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Today Is the Day | |
|---|---|
 Today Is the Day in 2003 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Nashville, Tennessee |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1992–present |
| Labels | |
| Members | Steve Austin Thomas Jack Colin Frecknall |
| Past members | List of Today Is the Day members |
Today Is the Day is an Americannoise rock andexperimental metal band that originally formed inNashville, Tennessee. The band's diverse sound combines influences from areas such asnoise music,avant-garde metal,grindcore,post-hardcore, andalternative rock among other genres. Most of the band's recordings make extensive use ofdissonance andsampling, as well as unusual production techniques andpsychedelic overtones. Lyrical themes includedepression,warfare,violence,altered states of consciousness, andmental disorders.
The band was founded byguitarist Steve Austin anddrummer Brad Elrod, who previously played together in Alien in the Land of Our Birth.[1] The duo would move to Nashville, Tennessee in the early 1990s and would form Today Is the Day in March 1992 after meetingbassist Mike Herrell, who previously lived in Alabama.[1] Today Is the Day released its debut demo EP, entitledHow to Win Friends and Influence People, in 1992. This self-financed release garnered the attention ofAmphetamine Reptile Records (also known as AmRep) who signed the band in February 1993. The full-lengthSupernova was released in April that year.[2]
In September 1994, Today Is the Day saw its popularity in the metal underground increase with the release of their second album, entitledWillpower. That same year,Willpower was followed by theClusterfuck '94 split EP with labelmatesChokebore and Guzzard. Today Is the Day also contributed to the tenth volume of AmRep'sDope Guns and Fucking in the Streets 7-inch series with Brainiac and Steel Pole Bath Tub.[2]
Today Is the Day'sself-titled album was released in March 1996. This album was the first of the band's releases recorded at Austin's own studio, Austin Enterprise, in Nashville.Today Is the Day was the band's final recording for AmRep.
In 1997, Today Is the Day left AmRep and signed withPhiladelphia-based metal labelRelapse Records and releasedTemple of the Morning Star in September 1997. In addition toTemple of the Morning Star, Today Is the Day also contributed to theIn These Black Days 7-inch series, released byHydra Head Records, with their rendition of "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath", which can also be found as a secret track at the end ofTemple of the Morning Star.[2]
For Today Is the Day's July 1999 release, entitledIn the Eyes of God, Austin brought on board bassistBill Kelliher and drummerBrann Dailor, formerly ofRochester, New York's Lethargy and current members ofAtlanta, Georgia'sMastodon. After moving toMassachusetts in 1998,In the Eyes of God was the first Today Is the Day album to be recorded at Austin Enterprise's new location inClinton, Massachusetts.[1][2]
The years 2000 and 2001 were relatively quiet for Today Is the Day in terms of releasing new material.Live Till You Die was released in August 2000 and included live tracks recorded during the tours in support ofTemple of the Morning Star andIn the Eyes of God, covers of songs byThe Beatles,Bad Company, andChris Isaak, and various songs compiled from studio sessions held at Austin Enterprise during the late 1990s. The band also recorded a cover ofMetallica's "Nothing Else Matters", originally scheduled to be released on a split 7-inch vinyl titledCrush 'Em All throughUndecided Records.[3] The split was originally to be shared withConverge,[3] and later withSupermachiner,[4] but after falling through, Today Is the Day's song appeared on the Undecided Records various artists compilationThe Old, the New, the Unreleased in 2005.[5][6] In 2001, new Today Is the Day songs were released on splits with Metatron and 16, the first new material since 1999.[2]
The new songs put out on the split releases later appeared on Today Is the Day's double albumSadness Will Prevail, released in 2002. For this album Austin chose to work with bassist Chris Debari and drummer Marshall Kilpatric. Today Is the Day also released their second live album entitledBlue Blood in 2002. The album includes live material from theTemple of the Morning Star era.[2]
Today Is the Day returned in June 2004 with a new album entitledKiss the Pig, which featured the debut of new drummer Mike Rosswog (previously ofCircle of Dead Children).Kiss the Pig was the last album released by Today Is the Day on Relapse Records.[2]
In December 2006, it was announced that formerHate Eternal drummerDerek Roddy had joined the band and would appear on their next studio album,Axis of Eden. It was released in 2007 throughSuperNova Records, a label originally set up by Steve Austin to reissue the band's out-of-print material.[7]
In 2007, a feature-length film based on the albumAxis of Eden was produced by director David Hall. The film made its debut on September 13, 2007, the first day of theAxis of Eden tour.[8] Shows during that tour included the film being projected while the group performed.[8] To promote the film and tour, a section of the movie that included the track "IED" was made available on the internet as a music video.[9] A second video, directed by Tate Steinsek, consisted of live footage from the tour and was released online. The film would later be made available for purchase as a digital download on November 2, 2008.
In April 2010, it was confirmed Today Is the Day would join former labelmates Melvins, Boss Hog, and others at Amphetamine Reptile's 25th Anniversary celebration in Minneapolis on August 28, 2010.[10] In July 2010 Black Market Activities Records announced that they were welcoming Today Is The Day to its roster. Black Market Activities released Today Is The Day's ninth studio album,Pain Is a Warning, in 2011. It was produced byKurt Ballou ofConverge.[11]
In June 2014, Austin announced that Today Is The Day had joinedSouthern Lord Records for the release of its tenth studio album,Animal Mother, which was released on October 21 of that year.[12] By late 2015, Steve Austin, along withChris Spencer fromUnsane, formed a new project calledUXO, which also featured bassist Aarne Victorine and drummer Patrick Kennedy.[13] Their debut self-titled album was released on January 29, 2016 throughReptilian Records.[14]
On September 26, 2016, it was announced that Today Is The Day joinedThe End Records for the release of their eleventh studio album, which was expected to be released in 2017.[15] The group also announced via their Facebook page that they planned to reissue almost their entire discography (including their debut self-issuedHow to Win Friends and Influence People demo) to coincide the 20th anniversary ofTemple of the Morning Star.
On January 20, 2017, The End Records released the digital-only sampler albumSilver Anniversary on music-streaming serviceSpotify, containing tracks from the band's first nine albums.[16] A deluxe 20th-anniversary edition ofTemple Of The Morning Star was also released on March 24, 2017 on 2CD and 2LP formats, which included rare and unreleased material.[16] The deluxe reissue first became available for preorder in February 2017.[17] The band announced a tour to celebrate the album's re-release and anniversary.[18]
A European leg of the anniversary tour was announced, as well as a deluxe reissue ofIn the Eyes of God, which was released on September 22, 2017.[19]
On December 12, 2019, Decibel Magazine premiered a new song titled "No Good to Anyone", the title track from the upcoming eleventh studio album by the band. The album was slated for release in February 2020 throughBMG.[20][21] On January 9, 2020, Revolver premiered "You're All Gonna Die", the second single to be released from the upcoming album.[22] "Burn In Hell", the third single from the upcoming album, was released on February 13, with a music video produced to promote it.[23]No Good to Anyone was released on February 28, 2020, and to promote the record, the band toured the United States with16,Child Bite, andThe Obsessed. However, due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, the tour was cut short and most shows had to be cancelled. In 2021, it was announced that Austin had managed to purchase the rights to the band's entire catalog, which led to SuperNova Records reissuing the material as well as announcing a new album for 2022.[24]
Today Is the Day has been associated by critics withnoise rock[25] as well as multiple subgenres ofheavy metal music includingavant-garde metal,[18]math metal,[26]doom metal,[27]post-metal,[28]extreme metal,[29] andgrindcore[30] as well as blending "the doom-struck fury ofhardcore, grindcore, andthrash metal" together "with the precision and melodic and rhythmic diversity ofprogressive andalternative rock."[31]Post-hardcore andspace rock has also been used to describe their sound in the past. Steve Austin of Today Is The Day is often credited as being one of the first few artists to combine noise rock with metal (a fusion sometimes called "noise metal"),[32] and the band's first three albums withAmphetamine Reptile Records,Supernova,Willpower, andToday Is the Day, often receive high praise from critics for their style. Since their first two records withRelapse Records,Temple of the Morning Star andIn the Eyes of God, the band evolved towards a more extreme and brutal sound, including prominent grindcore[30] andblack metal[33] influences. Around that time, they also began to incorporate more experimentation into their music. This era of the band culminated in the double albumSadness Will Prevail, which is regarded as their most ambitious and experimental record.
The band is noted for its erratic sound and experimental approach. Sampling and electronics have played an important role in the band's music sinceSupernova. Their1996 self-titled album lacked any bass guitars, using keyboards and featuring prominentnoise andindustrial influences. Dialogues and sound clips sampled from movies are also frequently used, mostly onTemple of the Morning Star andIn the Eyes of God. Some of the movies sampled throughout their discography areMemento,The Illustrated Man,The Holy Mountain,Chopper,Rosemary's Baby,Dune,Goodfellas,Carrie, andWaco: The Rules of Engagement among others.[34] The 2002 double albumSadness Will Prevail introducedstring instruments andpiano and also featured extensive electronics,field recordings, sound manipulation, acoustic guitars, sampling, and unusual production techniques. Some of the band's recordings display a more stripped down and straightforward approach with less use of electronics and experimentation, such asKiss the Pig andPain is a Warning. Most of Today Is The Day's albums are recorded and produced by Steve Austin in his own studio, Austin Enterprise,[35] and the band's production often displays bizarre, unorthodox recording techniques and multiple special effects, notably the multi-layered vocals and dissonant guitar work.
Steve Austin has mentioned that the music and bands promoted by record labels such asEarache Records andTouch and Go Records played a major role in the development of the band's style.[36] Some of the bands that Austin cited as major influences includeDeath,Slayer,[36]Pink Floyd,[37]King Crimson,[37]Motörhead,[33]U2,[38]Napalm Death,Butthole Surfers,Eyehategod,Miles Davis,Morbid Angel,Unsane,Melvins,Bauhaus,[39] andthe Jesus Lizard.[citation needed] The band is considered by critics as an important part of the development of metal-related music during the mid to late 1990s. Last Rites editor Andrew Edmunds mentioned in his review ofSupernova how it "would lay the groundwork for a seemingly never-ending wave of spastic metal bands".[40] Patrick Kennedy ofallmusic describedSupernova as a "landmark recording".[41] In 2017,Decibel Magazine includedTemple of the Morning Star in their "Hall of Fame" list.[42]
Groups that have named Today Is the Day as an influence includeTraining for Utopia,[43]Hatebreed,[44]The Dillinger Escape Plan,[44]Kittie,[45]Deadguy,[46] andTantrum of the Muse.[47]
The band made a cameo in the 1999dark comedy independent filmDuck! The Carbine High Massacre.[48] In the scene, the group performed at a religious after-school club after its leaders mistook them for aChristian rock band. The 2006 filmThreat featured a remixed version of the track "Willpower" by producer Darph/Nadar. Steve Austin was featured in the Amphetamine Reptile documentary filmThe Color of Noise.[49] In 2017, a documentary based on Steve Austin and his life as a musician was released titledThe Man Who Loves To Hurt Himself.[49] The documentary, directed by Anthony Short, premiered in France in May 2017 at the International Filmmaker Festival of World Cinema. Short was nominated for the awards for Best Director and Best New Filmmaker.[50]
In 2006, Steve Austin launched his own record label, SuperNova Records, which was founded in order to properly release material by Today Is the Day among others. As of April 2007, SuperNova has releasedDVDs of live Today Is the Day shows from 1995 and 1996 as well as reissued a remastered version ofWillpower, previously released by Amphetamine Reptile Records. The label also released a film,Axis of Eden, based on the album of the same name.[51] The label became inactive when the band signed to Black Market Activities in 2010. In 2021, the label was resurrected after Austin retained the masters to the bands music so as to reissue the discography on streaming platforms.[52]
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