Almost Here (The Academy Is... album)

Almost Here is the debut studio album by American rock band The Academy Is..., released on February 8, 2005 by Fueled by Ramen.

Almost Here
Studio album by
The Academy Is...
ReleasedFebruary 8, 2005
StudioWisner Productions (St. Cloud, Florida)
Genre
Length32:57
LabelFueled by Ramen
ProducerJames Paul Wisner
The Academy Is... chronology
The Academy
(2004)		 Almost Here
(2005)		 From the Carpet
(2006)
Singles from Almost Here
  1. "Checkmarks"
    Released: May 29, 2006
  2. "Slow Down"
    Released: 2006
  3. "The Phrase That Pays"

Background

After recording the album and a doing a summer tour, the band underwent a lineup change. Tom Conrad, formerly of Chicago local band 5o4plan, replaced LaTrace as the second guitarist/backing vocalist and Andy Mrotek, formerly of Last Place Champs, replaced DelPrincipe as the drummer. Andy Mrotek and Thomas Conrad are listed in the liner notes, but were added to the band after the recording of Almost Here to replace DelPrincipe and LaTrace, respectively.

Almost Here was recorded at Wisner Productions in St. Cloud, Florida, with James Paul Wisner, who produced, engineered, and recorded the sessions. He also mixed the album with Jeremy Dubois at The Dungeon in Miami, Florida; Alan Douches mastered the album at West West Side Music.[8]

Release

In January and February 2005, the band toured across the U.S. alongside Something Corporate, Hidden in Plain View, Straylight Run,[9] and Armor for Sleep.[10] Almost Here was released on February 8 through Fueled by Ramen. In mid-June, a music video for "Checkmarks" premiered on Fuse's Oven Fresh programme.[11] Between-mid June and mid-August, the group went on the 2005 edition of Warped Tour.[12] In January 2006, the band went on a sold-out UK tour with Panic! at the Disco.[13] In February and March, the group went on the Truckstops and Statelines tour, alongside Panic! at the Disco, Acceptance and Hellogoodbye.[14] On February 21, the band released an acoustic EP, titled From the Carpet, which included three songs from Almost Here: "The Phrase That Pays", "Down and Out" and "Black Mamba".[15] The band went on the 2006 edition of the Warped Tour.[16]

The album spawned three singles: "Checkmarks", "Slow Down" (often incorrectly referred to as "Hollywood Hills"), which was chosen through an online poll on the band's website, and "The Phrase That Pays". "Classifieds" was an intended single from the album and a video was made for the song. For unknown reasons, this video was never released, but the video's director posted it on YouTube.[17]

Reception and legacy
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AbsolutePunk(89%)[1]
AllMusic[2]
Melodic [18]
musicOMH[3]
The Skinny[4]
Sputnikmusic4.5/5[7]

The album debuted at #20 on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart, as well as at #24 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart.[19] It also charted at #185 on The Billboard Top 200 Albums Chart. By May 2006, the album had sold over 144,000 copies.[20] By October 2009, the album's sales stood at 265,000.[21]

BuzzFeed included the album at number 33 on their "36 Pop Punk Albums You Need To Hear Before You F——ing Die" list.[22]

On February 6, 2010, The Academy Is... performed a 5th Anniversary Show for the album with Sing It Loud and special guest.

On September 12, 2015, rumors were confirmed that the band would embark on a 10th Anniversary show for Riot Fest in Chicago.[23] Following the announcement of the Riot Fest reunion show, the band released dates for the 10th Anniversary U.S. tour.[24]

Track listing

All songs written by Mike Carden and William Beckett, except "Down and Out" by Beckett. All lyrics by Beckett.[8]

No.TitleLength
1."Attention"2:53
2."Season"3:34
3."Slow Down"4:02
4."The Phrase That Pays"3:17
5."Black Mamba"2:46
6."Skeptics and True Believers"2:54
7."Classifieds"2:52
8."Checkmarks"3:00
9."Down and Out"4:30
10."Almost Here"3:06
Total length:32:57

Personnel

Adapted credits from the Almost Here liner notes.[8]

The Academy Is...

  • William Beckett – vocals
  • AJ LaTrace – guitars
  • Mike Carden – guitars
  • Adam T. Siska – bass
  • Mike DelPrincipe – drums

Production and design

  • James Paul Wisner – producer, engineer, recording, mixing
  • Jeremy Dubois – mixing
  • Alan Douches – mastering
  • Evan Leake – graphic design

Charts

Album

Chart (2005) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard 200 186
U.S. Billboard Top Heatseekers 7
U.S. Billboard Top Independent Albums 16
U.S. Billboard Top Internet Albums 296

References

Citations

  1. "Academy Is, The - Almost Here - AbsolutePunk.net". 29 September 2007. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007.
  2. Almost Here at AllMusic
  3. "The Academy Is… – Almost Here - Album Reviews - musicOMH".
  4. "The Academy Is... - Almost Here - The Skinny".
  5. McMahon, ed. 2014, p. 19
  6. Marshall, Bob (July 1, 2015). "41 Pop-Punk Albums All 2000s Kids Loved". BuzzFeed. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
  7. "Review: The Academy Is... - Almost Here - Sputnikmusic".
  8. Almost Here (booklet). The Academy Is... Fueled by Ramen. 2005. FBR 071.CS1 maint: others (link)
  9. Shultz, Brian (January 4, 2005). "Something Corporate / Straylight Run / Hidden In Plain View / The Academy Is". Punknews.org. Retrieved July 9, 2016.
  10. Adams, Chip (February 1, 2005). "Armor For Sleep Launch US Tour". Fader. Archived from the original on 2016-11-30. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
  11. "AbsolutePunk.net". AbsolutePunk. SpinMedia. Archived from the original on November 13, 2002. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  12. Kaufman, Gil (March 3, 2005). "Warped Tour Lineup, Itinerary Officially Announced". MTV. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
  13. "The Academy Is… post new acoustic song, begin U.K. tour". Alternative Press. January 17, 2006. Retrieved June 27, 2016.
  14. "The Academy Is… announce "Truckstops And Statelines" tour". Alternative Press. November 30, 2005. Retrieved June 24, 2016.
  15. "The Academy Is… to release digital-only acoustic EP". Alternative Press. February 14, 2006. Retrieved June 29, 2016.
  16. "Warped Tour confirms tour routing, venues, more bands". Alternative Press. March 2, 2006. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
  17. Ryan Rickett (director) (2007-04-25). The Academy Is... "Classifieds" (Video). YouTube.
  18. Roth, Kaj (May 26, 2005). "The Academy Is - Almost Here". Melodic. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  19. "The Academy Is...: Artist Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 28 December 2005.
  20. Kohli, Rohan (May 17, 2006). "Soundscan Results: Week Ending May 14th, 2006". absolutepunk.net. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  21. Bell; Harding 2009, p. 57
  22. Sherman, Maria; Broderick, Ryan (July 2, 2013). "36 Pop Punk Albums You Need To Hear Before You F----ing Die". BuzzFeed. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  23. "The Academy Is… announce 'Almost Here' 10th anniversary tour at Riot Fest - News - Alternative Press". Alternative Press. Retrieved 2016-02-01.
  24. "The Academy Is… officially announce 'Almost Here' 10-year anniversary tour - News - Alternative Press". Alternative Press. Retrieved 2016-02-01.

Sources

  • McMahon, James, ed. (19 September 2015). "51 Greatest Pop-Punk Albums Ever!". Kerrang!. London: Bauer Media Group (1586). ISSN 0262-6624.
  • Bell, Crystal; Harding, Cortney (October 10, 2009). "Dance of Days". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 121 (39). ISSN 0006-2510.
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