Thrice
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| Thrice | ||
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 Thrice
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| Background information | ||
| Origin | Irvine, California | |
| Genre(s) | Post-Hardcore | |
| Years active | 1998—present | |
| Label(s) | Sub City Records (2000-2002) Island Records |
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| Website | www.thrice.net | |
| Members | ||
| Dustin Kensrue Teppei Teranishi Eddie Breckenridge Riley Breckenridge |
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Thrice is a post-hardcore band that formed in Irvine, California in 1998 signed to Island Records.
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[edit] History
Post-hardcore quartet Thrice formed in Irvine, CA, in 1998. Before Thrice, Dustin Kensrue and Teppei Teranishi knew each other from school and played in a band together. When they started a new band, Teppei recruited his skate park friend Eddie Breckenridge to play bass. They needed a drummer so eventually Eddie got his brother Riley Breckenridge, who had experience with drumming in other bands, to join. They came up with the name Thrice out of desparation and an inside joke. The usual round of practices, battle of the bands competitions, and small local shows ensued. In 1999, Thrice self-released an EP called First Impressions EP. Only 1,000 copies were made and sold out of their cars. It wasn't nearly as hard as their later CDs would be, and had more of a new school punk sound. Working with Death by Stereo's Paul Miner, the quartet recorded 12 tracks and by April 2000 had self-released the Identity Crisis LP. More support gigs and local buzz followed, and Thrice sparked the interest of Hopeless/Sub City's Louis Posen. In 2001, Posen signed the band, reissued Identity Crisis, and sent them out on tour with Samiam. Tours with Midtown and Hot Rod Circuit followed, and eventually Thrice re-entered the studio with producer Brian McTernan, set to record its official label debut. The sessions proved to be a trying period for the young group, but they eventually emerged with what would become The Illusion of Safety. More touring followed before Thrice saw Safety drop from Sub City Records in early 2002. Naturally, the band headed back out on tour, this time around supporting Further Seems Forever and Face to Face. That summer Thrice headlined for the first time, and also began testing the major-label waters. Eventually, Island Records won them over and signed the band in June. A stint on the Warped Tour followed, and Thrice spent the fall in clubs with Hot Water Music and Coheed and Cambria. February 2003 found the band in the studio, again with McTernan, but this time with Island's budget. The sprawling yet more focused The Artist in the Ambulance appeared in August 2003, and Thrice supported it with an ambitious slate of tour dates that included jaunts to Europe. Ever since its signing with Sub City, the charitable arm of Hopeless Records, Thrice had been actively supporting non-profits and charities. This didn't change with the arrival of Island -- portions of the proceeds from Artist in the Ambulance went to the Syrentha J. Salvo Endowment, which provided financial assistance for cancer screenings. A new studio effort, Vheissu, followed in October 2005. In late 2006, Thrice began working on their fifth full-length effort. The album will feature four discs, each sonically and thematically corresponding to the four natural elements (earth, air, water and fire). The album will be released in May on Island Records.
[edit] Thrice and Island Records
In 2003, Thrice signed with Island Records and released The Artist in the Ambulance, which featured more structured songs while keeping true to their hardcore influences. The band's recent work has noticeably diverged from its metal and hardcore roots. In 2005 a DVD outlining their entire career thus far was released under the title If We Could Only See Us Now. The package was named after a lyric from So Strange I Remember You, a song from Thrice's early punk days that was later redone by the band to reflect their matured sound. It included a CD with live tracks from the Apple Store and various B-sides.
Thrice released their fourth full-length album, Vheissu, on October 18, 2005. Vheissu features a departure from their previous sound by introducing electronics and new instruments ― namely a Rhodes Piano ― that they hadn't used before this album. The album has less of a metal/hardcore style of guitar playing and more variation in the vocals. Vheissu is hailed by critics as far more mature album than Thrice's previous records. Many of its lyrics reflect Biblical, Christian and spiritual themes (See "Themes" section).
The band released "Red Sky" on March 17, 2006 as their second single from Vheissu, following "Image of the Invisible". The video was directed by Tim Hope (Coldplay - "Trouble", Jimmy Eat World - "Sweetness").
[edit] Themes
Songs such as "Stand and Feel Your Worth,"[1] "Like Moths to Flame," "For Miles," [2] and "Hold Fast Hope" have biblical quotations or themes.
To quote Kensrue's words on the Vheissu special edition book:
"These are some of my favorite lyrics on the record. The song "Hold Fast Hope" in general was probably most inspired by the chapter in the book called 'The Sermon,' which is a retelling of the story of Jonah, and is in my opinion the best part of the book, coupled with the previous chapter, 'The Pulpit.' I'm a real nerd for alliteration and this song is saturated with it..."
Many track titles and lyrical themes are based on books Kensrue has read, such as C.S. Lewis's The Abolition of Man and That Hideous Strength, as well as Thomas Pynchon's V. and Herman Melville's Moby Dick.
[edit] Group members
- Dustin Kensrue (vocals/guitar)
- Teppei Teranishi (guitar/keyboards/vocals)
- Eddie Breckenridge (bass/vocals)
- Riley Breckenridge (drums)
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums/EPs
| Album Cover | Date of Release | Title | Label | US Billboard Peak |
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1999 | First Impressions EP |
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March 6, 2001 | Identity Crisis |
Sub City Records Hopeless Records (2003 Re-release) |
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February 5, 2002 | The Illusion of Safety |
Hopeless Records |
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July 22, 2003 | The Artist in the Ambulance |
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#16 |
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October 18, 2005 | Vheissu |
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#15 |
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April 4, 2006 | Red Sky EP |
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[edit] DVDs
| DVD Cover | Date of Release | Title | Label | US Billboard Peak |
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March 29, 2005 | If We Could Only See Us Now |
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[edit] Singles
| Year | Title | Chart Positions | Album | ||
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| US Hot 100 | US Modern Rock | US Mainstream Rock | |||
| 2003 | "All That's Left" | #24 | #36 | The Artist in the Ambulance | |
| 2004 | "Stare at the Sun" | #39 | The Artist in the Ambulance | ||
| 2006 | "Image of the Invisible" | #24 | Vheissu | ||
| 2006 | "Red Sky" | #24 | Vheissu | ||
[edit] Music Videos
- "Betrayal Is a Symptom" (2002) from The Illusion of Safety
- "Deadbolt" (2002) from The Illusion of Safety
- "All That's Left" (2003) from The Artist in the Ambulance
- "Stare at the Sun" (2004) from The Artist in the Ambulance
- "Image of the Invisible" (2005) from Vheissu
- "Red Sky" (2006) from Vheissu
[edit] Trivia
- Dustin Kensrue released a solo album on January 23rd, 2007 with Equal Vision Records and produced the album himself with the help of Thrice guitarist Teppei Teranishi.
- Teppei Teranishi is in a side project with Chris Jones called Black Unicorn, Chris Jones also appeared on Dustin's solo album 'Please Come Home' playing drums.
- Thrice's members have known each other since high school.
- The band supports numerous non-profit acts and charities including Invisible Children, The Syrentha J. Savio Foundation, 826 Valencia, A Place Called Home, and Crittenton Services for Women and Children.
- "All That's Left" is featured in EA's Madden NFL 2004.
- Thrice once played their song, "A Torch To End All Torches" from Identity Crisis at twice the speed as usual, and released it as an 'MP3 of the week,' under the name 'A Turbo Torch To End All Torches.' This can be downloaded for free from http://www.waterispoison.com .
- "Stare at the Sun" is featured in the soundtrack for SSX 3.
- "Image of the Invisible" is featured in the soundtrack for Tony Hawk's American Wasteland. Thrice also covered the songs "Seeing Red" and "Screaming at a Wall" (both originally by Minor Threat) for the soundtrack. However, they combined the two songs to create one song ("Seeing Red/Screaming at a Wall").
- "Lullaby" is featured in the soundtrack for Burnout Revenge.
- "Under a Killing Moon" is featured in the soundtrack for the movie Resident Evil: Apocalypse.
- The song entitled "The Belltsville Crucible" was created to pay homage to the making of the "Illusion of Safety" album. Contained within the lyrics are many personal lines and references.
- There are Thrice stickers visible throughout random episodes of the show It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
- One of Dustin's favorite video game series is the Splinter Cell series, and it inspired the "Image of the Invisible" music video.
- Gerard Way from My Chemical Romance helped conceptualize the "Image of the Invisible" music video.
- "Stare at the Sun" was featured in an episode of MTV's "Next".
[edit] External links
- Thrice
- Thrice's MySpace page
- Studio Journal for their upcoming album
- Official Biography
- Water is Poison - The Official Thrice Fan Site
- Island Records
- Thrice Videos on AOL Music
- Thrice Lyrics
- Thrice on Last.fm
- Thrice Interview on Mammoth Press
- Official Thrice Merch Store
- Thrice Fanboard
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| Dustin Kensrue - Teppei Teranishi - Eddie Breckenridge - Riley Breckenridge |
| Discography |
| Albums: Identity Crisis - The Illusion Of Safety - The Artist In The Ambulance - Vheissu - The Elements |
| EPs: First Impressions EP - Red Sky EP |
| DVDs: If We Could Only See Us Now |
| Singles: "Betrayal Is A Symptom" | "Deadbolt" | "All That's Left" | "Stare At The Sun" | "The Artist In The Amublance" | "Image Of The Invisible" | "Red Sky" |
