Sing the Sorrow

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Sing the Sorrow
Studio album by
AFI
ReleasedMarch 11, 2003 (2003-03-11)
RecordedAugust - December 2002
StudioCello, Los Angeles, California
Genre
Length55:54
LabelDreamWorks/Nitro
ProducerJerry Finn, Butch Vig
AFI chronology
The Art of Drowning
(2000) 		Sing the Sorrow
(2003) 		AFI
(2004)
AFI video chronology
Clandestine
(2003) 		I Heard a Voice – Live from Long Beach Arena
(2006)
Singles from Sing the Sorrow
  1. "Girl's Not Grey"
    Released: January 12, 2003
  2. "The Leaving Song Pt. II"
    Released: August 3, 2003
  3. "Silver and Cold"
    Released: November 11, 2003

Sing the Sorrow is the sixth studio album by American rock band AFI. Recorded at Cello Studios in Los Angeles, California between 2002 and 2003, the album was produced by Jerry Finn and Butch Vig. Sing The Sorrow was the bands final release under the Nitro Records label.

Sing the Sorrow received acclaim from music critics, who praised its melodies and musicianship, as well as its mature sound in comparison to the band's previous material. The album sold 96,000 copies in its first week of release in the United States,[3] reaching number 5 on the Billboard 200, and also charted in Canada and the United Kingdom. It has since been certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), as well as being certified Platinum in Canada. The album was supported by three singles: "Girl's Not Grey", "The Leaving Song Pt. II" and "Silver and Cold", which have since successfully charted within the Alternative Songs and Rock Songs charts.

Music and lyrics[edit]

Musically, Sing the Sorrow is a departure from the hardcore punk and horror punk genres featured in the band's previous material. The album features elements of hardcore punk, post-hardcore, alternative rock, gothic rock, and emo.[4][5] More experimental than previous AFI albums,[5] Sing the Sorrow includes instruments other than guitar, bass and drums, such as piano and strings.[4] Lyrically, the album is darker and more poetic than the band's previous material.[citation needed] The opening track features some electronic programming from Jade Puget.[6] A hidden song is included, which leads into a spoken word poem accompanied by piano keys and distorted synth sounds.[7]

Artwork and liner notes[edit]

Sing the Sorrow was released with three different covers, featuring different colors for the text, logo, and iconography.[a] The colors were red, silver and black. The original cover features red artwork.[10] Several of the first pressings in the United States and United Kingdom featured the silver cover, but the pressings are now rare and out of print, although the digital version of Sing the Sorrow among iTunes still features the silver artwork. The black cover was exclusively available at shows on the U.S. album release tour and the band's official fan club online store. International versions of the album use different artwork on the album label. Often contain a picture of an inverted octopus whilst others contain a foraminifer or a dead bird. The animal pictures are taken from the book Animals by Jim Harter.

Release[edit]

The album was released on March 11, 2003, through DreamWorks Records. In mid-to-late June and mid-to-late July, the group appeared on the Warped Tour.[11]

The hard-book cover of the limited edition

Special limited edition[edit]

A special limited edition was released that included the short film Clandestine on DVD,[12] directed by Norwood Cheek.[citation needed] It also contained a 60-page booklet featuring extensive artwork and lyrics as well.[10]

The film is eight minutes in length and stars all four band members.[citation needed] The film contains references to imagery and concepts from the album. The film focuses on the four band members trying to obtain a mysterious box which bears resemblance to the Sing the Sorrow album cover. The film features two playable soundtracks, one by bassist Hunter Burgan and the other by guitarist Jade Puget.[citation needed] Only 20,000 copies were pressed.

Reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic81/100[13]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
Alternative Press5/5[14]
Blender[15]
Entertainment WeeklyD[16]
Los Angeles Times[17]
Q[18]
Rolling Stone[19]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[20]
Slant Magazine[7]
SpinB+[21]

Sing the Sorrow was met with critical acclaim upon release. The review aggregator Metacritic scored the album an 81 out of 100, based on 11 reviews, with the mention of "universal acclaim".[13] E! Online called it a "well-crafted mix of hardcore bluster, determined melody and anthemic grandness that boasts depth and texture rarely heard from the Warped Tour ilk."[13] Alternative Press awarded the album a perfect score, saying that, "Sing the Sorrow soars with the kind of melodies hit singles are made of, yet it somehow persists with AFI's esoteric darkness."[13] Allmusic awarded the album 4 out of 5 stars and wrote: "Emerging in early 2003 with Sing the Sorrow, it's clear the molting process AFI began with Black Sails in Sunset is complete," and concluded that, "Whatever factions of the band's longterm fans might think of their major-label affiliation, Sing the Sorrow represents a coalescing of the band's sound."[4] Rolling Stone awarded the album a 4 out of 5, claiming that "Sing the Sorrow is not exactly a concept album, but it does have a singleness of dark purpose that builds in momentum as the disc progresses."[13] The New York Times rated Sing the Sorrow as the tenth-best album of 2003.[22] Conversely, Entertainment Weekly gave the album a 'D', commenting that "The songs combine the most pretentious and overworked elements of their influences."[13] The album ranked number 77 in the October 2006 issue of Guitar World magazine's List of the 100 Greatest Guitar Albums of All Time. The album's lead single, "Girl's Not Grey", received a 2003 VMA for the 'Best MTV2 Music Video' category.[23] Alternative Press ranked "Girl's Not Grey" at number 63 on their list of the best 100 singles from the 2000s.[24]

Singles[edit]

Three singles, each with an accompanying music video, were released from Sing the Sorrow: "Girl's Not Grey", "The Leaving Song Pt. II," and "Silver and Cold." "Girl's Not Grey" was the highest-charting single, reaching No. 7 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart,[25] No. 33 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and No. 22 on the UK Singles Chart. The second single, "The Leaving Song Pt. II" charted at No. 16 on the Alternative Songs chart,[25] No. 31 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, No. 27 in Australia, and No. 43 in the UK. The third and final single, "Silver and Cold" reached No. 7 on the Alternative Songs chart[25] and No. 39 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.

Track listing[edit]

All tracks are written by AFI

Standard edition
No.TitleLength
1."Miseria Cantare - The Beginning"2:57
2."The Leaving Song Pt. II"3:31
3."Bleed Black"4:15
4."Silver and Cold"4:11
5."Dancing Through Sunday"2:26
6."Girl's Not Grey"3:10
7."Death of Seasons"3:59
8."The Great Disappointment"5:27
9."Paper Airplanes (makeshift wings)"3:58
10."This Celluloid Dream"4:11
11."The Leaving Song"2:44
12."...but home is nowhere"[1]
"The Spoken Word" (hidden track)
"This Time Imperfect" (hidden track)		15:07
  • 4:16
  • 10:38
Total length:55:54

Notes

1.^ On digital editions, "This Time Imperfect" isn't a hidden track, and includes "The Spoken Word" before it as track 13.[26][27][28][29]
Japanese edition
No.TitleLength
13."Now the World"4:03
Total length:59:57
UK edition
No.TitleLength
12."...but home is nowhere"3:51
13."Synesthesia"3:30
14."Now the World"
"The Spoken Word" (hidden track)
"This Time Imperfect" (hidden track)		15:19 * 4:16
  • 10:38
Total length:1:03:28
Special limited edition DVD
No.TitleLength
1."Clandestine" (short film) (playable in two versions; Jade's soundtrack and Hunter's soundtrack)8:06
2."Death of Seasons" (Audio 5.1 Mix)3:59
3."Silver and Cold" (Audio 5.1 Mix)4:11
4."...but home is nowhere" (Audio 5.1 Mix)3:51
5."The Great Disappointment" (Audio 5.1 Mix)5:27
6."Reivers' Music" (Audio 5.1 Mix)3:22
Total length:28:16

B-sides and outtakes[edit]

All songs presumably recorded during the Sing the Sorrow sessions unless otherwise noted.

  • "Reivers' Music" is featured on the DVD of the special limited edition album and the "Girl's Not Grey" single, as well as the 336 EP (2002), on which it backs the demo version of "Now the World".[30]
  • Demo versions of "Synesthesia", "This Celluloid Dream", "The Great Disappointment", "Paper Airplanes (makeshift wings)", "...But Home is Nowhere", "The Leaving Song", and "Now the World" can be found as b-sides on the album's single releases.
  • "Rabbits are Roadkill on Rt. 37" was released on the MySpace Records: Volume 1 compilation[31] in November 2005 and as a bonus track on the UK and Australian editions of Decemberunderground (2006).[32]
  • "Carcinogen Crush"[b] was recorded during the Sing the Sorrow sessions, but the band felt that it did not fit the album. It was later re-recorded during the Decemberunderground sessions, but remained unreleased. It was eventually released as a bonus track on the video game Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (2007)[33] and as a digital single on December 4, 2007.[34] It was also featured on the "Medicate" UK vinyl and the Japanese version of Crash Love (2009). The Sing the Sorrow version remains unreleased.
  • "100 Words"[b] was not released until 2009 on the deluxe version of Crash Love.

Personnel[edit]

Credits adapted from the album's booklet.[35]

Certifications and chart positions[edit]

Weekly charts[edit]

Chart (2003) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[36] 65
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[37] 10
UK Albums (OCC)[38] 52
US Billboard 200[39] 5

Year-end charts[edit]

Chart (2003) Position
US Billboard 200[40] 107

Certifications[edit]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[41] Gold 35,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[42] Platinum 100,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[43] Silver 60,000‡
United States (RIAA)[44] Platinum 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history[edit]

Legacy[edit]

In November 2022, the band announced that they would play the album in its entirety the first and only time at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles on March 11, 2023, the album's 20th anniversary. Jawbreaker, Chelsea Wolfe, and Choir Boy were slated to open the event.[45] The band dedicated "Paper Airplanes (makeshift wings)" to Jawbreaker and "The Leaving Song" to album producer Jerry Finn, who died in 2008. Additionally, the out-of-print vinyl album was reissued for the anniversary.[46]

References[edit]

Footnotes[edit]

  1. ^ An early idea for the album cover depicted a burning rose.[8] This was repurposed as the cover for some releases of the "Girl's Not Grey" single.[9]
  2. ^ a b The title can be found in the special limited edition book of Sing the Sorrow.

Citations[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Review: AFI - Sing the Sorrow - Sputnikmusic". www.sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  2. ^ Stegall, Tim. "The 15 best punk albums of 2003, from Anti-Flag to Against Me!". Alternative Press. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
  3. ^ "AFI Burns Brightly With No. 1 Debut". Billboard. Retrieved June 10, 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d Loftus, Johnny. "Sing the Sorrow – AFI". AllMusic. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
  5. ^ a b Punknews.org. "AFI - Sing The Sorrow". www.punknews.org. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
  6. ^ "Backspin: AFI on 'Sing the Sorrow'". Yahoo!. February 17, 2017. Archived from the original on December 15, 2021. Retrieved December 18, 2020 – via YouTube.
  7. ^ a b Scott, Aaron (March 21, 2003). "AFI: Sing the Sorrow". Slant Magazine. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
  8. ^ Puget, Jade (January 3, 2020). "Early idea for the cover of Sing the Sorrow". Instagram. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
  9. ^ "AFI - Girl's Not Grey". Discogs. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
  10. ^ a b Heisel, Scott (2003). "Sing The Sorrow formats and releases / new AFI tour dates". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  11. ^ "Final Band List Announced". Warped Tour. February 6, 2003. Archived from the original on October 3, 2003. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  12. ^ "AFI - Sing The Sorrow". Discogs. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  13. ^ a b c d e f "Reviews for Sing The Sorrow by AFI". Metacritic. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
  14. ^ "AFI: Sing the Sorrow". Alternative Press (177): 69. April 2003.
  15. ^ Miccio, Anthony (April 2003). "A.F.I.: Sing The Sorrow". Blender (15): 120. Archived from the original on August 3, 2004. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
  16. ^ Farber, Jim (March 21, 2003). "Sing the Sorrow". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on December 2, 2017. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
  17. ^ Hochman, Steve (March 9, 2003). "Punk and beyond from A.F.I. quartet". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
  18. ^ "AFI: Sing the Sorrow". Q (201): 101. April 2003.
  19. ^ Cherry, Robert (February 25, 2003). "AFI: Sing The Sorrow". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 4, 2009. Retrieved February 3, 2008.
  20. ^ McLeod, Kembrew (2004). "A.F.I.". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 10. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  21. ^ Gross, Joe (April 2003). "Nü Day Rising". Spin. 19 (4): 101–02. Retrieved January 4, 2018.
  22. ^ "MUSIC: THE HIGHS; The Albums and Songs of the Year". The New York Times. December 28, 2003.
  23. ^ "MTV Video Music Awards". MTV. Retrieved September 23, 2010.
  24. ^ Paul, Aubin (November 20, 2009). "At The Drive-In's 'One Armed Scissor' tops AP's 'Haircut 100' singles countdown". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
  25. ^ a b c https://www.billboard.com/artist/afi/chart-history/alternative-songs
  26. ^ Sing The Sorrow, January 1, 2003, retrieved July 18, 2023
  27. ^ Sing The Sorrow, retrieved July 18, 2023
  28. ^ Sing The Sorrow, January 1, 2009, retrieved July 18, 2023
  29. ^ "Sing The Sorrow". Apple Music. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  30. ^ "AFI - 336". Discogs. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  31. ^ Paul, Aubin (2005). "AFI cancels Big Day Out appearance". Punknews.org. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  32. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas, "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas - Original Game Soundtrack | Songs, Reviews, Credits", AllMusic, retrieved December 14, 2020
  33. ^ "Billboard Bits: 'Guitar Hero III,' Os Mutantes, Isis". Billboard. September 20, 2007.
  34. ^ "Carcinogen Crush - Single by AFI", Apple Music, January 2007, retrieved December 14, 2020
  35. ^ Sing the Sorrow (booklet). AFI. DreamWorks. 2003. 0044-50380-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  36. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
  37. ^ "AFI Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  38. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  39. ^ "AFI Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  40. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2003". Billboard. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  41. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2009 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  42. ^ "Canadian album certifications – AFI – Sing the Sorrow". Music Canada. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  43. ^ "British album certifications – AFI – Sing the Sorrow". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  44. ^ "American album certifications – AFI – Sing the Sorrow". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  45. ^ Sacher, Andrew (November 14, 2022). "AFI playing 'Sing the Sorrow' in full at one-time only show with Jawbreaker, Chelsea Wolfe & more". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  46. ^ Sacher, Andrew (March 13, 2023). "Watch AFI play 'Sing the Sorrow' in full; long-awaited vinyl reissue is here". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved March 14, 2023.

External links[edit]

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