Aaron Gillespie | |
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Gillespie in Australia in 2010 |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Aaron Roderick Gillespie |
Born | July 18, 1983 Clearwater, Florida, United States |
Genres | Metalcore, post-hardcore, alternative rock, emo, indie rock, extreme metal |
Occupations | Musician, songwriter |
Instruments | Drums, vocals, guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, banjo |
Years active | 1997—present |
Labels | Tooth & Nail, Solid State, Virgin, BEC |
Associated acts | Underoath, The Almost |
Website | www.aarongillespie.com |
Notable instruments | |
Truth Custom Drums, Meinl Cymbals, Pro-Mark Sticks, Evans Drumheads |
Aaron Roderick Gillespie (born July 18, 1983) is an American musician, best known for being the former drummer and clean vocalist for the metalcore band Underoath,[1] and the current lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the alternative rock band The Almost.[2] Gillespie also maintains his own solo project, and released his debut full-length album, Anthem Song on March 8, 2011.[3]
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Aaron Roderick Gillespie was born on July 18, 1983 in Clearwater, Florida. He grew up in a devout Christian family, attended private schools and went to church regularly. Aaron's parents divorced when he was 18 years old. He has a step brother named Jordan Stone from Livingston, NJ. They have limited contact due to Aaron being on tour frequently. At age 14, Aaron worked at the church and vacuumed for $60 a week. He enjoyed playing the drums at church, but was told he did not play well and that he played too loud but also one of the leads in the church came up to him and said he'll be "playing music that will change peoples lives one day so keep it up." At only 14 years old, he received a call from Underoath asking him to play drums for them.[4] He has been nearly blind in his left eye since birth.[5] Gillespie married Jamie Anne Robertson on November 25, 2006, and moved to Salt Lake City, Utah. A year later, Aaron and Jamie moved back to Florida, and they currently reside in Tarpon Springs, Florida. . It has been confirmed over Twitter that Jamie and Aaron are expecting a baby soon. Jamie posted on Tumblr on April 17, 2011, " But [Aaron] will be back May 1st and on May 2nd we have our first ultrasound!!!! And then we leave for a cruise! Very excited for May 2nd! Be praying for twins! and no were not crazy."[6] Aaron and Jamie are now proud parents of baby Joel Gillespie. He was born on November 15th. He has bright red hair like his mom and dad.
In 2008 he achieved the HM magazine's Readers Award for "favorite drummer", along with his band mate Timothy McTague who received "favorite guitarist" of 2008.[7] He is currently one of the preaching pastors at unveiledchurch.com based in the Tampa Bay area of Florida.
Aaron runs a clothing label, Pig Cloth, with his wife Jamie.[8] Gillespie left Underoath after their European Tour in 2010.[5] In the summer of 2010, Aaron finished a solo record, called "Anthem Song", released later on March 8, 2011.[9]
Recently Aaron has done guest vocals on the song "All About Us" by indie pop band He Is We, which was released on the album "My Forever" on November 23, 2010.[10]
Gillespie had performed on every Underoath release before Ø (Disambiguation) and first began to add clean vocals on Underoath's third album The Changing of Times, which shifted Underoath's original extreme metal music style into a more straightforward metalcore sound and was released in 2002. After lead vocalist Dallas Taylor parted with the band, Spencer Chamberlain joined and the band began to change its style of music even more.
Most of the lyrics on the album They're Only Chasing Safety are written by Gillespie and are about him ending a four year relationship. He stated to Alternative Press "I think I would've died if we didn't write those songs. I thought I had ruined someone's life. It's hard to explain, but you can't just pretend that things are great and go on and get married,". The follow-up to They're Only Chasing Safety, Define the Great Line was released on June 20, 2006, it debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 selling over 98,000 copies in its first week, the record was certified Gold by the RIAA on November 11, 2006, representing 500,000 shipped units of the album.[11]
On April 5, 2010, Underoath announced that the band and Aaron had agreed to mutually part ways pending the end of their European tour. "We are taking this opportunity to sadly inform you the six of us have decided at the end of the current European tour, Aaron will no longer be playing in Underoath. This was not a decision made in haste but a thought out and prayed upon group agreement. It in no way affects any of the shows left on this tour. They will still be our best efforts and enjoyable experiences for all. For the future, Aaron will be pursuing other musical and ministry endeavors. As for the rest of us we will continue to work hard on the new Underoath record. We appreciate the love and support from everyone in the past and hope that all of us will continue to receive your support on our future paths. We love you guys."[12]
On the same day, Gillespie posted this message on his personal blog:
"I am more than aware the news you have heard of seems rash, and probably hasty. I wanted to be able to write a few things down here to maybe help you understand a bit, or at least clear up the rumor mill before it starts grind like a mo fo'.1. Underoath and i have parted ways. Yes that is a true statement. There is no bad blood, there is no anger, i was in that band for eleven years, i love every person with my whole heart, i love the music we made together, the shows we played and the good times we had. People change, times change, and sometimes change just comes hunting for you.
2. Yes i will continue to play in the almost. I will also play acoustic, as well as speak and do other musical/ ministry type things.
3. Yes Underoath will remain a band, yes without me.
4. I really still love you, a lot.
5. I am still giving drum lessons, all your appointments will be honored and kept.
6. Everything you read here is true, regardless of what your friends or internet connection might tell you.
7. It's all good. listen to Underoath, listen to The Almost if you want, times change, roll with the hurricane."[13]
Gillespie performs lead vocals for the alternative rock band The Almost. The band's debut album Southern Weather was released on April 3, 2007 along with their first single, "Say This Sooner". The single reached a peak of #7 on the Billboard's US Modern Rock Charts. Gillespie recorded every instrument on the Southern Weather album except for bass on a couple of tracks, with which Kenny Vasoli from The Starting Line helped. Gillespie continues to tour with The Almost. On November 24, 2008, The Almost released an EP entitled No Gift to Bring. On October 6, 2009 The Almost released another EP entitled Monster. On November 3, 2009 The Almost released their sophomore record Monster Monster, in which the rest of the band mates were more incorporated in the writing and recording processes.
Shortly after leaving Underoath, Gillespie announced that he was working on a worship-based solo project. He went to The Compound recording studio in Seattle on June 28, 2010 to record the album that would eventually be released on March, 2011. On his Twitter account on July 24, he posted "Finished my record. So great to be a part of it. Goodnight." Gillespie's solo album "Anthem Song" was released on March 8, 2011.[14] It debuted at number 90 on the Billboard 200.
This album wasn't foreign territory for Gillespie, as he started leading worship at the age of 15. A major push, influence on the lyrical tone of the record is from his recent trip to Africa. In an interview with CBN.com, Gillespie recounted the experience and how it helped shape Anthem Song. He stated "I saw people worshiping God because He exists, because that's what we were created to do. I believe everybody worships something, whether it be your job or your family or a relationship or whatever. We were all made to worship just one, and that's Jesus. And it really, really messed me up, seeing these African people who have nothing worshiping God, just because He exists. It gave me the fuel to go and do this record and also convicted me to leave Underoath and to pursue this ministry area in my life."[3]
Recently, Gillespie has been working and touring with the Billy Graham Association's FM419; an event that helps train students to share their faith. The event is a prelude to a much larger event help a few months later where students can practice what they learned by leading others to Christ after a message from Franklin Graham. He performs each day at the beginning and end of the conference. He performs songs from his album "Anthem Song," as well as other various worship songs.
While on tour with Underoath in 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada, Gillespie underwent emergency surgery due to an infected thumb. Instead of canceling shows, Underoath recruited Kenny Bozich, former drummer of The Almost to fill in on drums. Spencer Chamberlain and Timothy McTague shared duties in singing his vocal parts.
"Here is the story of my thumb. It’s a bit of a drama, I guess — one of those things where, in the end, hope and good prevail. I hope you like it. Last year, Underoath went on a headlining tour. I can’t tell you how stoked we were. It was long over due since it was the first time we had headlined off of our current record. Things were going incredible until about nine days into the trip when I got one of those routine drummer blisters and super glued it shut. I woke the next morning to find that I could barely pull on my pants, my thumb hurt so bad. It was pulsing and had a dark purple-ish hue. This kind of thing has happened before (not to sound tough or anything, but its true) so I just taped it up and played the show that night. I was in extreme pain for the whole the show, and afterwards I started to wonder why this hurt so bad. I mean, my thumb had never been hurt before to the point where it messed up my playing. I went to see the crowd paramedic, you know the little station beside the stage. She told me that it needed to be lanced (cut open and drained) and that she could do it, no problem. So she lanced it and I wrapped up my thumb, ate an In and Out burger and went to sleep. While we were driving to Vegas I woke up and my thumb was even more swollen than before. Also, there were red lines crawling up my arm [a sign of blood poisoning - ed]. Immediately, I went to the emergency room, got a shot, an IV and some minor surgery. It was weird and I was a baby about it. After it was over, I had to go home for a few days, but I made it back just in time to record our live CD/DVD Survive Kaleidoscope."[15]
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