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Architects is a British metalcore band from Brighton, England and are currently signed to Century Media Records. The band formed in 2004 and has gone through prominent name and line-up changes. The band has released five studio albums and one split EP with Dead Swans. The band's debut studio album, Nightmares, was released on May 15, 2006 and is the only album by the band to feature their original vocalist Matt Johnson. The band's sophomore album, Ruin, was released on June 25, 2007 and the band's third album, Hollow Crown, was released on January 26, 2009. The bands fourth album, The Here and Now, was released on January 19, 2011. The band's fifth and most recently released album, Daybreaker, was released on May 28, 2012.

History[]

Formation and Nightmares (2004 - 2007)[]

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The band formed in 2004 as Inharmonic by Matt Johnson, Dan and Tom Searle, Tim Lucas and Tim Hillier-Brook all of which had their own musical projects. The band later changed their name too Counting the Days and a couple years later the band changed their name again to the Architects. In 2006 the band's original bassist, Tim Lucas, decided to leave the band to pursue his academic career, he was replaced by Alex Dean. The band had travelled around the UK on many tours supporting a number of different bands in support of their debut album Nightmares. Because of the ages of the band members in their early years they had to book weeks of holiday off at college in order to do tours round the country.

Departure of Johnson and Signing to Century Media (2007 - 2009)[]

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In January 2007, after a lengthy tour around the country as an opening act to SikTh and Dead Man in Reno, Architects original vocalist Matt Johnson left the band. Dan Searle said that after Johnson left the band they all saw Sam Carter performing with other local bands and decided it was an "easy choice". When Carter joined as the bands new lead vocalist he made his on-stage début by performing the song "The Darkest Tomb". After this amicable departure, Matt Johnson went on to form the band Whitemare with ex-members of Johnny Truant and Centurion, and also briefly Architects guitarist Tim Hillier-Brook on bass. The band released their sophomore album, Ruin, on June 26, 2007 the first with their new vocalist Sam Carter.

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In early 2008 the band released a split EP with UK band Dead Swans. The split EP featured two songs from each artist, Architects' contributed: "We're All Alone" and "Broken Clocks", while Dead Swans contributed: "In the Half Light" and "Swallow". The song "We're All Alone" was later worked into Hollow Crown. The band said that they wanted to release the album in the effort to show people they are still progressing their style. The split EP was well received by British music press with review scores of 7/10 from Metal Hammer, 8/10 from Rock Sound, a 7.5 was given by Terrorizer for Architects' side of the EP and four "K"s out of 5 from Kerrang!. The release was followed by a double headed tour of the UK.

In May 2008 Architects announced that they had been signed to Century Media Records for a three album deal. Dean stated that the signing was important for the band "to be part of such an established label and it’s absolutely sweet that our records are gonna [sic] be out worldwide." Dan Searle described Century Media's support matching "our ambition to push this band as far as we can." The announcement of their signing to Century Media was coupled with the re-release of their second album Ruin globally with the added bonus track "Broken Clocks". In November 2008 the band embarked on the Never Say Die! Tour, a European tour with Parkway Drive as the headline act and also support from Unearth, Despised Icon, Protest the Hero, Whitechapel and Carnifex.

Hollow Crown (2009 - 2010)[]

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On January 26, 2009 Architects made their Century Record début with their third studio album Hollow Crown. It was released in the United Kingdom and Australia on 26 January 2009, 10 February in the United States and Canada, February 20 in Continental Europe and February 21 in Japan. The band recorded the album in July 2008 after the announcement of joining Century Media's rooster. Dan

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Searle in interview was asked why the band gave it the title and he stated "depending on who you ask in the band! To me it refers to those people you meet in life that earn nothing, but are given everything." For promotion of the album, in early 2009 the band supported Parkway Drive along with August Burns Red on the Parkway Drive: the DVD tour in Australia. In October and November 2009 they headlined the second Never Say Die! Tour United Kingdom dates, whereas Despised Icon headlined the Mainland European dates. The line also included Horse the Band, As Blood Runs Black, Iwrestledabearonce, Oceano and The Ghost Inside. In January 2009 Tom Searle had believed the band had toured across North America and Europe in 17 separate tours.

The Here and Now (2010 - 2011)[]

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Architects announced that the first single from the upcoming fourth album, would be entitled "Day In Day Out", and was premièred on Daniel P. Carter's BBC Radio 1 podcast The Rock Show on August 30, 2010. The band headlined tours of the UK in October 2010 with Norma Jean, Devil Sold His Soul and Lower Than Atlantis supporting and Australia in December with Comeback Kid as co-headliners and This is Hell and Rolo Tomassi supporting. On January 19, 2011 Architects' fourth album The Here and Now was released. The Here and Now was recorded across 2010 from May till June at The Omen Room Studios in California. The album was seen as going in a more commercial direction from the rest of the bands work. The album sold 900 copies in the United States in its first week and debuted at number 47 on the US Top Heatseekers album charts and number 57 on the UK Album Charts. Dan Searle when describing the sound on the album in an interview believe it was a massive departure but also a logical progression for the band, saying: "I completely understand that we are “known” for being a technical band but it’s just not what we want to write anymore, I think if you look at the way we have evolved over the last few records you could see it coming. We started writing technical music when we were 16 and have spent the years since slowly moving away from it, it feels like different people wrote those songs.”

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In February 2011, Architects announced the departure of bassist Alex Dean, due to family commitments. On July 3, 2011 it was announced that Dean had rejoined the band. When Dean commented on the short 5 month split from the band he said "I’m very happy to be able to say that I’m back, being able to stay at home for the past few months have given my family and I the opportunity to adjust to what happened last year and I know it’s done us all a lot of good." During this period where Dean was not a part of the band Casey Lagos filled in as a bass guitarist on some of the tours.

In April 2011 Bring Me the Horizon as part of their ongoing support for their third album on their international There Is a Hell... Tour Architects was a main support alongside Parkway Drive and supported them in two continents. It started with a European tour, starting in the United Kingdom with The Devil Wears Prada as the opening support for the UK and dubstep group Tek-one opening for the remainder of continental Europe. On April 28 Matt Nicholls broke his arm whilst playing football with members of Bring Me the Horizon, Parkway Drive and Architects, and instead of cancelling the tour Architects' drummer Dan Searle filled in as the drummer, this meant that Bring Me the Horizon's setlist was halved in length. This European tour lasted till late August. Then Architects, Parkway Drive and Deez Nuts supported Bring Me the Horizon in North America across September and October.

Daybreaker (2011 - present)[]

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On December 4, Architects released a new single entitled "Devil's Island". The song was for an at the time unnamed follow up album to The Here and Now. The single was announced in early November, a month before its actual release. As an iTunes bonus b-side song "Untitled" was added into the single download. In addition to its announcement it was streamed on the band's Facebook page. Both the song and the music video that accompanied the release talk about and deal with the 2011 England riots, with the music video featuring clips of the riots. The single itself was well received by critics for its return to the mathcore style of their third album, Hollow Crown. J.J. Nattrass of Bring the noise UK said that "the Track is sweeping and melodic in parts, whilst bursting with high tempo and visceral raw energy in others." In December 2011 the band embarked on a five day UK headline tour with supporting acts Heights, Tek-One and Havana Deaf Havana as part of supporting the single.

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Architects' fifth studio album Daybreaker was released on May 28 in Europe and June 5 in the USA. After the album was recorded fully in April 16, 2012 it was announced that Tim Hillier-Brook would be leaving the band to pursue other projects. Josh Middleton, the frontman of British metal band Sylosis became a touring guitarist until the band decided on a new fifth member. The band promoted the Daybreaker though a collection of tour legs in in four continents including: Southeast Asia, Australasia, North America and Europe called The Daybreaker Almost World Tour.

Musical Style[]

Architects have been summarised as being "pumped with both controlled rage and unhindered heart, accessible and ambitious, aggressive and beautiful". Considered alongside Enter Shikari as offering metalcore style to more mainstream audiences they have been called by various critics as metalcore, mathcore, post-hardcore, progressive metal, post-metalcore and technical metal. Their music is considered as having choppy, complex guitar riffs, the use of obscure time signatures and rhythmic breakdowns, and for their guitarists swapping between a "down-tuned rumble" and "melodic punk" during songs. However the band's music isn't solely been based upon technicality and does use catchy riffs and choruses.

Vocally Carter is seen by few as having a coarse and "tortured" screaming style and implements melodic singing to counter this. With the addition of Carter on to the band's line-up the band always aimed to use more of Sam's singing as the band developed, regardless of the reaction from fans. Carter's aggressive vocals have also been compared to British metalcore contemporary Oliver Sykes of Bring Me the Horizon and his "raspy-yelling" vocals, as well as being compared to Glassjaw's vocalist Daryl Palumbo.

The band's influence have been seen as being as diverse as Meshuggah, Converge, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Hatebreed and Shadows Fall. Rock Sound Kevin Stewart-Panko writer sees the band as a "metal/hardcore outfit influenced by Meshuggah’s low-end guitar lurch, the throat-shredding howl of Converge’s Jake Bannon, The Dillinger Escape Plan’s staccato one-two rhythms and breakdowns from the state of Massachusetts is its own mystery." Alter the Press! writer Selina Christoforou considered the band drawing on "the template drawn out by genre-defining bands, such as The Dillinger Escape Plan, Botch, and Coalesce". The band is seen as being influenced by noise rock and math rock.

Band Members[]

Current Members[]

  • Sam Carter - lead vocals (2007 - present)
  • Alex Dean - bass guitar (2006 - 2011 and 2011 - present)
  • Tom Searle - rhythm guitar and keyboards (2004 - present)
  • Dan Searle - drums and percussion (2004 - present)

Former Members[]

  • Matt Johnson - lead vocals (2004 - 2007)
  • Tim Hillier-Brook - lead guitar (2004 - 2012)
  • Tim Lucas - bass guitar (2004 - 2006)

Touring Members[]

  • Adam Christianson - lead guitar (2012)
  • Josh Middleton - lead guitar (2012)
  • Bobby Daniels - bass guitar
  • Casey Lagos - bass guitar
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Discography[]

Studio Albums[]

Extended Plays[]

  • Architects/Dead Swans EP (Thirty Days of Night, 2008)

References[]

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