The Sufferer & the Witness

The Sufferer & the Witness
Studio album by Rise Against
Released	July 4, 2006
Recorded	January–April 2006
Studio	The Blasting Room, Fort Collins, Colorado
Genre	Hardcore punk melodic hardcore
Length	42:37
Label	Geffen
Producer	Bill Stevenson Jason Livermore
Rise Against chronology
Siren Song of the Counter Culture (2004)Siren Song of the Counter Culture2004 The Sufferer & the Witness (2006) Generation Lost (2006)Generation Lost2006
Singles from The Sufferer & the Witness
"Ready to Fall" Released: May 30, 2006 "Prayer of the Refugee" Released: December 6, 2006 "The Good Left Undone" Released: June 25, 2007

The Sufferer & the Witness is the fourth album by American punk rock band Rise Against. The album was released on July 4, 2006. It was their second release on major label Geffen Records, following 2004's Siren Song of the Counter Culture. It is their final studio album on Geffen, and the last to feature guitarist Chris Chasse. It sold 48,000 copies in its first week, debuting at #10 on the Billboard 200. The album has been certified gold by the RIAA and platinum by the CRIA.

Background and production

In August 2004, Rise Against released their major record label debut album Siren Song of the Counter Culture.^[1] Although the album sold poorly for the first six months,^[2] it became a sleeper hit in the United States, and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.^[3][4] The album's second single, "Swing Life Away", helped Rise Against achieve mainstream appeal, with its acoustic sound and optimistic lyrics played in stark contrast to the band's typical hardcore oeuvre.^[3][5] To promote the album, Rise Against embarked on an extensive touring schedule that concluded in December 2005.^[6] The next month, the band reconvened, and began work on their fourth album The Suffer & the Witness.^[7]

During the recording sessions for Siren Song of the Counter Culture, the band members were dissatisfied with producer Garth Richardson, as he did not fully understand their musical background in punk rock. Richardson was better known for his work with heavier sounding bands like Mudvayne and Rage Against the Machine, and as a result, the album sounded more polished and heavier than Rise Against's previous unadulterated material.^[8] Combined with the numerous distractions and inconveniences that plagued the recording sessions, lead vocalist Tim McIlrath views Siren Song of the Counter Culture as the album that "got away from us".^[7][9] When it came time to record their next album, the band decided to return to Bill Stevenson and Jason Livermore, who produced their second album Revolutions per Minute in 2003. The band developed a strong rapport with the duo while recording that album, particularly Stevenson, whom McIlrath described as their "musical soul mate".^[2]

By December 2005, the band had written five songs for The Suffer & the Witness.^[6] The rest of the songs were written in January 2006, in a practice space in West Side, Chicago.^[10] McIlrath noted that the band procrastinated writing the songs for several weeks, leaving them with only a three-week period in which to write the entire album.^[7] The band was not affected by this added pressure however;^[7] according to McIlrath: "It went great, the songs just flowed out of us. There were really few questions and the song lyrics would just come out of us, it went really well and everyone really liked them."^[10] Unlike the stressful recording sessions for Siren Song of the Counter Culture, the band had a much more enjoyable time with The Suffer & the Witness, as they no longer sought approval from Geffen Records.^[10]

Composition

Music

With The Sufferer & the Witness, Rise Against sought to return to their punk roots. McIlrath commented: "It's definitely more of a punk rock record...We haven't 'grown or matured' as such, we've just really executed what we've been trying to nail with the last few records."^[11] Critics have characterized the album's music as hardcore punk and melodic hardcore.^[12][13] Many of the album's songs focus on melody, catchy hooks, and rapid-paced tempo;^[14][5] to this extent, Corey Apar of AllMusic wrote "this record is basically one shout-along, mosh-worthy song after another".^[12]

Several critics have discussed individual elements of the thirteen songs. The opening song "Intro/Chamber the Cartridge" begins with marching drum beat, while "Injection" uses double time tempo and a driving guitar riff.^[12][15] "Ready to Fall" features a complex song structure, with controlled verses that lead into an intense chorus and screaming vocals, while a continuous bassline plays in the background.^[13][15][16] The fourth song, "Bricks", is only ninety seconds long, and is played at a frenetic pace with hardcore influences.^[12] "Prayer of the Refugee" uses a similar structure to "Ready to Fall", as slow verses are contrasted with more upbeat choruses;^[14][15] it includes one of the few instances of a guitar solo on the album, which is played during the bridge.^[16] "Drones" features what PopMatters' Will Rausch describes as a "mile-a-minute mentality", a rapidly-paced song fused with rolling basslines.^[14]

The eighth song, "The Approaching Curve", is one of the two major stylistic deviations on the album.^[5] McIlrath delivers spoken word lyrics during the verses, and switches to singing during the chorus.^[5] Emily Schambra of the band Holy Roman Empire provides backing vocals.^[17] "Worth Dying For" features a different verse-chorus form than previous songs, as the rapid paced verse contrast the slow and methodical chorus.^[15] "Roadside" is the other stylistic deviation, as it pairs undistored guitars with a piano and low-key strings section, played at a slow pace;^[8][16] Schambra provides backing vocals for this song as well.^[17] "The Good Left Undone" is an up-tempo song, that Davey Boy of Sputnikmusic believes is heightened by a strong musicianship from the four band members.^[16] The final song, "Survive", begins with a moody guitar riff and crashing cymbals, before transitioning into rapid-paced drumming and guitar shredding.^[15]

Lyrics

	"Prayer of the Refugee" Much of the lyrical content on The Sufferer & the Witness discusses societal issues. For example, "Prayer of the Refugee" is about forced displacement and the strife of refugees.[12]
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Social and political issues, namely injustice, constitute much of the lyrical content on The Sufferer & the Witness.^[14] The lyrics often discuss these topics in general terms however, instead of delving into the specifics.^[18] According to McIlrath: "I think that a lot of the problems we deal with today in the world are the ones that have been plaguing society for centuries and probably will be here a hundred years from now...There's a bigger picture than just the Bush administration and specific problems of 2006, and I want people to relate to that, even if they're listening to it 10 years from now."^[18] This style of songwriting is seen in the opening song "Intro/Chamber the Cartridge", which rallies against apathy toward any societal issue, and "Bricks", which deals with war and resistance in universal terms.^[18]

Another major lyrical theme revolves around the concept of self-reflection.^[18] "Worth Dying For" is about the frustrating search for a worthwhile cause, while "The Approaching Curve" and "Roadside" discuss the impact of troubled relationships.^[14] Some songs on the album use metaphors to further the lyrical narrative. "Injection" compares an everlasting love for someone to pharmaceutical drugs,^[19] while the bar fight setting in "Behind Closed Doors" demonstrates man's inhumanity to one another.^[14][8] Despite the grim subject matter, the album's lyrics are often hopeful in nature.^[14][13] This is best exemplified in the final song "Survive", with its uplifting and motivational lyrics such as "we've all been sorry, we've all been hurt...but how we survive is what makes us who we are".^[14][16]

Release

McIlrath performing with Rise Against during the 2006 Warped Tour in Vancouver

The Sufferer & the Witness was released on July 4, 2006.^[12] In the United States, the album entered the Billboard 200 at number ten, and sold 48,327 copies in its first week.^[20] It spent twenty-seven weeks on the chart, and by August 2006, sold over 140,000 copies.^[21][22] It was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America in August 2008, denoting shipments of 500,000 copies.^[4] In Canada, the album debuted at number five on the Canadian Albums Chart, and was certified platinum by Music Canada, denoting shipments of 100,000 copies.^[23][24] The Sufferer & the Witness was Rise Against's first album to chart in territories outside of North America, reaching number twenty-one in Australia, number seventy-five in Austria, number seventy-seven in Germany, number ninety-eight in Switzerland, and number 171 in the UK.^{[25][26][27][28][29]} The album was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association and Bundesverband Musikindustrie, denoting shipments of 35,000 and 100,000 copies in Australia and Germany.^[30][31]

Three songs from The Sufferer & the Witness were released as singles: "Ready to Fall", "Prayer of the Refugee", and "The Good Left Undone".^[32][33][34] All three singles charted on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, peaking at number thirteen, seven, and six respectively.^[35] Accompanying music videos were shot for all three songs.^[36] The "Ready to Fall" video deals with animal rights and deforestation, and uses footage from the 2005 documentary film Earthlings.^[36] In the video for "Prayer of the Refugee", the band performs in a retail store, with intermittent shots of foreign workers making the store products.^[37] By contrast, the video for "The Good Left Undone" does not have a political message. It features the band performing underground in the dirt, and was their first video to use computer graphics.^[36][37]

Rise Against supported the album with The Sufferer & the Witness Tour throughout the second half of 2006 and all of 2007.^[38] The band was a headliner on the 2006 Warped Tour in North America,^[39] and in late 2006, the band co-headlined a tour with Thursday which included the bands Circa Survive and Billy Talent.^[40] While on the Warped Tour, author and filmmaker Davy Rothbart recorded several of the band's live performances, and interviewed some of their fans. This footage was used in the Rise Against DVD documentary Generation Lost, released in December.^[41] The following year, Rise Against participated in Taste of Chaos 2007,^[42] and supported My Chemical Romance as openers on the first half of their arena tour.^[43] Prior to the tour with My Chemical Romance, guitarist Chris Chasse left the band, citing a rigorous tour schedule as the reason for his departure. Zach Blair of the band Only Crime joined Rise Against soon afterward.^[44]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AbsolutePunk	84%[15]
AllMusic	[12]
Alternative Press	[45]
The A.V. Club	B[5]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[46]
PopMatters	[14]
Punknews.org	[13]
Rolling Stone	[47]
Spin	[48]
Sputnikmusic	[16]

Corey Apar of AllMusic described the album "one shout-along, mosh-worthy song after another". He praised the music's "sincerity and passion" and described it "maturing within the realms of major-label hardcore revivalism, while still remaining relevant and exciting". Davey Boy of Sputnikmusic noted that it was the first album he ever gave a 5/5 rating to, stating that "Possibly the best thing about it is how Rise Against have achieved the difficult task of not selling out their origins, yet furthering all facets of their music to become a little more mainstream."^[16]

Discussing the lyrics, Boy felt they were simple and to the point, but ultimately effective,^[16] while Ryan found the conflict-laden imagery redundant.^[5] Ryan noted: "McIlrath's thematic heavy-handedness is nothing new, but it'd be nice to see less obvious terms."^[5] Several critics highlighted the production of Stevenson and Livermore.^[13][16][45] In particular, Aubin Paul of Punknews.org wrote: "It's flawlessly recorded, but never sterile, and in many ways, Stevenson demonstrates how he is really the fifth member of any band he produces...Listening to Sufferer, it becomes clear how wrong any other producer would be for this band".^[13]

Track listing

All lyrics written by Tim McIlrath; all music composed by Tim McIlrath, Joe Principe, Brandon Barnes and Chris Chasse.

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of The Sufferer & the Witness.^[17]

Charts and certifications

References