Letlive

Last updated

Letlive
Letlive. Summerblast 2014 (23).JPG
Letlive performing at 2014's Summerblast Festival in Trier, Germany. (LtR: Jean Nascimento, Ryan Johnson, Jason Butler. Obscured: Loniel Robinson, Jeff Sahyoun)
Background information
Origin Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres
Years active2002–2017, 2024-present
Labels
Spinoffs Fever 333
Past members
  • Jason Aalon Butler
  • Ryan Jay Johnson
  • Jeff Sahyoun
  • Loniel Robinson
  • Keeyan Majdi
  • Alex Haythorn
  • Christian Johansen
  • Ben Sharp
  • Craig Sanchez
  • Adam Castle
  • Omid Majdi
  • Brenden Russel
  • Anthony Paul Rivera
  • Jean Francisco Nascimento

Letlive, stylized letlive., [1] was an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. The band's final lineup consisted of lead vocalist Jason Aalon Butler (son of Aalon Butler, vocalist and guitarist of the soul group Aalon), guitarist Jeff Sahyoun, bassist Ryan Jay Johnson and drummer Loniel Robinson. Butler was the band's only constant member. [2] The band has released four full-length albums and one EP, with their final album If I'm the Devil being released on June 10, 2016. The band was last signed to Epitaph Records.

Contents

Letlive released their first EP Exhaustion, Salt Water, and Everything in Between in 2003 and their first LP Speak Like You Talk in 2005. Their second album, Fake History was released in 2010. Upon its re-release on Epitaph in 2011, the album received critical praise and was also added to Rock Sound's 101 Modern Classics. [3] Their third album, entitled The Blackest Beautiful was released on July 9, 2013 and on June 17 was streamed on Epitaph Records' YouTube channel. [4] On April 28, 2017, the band announced via social media that they had broken up.

Biography

Early years (2002–2009)

Letlive was formed in Los Angeles in 2002 by vocalist Jason Aalon Butler, drummer Alex Haythorn, guitarist Ben Sharp and bassist Christian Johansen. [2] In 2003, the band's debut EP Exhaustion, Salt Water, and Everything in Between was released on at One Records. After a line-up change (with only Butler and Sharp remaining), their first album Speak Like You Talk was released in 2005, also on at One Records. Bassist Ryan Jay Johnson joined the band before the release, but did not perform on the album. [5] In 2007 Ben Sharp left the band and the band was plagued by subsequent line-up changes and a scrapped album.

Fake History (2009–2013)

After establishing a first stable lineup with guitarists Jean Nascimento and Ryan Johnson, and drummer Anthony Rivera accompanying Butler and Johnson, letlive. toured extensively throughout the US and Canada and gained momentum. The band signed with Tragic Hero Records in 2009 and released their second album titled Fake History the next year. The band continued touring and after signing with Epitaph Records in February 2011, undertook a brief European tour. [6] They were signed to Epitaph after Bring Me the Horizon frontman Oliver Sykes contacted label owner Brett Gurewitz after watching them perform at a single gig in 2008. [1]

Epitaph re-released Fake History in April 2011 with three additional tracks, including two B-sides and one new song produced by Brett Gurewitz. [7] The re-release has been the subject of several favorable reviews from AllMusic, [8] Alternative Press, [9] the BBC [10] and Rock Sound . [11] Starting in June 2011, the band undertook more extensive touring, [7] including appearances at Download Festival and Leeds Festival, supporting Enter Shikari and Your Demise on their mainland European tour, and, in the United States, supporting Underoath and August Burns Red. [12] In February 2012, letlive. toured again with Enter Shikari and Your Demise for their first time around Australia as a part of the 2012 Soundwave Festival. [13] Butler also featured on track Tangled in the Great Escape from Pierce the Veil's album Collide with the Sky .

In October 2012, the band announced they had parted ways with drummer Anthony Rivera.

The Blackest Beautiful and If I'm the Devil... (2013–2017)

On June 4, the single "Banshee (Ghost Fame)" was released. On June 17, the full album was streamed on the Rock Sound website, three weeks before the scheduled release. [4] The Blackest Beautiful was released on July 9, 2013 to positive critical reception. The writing process surfaced many creative tensions amongst the band members, about which Butler stated, "We set the bar high and everything needed to be approved by everybody else. Eventually we had to become very transparent with each other and just say 'look, I just don't like this' or 'this isn't working for me.'". [14] In an interview with Fuse, released on July 16, it was confirmed that Loniel Robinson, their touring drummer, as well as drum tech for Of Mice & Men, would become a permanent member. [15] The album debuted in the United States at number 74 on the Billboard 200 and number six on Hard Rock Albums, [16] selling nearly five thousand copies. [17] [18] In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number 62. [19] A music video for the song "Younger" was released on September 26, 2013. On January 23, letlive. revealed that they would be releasing "renditions" of songs from The Blackest Beautiful, featuring various artists on remade versions of the songs. The first "rendition" released was a new version of "27 Club", featuring Keith Buckley of Every Time I Die. On April 23, their second "rendition" released was a new version of "The Dope Beat", featuring Dan "Soupy" Campbell of The Wonder Years.

Lead vocalist Jason Butler performing at 2014's Summerblast Festival Letlive. Summerblast 2014 (22).JPG
Lead vocalist Jason Butler performing at 2014's Summerblast Festival

On February 10, 2015, Jean Nascimento left the band for unknown reasons. In light of his departure, Kenji Chan, former live guitarist for Bruno Mars and former member of Ryan and Jeff's previous band, Best Interest, acted as the band's touring guitarist.

On September 25, 2015, the band posted a tweet confirming that they had completed their fourth album and that it would be released in 2016. On the same day, they also confirmed that further additions to their 'Renditions' project/album would be put on hold to focus on new music. [20] On November 3, 2015, in a Revolver Magazine online article, letlive. disclosed that their fourth studio album would be entitled If I'm the Devil....

Split (2017)

On April 28, 2017, the band announced that after 15 years together as a band, "there will be no further activity for the foreseeable future." [21] [22]

In June and July 2017, Butler, former The Chariot guitarist Stephen "Stevis" Harrison, and Night Verses drummer Aric Improta began teasing a new project called The Fever 333 (later shortened to Fever 333). [23] The band performed their first show together out of the back of U-Haul truck in the parking lot of Randy's Donuts in Inglewood, California. [24]

Fake History 10th anniversary (2020)

On April 13, 2020, the band started using their Instagram account again and teased fans with a 10th anniversary release of Fake History complete with unreleased songs and demos.

The Blackest Beautiful 11th anniversary and farewell tour. (2024-2025)

On April 17, 2024, the band posted an announcement of the remix and remaster of The Blackest Beautiful and announced they will be performing a farewell tour in 2025. "11 years of The Blackest Beautiful after 7 years of silence. Remixed Remastered Revisited Available for pre order now. And to our friends that we never got to say goodbye to- we'll see you next year to do so. Promoters see slide 2. We'd like suitable spaces around the world for proper farewells. ll.ove one last time." [25]

Musical style

letlive.'s musical style has been described as post-hardcore [2] [8] [10] [15] [26] as well as experimental rock, [27] art punk [28] and metalcore. [29] Remfry Dedman, writing for The Independent, described letlive.'s sound as "harnessing the severe, frenetic power of Black Flag and marrying it to the melodic, infectious soul of Michael Jackson" [14] In a 2011 interview with Rock Sound , frontman Jason Butler stated that they "want to show people American punk rock soul is very much well and alive". [6] Typical aspects of the band's music include Butler's emotive vocal delivery, duelling guitars and introspective lyrics that cover topics such as infidelity, culture, greed and corruption.

Members

Timeline

Letlive

Discography

Studio albums

Tours

Supporting

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Killswitch Engage</span> American metalcore band

Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbanding of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Jesse Leach, guitarists Joel Stroetzel and Adam Dutkiewicz, bassist Mike D'Antonio, and drummer Justin Foley. The band has released eight studio albums and three live performance albums. Their eighth studio album, Atonement, was released on August 16, 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Refused</span> Swedish punk band

Refused is a Swedish hardcore punk band originating from Umeå and formed in 1991. Refused is composed of vocalist Dennis Lyxzén, guitarist Kristofer Steen, drummer David Sandström, and bassist Magnus Flagge. Guitarist Jon Brännström was a member from 1994, through reunions, until he was fired in late-2014. Their lyrics are often of a non-conformist and politically far-left nature and were for a time associated with the straight edge subculture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Every Time I Die</span> American metalcore band

Every Time I Die was an American metalcore band from Buffalo, New York, formed in 1998. For most of the band's career, the line-up was centred on brothers Keith (vocals) and Jordan Buckley (guitar), as well as rhythm guitarist Andy Williams, with bassist Stephen Micciche also being in the band for a cumulative 15 of the band's 24 years. After spending the first decade of their career on the Ferret Music label, they signed with Epitaph Records in 2008 and remained there until their split in early 2022. Every Time I Die released nine studio albums, with their final album Radical being released in October 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Architects (British band)</span> British metalcore band

Architects are a British metalcore band from Brighton, East Sussex, formed in 2004 by twin brothers Dan and Tom Searle. The band now consists of Dan Searle on drums, Sam Carter on vocals, Alex Dean on bass, and Adam Christianson on guitar. They have been signed to Epitaph Records since 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emarosa</span> American rock band

Emarosa is an American rock band formed in Lexington, Kentucky, in 2006. The band currently consists of lead guitarist and founding member E.R. White and lead vocalist Bradley Walden, who joined the band in 2013. The group has undergone several line-up changes throughout its career, with lead guitarist E.R. White being the sole remaining founding member. Originally oriented towards post-hardcore and alternative rock, Emarosa has gravitated towards a more pop rock sound in recent years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Ghost Inside (band)</span> American metalcore band

The Ghost Inside, formerly known as A Dying Dream, is an American metalcore band from El Segundo, California. Formed in 2004, the band currently consists of vocalist Jonathan Vigil, guitarists Zach Johnson and Chris Davis, bassist Jim Riley and drummer Andrew Tkaczyk. They have released one EP and six studio albums, with their fifth album, The Ghost Inside, released on June 5, 2020, via Epitaph Records as a return from their hiatus with their latest album, Searching for Solace, released on April 19, 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Young Guns (band)</span> English alternative rock band

Young Guns are an English alternative rock band from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. The members, working with each other in various musical interests throughout the 2000s, formally formed the band in 2008, and rose to prominence after their debut EP, Mirrors, earned them spots opening live shows for Bon Jovi and Guns N' Roses. Their debut album, All Our Kings Are Dead, on 12 July 2010. Their second album, Bones, was released in February 2012. Their single "Bones" reached no. 1 on the Billboard Active Rock charts in the US in May 2013. Their third album, Ones and Zeros, was released on 9 June 2015. The band's fourth album, Echoes, was released on 16 September 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sleeping with Sirens</span> American rock band

Sleeping with Sirens is an American rock band from Orlando, Florida, currently residing in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The band currently consists of Kellin Quinn, touring lead guitarist Tony Pizzuti, Nick Martin, Justin Hills and Matty Best. The band was formed in 2009 by members of For All We Know and Paddock Park. The group is currently signed to Sumerian Records and have released seven full-length albums and an acoustic EP.

<i>Fake History</i> 2010 studio album by Letlive

Fake History is the second studio album by American rock band Letlive and the first written and recorded with Jason Aalon Butler (vocals), Jean Nascimento (guitar), Jeff Sahyoun (guitar), Ryan Jay Johnson and Anthony Rivera (drums). Originally released on Tragic Hero Records in April 2010, it was re-released by Epitaph Records April 12, 2011, with three additional tracks.

Aalon is an American soul group from Los Angeles formed by lead singer and guitarist Aalon Butler.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jason Aalon Butler</span> American musician

Jason Aalon Butler is an American musician and political activist from Inglewood, California. He is best known as the former lead singer of the post-hardcore band Letlive. He is currently part of the rapcore band Fever 333 and the hardcore punk band Pressure Cracks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bury Tomorrow</span> British metalcore band

Bury Tomorrow are a British metalcore band formed in 2006 in Southampton, Hampshire, England. The band is composed of six members; lead vocalist Daniel Winter-Bates, bassist Davyd Winter-Bates, drummer Adam Jackson, lead guitarist Kristan Dawson, who replaced founding guitarist Mehdi Vismara in 2013, rhythm guitarist Ed Hartwell, and keyboardist and vocalist Tom Prendergast, who both replaced Jason Cameron in 2021. Bury Tomorrow have released seven studio albums, their most recent being The Seventh Sun, released on 31 March 2023.

<i>The Blackest Beautiful</i> 2013 studio album by Letlive

The Blackest Beautiful is the third studio album by American rock band Letlive. It was released by Epitaph Records on July 9, 2013. Recorded between June 2012 and January 2013, the album used four drum sessions, and went through ten recording engineers before settling on Stephen George. The drums were recorded with session musician Christopher Crandall, in the absence of the band having a permanent drummer at the time. The album incorporated a variety of music styles based on its members, including punk rock, funk, and soul; it was mastered and mixed to have a "more human" and "organic" sound.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Night Verses</span> American post-rock band

Night Verses is an American rock band from Fullerton, California. The group consists of guitarist Nick DePirro, bassist Reilly Herrera, and drummer Aric Improta. The band has four releases to date and is currently signed to Graphic Nature/Equal Vision Records (US).

<i>Lost Forever // Lost Together</i> 2014 studio album by Architects

Lost Forever // Lost Together is the sixth studio album by British metalcore band Architects. It was released on 11 March 2014 globally through Epitaph Records; with the exception of UNFD in Australia and New Damage in Canada.

<i>No Closer to Heaven</i> 2015 studio album by the Wonder Years

No Closer to Heaven is the fifth studio album by American rock band the Wonder Years. Struggling with writer's block, vocalist Daniel Campbell spoke with several friends who were in bands for inspiration. No Closer to Heaven is a concept album, detailing the loss of a loved one. The album was recorded between March and April 2015. It was produced by Steve Evetts at The Omen Room. "Cardinals" was released as a single in June, followed by "Cigarettes & Saints" a month later. "I Don't Like Who I Was Then" was made available for streaming in August. "Thanks for the Ride" was made available for streaming in early September. No Closer to Heaven was released through Hopeless on September 4. The Target edition featured two additional tracks.

<i>If Im the Devil...</i> 2016 studio album by Letlive

If I'm the Devil... is the fourth and final studio album by American rock band Letlive, released globally through Epitaph Records on June 10, 2016. Recorded throughout 2015, it is their first album since the departure of guitarist and percussionist Jean Nascimento, who had been a member of the band from 2007 to 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Letlive discography</span>

The discography of Letlive, an American rock band, consists of four studio albums, one extended play (EP), four singles and seven music videos. Letlive was formed in Los Angeles, California in 2002 and released its debut EP Exhaustion, Salt Water, and Everything in Between on At One Records the following year. In 2005, the band released its full-length debut album Speak Like You Talk. After a number of lineup changes, the group signed with Tragic Hero Records and released its second studio album Fake History in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fever 333</span> American rock band

Fever 333 is an American rock band formed in Inglewood, California, in July 2017. The three-piece band was founded by former Letlive vocalist Jason Aalon Butler, former the Chariot guitarist Stephen Harrison and Night Verses drummer Aric Improta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Obey the Brave</span> Canadian hardcore punk band

Obey the Brave was a Canadian hardcore punk band From Montreal, Quebec and Ottawa, Ontario. Formed in 2012, the band features Despised Icon singer Alex Erian on vocals as well as Blind Witness bassist Miguel Lepage, guitarists John Campbell and Greg Wood, and drummer Stevie Morotti. By the middle of 2012, just over half a year after becoming a band, the metalcore act found itself signed to iconic label Good Fight, with the EP, Ups And Downs, released in 2012. They signed to the label Epitaph, with the band's debut studio album, Young Blood, released in August of that same year. A sophomore album, Salvation, followed in 2014. The third album Mad Season was followed up in 2017. The fourth album Balance was followed up in 2019.

References

  1. 1 2 Christopher McLallen (April 2011). Joe Barnes (ed.). "Letlive. lound as shit and with some pretty big deal friends, meet the band you'll tell people you saw when they were small". Front . No. 155. London: The Kane Corporation. pp. 32–33. ISSN   1464-4053. OCLC   226099638.
  2. 1 2 3 Heaney, Gregory. "Letlive - Music Biography, Credits and Discography : AllMusic". AllMusic . Retrieved April 15, 2011.
  3. ↑ "Rock Sound's 101 Modern Classics: 74 - 50". Rock Sound . Freeway Press. June 27, 2012. Retrieved July 10, 2012. Few albums encapsulate the idea of a modern classic quite as perfectly as this one. The essence of hardcore distilled by five LA lifers, 'Fake History' is at once a howl of vulnerability and a fuck-you-you-will-never-break-me clarion call of utter defiance. Truly, genuinely thrilling.
  4. 1 2 letlive. Hit The Cover Of Rock Sound Magazine, Out Wednesday June 19th! | News | Rock Sound. Rocksound.tv. Retrieved on August 6, 2013.
  5. ↑ "INTERVIEW: letlive. Talk Fourth Album 'If I'm The Devil...', Black Lives Matter & Dealing With Social Media Backlash". Music Feeds. June 20, 2016. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  6. 1 2 Patashnik, Ben (February 25, 2011). "Letlive Q+A: 'I want people to have a human experience'". Rock Sound . Freeway Press. Retrieved April 15, 2011.
  7. 1 2 "letlive. – Artist Info". Epitaph Records. 2011. Retrieved April 15, 2011.
  8. 1 2 Heaney, Gregory (2011). "Fake History – Review". AllMusic . Retrieved April 12, 2011.
  9. ↑ Pearlman, Mischa (2011). "Reviews – Fake History". Alternative Press . Retrieved April 12, 2011.
  10. 1 2 Pearlman, Mischa (April 6, 2011). "Letlive Fake History Review". BBC Music . Retrieved April 15, 2011.
  11. ↑ Newbound (April 11, 2011). "letlive. – Fake History Album review". Rock Sound . Retrieved April 12, 2011.
  12. ↑ "A Bazillion New Download Bands". Rock Sound . April 8, 2011. Retrieved April 15, 2011.
  13. ↑ "Soundwave 2012 lineup". Triple J . Australian Broadcasting Corporation. January 2012. Retrieved March 25, 2012.
  14. 1 2 Remfry Dedman (May 9, 2016). "Letlive. interview with Jason Aalon Butler: 'Rock music was birthed in heresy and rebellion'" . The Independent . Archived from the original on June 14, 2022. Retrieved January 20, 2018.
  15. 1 2 3 Melody in the Chaos: Letlive.'s Jason Butler on His Troubled Youth and 'The Blackest Beautiful' - Fuse. Fuse.tv (June 20, 2013). Retrieved on 2013-08-06.
  16. ↑ "The Blackest Beautiful - Letlive | Awards | Allmusic". AllMusic . Rovi Corporation . Retrieved November 7, 2013.
  17. ↑ Brown, Matt (July 17, 2013). "Metal By Numbers 7/17: Like Festivals To Flames". Metal Insider . Retrieved November 7, 2013.
  18. ↑ Joe DeAndrea (July 17, 2013). "Album Sales Round-Up: Week of July 17th, 2013". Absolute Punk . Retrieved November 7, 2013.
  19. ↑ "LETLIVE | Artist | Official Charts". Official Charts Company . Retrieved November 7, 2013.
  20. ↑ "NEWS: letlive. finish work on fourth studio album!". Deadpress.co.uk. Retrieved September 27, 2015.
  21. ↑ Redrup, Zach (April 28, 2017). "NEWS: letlive. decide to call it a day!". Deadpress.co.uk. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  22. ↑ "letlive". Facebook.com. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  23. ↑ Redrup, Zach (July 2, 2017). "NEWS: Jason Aalon Butler (ex-letlive.) teases new project!". Deadpress.co.uk. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  24. ↑ Redrup, Zach (July 4, 2017). "NEWS: The Fever (letlive., The Chariot, Night Verses) make live debut!". Deadpress.co.uk. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  25. ↑ Millspublished, Matt (April 18, 2024). ""We'll see you next year": Letlive are reuniting for a "proper" farewell tour in 2025". louder. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  26. 1 2 "Rise Against Announce Summer 2015 Tour With Killswitch Engage + Letlive". Loudwire . April 6, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  27. ↑ "Review: letlive. – The Blackest Beautiful". Legends Arising. August 29, 2013. Retrieved October 5, 2016. ...their mish mash of Post-Hardcore, Experimental Rock and a variety of other genres...
  28. ↑ Gonda, Christopher (April 26, 2016). "LETLIVE. Share Summer 2016 U.S. Headlining Tour with Performances by SEAHAVEN and SILVER SNAKES". PureGrainAudio. Retrieved October 5, 2016. Today, the Los Angeles art-punk band has shared details on their headlining tour...
  29. ↑ Crane, Matt (February 27, 2014). "The 15 best screamers in modern metalcore". Alternative Press . Retrieved April 7, 2016. Here we acknowledge the best screamers in the metalcore genre today.
  30. ↑ "Rise Against 2015 North American Summer Tour Schedule With Killswitch Engage & Letlive". April 7, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  31. ↑ "Rise Against Announce North American Summer Headline Tour" . Retrieved April 8, 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.