WHERE DOTH BE ATREYU?

Just yesterday I saw a kid an Atreyu shirt and thought to myself… “Where the fuck has THAT band been lately?”

Metal Hammer doth answer my query today; apparently the band is in the studio with producer Bob Marlette, who, it should be noted, is not only a producer but a talented rock songwriter (Hollywood Records A&R exec to Atreyu: “Last record flopped. We’re getting you songwriting help. Deal with it.”)

As part of the original wave of So-Cal metalcore, Atreyu actually made a couple of decent albums in the early part of this decade (bring on the haterade, commenters!) while simultaneously drawing the blueprint for all the generic metalcore bands that followed. 2004’s The Curse was a solid slab of deliciously catchy yet heavy and not-at-all cheesy good cop / bad cop full of ’80s-inspired-cum-chugga-chug riffage. A Death-Grip on Yesterday followed in 2006 with similar results and the same, mostly unchanged musical formula, before Atreyu jumped to major label Hollywood Records for 2007’s Lead Sail Paper Anchor. The record completely shit the bed for both the band’s core fans and their new record label, and should get its own entry in the Encyclopedia (anyone still read those?) under “Why Metal Bands Shouldn’t Sign With Majors.” Lead Sails was a completely generic, over-produced, auto-tuned mess, and much to the disappointment of Hollywood very few people bought it.

Regarding the new record, which the band expects to be done tracking in June, singer Alex Varkatzas says, “We started as a heavy hardcore band, and I think we’ve gotten away from that in recent years. The last record, for example, showcased us as a rock band with heavy parts. With this record, we want to return to our roots while also continuing to move forward. It’s about finding the right balance between the two.” In non-bullshit speak, what this really means is, “We sold out on the last record and you called us out on it. Oops! We’ll try to be a little more tasteful this time.”

We shall see.

-VN