Chelsea Grin

One year in a dog’s life equals seven for a human. Dog years are a lot like touring musician years: Being on the road and learning from more seasoned bands, playing music every night, traveling together every day, a lot of growth happens at super-human speed.  “This year has done wonders for our band, we’ve experienced so much growth as musicians,” Chelsea Grin vocalist Alex Koehler says. On June 19, 2012 the Salt Lake City, Utah-based deathcore juggernaut release the aptly titled EP Evolve (Razor & Tie/Artery Recordings), a revelatory 5-song statement that showcases a new level of confidence in songcraft and a refreshing experimental spirit.

“We wanted to write a record that branched out completely into different genres,” vocalist Alex Koehler explains. “We wanted to really push the limits of our talent, and try to write one of the most unique albums yet, thus naming it Evolve. It`s only 5 songs and they all have a different feel to them.”

Evolve is a personal and innovatively bold statement from a band that doesn’t need to prove itself anymore. The sixpiece’s 2010 debut, Desolation of Eden, sold over 27,000 copies; garnered a spot on the coveted Alternative Press  “AP Recommends” column; and was voted #2 in the September 2010 AP Readers Chart. The band’s 2011 follow-up, My Damnation, sold over 6,700 albums in the first week (25,000 to date); debuted in the Billboard Top 100 Album Charts at #64; and has been named “Band To Watch” by Revolver in the September/October 2011 issue. In support of its sophomore album, Chelsea Grin toured with Emmure and Attila before being included on the All Stars Tour, which featured After the Burial, Born of Osiris, and Motionless in White.

The EP opens with flair and spite, dramatic classically-flavored keyboard ambience yield to the band’s signature guttural vocals, fluttering double-bass drums, and whiplash-inducing breakdowns. Evolve’s surprises lie in the sweeping hooks of “Lilith” where Koehler sings with longing emotiveness and the stunning ethereal pop of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” That tracks features Chelsea Grin’s pent-up aggression channeled into a dreamy sprawl of hooks and anthemic atmospherics. “Ever since we wrote our instrumental ‘Elysium,’ we always talked about having an actual song with that same kind of feeling and mood,” Koehler explains. “It`s something I personally have been pushing for and it turned out to be one of my favorite songs. I`m really proud of the progression of every single member in this band, and we`re not going to stop, or slow down any time soon.” Evolve is rounded out by the classic white-knuckle rides of “S.H.O.T.” and “The Human Condition.”

Chelsea Grin started in high school inspired by Whitechapel, Emmure, and Job For A Cowboy, among others. The guys quickly made a name for themselves playing VFW Halls on the weekends and releasing a debut EP that sold out at local retailers.  After some brief regional tours the band signed to the Artery Foundation for management and then signed on as the first band on Artery Recordings, a joint partnership with Artery Management and Razor & Tie Entertainment.

Evolve was tracked by Buckett at High Vibe Recordings in Salt Lake City, Utah. “It was amazing being able to record and write back home with our good friend, Buckett, in a stress-free environment,” Koehler recalls. The album was mixed by Jason Suecoff (Job For A Cowboy, Demon Hunter, Whitechapel, The Black Dahlia Murder) at Audio Hammer Studios. Suecoff wrote and performed the keyboard parts on the EP, and although this texture marks its recorded debut enriching the Chelsea Grin sound, it’s an aesthetic choice the band made prior to recording. “We were incorporating keys into our live show on some of our older songs before we started writing this record. So at that point it was kind of a no brainer,” Koehler says.

This summer Chelsea Grin will debut Evolve on the full Warped Tour 2012. “We`re really excited to see our fans reactions to the new record. We worked really hard on this one and can`t wait to show people some of the new elements we brought in. We`re all extremely stoked to play this year’s Warped Tour— it`s been a childhood dream for all of us.”