Post by A Manda On The Moon on Jul 8, 2007 22:03:34 GMT -5
Spencer Chamberlain (born January 4, 1983) is the current lead singer of rock band Underoath, from Tampa, Florida. Before fronting Underoath, Chamberlain was also the singer for the band This Runs Through in which his brother, Phil Chamberlain, was the drummer.
Chamberlain was born in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and raised in Greensboro, North Carolina, with his mother and older brother, Phil (also a musician as the drummer for Sullivan). As a child, Chamberlain's family did not have a lot of money, something contributing to why he admits to have trouble spending money. Chamberlain's parents divorced when he was in elementary school at Greensboro Day School and by his late teens he was struggling with drug and alcohol abuse. He tells Alternative Press, "You know how some people have a good family or a girlfriend that's always there for them and never fails? That was [what] drugs [were] for me. That was my weakness." Chamberlain then transferred over to Page High School for his sophomore, junior, and senior year. Shortly after graduating highschool, he moved to Florida. He continued to struggle, until his step brother, a pastor, introduced him to Christianity. Although Chamberlain hadn't grown up in a tightly knit Christian home and avoided religion most of his childhood, he claims it is half of what saved him, the other being music. Chamberlain says that Underoath's most recent recording Define the Great Line is for the most part, about that struggle and having hope.
Chamberlain owns a purebred Neapolitan Mastiff, named Leroy, that he guesses is his most expensive investment, which cost him an estimated $2,000. He also has another dog named Gus. He was featured in an online game called "Warped Tour Massacre Fighting Game". Has a girlfriend named Kristina Stamm.
Underoath
In late 2003, former lead vocalist of Underoath, Dallas Taylor (currently the vocalist for Maylene and the Sons of Disaster),was asked to leave the band due to unresolved personal issues. Later in October of that same year at the CMJ Fest, Chamberlain took the stage as the new lead vocalist. During the early months of 2004, the band recorded their first album with Chamberlain and their second record for Solid State Records.
Since Chamberlain joined Underoath, they have released two records, 2004's They're Only Chasing Safety and 2006's Define the Great Line. When Define the Great Line released on June 20, 2006, it sold 98,001 copies in its first week and debuted on the Billboard 200 Chart at #2. Chamberlain noted that his vocals on Define the Great Line sound less like himself imitating Dallas Taylor's vocals, but similar to the vocals of his previous band, This Runs Through. His evolved vocals came with the help of Melissa Cross, who coached Chamberlain and refined his "growl". Alternative Press noted, "his bellow [is] more carnal and guttural, [and] his high end more tuneful than whiny. Now when Chamberlain's relating those things that eat at the edges of his conscience and his soul, he has the kind of multi-faceted caterwaul to convey that despair." The article also comments on his songwriting, saying that it "reaches inward, confronting every ugly crevice of his being, often emerging from the clash furious and disoriented, but hopeful."
