You Were Never Alone
You Were Never Alone is the sixth studio album by the American rock band Emery, released on May 19, 2015. It is the first album to be released through band's own independent label BadChristian and Rude Records.
You Were Never Alone | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | May 19, 2015 | |||
Genre | Post-hardcore, Christian alternative rock | |||
Length | 41:08 | |||
Label | BadChristian, Rude | |||
Producer | Matt Carter, Aaron Sprinkle | |||
Emery chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Indie Vision Music | |
Jesus Freak Hideout |
Recording, release and promotion
In March 2014, the band released a demo of two new songs.[3]
The album was funded via IndieGoGo crowdfunding campaign and was set to be released in mid-2014 but the release date was later pushed back.[4] In addition to the album, the band was also going to release a music video, a re-recorded version of song "Anne Marie" and an acoustic EP/LP due to the achievement of the "stretch goals" during the crowdfunding project.[5][6][7]
Starting with the March 23, 2015 episode of the Break It Down podcast with Matt Carter, Matt Carter, the host of the show and the lead guitarist of Emery, along with guest Toby Morrell, the lead singer of Emery, began a 12 episode series to premier one song from the album for each episode. Toby and Matt also discussed the process of writing and recording each of the songs on the episode on which it premiered.[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19]
On April 28, 2015 the band released a music video for the song "Hard Times".[20]
An instrumental version of You Were Never Alone was released on March 20, 2020.[21]
Track listing
All songs composed by Toby Morrell and Matt Carter
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Rock, Pebble, Stone" | 3:56 |
2. | "Thrash" | 4:27 |
3. | "Hard Times" | 3:59 |
4. | "The Beginning" | 3:04 |
5. | "The Less You Say" | 3:15 |
6. | "Pink Slip" | 3:20 |
7. | "To the Deep" | 3:38 |
8. | "What's Stopping You" | 3:50 |
9. | "Go Wrong Young Man" | 2:40 |
10. | "Taken for a Bath" | 3:37 |
11. | "Salvatore Wrytha" | 2:38 |
12. | "Alone" | 2:43 |
Total length: | 41:08[22] |
Personnel
Emery
- Toby Morrell – lead vocals, bass, screamed vocals
- Matt Carter – guitar, backing vocals
- Josh Head – keyboard, screamed vocals
- Devin Shelton – vocals
- Dave Powell – drums, percussion
Production[23]
- Beau Burchell – mixing, mastering
- Brett Baird – engineer
- Chad Gardner – arranger
- Troy Glessner – mastering
- Andrew Nyte – arranger
- Aaron Sprinkle – additional production, engineer
- Alexander C. Sprungle – art direction, design, photography
Meaning and biblical allusions
In the first twelve episodes of Toby Morrell's Break it Down Podcast, he and Matt Carter went through each song and explained the process of creating them.[24] Then in October 2015, Toby and Matt made another podcast further revealing that the album was a concept album where each song is a story from the bible told in first-person.[25][26]
Song Name | Biblical Story |
---|---|
Rock, Pebble, Stone | The story of Jesus being baptized, going into the wilderness, and encountering the devil. |
Thrash | The story of Stephen preaching his beliefs, being stoned, and then going to heaven. |
Hard Times | Samson and Delilah. |
The Beginning | Adam and Eve. |
The Less You Say | Peter defending Jesus in the garden. |
Pink Slip | Moses vs Pharaoh in Cairo |
To The Deep | Noah and Abraham. |
What's Stopping You | Mary and Joseph. Joseph's perspective on Mary and immaculate conception. |
Go Wrong Young Man | Paul on the road to Damascus. |
Taken for a Bath | King David and his affair with Bathsheba |
Salvatore Wrytha | This song is about Jesus praying to the Father in the garden of Gethsemane. |
Alone | Jesus alone on the cross, subjected to the wrath of God for our sins. Also the origin of the album title. |
Chart performance
Chart (2015) | Peak position |
---|---|
US Billboard 200[27] | 69 |
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[28] | 8 |
US Christian Albums (Billboard)[29] | 1 |
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[30] | 6 |
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[31] | 10 |
References
- "Album Review : Emery - You Were Never Alone". Indie Vision Music. May 23, 2015.
- "Jesusfreakhideout.com: Emery, "You Were Never Alone" Review". www.jesusfreakhideout.com.
- "Emery". www.facebook.com.
- "Emery - You Were Never Alone". Indiegogo. Retrieved March 30, 2015.
- "Emery - You Were Never Alone". Indiegogo. Retrieved March 30, 2015.
- "Emery - You Were Never Alone (IndieGoGo Campaign)". Sound In The Signals. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
- "Emery adds Indiegogo stretch goals". RadioU. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
- "Emery's "Rock, Pebble, Stone" from You Were Never Alone (S1 Ep1)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- "Emery's "Thrash" from You Were Never Alone (S1 Ep2)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- "Emery's "Hard Times" from You Were Never Alone (S1 Ep3)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- "Emery's "The Beginning" from You Were Never Alone (S1 Ep4)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- "Emery's "The Less You Say" from You Were Never Alone (S1 Ep5)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ""Pink Slip" from Emery's You Were Never Alone (S1 Ep6)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ""To the Deep" from Emery's You Were Never Alone (S1 Ep7)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ""Whats Stopping You Can't Stop All This" from Emery's You Were Never Alone (S1 Ep8)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ""Go Wrong Young Man" from Emery's You Were Never Alone (S1 Ep9)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ""Salvatore Wryhta" from Emery's You Were Never Alone (S1 Ep10)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ""Taken For a Bath" - With Beau from Saosin (Mixer) (S1 Ep11)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ""Alone" with Aaron Sprinkle (producer) (S1 Ep12)". Break it Down with Matt Carter. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- "Emery unveil "Hard Times" music video - Alternative Press". Alternative Press. Retrieved May 7, 2015.
- You Were Never Alone (Instrumental) [Instrumental by Emery on Apple Music]
- "iTunes – You Were Never Alone (Emery)". iTunes. Retrieved May 7, 2015.
- "You Were Never Alone - Emery - Credits". AllMusic.com. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
- "Break It Down Podcast". SoundCloud. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
- Toby Morrell of Emery explain that You Were Never Alone is a concept record Pt. I (S2 Ep7), retrieved March 22, 2018
- Toby Morrell pt. II You Were Never Alone is a Concept Album (S2 Ep8), retrieved March 22, 2018
- "Emery Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
- "Emery Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
- "Emery Chart History (Christian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
- "Emery Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
- "Emery Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 29, 2015.