a little bored. I felt as if I were listening to songs I had already heard before by the band, or perhaps even elsewhere, and wasn’t completely blown away by what was there." Sputnikmusic.com stated "Does Cold Day Memory live up to expectations? Barely, but it’s definitely a step in the right direction. It’s not as heavy as I hoped it would be, but it’s not a snooze fest either. One thing for sure, though, it’s catchy as hell. 3 Listed pros as great vocal work from LJ, good guitar work and excellent drumming. The listed negatives of the album was mundane bass work, marginally bad song writing and not venturing out of their safety zone". The biggest criticism of the album was that they stayed within their safety zone. Guitarinternational.com stated "Cold Day Memory is a killer release, and one that should act to propel the band into the new decade with a renewed sense of confidence, hopefully forgetting, at least somewhat, the events that haunted them for the majority of the past decade. If this record is any indication of things to come, then we could be hearing great things from a band that has more than paid their dues, and come screaming back onto the scene, leaving no doubt that they deserve to be included next to the biggest names in Metal today."
Singles
Alternative metal
Alternative metal is a genre of alternative rock and heavy metal that gained popularity in the early 1990s. Most notably, alternative metal bands are characterized by heavy guitar riffs and experimental approaches to heavy music.-Origins:...
band Sevendust
Sevendust
Sevendust is an American heavy metal band from Atlanta, Georgia. Formed in 1994 by bassist Vince Hornsby, drummer Morgan Rose and guitarist John Connolly. After their first demo, lead vocalist Lajon Witherspoon and guitarist Clint Lowery joined the group...
released on April 20, 2010. This album marks the return of guitarist Clint Lowery
Clint Lowery
Clint Lowery is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the lead guitarist of the heavy metal band Sevendust. He has also played in Dark New Day and Still Rain and served as the touring guitarist for Korn through most of 2007....
who previously left Sevendust in 2004 to work with Dark New Day
Dark New Day
Dark New Day is an American hard rock supergroup formed in 2004 featuring Brett Hestla of Virgos Merlot, Troy McLawhorn of DoubleDrive, Clint Lowery of Sevendust, Corey Lowery of Stereomud and Stuck Mojo, and Will Hunt of Skrape...
. The album debuted at 12 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
, sold about 27,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release, This is their best performance on the Billboard 200 chart ever.
Recording and production
In October 2009, Sevendust began recording a new album at Groovemaster Studios in Chicago, Illinois with producer Johnny KJohnny K
John Karkazis, better known as Johnny K, is a Grammy Award nominated producer/engineer/mixer/musician and songwriter. He owns Groovemaster Recording Studios in Chicago...
, who had produced other albums for successful rock acts such as Disturbed, Staind
Staind
Staind is an American rock band that was formed in 1995 in Springfield, Massachusetts. For 16 years, the band consisted of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Aaron Lewis, lead guitarist Mike Mushok, bassist Johnny April, and drummer Jon Wysocki...
, Finger Eleven
Finger Eleven
Finger Eleven is a Canadian rock band from Burlington, Ontario, formed in 1989. They have currently released five studio albums, with their album The Greyest of Blue Skies bringing them into the mainstream...
, and 3 Doors Down
3 Doors Down
3 Doors Down is an American rock band from Escatawpa formed in 1996. The band consists of Brad Arnold , Matt Roberts , Todd Harrell , Chris Henderson , and Greg Upchurch ....
. Clint Lowery's brother Corey Lowery
Corey Lowery
Corey Lowery is a hard rock bassist and vocalist, previously of the bands Still Rain, Stuck Mojo, Switched and Stereomud. Lowery currently plays bass and provides backing vocals in the band Eye Empire. Eye Empire was previously known as Violent Plan. Before Violent Plan, Corey was playing with...
(ex-Stereomud
Stereomud
Stereomud was an alternative metal band from New York/Georgia. They were active from years 2001 to 2003 before breaking up, releasing two albums - Perfect Self and Every Given Moment.-History:...
& Dark New Day
Dark New Day
Dark New Day is an American hard rock supergroup formed in 2004 featuring Brett Hestla of Virgos Merlot, Troy McLawhorn of DoubleDrive, Clint Lowery of Sevendust, Corey Lowery of Stereomud and Stuck Mojo, and Will Hunt of Skrape...
, currently of Eye Empire
Eye Empire
Eye Empire is an American rock supergroup, formed in 2009, consisting of former Dark New Day members Corey Lowery and B.C. Kochmit as well as Donald Carpenter formerly of Submersed. Garrett Whitlock, formerly of Submersed, and Dixie Duncan were Eye Empire's drummer and guitarist respectively from...
) also aided the band in their recording process. The band re-launched their official website with a new design to promote the album. Stepping out of the box from regular recording sessions the band showed the fans how the album was created, with virtually every step of the process being chronicled through a series of video blogs, which were posted on the revamped official site and accompanying YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
channel. These near-daily "vlogs" that the band posted on the site consisted of updates on the progress of the new album, as well as footage of the band mates living in the new "house" in which they were recording from.
Guitarist Clint Lowery, who rejoined Sevendust in March 2008, commented, "This record personally has been one of the most difficult, but most rewarding records I've ever worked on. I put a lot of pressure on myself to contribute good material to the guys after being gone for last three records and that helped me focus more than I ever had." Added Witherspoon, "I feel this album shows new growth for the band. We're very happy to have Clint back and are looking forward for everyone hearing the magic that's made when we're all together!"
Lyrical style and themes
During the writing process of the album, drummer Morgan RoseMorgan Rose
Morgan Jay Rose is an American drummer, record producer and founding member of the Atlanta-based alternative metal band Sevendust. He is also responsible for much of the background "screaming" vocals.-Career:...
called it "a more personal experience to him" due to the events that transpired in the last twelve months as sometimes he would have trouble coming up with words, and would often write gibberish. Rose was the primary writer, but all five members of the band contributed. While Rose focused on more distressing issues, Witherspoon (who had just become a father) focused his lyrics on responsibility and commitment. The album's first single, "Unraveling", was co-written by Clint Lowery and is about the collapse of a relationship, while "Confession" indirectly addresses Lowery quitting and returning to the band. On Lowery's return, Rose spoke "Since we all write, it's hard to tell exactly what each song is about, but we like to leave it up to the listeners to decide for themselves," Rose says. "It's funny because in the end you almost don't know what you wrote. I remember telling John one time, 'Dude, that was an amazing line you wrote,' and he went, 'What are you talking about? You wrote that.' We wanted to change the template completely from what we did with our last album, 'Hope And Sorrow'. We were going, 'Let's bring back those other elements Clint brought in that made us what we were.' So we sort of made a silent agreement that we were going to let Clint run wild. We said we'll jump in when it's time, but if you've got an idea let's go with it."
During the recording process, the band would leave the studio to perform several shows, and then return afterwards; a process that Lowery was initially against at first. Witherspoon commented it was "a tedious process."
Album title
On January 20, 2010, Morgan Rose revealed to Scotty "Bunz Of" Steele of Spokane, Washington's Rock 94½ radio station that the band's forthcoming album will be titled Cold Day Memory.Release
On December 22, 2009, the band announced that the tracking for the album was complete, and was in the mixing process for an April 2010 release. In between and after this, they performed a few shows over December and early January.On January 31, 2010, Sevendust posted this on their official website: "It's getting close to time to previewing a new song for all of you. Keep an eye out this week and next for a new song that we will post for everyone that has been waiting. We wanted to release a preview to the hardcore fans that have been with us, and give you a taste of what's to come. Still putting together the final touches, but the second the song is ready we'll have it up for all to hear. We want you to have something fresh to listen to to gear up for the new tour coming in February."
The second single "Forever
Forever (Sevendust song)
"Forever" is the second single off album Cold Day Memory by american heavy metal band Sevendust. The single was released in radio stations on July 26. The song was made available for streaming on the band's official MySpace page and Youtube account on February 5, 2010. Also was made available for...
" (then titled Forever Dead) was made available for streaming on the band's official MySpace page and Youtube account on February 5, 2010. That same day, "Unraveling" made its debut on Sirius XM's Octane station. The track "Forever" was made available for purchase on the iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
on March 30, 2010.
It wasn't until recently that Sevendust began streaming their entire album over the radio. With the exception of "Better Place", every other song received some playing time on local rock stations. On April 18, 2010 the album was leaked on various P2P networks and file sharing sites.
Track listing
Reception
Reception to Cold Day Memory was quite positive. 411mania.com stated "What you'll find here is the best Sevendust album since Seasons in terms of lyrics, emotion, guitarwork and drums." ultimate-guitar.com stated "At times the band broaches the industrial genre, but those moments are extremely fleeting. In both "Splinter" and "Forever Dead", the intros feature computer-like effects that could easily have led into NIN territory." Chris Colgan of PopMattersPopMatters
PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...
focused on the significance of Clint Lowery's return to the band, saying that "...the reunion with Lowery immediately proves to be a huge step forward for the veteran quintet." Colgan goes on to say that the album "...has the energy and vitality of the band’s older work, but it also has exponentially greater musicianship and subtlety, the kind that only a veteran band can achieve."
The album did receive some level of criticism, though. thenewreview.net stated "With songs like 'Ride Insane' 'Here and Now' and 'Nowhere', I became a little bored. I felt as if I were listening to songs I had already heard before by the band, or perhaps even elsewhere, and wasn’t completely blown away by what was there." Sputnikmusic.com stated "Does Cold Day Memory live up to expectations? Barely, but it’s definitely a step in the right direction. It’s not as heavy as I hoped it would be, but it’s not a snooze fest either. One thing for sure, though, it’s catchy as hell. 3 Listed pros as great vocal work from LJ, good guitar work and excellent drumming. The listed negatives of the album was mundane bass work, marginally bad song writing and not venturing out of their safety zone". The biggest criticism of the album was that they stayed within their safety zone. Guitarinternational.com stated "Cold Day Memory is a killer release, and one that should act to propel the band into the new decade with a renewed sense of confidence, hopefully forgetting, at least somewhat, the events that haunted them for the majority of the past decade. If this record is any indication of things to come, then we could be hearing great things from a band that has more than paid their dues, and come screaming back onto the scene, leaving no doubt that they deserve to be included next to the biggest names in Metal today."
Personnel
- Lajon WitherspoonLajon WitherspoonLajon Witherspoon is the vocalist for the Atlanta-based alternative metal band Sevendust. Members from such bands as Staind, Seether, Alter Bridge, and Diecast have listed Lajon and Sevendust as musical influences. In March 2008, Lajon was recognized in Hit Parader's magazine as one of the "Top...
- lead vocals - John ConnollyJohn Connolly (musician)John Connolly was born on October 21, 1967 in New Jersey. Connolly was a drummer for the band Piece Dogs. He then joined Sevendust for Rhythm Guitar and has recorded with them on all their releases to date. Connolly is also one of the primary songwriters for Sevendust...
- guitars, backing vocals - Clint LoweryClint LoweryClint Lowery is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the lead guitarist of the heavy metal band Sevendust. He has also played in Dark New Day and Still Rain and served as the touring guitarist for Korn through most of 2007....
- guitars, backing vocals - Vinnie HornsbyVinnie HornsbyVince Hornsby is the bassist for Alternative metal band Sevendust. He is known for his humorous demeanor and facial expressions during live shows...
- bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Morgan RoseMorgan RoseMorgan Jay Rose is an American drummer, record producer and founding member of the Atlanta-based alternative metal band Sevendust. He is also responsible for much of the background "screaming" vocals.-Career:...
- drums, backing vocals - Justin Walden - programming
- Johnny KJohnny KJohn Karkazis, better known as Johnny K, is a Grammy Award nominated producer/engineer/mixer/musician and songwriter. He owns Groovemaster Recording Studios in Chicago...
- producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
Charts
Album| Year | Chart | Position | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | The Billboard 200 | 12 | |
| Rock Albums | 4 | ||
| Digital Albums | 6 | ||
| Alternative Albums | 2 | ||
| Hard Rock Albums | 3 |
Singles
| Year | Song | Chart | Position | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "Unraveling" | Rock Songs | 29 | |
| Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 7 | |||
| "Forever Forever (Sevendust song) "Forever" is the second single off album Cold Day Memory by american heavy metal band Sevendust. The single was released in radio stations on July 26. The song was made available for streaming on the band's official MySpace page and Youtube account on February 5, 2010. Also was made available for... " |
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 18 | ||
| 2011 | "Last Breath Last Breath "Last Breath" is the fourth track from Sevendust's 2010 eighth studio album Cold Day Memory. It was released as the album's third single on January 24, 2011 via 7 Bros.... " |
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 32 |