La Dispute (band)
Encyclopedia
La Dispute is a five piece band from Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...

 that formed in 2004. As of 2011, they have released two albums and seven EPs. La Dispute consists of lead vocalist Jordan Dreyer, drummer Brad Vander Lugt, guitarists Chad Sterenberg and Kevin Whittemore and bass guitarist Adam Vass.

The band released their debut EP, Vancouver
Vancouver (EP)
Vancouver is an EP by the band La Dispute, released April 14, 2006. This was the first release the band made with the recording label Friction Records after signing for them in 2004.-Track listing:-Personnel:La Dispute*Jordan Dreyer -Vocals...

, in 2006 on Friction Records, followed by Untitled 7"
Untitled 7"
Untitled 7" is the third EP released by La Dispute. It was released on May 1, 2008 along with their second EP, "Here, Hear." through Forest Life Records. The EP contains two original songs.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Jordan Dreyer*Brad Vander Lugt...

  in parallel with Here, Hear.
Here, Hear.
Here, Hear. is the second EP released by La Dispute. It was released on May 1, 2008 along with their third EP, Untitled 7", through Forest Life Records...

on May 1, 2008. Here, Hear II.
Here, Hear II.
Here, Hear II. is a 7" EP by La Dispute. It's fourth EP by the band and the second in the "Here, Hear." series It was released on November 11, 2008 along with their debut full length, Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair through No Sleep Records. The EP was limited to 300...

 on 7" through No Sleep Records, later in 2008. Their debut album Somewhere at the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair was released November 11, 2008 on No Sleep Records. In 2009, La Dispute released Here, Hear III.
Here, Hear III.
Here, Hear III. is the fifth EP and the third release in the "Here, Hear." series released by La Dispute. It was self-released on December 25, 2010. Unlike the previous two EPs in the series, Here, Hear III...

as a self-released EP through digital download, followed by their split with Touché Amoré called "Searching For A Pulse/The Worth Of The World
Searching for a Pulse/The Worth of the World
Searching for a Pulse/The Worth of the World is the second EP released by Touché Amoré and the sixth EP released by La Dispute. It was released on September 14, 2010 through No Sleep Records. This is the first split EP for both bands...

" in late 2010. In May 2011 they released a split EP with singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

 Koji titled Never Come Undone
Never Come Undone
Never Come Undone is the seventh EP released by La Dispute and the second EP released by Koji. It was released on May 3, 2011 through No Sleep Records. This is the second split EP for both bands...

.

On October 4, 2011, La Dispute released their second full-length album titled "Wildlife
Wildlife (La Dispute album)
Wildlife is the second studio album from post-hardcore band La Dispute. The album was released through No Sleep Records on October 4, 2011. Like their first release La Dispute took control of all of the production duties in order to have complete creative control. Two singles were released...

" on No Sleep Records. Two singles were released digitally prior to its release, "The Most Beautiful Bitter Fruit" and "Harder Harmonies".

Formation & Somewhere at the bottom of the river...(2004-2008)

La Dispute was formed in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 2004 by Jordan Dreyer, Kevin Whittemore, Brad Vander Lugt, Derek Sterenberg and Adam Kool. The band was primarily a small garage band, playing the occasional show and performing in warehouses and garages. But it wasn't until two years after their formation that they took the project seriously with the loss of Derek Sterenberg and Adam Kool. Chad Sterenberg and Adam Vass later joined the band to occupy the spaces left by Sterenberg and Kool. They then released their debut EP, Vancouver
Vancouver (EP)
Vancouver is an EP by the band La Dispute, released April 14, 2006. This was the first release the band made with the recording label Friction Records after signing for them in 2004.-Track listing:-Personnel:La Dispute*Jordan Dreyer -Vocals...

, on April 14, 2006 through Friction Records, being the only release the band produced while on the Friction Records roster.

On November 11, 2008 La Dispute released their debut album Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair
Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair
Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair is the debut album released by La Dispute. It was released on November 11, 2008 simultaneously along with Here, Hear II. through No Sleep Records on both CD and vinyl. The album's title is derived from an Asian folktale. The vinyl press...

through No Sleep Records. It was well received by critics, with positive reviews from AbsolutePunk, Alternative Press, Punknews.org
Punknews.org
Punknews.org is a website founded by Aubin Paul which launched in 1999. The website publishes music news and album reviews relating to punk rock, hardcore punk, ska, indie rock and heavy metal...

, and Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic, or simply Sputnik, is a music website offering music criticism and music news alongside features commonly associated with wiki-style websites...

. Their Debut album was released simultaneously with the second extended play in their "Here, hear experiment": Here, Hear II.
Here, Hear II.
Here, Hear II. is a 7" EP by La Dispute. It's fourth EP by the band and the second in the "Here, Hear." series It was released on November 11, 2008 along with their debut full length, Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair through No Sleep Records. The EP was limited to 300...

. The EP also accompanied the first 300 sales of the debut album.

Wildlife (2009-Present)

On December 25, 2009 La Dispute Released Here, Hear III.
Here, Hear III.
Here, Hear III. is the fifth EP and the third release in the "Here, Hear." series released by La Dispute. It was self-released on December 25, 2010. Unlike the previous two EPs in the series, Here, Hear III...

. they released the extended play was self-released via digital download, off their Bandcamp
Bandcamp
Bandcamp is an online music store, as well as a platform for artist promotion, that caters mainly for independent artists. Artists on Bandcamp have a customizable microsite with the albums they upload. All tracks can be played for free on the website and some artists offer free music downloads...

 page as well as the re-release of first two extended plays in the Here, Hear series as well as Untitled 7"
Untitled 7"
Untitled 7" is the third EP released by La Dispute. It was released on May 1, 2008 along with their second EP, "Here, Hear." through Forest Life Records. The EP contains two original songs.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Jordan Dreyer*Brad Vander Lugt...

 and a 2 track Christmas ep featuring covers of two Christmas songs: Twas The Night Before Christmas, First Snow in Silent Grand Rapids. All of these became downloadable off La Dispute's Bandcamp
Bandcamp
Bandcamp is an online music store, as well as a platform for artist promotion, that caters mainly for independent artists. Artists on Bandcamp have a customizable microsite with the albums they upload. All tracks can be played for free on the website and some artists offer free music downloads...

 site. Although they became free to download it was possible to donate money; all donations went to benefit the well House Community Living of Grand Rapids, a non-profit outreach program in Grand Rapids that provides emergency shelter and permanent housing for homeless families. On January 17, 2010 the period of donation ended and $1715 was raised for Well House. All subsequent donations after the period have gone towards covering recording expenses of the band.

La Dispute started the recording of their second album in November 2010. The album was recorded in pieces to wrap round their intense tour schedule, they started with the instrumentation of 6 tracks in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

. In April, they revealed the album to be 14 tracks long and have been progressively modifying the music over the tour. They went back into the studio in March to record the remainder of the album.

On July 5, La Dispute started a Canadian tour with Make Do and Mend
Make Do and Mend
Make Do and Mend is an American post-hardcore band from West Hartford, Connecticut, United States, that formed in 2006, who now live in Boston, Massachusetts. They have released 2 EP's on Panic Records, a split with Touché Amoré and a full length in 2010 on Panic Records and Paper + Plastick...

 and No Sleep Records associates Balance and Composure. La Dispute, Touché Amoré and Death Is Not Glamourous planned a European tour starting July 27, 2011 and finishing August 12 to coincide with their appearance at Hevy Festival in the United Kingdom and Ieperfest
Ieperfest
Ieperfest is a hardcore punk music festival in Ypres , Belgium. It is traditionally held in the last weekend of August, and draws audience from all over Europe. Apart from hardcore punk, the festival also features death metal, grindcore and metalcore music....

 in Belgium this year. On August 23, La Dispute announced the title of their second album along with the track listing and album art. The album is called Wildlife
Wildlife (La Dispute album)
Wildlife is the second studio album from post-hardcore band La Dispute. The album was released through No Sleep Records on October 4, 2011. Like their first release La Dispute took control of all of the production duties in order to have complete creative control. Two singles were released...

 and was released on October 4, 2011. This announcement was accompanied by a complete re-design of their website, themed around the album's "wildlife" design.
And on September 30 La Dispute joined Thrice
Thrice
Thrice is an American rock band from Irvine, California, formed in 1998. The group was founded by guitarist/vocalist Dustin Kensrue and guitarist Teppei Teranishi while they were in high school....

, Moving Mountains
Moving Mountains (band)
Moving Mountains is an American indie rock/post rock/post hardcore band from Purchase, New York. Combining emotional vocals with elements of post-rock, the band has often been compared to such acts as The Appleseed Cast and Thrice.Moving Mountains was formed in Westchester, New York in 2005 by...

, and O’Brother on a tour around the United States finishing November 11.

Characteristics

Logo

As of October 29, 2010 La Dispute started to use a redrawn version of their logo. They started using the design on all merchandise as of November 2010 starting with their Canadian tour with Alexisonfire
Alexisonfire
Alexisonfire was a five-piece, Juno-nominated post-hardcore band that formed in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada in 2001. The band consisted of George Pettit , Dallas Green , Wade MacNeil , Chris Steele , and Jordan Hastings .They describe their music as "the sound of two Catholic high-school girls...

 and Norma Jean
Norma Jean
Norma Jean may refer to:*Norma Jeane Mortenson, the given name of actress Marilyn Monroe*Norma Jean , a metalcore band from Douglasville, GA*Norma Jean , country music singer, nicknamed "Pretty Miss Norma Jean"...

. The logo design is that of a symmetrically designed flower with three arrows going through it.

Musical Style

La Disputes music has been cited as containing elements of post-hardcore
Post-hardcore
Post-hardcore is a genre of music that developed from hardcore punk, itself an offshoot of the broader punk rock movement. Like post-punk, post-hardcore is a term for a broad constellation of groups...

 primarily but having elements of screamo
Screamo
Screamo, though used loosely to generally describe music that features screamed vocals, is actually a musical subgenre of hardcore punk which predominantly evolved from emo, among other genres, in the early 1990s...

, progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...

, post-rock
Post-rock
Post-rock is a subgenre of rock music characterized by the influence and use of instruments commonly associated with rock, but using rhythms and "guitars as facilitators of timbre and textures" not traditionally found in rock...

 and melodic hardcore
Melodic hardcore
Melodic hardcore is a subgenre of hardcore punk with a strong emphasis on vocal melody. The genre is commonly defined with fast hardcore drum beats, complex guitar riffs and melodic singing with occasional screaming and shouting.-History:...

. The music on their first album Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair
Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair
Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair is the debut album released by La Dispute. It was released on November 11, 2008 simultaneously along with Here, Hear II. through No Sleep Records on both CD and vinyl. The album's title is derived from an Asian folktale. The vinyl press...

 is noted for its metalcore
Metalcore
Metalcore is a subgenre of heavy metal combining various elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. The name is a portmanteau of the names of the two genres. The term took on its current meaning in the mid-1990s, describing bands such as Earth Crisis, Deadguy and Integrity...

 influence. They are also noted for spoken word
Spoken word
Spoken word is a form of poetry that often uses alliterated prose or verse and occasionally uses metered verse to express social commentary. Traditionally it is in the first person, is from the poet’s point of view and is themed in current events....

 and blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...

 influences. Well recognized elements of La Dispute's music are incorporating spoken word style passages into intense songs, the use of highly complex lyrics, and Jordan Dreyer's inability to control his voice; swapping between singing
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...

 and screaming
Screaming
A scream, shout, shriek, hoot, holler, vociferation, yell, outcry, or bellow is a loud vocalization in which air is passed through the vocal folds with greater force than is used in regular or close-distance vocalization...

 unpredictably.

The band is said to be influenced by a broad range of music and as individuals they possess different influences. Post-hardcore bands like Thursday
Thursday (band)
Thursday were an American rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey. Formed in 1997, the group has released six full-length albums, their most recent being No Devolución, which was released in April 2011 on Epitaph Records...

, Refused
Refused
Refused was a Swedish hardcore punk band originating from Umeå, Sweden, formed in 1991. In total the band released five EPs and three albums, before splitting up in 1998...

, At the Drive-In
At the Drive-In
At the Drive-In was an American rock band from El Paso, Texas, considered part of the post-hardcore genre and active from 1993 to 2001. They were known for their extremely energetic stage shows which hearkened back to the 1980s hardcore scene...

 and Glassjaw
Glassjaw
Glassjaw is a four-piece rock band from Long Island, New York. The band is fronted by vocalist Daryl Palumbo and guitarist Justin Beck, and have undergone numerous line-up changes since their inception...

 are just some examples of commonalities amongst the band. La dispute has been said to be apart of a self-proclaimed group of post-hardcore
Post-hardcore
Post-hardcore is a genre of music that developed from hardcore punk, itself an offshoot of the broader punk rock movement. Like post-punk, post-hardcore is a term for a broad constellation of groups...

 bands called "The Wave", with fellow post-hardcore artists Defeater
Defeater (band)
Defeater is a hardcore punk band from Massachusetts, USA. To date they have released two full length albums, an EP and a single. The band lineup consists of Derek Archambault , Jay Maas , Jake Woodruff , Andy Reitz and Mike Poulin...

, Touché Amoré
Touche Amore
Touché Amoré is an American melodic hardcore band that was formed in 2007.The band released their debut 7" demo on No Sleep Records in September 2008. After a few west coast tours, the band went back into the studio to record their full length entitled ...To the Beat of a Dead Horse. The album was...

, Pianos Become the Teeth
Pianos Become the Teeth
Pianos Become the Teeth is an American rock band that formed in 2006. They perform a style of music inspired by post-rock and early screamo acts, and are a part of "The Wave"—a newly developed regional scene of post-hardcore music...

 and Make Do and Mend
Make Do and Mend
Make Do and Mend is an American post-hardcore band from West Hartford, Connecticut, United States, that formed in 2006, who now live in Boston, Massachusetts. They have released 2 EP's on Panic Records, a split with Touché Amoré and a full length in 2010 on Panic Records and Paper + Plastick...

.

The Here, Hear "experiment"

La Dispute have an ongoing series of EPs called "Here, Hear" which they refer to as "the Here, Hear. experiment". The music on the EPs has been described as primarily spoken word
Spoken word
Spoken word is a form of poetry that often uses alliterated prose or verse and occasionally uses metered verse to express social commentary. Traditionally it is in the first person, is from the poet’s point of view and is themed in current events....

 and experimental. When asked about the series Jordan Dreyer said: "For as long as we make music we’ll make Here, Hear stuff". The first two Here, Hear EPs both add instrumentation to pre-existing material from poets and novelists such as Tom Robbins'
Tom Robbins
Thomas Eugene "Tom" Robbins Thomas Eugene "Tom" Robbins Thomas Eugene "Tom" Robbins (born July 22, 1936 is an American author. His best-selling novels are serio-comic, often wildly poetic stories with a strong social and philosophical undercurrent, an irreverent bent, and scenes extrapolated from...

 Still Life with Woodpecker
Still Life with Woodpecker
Still Life With Woodpecker is the third novel by Tom Robbins, concerning the love affair between an environmentalist princess and an outlaw. As with most of Robbins's books, it encompasses a broad range of topics, from aliens and redheads to consumerism, the building of bombs, romance, royalty,...

 and Edgar Allan Poe's
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...

 poem Annabel Lee
Annabel Lee
"Annabel Lee" is the last complete poem composed by American author Edgar Allan Poe. Like many of Poe's poems, it explores the theme of the death of a beautiful woman. The narrator, who fell in love with Annabel Lee when they were young, has a love for her so strong that even angels are jealous. He...

 and Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
Kenneth Grahame
Kenneth Grahame was a Scottish writer, most famous for The Wind in the Willows , one of the classics of children's literature. He also wrote The Reluctant Dragon; both books were later adapted into Disney films....

.. The style of each song has been described as the band was writing whatever they felt the moment they heard the lyrics.

Members

Current Members
  • Jordan Dreyer - lead vocals
    Lead vocalist
    The lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually considered to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in, often the...

     (since 2004)
  • Brad Vanger Lugt - drums
    Drum kit
    A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

    , percussion
    Percussion instrument
    A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...

     (since 2004)
  • Chad Sterenberg - guitar
    Guitar
    The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

     (since 2006)
  • Kevin Whittemore - guitar (since 2004)
  • Adam Vass - bass guitar
    Bass guitar
    The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

     (since 2006)


Past Members
  • Derek Sterenberg - guitar (2004–2006)
  • Adam Kool - bass guitar (2004–2006)

Discography

Albums
  • Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair
    Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair
    Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair is the debut album released by La Dispute. It was released on November 11, 2008 simultaneously along with Here, Hear II. through No Sleep Records on both CD and vinyl. The album's title is derived from an Asian folktale. The vinyl press...

    (No Sleep Records, 2008)
  • Wildlife
    Wildlife (La Dispute album)
    Wildlife is the second studio album from post-hardcore band La Dispute. The album was released through No Sleep Records on October 4, 2011. Like their first release La Dispute took control of all of the production duties in order to have complete creative control. Two singles were released...

    (No Sleep Records, 2011)


EPs
  • Vancouver
    Vancouver (EP)
    Vancouver is an EP by the band La Dispute, released April 14, 2006. This was the first release the band made with the recording label Friction Records after signing for them in 2004.-Track listing:-Personnel:La Dispute*Jordan Dreyer -Vocals...

    (Friction Records, 2006)
  • Here, Hear.
    Here, Hear.
    Here, Hear. is the second EP released by La Dispute. It was released on May 1, 2008 along with their third EP, Untitled 7", through Forest Life Records...

    (Forest Life Records, 2008)
  • Untitled 7"
    Untitled 7"
    Untitled 7" is the third EP released by La Dispute. It was released on May 1, 2008 along with their second EP, "Here, Hear." through Forest Life Records. The EP contains two original songs.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Jordan Dreyer*Brad Vander Lugt...

    (Forest Life Records, 2008)
  • Here, Hear II.
    Here, Hear II.
    Here, Hear II. is a 7" EP by La Dispute. It's fourth EP by the band and the second in the "Here, Hear." series It was released on November 11, 2008 along with their debut full length, Somewhere At the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair through No Sleep Records. The EP was limited to 300...

    (No Sleep Records, 2008)
  • Here, Hear III.
    Here, Hear III.
    Here, Hear III. is the fifth EP and the third release in the "Here, Hear." series released by La Dispute. It was self-released on December 25, 2010. Unlike the previous two EPs in the series, Here, Hear III...

    (Self-released, 2009)
  • Searching For A Pulse/The Worth Of The World
    Searching for a Pulse/The Worth of the World
    Searching for a Pulse/The Worth of the World is the second EP released by Touché Amoré and the sixth EP released by La Dispute. It was released on September 14, 2010 through No Sleep Records. This is the first split EP for both bands...

    (Split EP with Touché Amoré
    Touche Amore
    Touché Amoré is an American melodic hardcore band that was formed in 2007.The band released their debut 7" demo on No Sleep Records in September 2008. After a few west coast tours, the band went back into the studio to record their full length entitled ...To the Beat of a Dead Horse. The album was...

    )
    (No Sleep Records, 2010)
  • Never Come Undone
    Never Come Undone
    Never Come Undone is the seventh EP released by La Dispute and the second EP released by Koji. It was released on May 3, 2011 through No Sleep Records. This is the second split EP for both bands...

    (Split EP with Koji) (No Sleep Records, 2011)
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