Mutemath (sometimes styled as MuteMath or MUTEMATH) is an American alternative rock project founded by American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer Paul Meany. Originally co-founded as a band with Darren King in 2002, Meany decided to continue Mutemath as a solo project following King's departure in 2017. Mutemath draws heavily from influences in 1960s and 1970s soul, psychedelic rock, and jam band styles, utilizing vintage guitars and amplifiers as well as Rhodes keyboards, synthesizers, and other electronic instruments such as the keytar.
Mutemath started in 2002 as a long-distance collaboration between Paul Meany in New Orleans, Louisiana and Darren King in Springfield, Missouri.[1] The two had known each other from their work together in Meany's previous band Earthsuit. Occasionally Paul would receive instrumental demo CDs from Darren. Fairly impressed with his efforts, Paul contacted Darren and asked if he could mess with the demos a bit, adding some ideas of his own. Darren obliged and the two would set in motion a sort of songwriting ping-pong match that would carry on for several months.
In February 2002, Darren moved to New Orleans to work closer with Paul in hopes to at least turn their efforts into some kind of side-project. Calling it "Math", the two explored many of their shared influences ranging from DJ Shadow to Björk, yielding a lot of their earlier works to be more sample based electronica. After Meany's band officially broke up by that summer, Darren and Paul moved in together into a house they found in Mandeville, Louisiana where they spent all their time writing new songs and considering how to turn their side-project into a full band.
By 2003, they had recruited guitarist Greg Hill, another Springfield, MO native and longtime friend of Darren's. All now living in Southern Louisiana, the three worked on expanding their collection of songs while broadening the sound to a more rock infused hybrid. With the addition of more of their collective band influences like The Police and U2 the music began to find a sound of its own. Paul took the early demos to friend and producer Tedd T, who fell in love at first listen. The trio continued to work on demos with Tedd for a possible EP while playing shows on the side with different bass players experimenting with the idea of eventually becoming a four-piece.
After months of considering different options for their new venture, the group decided to do things on their own and officially changed their name to "Mutemath". Joining up with Tedd and lawyer/manager Kevin Kookogey, they started an independent label Teleprompt Records. Within a couple months Teleprompt was able to put together a developmental-deal with Warner Music, and Mutemath's debut Reset EP would be released that Fall on Warner's CCM label Word Records in an attempt to capitalize on the group's fan base from Earthsuit. By December 2004, the band finally recruited bass player Roy Mitchell-Cárdenas to become the official fourth member. They began touring to promote the release while using popular social networking sites like MySpace to spread word of the group. As their fan base grew, the band began to see an increasing number of shows sell out by early 2005. By the end of that year, they joined The Music is Much Too Loud Tour opening for Mae and Circa Survive where they began to chronicle their shows and updated their video blogs on a nightly basis gradually attracting more and more people to the Mutemath ground-swell. The band sold over 30,000 copies of Reset EP before the album went out of print in 2006.
2006–2011
In January 2006, the band set out on a tour in support of their self-titled debut album. It was initially independently released in response to Warner Music Group's indecision on what to do with Mutemath's debut LP. So by late 2005, Teleprompt filed suit against Warner Music requesting Mutemath to be released from their contract while Teleprompt would proceed to promote and sell Mutemath's self-titled debut on its own. (see Teleprompt Controversy for more details).
After months of legal wrangling with parent label Warner Bros. Records, Teleprompt settled litigation out of court in August 2006 with a re-negotiated contract with Warner.
WBR re-released the band's debut album Mutemath on September 26, 2006. The fully remastered album features reworked tracks from their Reset EP[7] and a bonus limited-edition live EP. The album debuted at No.17 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart.[8]
The band returned to the road in early 2007 with opening dates for The Fray and Wolfmother in various cities and a brief headlining tour in Europe. Flesh And Bones Electric Fun, an exclusive live DVD was released on March 20, 2007 with an accompanying 43-city North American tour that ran through the first of May.
The band also received some unexpected publicity on American Idol when contestant Chris Sligh sang "Typical" on the show's Top 24 episode.[9]
Mutemath's first music video, for "Typical", premiered on YouTube on March 21, 2007. The video features the band performing the song backwards. The video made it on the New York Post Hot List[10] and registered more than 100,000 views in less than four days, going on to be viewed 4.3 million times as of May 2021.[11] It took three weeks for Mutemath to learn their parts backwards. When asked whether singing backwards or drumming backwards was more difficult, Paul Meany answered, "Darren (the drummer) had it the hardest."
"Typical" was also released as Mutemath's first radio single on April 10, 2007. As of late June, the single started receiving major airplay in Modern Rock quickly rising up the Mediabase Alternative chart jumping from No.115 to No.65 and was also the second most added song on Alternative stations the week of June 13, 2007. The single then jumped to No.36 the first week of August 2007, a position it held for six weeks before it moved to a peak position of 35.[12]
The group made limited appearances at various summer festivals in mid-2007 in order to work on writing and recording material for their forthcoming sophomore record. The band's debut performance at the Bonnaroo Music Festival coincided with their second appearance on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.
The band hit the road in support of the single in September 2007 with support from Eisley, which included two television appearances. The first was September 19, their second appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!. The show aired a taped performance of the band recreating the video the single "Typical" that was taped in front of the studio audience and then played back in reverse for the broadcast. Their second television appearance was their debut on NBC's Late Night with Conan O'Brien performing "Break the Same" for the first time on television on October 17.
On November 12, 2007, Atlantic Records announced that the band would join Alanis Morissette on Matchbox Twenty's Exile in America Tour, which kicked off in Hollywood, Florida, on January 25, 2008, and ran through mid-March.[15] On December 6, 2007, the group was nominated for a Grammy Award for their short form music video for "Typical".[16] "Control", the second and final radio single from Mutemath was released January 15, 2008. The music video for the single was filmed in Nashville in January, but its distribution was halted due to copyright issues in regards to a previously released clip from a European group;[citation needed] nevertheless, the video can be found on their Armistice Live DVD.[17][18] The band also released the companion album to their 2007 live DVD, Flesh And Bones Electric Fun: Mutemath Live, via iTunes on January 29, 2008. "Typical" was added as a downloadable song for the Rock Band series in early 2009.
In November 2008, the group released "Spotlight" on the Twilight film soundtrack album, to favorable reviews.[19][20][21] The song was the first single from Armistice and was released digitally February 10, 2009, on the Spotlight EP, which included B side tracks and a remix of the song by Son Lux. The group performed "Spotlight" for the first time on The Tonight Show on January 15, 2009, featuring guest appearances from LaClave and Allen from Club of the Sons and Jeremy Larson, all of whom have worked on the upcoming album.[22] The EP was also released on limited edition vinyl on March 24, 2009.
The group went to work writing and recording their second full-length record in their home studio in New Orleans. The album, Armistice, was released in the United States on Teleprompt Records/Warner Bros. Records on August 18, 2009.
During the recording of the album, short videos were posted to the band's YouTube profile. These videos documented the work going on in the studio, including street interviews where New Orleans locals were shown samples of the album (which couldn't be heard in the video), recording their reactions. Any clips of actual music from the new album was presented in such a way that it only hinted at what the album would eventually sound like.[23][bettersourceneeded]
On April 4, 2008, Goodwin Films announced they were working on a documentary film about the making of Mutemath's new record.[24]
According to the biography, the group had almost called it quits during the writing of the album. The band had written about 16 songs in the three years spent on the road touring and had expected to cut the list to 10 after settling down to record in their New Orleans home studio. Weeks of working with old ideas and bickering between the bandmates led the group to begin searching for an outside producer to help focus the group and stabilize the tension. During this search, the group met producer Dennis Herring and after hearing his input, decided to scrap all the previously written material and start from scratch, bringing Herring on board as producer of the album. The band worked over the next three months writing almost 20 new songs that would shape Armistice. The band then spent time at Herring's studio in Oxford, Mississippi, recording the final touches of the album.[25][non-primary source needed]
On January 14, 2009, King said in an interview that after a break for the holidays, they would "get back to recording in hopes of having everything done in March so that the album can come out in August. It has taken way longer than we would have ever imagined but we're just not done with it yet." Additionally, he mentioned that the album was Mutemath's first album which involved collaboration among all four members of the band.[26]
The title for the sophomore record was confirmed as Armistice on May 27, 2009 in an interview on InsideBayArea.com and then confirmed on the same day on the Mutemath forums[27][28] Teleprompt Records and Warner Bros. Records made a joint press release on June 9, 2009, announcing the details of the album release, including the name Armistice the album cover, and track listing, as well as the official US release date of August 18.[29]
Armistice debuted at No. 18 on the Billboard 200, with over 18,000 units sold in the first week. The album also charted at No. 4 on Billboard Rock charts and No. 3 on the Billboard Digital Albums and Billboard Alternative Albums charts the same week.
Upon finishing the 2010 summer tour, the band announced that they would release a DVD/CD combo entitled Armistice Live on October 12, 2010. Pre-orders included bonus live rarities "Electrify" and "Goodbye", recorded in Japan during the "Armistice" tour.
The band began writing and recording material for their third album in the middle of 2010, shortly after completing their spring tour in support of 30 Seconds to Mars.[30] On April 4, 2011, it was announced that the album had been completed. It was also announced that guitarist Greg Hill had left the band in October 2010. Snippets of "Cavalries", "One More", "Equals", "Prytania", "Walking Paranoia" and "Odd Soul" were released on one of the band's YouTube channels.[31] On June 28, 2011, it was announced that the album would be titled Odd Soul and would be released on October 4, 2011.[32] On July 18, 2011 the full music video and interactive website for "Odd Soul" were released to the public.[33][34] On July 29, MuteMath released their VIP tour package for presale on their official site, giving away the name of their first single, "Blood Pressure", available August 8.[35] On August 10, 2011, Todd Gummerman announced on his blog that he was officially replacing Greg Hill as the band's guitar player.[36] The band supported Linkin Park and Incubus on the Honda Civic Tour.
2011–present
In an interview with NOLA.com in November 2013, Roy Mitchell-Cárdenas said, "We have a lot of songs, and we're trying to whittle down what those main songs are going to be that seem to have a common thread between them all to make for this album." He goes on to explain that the production of Odd Soul was a unique process since Todd Gummerman was not yet a part of the band and that all guitar parts were written by all members of the band, who are all multi-instrumentalists. It is worth noting that the band has not yet released material written by Todd Gummerman, and the band has not discussed any writing processes including him, although certain posts in Darren King's Vine account show Todd present and active during the writing process.
When asked about what kind of influences and sounds the band has in mind for the future potential album release, Roy stated, "Anything is fair play for us, as long as we can pull it off convincingly."[37] Paul Meany also responded to a fan question via Twitter in January 2014 asking about the amount of music the band had written saying, "I can tell [you] we've written more songs for this record than for the past 3 combined."[38][non-primary source needed]
On September 25, 2013, Darren King posted a vine of a sample of a new song the band was working on.[39] This was followed on November 9 when Darren posted a short clip of Todd and what appears to be Roy at work in the process of writing new material.[40] In 2014 Mutemath begin playing new material live. Songs included "Monument", "Stratosphere", "Light Up" and "Used To".
MuteMath officially announced the title of their new album as Vitals on May 21, 2015, via their official Facebook page.[41]
After completing the tour with Twenty One Pilots, the band announced their first remix album Changes. The album consists of new versions of tracks from Vitals with contributions from Yachtclub, JT Daly, and Flint Eastwood and features the new title track as the single from the release. The album was released on September 23, 2016.
On May 3, 2017, Roy Mitchell-Cárdenas announced his departure from MuteMath and the group announced that Jonathan Allen would be joining the group on tour starting May 6, 2017.[44][non-primary source needed]
Mutemath began posting snippets of a new song on their official website on June 4, 2017 counting down to the release of the single "Hit Parade" on June 6, 2017. The press release for the song revealed that it is the first single from the group's upcoming fifth studio album, Play Dead, to be released September 8, 2017.[45][non-primary source needed] Meany stated that the record took five years to record and work on it began before their 2015 release Vitals.[46] The album release will be accompanied by a fall headlining tour.[47] The tour was announced on June 12, 2017, and will include dates in the United Kingdom, Europe, and the United States.[48][non-primary source needed]
On August 8, 2017, Paul Meany announced that Darren King left the band and would not be accompanying Mutemath on the Play Dead Live Tour.[49] Paul Meany later stated he would be continuing to make music under the name Mutemath as a solo project.
On November 19, 2018, Paul Meany released a video for a new song "Voice In the Silence", and a new four song EP of the same name was released on December 5, 2018.[50] This EP was the first Mutemath release as a solo project of Paul Meany.[citation needed] The limited-pressing vinyl version of the Voice in the Silence EP contained four bonus tracks that were not included on the streaming version of the EP.[citation needed] "Love Light a Way" was released in December 2021.[51]
Religion
Mutemath has resisted being classified as a Christian band, even suing their record label Warner Brothers over being marketed as such.[52] Paul Meany stated in an interview in 2006 that if his previous band Earthsuit (a Christian act) "inspired anything, it was what not to do."[52] Drummer Darren King has also stated that he does not consider the band to be Christian.[53] While Armistice explored themes of doubt and pessimism that the band has gone so far as to call "atheistic",[54] Meany stated that the idea for the album Odd Soul was "loosely based on our upbringing in what I guess you could call eccentric Christianity," and King further explained that they wanted to celebrate their "weird religious roots."[55]Rolling Stone has also noted this connection, calling them "kinda sorta a Christian rock band."[56]
Band members
Current
Paul Meany– lead vocals, keyboards, piano, synthesizer, guitar (2002–present); bass (2002–2004; 2018–present); drums, percussion (2017–present)
Yazoo were an English synth-pop duo from Basildon, Essex, consisting of former Depeche Mode member Vince Clarke (keyboards) and Alison Moyet (vocals). The duo formed in late 1981 after Clarke responded to an advertisement Moyet placed in a British music magazine.
Earthsuit was a New Orleans–based Christian rock band formed in 1995. The band consisted of guitarist Dave Rumsey, keyboardist/vocalist Paul Meany, bassist Roy Mitchell, drummer David "Hutch" Hutchison, and vocalist Adam LaClave. Earthsuit's sound was primarily rock, but also incorporated elements of hip-hop, electronica, reggae, soul, and experimental music.
Paul Meany is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, music director and record producer. He is best known for co-producing and collaborating with much of Twenty One Pilots' recent work. He has also done production for Pierce the Veil and Yungblud. Outside of production, he is most notable for being the lead singer and keyboardist for the alternative rock project Mutemath, of which he is the sole member since 2017.
Teleprompt Records was an independent record label that was formed in 2003 by record producer Tedd T, keyboardist and Mutemath vocalist Paul Meany, and manager Kevin Kookogey. The label was formed to promote and distribute music for Meany's band Mutemath. The label was based in Franklin, Tennessee, and had an exclusive distribution deal with Warner Bros. Records. Mutemath was the only artist on the roster. As of 2015, the relationship between Teleprompt and Warner Music Group has been dissolved, and Teleprompt operations have been suspended. Mutemath has formed an independent label, Wojtek Records, to serve as Teleprompt's successor.
Mutemath is the first full-length album by Mutemath, independently released by Teleprompt. The album was initially packaged in a jewel case and was sold exclusively at concert dates on their 2006 album tour. The release date was January 19, the first date of the tour.
Reset is the name of an extended play (EP) album by Mutemath. Reset is the band's first release. It was released September 28, 2004 by a division of Warner Music Group. The album went out of print in the US in 2006, but was re-released in the UK on July 23, 2007.
"Typical" is the debut single from American rock group Mutemath. The song was written in 2003 by Paul Meany and Darren King. The digital single was released on April 10, 2007. A physical single was released in the UK only on August 27, 2007. Josh Harris club remixes of the song were also released digitally to several outlets on September 18, 2007. The song is featured as downloadable content for the Rock Band series of video games, was part of the soundtrack for the 2006 video game ATV Offroad Fury 4, and was featured in the 2009 film The Stepfather.
Darren Charles King is an American drummer and percussionist, best known for his association with the band Mutemath until his permanent departure in August 2017. He played the drums for the New Orleans–based Christian rock band Earthsuit for a short time. In concert he is often seen wearing a pair of headphones gaffer-taped to his head for foldback, something previously done by The Who drummer, Keith Moon. King grew up in the small town of Marshfield, Missouri.
"Control" is a song written by rock band Mutemath. It's the second radio single from their self-titled debut album. The single was released to radio in January 2008. A digital single followed in February 2008. The song was written by Paul Meany, Darren King, Roy Mitchell-Cárdenas and Greg Hill. It was originally released on Reset EP in 2004. The song is also featured as downloadable content for the Rock Band series of video games. The song won a Dove Award in 2005 for Best Modern Rock Song of the Year.
Adam LaClave is an American musician and singer. He was one of the vocalists and songwriters for the Christian band Earthsuit. The group's only major-label album, Kaleidoscope Superior, was critically successful. However, the band broke up soon afterward. LaClave formed a new band called Macrosick, along with bassist Jon Allen, with former Earthsuit Members Paul Meany, Darren King, and Mutemath guitarist Greg Hill helping to give it a start. But the band went on hiatus in 2005 due to Hurricane Katrina. Recently, LaClave has formed a new group with Allen called Club of the Sons. They have opened for Paul Meany's group, Mutemath on occasion. He is currently working on solo material under the alias Charlie Blacksmoke.
The High Kings is an Irish folk group formed in Dublin in 2008. The band consists of Finbarr Clancy, Brian Dunphy, Darren Holden, and Paul O'Brien. As of 2023, the group had released five studio albums, four live albums, two live DVDs, and one greatest hits album. Their first three studio albums appeared at number three or higher on the Billboard world music chart, the first two went platinum in Ireland, and all of their albums charted in Ireland.
Paper Route is an American experimental indie rock and indie pop band from Nashville, Tennessee formed in 2004. It consists of JT Daly, Chad Howat, and Nick Aranda (guitars). The band has released three full-length albums and several EPs.
Armistice is the second full-length album by Mutemath, released in Japan on August 5, 2009 and in the US on August 18.
Armistice Live is a live concert film and album release from New Orleans electronic rock group Mutemath. The video was released by Teleprompt Records and Warner Bros. Records on October 12, 2010. The DVD features Mutemath's performance from the Tabernacle in Atlanta that was filmed on their Armistice Tour in the Fall of 2009. In addition to the DVD release, a high-definition recording of the concert can be purchased on iTunes.
Odd Soul is the third full-length release from New Orleans group Mutemath. The album was released by Teleprompt Records and Warner Bros. Records on October 4, 2011. It is the first album without original guitarist Greg Hill. Bassist Roy Mitchell Cardenas filled in on guitar duties during writing and recording. The album was recorded at Paul Meany's house in New Orleans with no involvement by record company executives. In various interviews band members stated that the process of creating the album was very collaborative with all members playing guitar.
The Internet is an American alternative R&B and soul band from Los Angeles, California. It consists of vocalist Syd, keyboardist Matt Martians, bassist Patrick Paige II, drummer Christopher Smith, and guitarist Steve Lacy.
Twenty One Pilots are an American musical duo from Columbus, Ohio. Initially a band, the group was formed in 2009 by lead vocalist Tyler Joseph along with Nick Thomas and Chris Salih, who both left in 2011. Since their departure, the line-up has consisted of Joseph and drummer Josh Dun. The duo is best known for their singles "Stressed Out", "Ride", and "Heathens", which achieved commercial success between 2015 and 2016. The duo received a Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards for "Stressed Out".
Vitals is the fourth full-length release from New Orleans group Mutemath. The album was released on November 13, 2015. It is the group's first release on their own imprint label Wojtek Records, following their departure from Warner Bros. Records and the dissolution of Teleprompt Records. It is also the first studio album featuring Todd Gummerman since he joined the group in 2011.
Play Dead is the fifth album from New Orleans group Mutemath. The album was released on September 8, 2017. It is the last studio album featuring Darren King who departed the band on August 8, 2017 and Roy Mitchell-Cárdenas who left on May 3, 2017. and the final album to feature MuteMath as a band before transitioning into a solo project in 2018.
The Blue Stones are a Canadian blues rock duo based in Windsor, Ontario.
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