New Demons is the fourth studio album by American electronicore band I See Stars, released on October 22, 2013 through Sumerian Records. The album was originally set for release on August 13, before being pushed back to September 17, and again to October 22 for unknown reasons. The album marks a progression of the sound in their previous album Digital Renegade, with Zach Johnson having a much bigger vocal role, as well as having a much more prominent EDM sound. The song "Violent Bounce" was the first single to be released. It was uploaded to YouTube via the Sumerian Records channel. "Murder Mitten" and the title track, "New Demons", were to follow. The band did performances of the song "Ten Thousand Feet" to give fans a taste of what is going to be on the rest of the album before its release. Klayton of Celldweller, Mutrix, and Razihel all provided additional programming for some of the tracks.[7][8][9][10]
| New Demons | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 22, 2013 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 50:26 | |||
| Label | Sumerian | |||
| Producer | Joey Sturgis | |||
| I See Stars chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from New Demons | ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Absolute Punk | 75%[5] |
| Alternative Press |    [6] |
It is the final album to feature unclean vocalist/keyboardist Zach Johnson and rhythm guitarist Jimmy Gregerson before they were dismissed from the band in June 2015.
Background
editThe album had been worked on by the band immediately after their previous album, Digital Renegade, was finished. The song "Ten Thousand Feet" was the only song played from the album before it was released.
The song "Violent Bounce" was released as the first single from the album several months before the album release date, accompanied by a lyric video. The song "Murder Mitten" is written about brothers Devin and Andrew Oliver's relationship with their mother, who was an alcoholic during their childhood.[11]
A remix version entitled New Demons (Remixes) was released on February 23, 2015. Featuring eight remixes from various producers, showcasing many styles of EDM.
Reception
editThe album debuted on Billboard 200 at No. 28,[12] No. 10 on the Top Rock Albums Albums chart,[13] selling 10,000 copies in its first week. It has sold 47,000 copies in the United States as of June 2016.[14]
Track listing
editAll lyrics are written by Andrew and Devin Oliver; all music is composed by I See Stars
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Initialization Sequence" | 0:54 |
| 2. | "Ten Thousand Feet" | 5:44 |
| 3. | "Follow Your Leader" | 4:46 |
| 4. | "New Demons" | 4:42 |
| 5. | "Violent Bounce (People Like ¥øµ)" | 4:44 |
| 6. | "Murder Mitten" | 5:03 |
| 7. | "We're Not in Kansas Anymore" | 4:46 |
| 8. | "Judith Rules" | 4:12 |
| 9. | "Boris the Animal" | 4:03 |
| 10. | "Crystal Ball" | 3:43 |
| 11. | "When I Say Jump, You Say How High" | 3:17 |
| 12. | "Who Am I?" | 4:28 |
| Total length: | 50:26 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Violent Bounce" (Razihel remix) | 4:17 |
| 2. | "Initialization Sequence" (INF1N1TE remix) | 4:12 |
| 3. | "Ten Thousand Feet" (Maskarade remix) | 4:16 |
| 4. | "Murder Mitten" (Dotcom remix) | 3:13 |
| 5. | "Follow Your Leader" (Scout remix) | 3:15 |
| 6. | "Boris the Animal" (MindlessMindless remix) | 2:49 |
| 7. | "Judith Rules" (Secoya remix) | 5:43 |
| 8. | "When I Say Jump, You Say How High" (INF1N1TE remix) | 4:07 |
| Total length: | 31:12 | |
Personnel
edit- I See Stars
- Devin Oliver – clean vocals
- Zach Johnson – unclean vocals, keyboards, synthesizers, sequencer, programming
- Brent Allen – lead guitar
- Jimmy Gregerson – rhythm guitar
- Jeff Valentine – bass guitar
- Andrew Oliver – drums, percussion, backing vocals; additional clean vocals on "Murder Mitten"
- Production
- Jake Klein – additional writing for "Murder Mitten", "We're Not in Kansas Anymore" and "Who Am I?"
- Joey Valentine – additional writing for "Murder Mitten", "We're Not in Kansas Anymore" and "Who Am I?", additional production
- Joey Sturgis – production, engineering, mixing, mastering
- Shawn Keith – executive producer, art direction
- Nick Scott – guitars, bass and vocals engineering, guitar and bass editing
- Chuck Alkazian – drum engineering
- Josh Karpowicz – assistant drum engineering at Pearl Sound Studios, Canton, Michigan
- Jeff Dunne – drum editing
- Kacey Dodson – vocal editing
- Scott "Celldweller" Albert, Nicolò "Razihel" Arquilla and James "Mutrix" Ruehlmann – additional production
- Matt Dalton – additional production, additional gang vocals at 37 Studios, Michigan
- Dylan Kuhn – painting and wall photography at Noveltycross Productions
- Daniel McBride – album layout at McBride Design, art direction
- Unlimited Visual – band logo design
- Jonathan Weiner – band photography
Charts
edit| Chart (2013) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200[15] | 28 |
| US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[16] | 6 |
| US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[17] (remix version) |
10 |
| US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[18] | 5 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard)[19] | 4 |
| US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[20] | 10 |
References
edit- ^ Monger, James. "AllMusic Review". AllMusic. Retrieved June 30, 2016.
- ^ "I See Stars Violent Bounce (People Like You) (Single)". Spirit of Metal. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
- ^ "I See Stars Murder Mitten (Single)". Spirit of Metal. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
- ^ "I See Stars New Demons (Single)". Spirit of Metal. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
- ^ iamalexenglish (December 17, 2013). "Absolute Punk Review". Absolute Punk. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
- ^ Phil Freeman. "I See Stars – New Demons – Alternative Press". Alternative Press. Retrieved August 14, 2013.
- ^ Video on YouTube
- ^ Video on YouTube
- ^ "I See Stars reveal 'New Demons' cover art". Alternative Press. 2013-07-20.
- ^ "I See Stars- Sumerian Records". Archived from the original on 2011-11-18. Retrieved 2013-10-04.
- ^ "Devin Oliver (I See Stars): From Typical Midwesterner To Rockstar Headlining Tours Across The US – Interview". Substream Magazine (in Portuguese). 14 November 2014. Archived from the original on 10 March 2014. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
- ^ "The Billboard 200". Billboard. November 9, 2013.
- ^ "Top Rock Albums". Billboard. July 18, 2015.
- ^ "Upcoming Releases". Hits Daily Double. HITS Digital Ventures. Archived from the original on June 2, 2016.
- ^ "I See Stars Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
- ^ "I See Stars Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "I See Stars Chart History (Top Dance/Electronic Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "I See Stars Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "I See Stars Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard.
- ^ "I See Stars Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard.