The Almost

Aaron Gillespie brought a paramount of melody to Underoath's abrassive and foreboding sound. If any member of the band was to pursue a radio pop flavored solo career it was going to be him. Upon hearing that Gillespie left Underoath, I was surprised. Hearing that he was abandoning the sound that he had flourished in for so many years was a different story. I didn't know how he would pull off a pop album with an underlining country sound.
Perhaps I was being hyperbolic in thinking that Gillespie completely abandoned the sound of his previous band. There is no metal-core elements to be found in the music of The Almost, but it still captures the raw emotional passion that made Underoath albums so relatable. There are certainly some hard driving hitters on The Almost's first release. The opener on Southern Weather is an excellent example. "Say This Sooner" features intense strumming of raw sounding acoustic guitars and builds in speed and volume reaching levels of tension where you might except to hear a breakdown. Tracks like these are great to hear live. They are ultimately catchy but also emotive and are great at instigating strong reactions in the audience. During the performance of tracks like "Say This Sooner" and "Southern Weather" it is hard not to get caught up in the frenzy of the crowd jumping up and down throwing their hands in the air and singing along. The Almost will be sure to play crowd pleasers like "Fear Inside Our Bones", which is a more folk oriented track with hints of worship music brought into its sound. Their cover of Tom Petty's (a fellow Floridan) Free Fallin' is another popular choice. They will also likely perform more country influenced takes like "I'm Down" featuring fat bluesy guitar riffs and hoedown chucks of acoustic guitars. Aaron may even be performing this with cowboy boots and a matching hat as he did a few years ago at the Masquerade. Gillepsie has proven himself to be a musician who is never stuck in the same place. He is always trying out new things, and because of his experimental persistence his work and shows are some of the most exciting.