Anchor & Braille
Encyclopedia
Anchor & Braille is the acoustic side project of Anberlin
's lead singer Stephen Christian
with collaboration from Aaron Marsh
of Copeland
.
The band streamed the entire album on their MySpace
page before its release on August 4, 2009. The official website also has the demo version of "Sleep" (or "When We Die"). The songs "Wedding/Funeral," "Sheet Music" (Which has been mislabelled as 'When We Die (Sleep)") and a demo of "Mary Agnosia" are featured on their PureVolume
. A poetic art-loop piece called "16 Conversations" was also on the band's MySpace
page for a short while. On January 23, 2007, a 7" vinyl with two songs on it, "Sound Asleep" and "Wedding / Funeral", was released online.
Anchor & Braille's initial output greatly contrasted with Christian's primary band, relying on toned-down instruments such as keyboards, pianos, and acoustic guitars. However, the 2009 album will utilize a full band, with all songs written by Christian but produced and augmented with additional instrumentation by Marsh afterward. Though Marsh initially stated he would not be touring with Anchor & Braille so as to focus primarily on Copeland, it has since been revealed that the two acts will be touring together over the summer anyway. Anchor & Braille will join Copeland's US tour in July with Sherwood
, Meese and Barcelona
, before Christian heads to Australia for a tour with Anberlin in August.
The first single, "Still Sleeping", from the bands debut album was made available on iTunes. It was also featured on the compilation album Punk the Clock, Volume Three. The debut album was entitled Felt
, produced by Aaron Marsh
from Copeland
and released on August 4, 2009. The album was released by Wood Water Records
and Federal Distribution, debuting at number 30 on the Billboard
Top Heatseekers
chart.
A vinyl of 'Felt' was released on December 14, 2010 with a previously unreleased track, 'Empires.' Christian announced this on Anberlin's Twitter account on November 4, 2010.
Anberlin
Anberlin is an American rock band formed in Winter Haven, Florida in 2002. Since the beginning of 2007, the band has consisted of lead vocalist Stephen Christian, guitarists Joseph Milligan and Christian McAlhaney, bassist Deon Rexroat, and drummer Nathan Young.Members of Anberlin originally formed...
's lead singer Stephen Christian
Stephen Christian
Stephen Christian is the lead vocalist of the alternative rock band Anberlin and his side-project Anchor & Braille. He and his bandmates started Anberlin in 2002, after the demise of their previous group, known as SaGoh 24/7...
with collaboration from Aaron Marsh
Aaron Marsh
Aaron Marsh is an American singer-songwriter, musician and producer from Florida. He first gained prominence as the lead singer, guitarist, and pianist for the Florida-based indie rock band Copeland, who formed in 2000...
of Copeland
Copeland (band)
Copeland was an indie rock band, originally formed in 2001 by singer Aaron Marsh with his friend, bassist and backup singer James Likeness, in the city of Lakeland, Florida.-Inception:...
.
History
Anchor & Braille was conceived when Christian realized that he had written many songs that he knew Anberlin could never use. The songs were said to have a different feel from Anberlin's material and the lyrics were topics that he felt more personal, which he was not ready at that time to share on a mass platform.The band streamed the entire album on their MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
page before its release on August 4, 2009. The official website also has the demo version of "Sleep" (or "When We Die"). The songs "Wedding/Funeral," "Sheet Music" (Which has been mislabelled as 'When We Die (Sleep)") and a demo of "Mary Agnosia" are featured on their PureVolume
PureVolume
PureVolume was the first independently run website of its type, allowing for the upload and stream of music files. It was created in 2003 by Jennifer Welch , in conjunction with the Unborn Media team; Brett Woitunski, Nate Hudson, and Mitchell Pavao; all from the University of...
. A poetic art-loop piece called "16 Conversations" was also on the band's MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
page for a short while. On January 23, 2007, a 7" vinyl with two songs on it, "Sound Asleep" and "Wedding / Funeral", was released online.
Anchor & Braille's initial output greatly contrasted with Christian's primary band, relying on toned-down instruments such as keyboards, pianos, and acoustic guitars. However, the 2009 album will utilize a full band, with all songs written by Christian but produced and augmented with additional instrumentation by Marsh afterward. Though Marsh initially stated he would not be touring with Anchor & Braille so as to focus primarily on Copeland, it has since been revealed that the two acts will be touring together over the summer anyway. Anchor & Braille will join Copeland's US tour in July with Sherwood
Sherwood (American band)
Sherwood is an indie rock band from San Luis Obispo, California, specializing in upbeat pop rock. After the release of their debut LP Sing, But Keep Going, they signed to MySpace Records in early 2006.- History :...
, Meese and Barcelona
Barcelona (indie rock band)
Barcelona is a band from Seattle, Washington. The band's sound is harmonious and piano-based with elements of rock. Formed in 2005, the band cites U2, Coldplay, Copeland, Death Cab for Cutie and Lovedrug as its influences. Barcelona independently released their debut album, Absolutes, in September...
, before Christian heads to Australia for a tour with Anberlin in August.
The first single, "Still Sleeping", from the bands debut album was made available on iTunes. It was also featured on the compilation album Punk the Clock, Volume Three. The debut album was entitled Felt
Felt (album)
Felt is the debut studio album by Anchor & Braille, the side-project of Anberlin lead vocalist, Stephen Christian. The album was released through Christian's own label Wood Water Records and Federal Distribution on August 4, 2009 and was produced, engineered and mixed by Aaron Marsh from fellow...
, produced by Aaron Marsh
Aaron Marsh
Aaron Marsh is an American singer-songwriter, musician and producer from Florida. He first gained prominence as the lead singer, guitarist, and pianist for the Florida-based indie rock band Copeland, who formed in 2000...
from Copeland
Copeland (band)
Copeland was an indie rock band, originally formed in 2001 by singer Aaron Marsh with his friend, bassist and backup singer James Likeness, in the city of Lakeland, Florida.-Inception:...
and released on August 4, 2009. The album was released by Wood Water Records
Wood Water Records
Wood Water Records is an independent record label, founded by Anberlin and Anchor & Braille vocalist, Stephen Christian. The record label is distributed through Universal Music Group, of which Anberlin is signed to. The label's first release, Felt, is also the debut for Christian's acoustic act...
and Federal Distribution, debuting at number 30 on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Top Heatseekers
Top Heatseekers
Top Heatseekers refers to either of two separate "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by Billboard Magazine: the Heatseekers Albums chart or the Heatseekers Songs chart. They were introduced by Billboard in 1993 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new and developing musical...
chart.
A vinyl of 'Felt' was released on December 14, 2010 with a previously unreleased track, 'Empires.' Christian announced this on Anberlin's Twitter account on November 4, 2010.