SEETHER

Seether is a three piece grunge band from South Africa. Originally called Saron Gas, they changed their name in 2002, coinciding with the release of their first major label release and second album, Disclaimer.

As Saron Gas, the band released its first album, Fragile, in 2000 in South Africa. Upon achieving success on the South African music charts, Wind-Up Records took an interest in Saron Gas' melodic-yet-heavy sound and signed them to the label.

The band was asked to change their name, however, due to Saron Gas being a homonym of sarin gas, a deadly nerve agent. The band chose the name Seether, inspired by a single by the band Veruca Salt. Their first major release came in 2002 with the album Disclaimer.

The album spawned three singles, 'Fine Again', 'Driven Under' and 'Gasoline', but only 'Fine Again' charted with any success. The remaining singles got semi-frequent radio play on modern rock stations, but were not major chart hits.

Ironically, the biggest hit off the album was a song not even released as a single. Morgan has cited Nirvana (and specifically the album Nevermind) as 'the reason he picked up a guitar,' and also quotes Pearl Jam, Rage Against the Machine, Alice In Chains and The Deftones.

After Disclaimer was released, the band went on a non-stop touring route in hopes of boosting sales and name recognition. Upon completing the tour, the band had planned to go into the studio and record their sophomore release.

However, they were instead tapped to support Evanescence on a worldwide tour that postponed their recording plans by almost a year. On this tour, the band reworked the acoustic ballad 'Broken' into an electric ballad and had Amy Lee of Evanescence share vocal duties with Morgan during live performances.

Inspired by the positive reaction the duet got on the road and perhaps fueled by a budding romance between Lee and Morgan, the band headed into the studio and quickly recorded an alternate version of Broken with Lee on vocals.

The song, along with a new song titled 'Sold Me', was featured on the soundtrack for the 2004 film The Punisher and was massively successful, bringing the band fame in the US, the UK and Australia in particular.

However, the reworking of the song garnered mixed reviews from some Seether fans, who felt the song was too soft or felt the band was simply hoping to ride Evanescence's fame to greater heights and thus "selling out" in the process.

These criticisms combined with some unflattering comments made about Lee on the band's message board prompted Morgan to promise never to rework another Seether song and may have also led to the couple's break-up.

Morgan has stated that the hit was an incident where the band was subjected to what the record company wanted for them rather than what they wanted. Later in 2004, in an attempt to calm fans who were demanding a second album, the band released Disclaimer II, an alternate version of the original album with many of the songs remixed or re-recorded as well as eight extra tracks, two of which were the tracks off the Punisher soundtrack.

In 2005, the band finally recorded and set a release date for their follow-up album called Karma & Effect. The original title for the album was Catering to Cowards, but the band was pressured to change the title by Wind-Up Records.

The album featured a sound different than their previous releases, most notably a fuller and richer sound, no doubt caused by the addition of a second guitarist for the album's writing and recording process.

The album was also noted for not containing any "obscenities," something that Disclaimer could not claim nor could most of the albums released in the modern rock milieu.

Despite initial concerns among fans that Seether may have been pressured to "clean up" the album's lyrics by Wind-Up Records, Morgan stated that it was simply the result of him maturing as a writer and a musician and realising that he could convey his thoughts and feelings with just as much emotion and conviction without resorting to obscenity as a crutch of sorts.

In addition to the soundtrack for The Punisher, Seether have also had their songs featured on the Freddy vs. Jason soundtrack and in the film Daredevil. The song 'Out Of My Way' was the entrance music for former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Superstar Zach Gowen. 'Broken' was featured on a career retrospective DVD for Eddie Guerrero.

Their song 'Sold Me' was the official theme song of WWE's Bad Blood pay-per-view event in June 2004, while Remedy was the official theme song of the 2005 installment of WWE SummerSlam.

In mid 2005, Seether released a video of the song 'Truth' which also featured wrestling. In March 2006, the band performed at "The Coca-Cola Colab Massive Mix", with Simple Plan, The Rasmus, Fatboy Slim, and Collective Soul, with Metallica headlining.

They were the headliners in the 2006 Winterfresh Snocore tour featuring Shinedown, and Flyleaf as the supporting acts. Seether will soon be embarking on a tour of the UK (Re-Schduled October 2006) with support by the Essex based punk band Engerica. Their song 'Fine Again' also featured on the Nintendo GameCube video game, 1080ø Avalanche and on Madden NFL 2003.

Seether released an acoustic CD/DVD set called One Cold Night on July 11 featuring 14 songs recorded at Grape Street in Philadelphia. The performance, remarkable for its acoustic nature, was one of a few the band did during their run as co-headliners of the 2006 Snocore Tour with Shinedown.

Morgan, who had been suffering from a stomach ailment, was rendered unable to perform with his typical vigor and found himself faced with difficulty when attempting to scream as he often does in certain songs. Rather than cancel their performances, the band chose to perform toned-down, acoustic versions of their typical setlist.

On June 16, it was announced via Seether's official site that lead guitarist Pat Callahan had chosen to leave the band. The announcement came as a surprise to many fans and the exact reason for Callahan's departure is unknown, but the band expressed their best wishes for Callahan in his future endeavours.

Despite touring for the better part of four years as a four piece band and recording the majority of their material with two guitarists, the band has stated that they are planning to go "back to basics" and remain a three-piece unit, as they started out, for the forseeable future. Morgan has said the band's third studio album is still on schedule and currently set for a March 2007 release.

Recently, Wind-Up Records announced that Shaun Morgan was going into rehab for unspecified addictions to a number of controlled substances and as a result, Seether has been forced to cancel their appearances on dates with Staind and Three Days Grace.

The band's UK tour remains intact and the band anticipates being back at 100% by October of 2006.

Shaun Morgan - Vocals and guitar * Dale Stewart - Bass and vocals * John Humphrey - Drums

****

The Seether of 2006 is a far different band than the Seether that debuted in 2002. Nowhere is that more evident than on One Cold Night, the new live acoustic CD and bonus DVD, which reveals a new intimate side to their heavy-hitting sound.

Recorded at Philadelphia's Grape Street on February 22, 2006, the session features hits from the band's gold certified debut albums Disclaimer and Disclaimer II and their current release, the gold certified Karma and Effect. Included on the CD are Seether's biggest hits "Remedy," "Fine Again" and "Broken."

The live concert recording also showcases some of the band's harder repertoire including "Gasoline" and "Truth" in a fresh, intimate setting that provides a unique experience for both new and long-time fans. One Cold Night highlights singer and principle songwriter Shaun Morgan's heartfelt vocals and his intensity as a performer, as well as the band's superior musicianship.

The bonus DVD includes an in-depth interview with the band conducted by Philadelphia's WMMR on-air legend Pierre Robert, the music video for "The Gift," a behind the scenes package from the Oaxaca video shoot, and a gallery of still photos from the Grape Street performance. The set list features some rarities, including a performance of "Tied My Hands," a favorite from the band's early days as Saron Gas, and a cover of Pearl Jam's "Immortality."

Seether's devoted fans will be rewarded with the release of One Cold Night. The CD/DVD marks several firsts for the band - their first concert recording, their first live acoustic recording and their first DVD release offering a complete set. For new fans, the live recording will convey the musical integrity and intensity of vocalist Shaun Morgan and his band mates from the platinum-selling, headlining band, Seether.

The live acoustic recording comes on the heels of the band relentlessly touring for close to five years performing in excess of four hundred shows and selling nearly two million albums. The band has seen success from the beginning, but they continue to push themselves to a new place with each release. It is this type of hard work that proves Seether is a force to be reckoned with in rock music.

***

Seether shitlist

ASHLEE SIMPSON When will our suffering end? God, it's a sad state of affairs when one as blatently without any form of talent whatsoever, can ride her sister's coat tails to stardom! We're fighting the urge to hurl as we speak...

BENJI AND/OR JOEL MADDEN The sickeningly sweet twin frontmen of the pop "punk" outfit, Good Charlotte. Mainly, we're just not fans of the band, nor any of the clones that are part of their movement.

Everything about this band, and especially the brothers, is tainted with hypocrisy and we're fairly sure that between the two of them, their IQ's would not exceed the body temperature of an average llama.