Aaron Gillespie Leaves Underoath

According to reports, Underoath's drummer Aaron Gillespie has left the band.

The band revealed the departure in a statement saying the group has decided to move on without the musician. Gillespie has been a member of Underoath since 1997 and along with being the drummer, he has also been a vocalist for the band.

"We are taking this opportunity to sadly inform you the six of us have decided at the end of the current european tour, Aaron will no longer be playing in Underoath," read a statement released by Underoath on the situation. "It in no way effects any of the shows left on this tour. We appreciate the love and support from everyone in the past and hope that all of us will continue to receive your support on our future paths."

The band also commented on their progress with their upcoming record, stating they will continue to work on it. In response to the statement released by the band, Gillespie unveiled one of his own, remarking on his departure.

"I am more then aware the the news you have heard of seems rash, and probably hasty. I wanted to be able to write a few thing down here to maybe help you understand a bit," he said. "Underoath and i have parted ways. Yes that is a true statement. There is no bad blood, there is no anger. People change, times change, and sometimes change just comes hunting for you."

Gillespie isn't the first core member to have left the band as Underoath has seen numerous musicians decide to focus on other projects. Dallas Taylor was the lead vocalist for the band for six years (1997-2003) while seven other guitarists and bassists have ventured in and out of the lineup.

Comments

[paul_4God]

awful...

[J-rich777]

This really sucks. Any word on what they're doing for a drummer? I'm guessing Tim Mctague will take over singing.

[masterchief44]

This does suck. Aaron's drumming was amazing. And I think his vocals were quite a part of the Underoath style. I feel the next record will be lacking without him. :/ That sucks. And I'm wondering if he'll go back to The Almost. Which, in my opinion, only had an okay song here and there.

[CalebJThompson]

There goes the last original member...

[Ibanezrocker800]

@masterchief44 Aaron has stated that he WILL continue with The Almost

[pineaple expres]

weird. if they dont hav any original members they mite as wel change their name.

[ilovepepsi]

.....what? no.....but.....no...that sucks

[BKGMorley]

CalebJThompson wrote:

There goes the last original member...

i think they are stronger and better now than they ever have been

[benjixoath]

i'll continue to support underoath and aaron in whatever they do
he was an integral member but a band isn't just one person
this ca only be better for both if them if they were uncomfortable

[Spoony_Bard]

And there goes Underoath. They're finished without Aaron.

[gavincandance]

it's sad to see aaron's signature style leave underoath.

[CrabSoldier X]

Underoath is one of the strongest bands ive ever heard, but without aaron, i cant see how they can continue.

[jetfuel495]

Nooooo they're working on a new record too.

Underoath has always been one of those bands that noticeably evolves and changes from one record to the next. I'm sure this will have it's own impact somehow.

Was he the one who did the clean vocals?

[Comeback Kiddd]

isnt aaron joining a band with craig(chiodos) and pete wents(fall out boy)?

[Dallen_007]

Sad news, thankfully I got to see them before this happened.

[im not mental]

ahh that blows. he was such an integral part of their sound. i'm really not that much into them now as much as when i was in high school, but i've seen them live 3 times and they've blown me away every time.

[Jon777]

Not cool.

[Andy2k64]

They will never be the same band again. Just like Dirk Lance leaving Incubus. They might replace or something but he is a huge part of the music!

[ACFCPatrick]

pineaple expres wrote:

weird. if they dont hav any original members they mite as wel change their name.

I would agree with you if the entire line up had been changed at once but it's pretty much been one member at a time as their sound slowly evolved with their member changes. however I do think aaron will be the most difficult member to replace, he has such a unique style.

[=w=eeze]

Lost in the Sound of Separation will forever be their best album, so I think it would be fitting to end the band right now.

[GeekInThePink]

It won't be hard to replace him as a singer, but his writer and drummer? That's gonna be pretty much impossible.

Comeback Kiddd wrote:

isnt aaron joining a band with craig(chiodos) and pete wents(fall out boy)?

Please don't start rumors.

[.fili.meister.]

strongest band someone has heard? must not have heard many bands then. UO is pretty good, but it really isn't UO at all anymore without Aaron. They won't be able to replace him without changing sounds/genres yet again like they did when Dallas was out.

[HH_Emo_666]

Lost in the Sound sucked .. sorry guys. He could do so much better than that band. He was the only good vocalist and ONLY vocalist.

[eza666]

YES! sucks that this did not make the rest of the band realize that their band blows and should follow in his footsteps

[Co&Ca11]

I still like Underoath but they should probably change their name or something, he was the last original member left....

[SorryImAwesome.]

...Underoath lived as long as Aaron stayed.
R.I.P. Underoath (might as well).

[triky66]

Not to knock Underoath, I've seen them 3 or 4 times and I haven't been a really big fan or anything, but you could really hear the difference (or progression) from "poppy-sh*t" on "They're Only..." to heavier, more raw-sounding music on the newest album, "Lost In..." (also a note, I'm only saying that in regard to the new/er members or the core band from these three albums). Anywho, I'm really not surprised or crushed either way, because Gillepsie has The Almost and he isn't that heavy of a drummer (where's the double-bass?). Cheer up boys, your makeup is running.

[Aborticide1986]

triky66 wrote:Cheer up boys, your makeup is running.

This.

[theoldwizard]

SorryImAwesome. wrote:

...Underoath lived as long as Aaron stayed.
R.I.P. Underoath (might as well).

My thoughts exactly

[aaron_masta]

=( Aaron was the life of the band. R.I.P. UO

[ThatWouldBeJon]

well thats ****ing shitty, only really liked the there ony chasing. anyways though

[myownenemy]

triky66 wrote:
Anywho, I'm really not surprised or crushed either way, because Gillepsie has The Almost and he isn't that heavy of a drummer (where's the double-bass?).

The point is that he wasn't a typical heavy drummer, he was a drummer whose drumming fit in perfectly with the heavy music. It was original, as far as heavy drumming goes. For the record, he did used to use double bass and drum typically heavy. Check out the underoath albums Act of Depression and Cries of the Past for that. Aaron's style in the past two underoath albums(Define and Separation) will be impossible to replacPr

[theoldwizard]

triky66 wrote:
and he isn't that heavy of a drummer (where's the double-bass?).

Underoath is not that kind of band anymore...when they still had Dallas Taylor they were heavier, the music was way different, and Aaron was crazy on the drums (listen to "Giving Up Hurts the Most" to see what I mean).

[DeLongeFan182]

Well **** that shit then, i'm not listening to them anymore

[Mr Milkdud12]

UO has gone through changes before. (Dallas Taylor and his deathcore style) and they came back stronger than ever. UO will be back. Adn never ever say R.I.P Underoath. Never

[FRACTUREDx2]

DO ONE LAST TOUR!!!

[MAXPAYNE4664]

Define The Great Line is one of my favorite albums. It's going to be hard replacing Aaron. I really like his drumming style and vocals.

[[x]Huffy[x]]

I wonder if he'll join Maylene and the Sons Of Disaster. Lolololololol

[The Spoon]

I love their last three albums, but when you think of Underoath, you think of Aaron. He was unique, and if underoath wants to stay alive, they better find someone just as unique.

[Adam124]

I'm genuinely shocked..

I can't imagine Underoath without him

[The Two]

this is a huge bummer he wasnt all the band since spencer chamberlain is a great vocalist but they are going to sound different with out him i hope the new album is a good evolution though

[GeekInThePink]

Aborticide1986 wrote:

triky66 wrote:Cheer up boys, your makeup is running.

This.

Underoath =/= Emo

I'm aware of the Foo Fighters reference.

[blankrecord]

NOOOOO....this news has put a damper on my day

[aCloudConnected]

This is disapointing.

I'm really surprised to see one comment that shows negativity towards the band. I figured the first comment would be by a user named something like Iron666Maidallica666 saying "who cares they suked neway"

[myownenemy]

The Spoon wrote:
when you think of Underoath, you think of Aaron. He was unique, and if underoath wants to stay alive, they better find someone just as unique.

this. Pr

[skilletfan17]

"it will in no way effect..." lol, it's affect, not effect
Im not a big fan of underoath, but I did really like some of their singles that had a lot of aaron's singing on them and this could lead to their descend musically but time will tell...best wishes

[sick-kid-lee]

but why did he leave.. as far as i can see he was pretty good for them, was it personal?

[Human371]

WTF! nooooo I just heard the new live disc and was super pumped for the new cd... aaron will be tough if not impossible to replace...plus he was the last original member

[TheBrownPenguin]

Aaron was the heart of the band at least in my eyes. He probably wants to go into music that expresses his talents and isnt just heavy for the sake of being heavy. Their last cd was in no way reinventive and was pretty bland compared to their other cds. Im biased cuz I thought that UO has been goin down hill for a couple of years but im excited to see what he will do next

[shut_up_n00b]

TheBrownPenguin wrote:

Aaron was the heart of the band at least in my eyes. He probably wants to go into music that expresses his talents and isnt just heavy for the sake of being heavy. Their last cd was in no way reinventive and was pretty bland compared to their other cds. Im biased cuz I thought that UO has been goin down hill for a couple of years but im excited to see what he will do next

Their last effort was probably their best. They defined a unique sound.

[fxt_fella]

Finding a new drummer won't be hard at all. After all, Aaron has had to leave tours due to sickness before and they've managed quite fine.

However, I think it will be his songwriting and singing that they miss the most. Tim will be OK filling in but he doesn't have the voice that Aaron does.

Maybe they can just do what they did when Dallas left and not play stuff from the older periods of the band.

[GuitarSymphony]

I like this?

[Fraydawg]

This is very sad. Just missed out on my only chance to see the best version of this band. He wrote most of the songs too.

[ScorianVaseras]

I love when well-known bands can't proofread their own statements.

[ordinary_story]

Sucks...atleast THe ALmost is enjoyable..

[Hearshot Kid94]

Ahh! No! I just can't seem to think about Underoath without Aaron. His vocals were pretty much the reason I started listening to the band. I just thought that it was like the coolest thing, haha.
But I really hope he's doing something after this. In my opinion, Aaron Gillespie IS Underoath.

[wongacaster]

Comeback Kiddd wrote:

isnt aaron joining a band with craig(chiodos) and pete wents(fall out boy)?

I heard this too, wondering if its true.
Hoping it is!

[kotah_777]

Dude this completely blows Aaron is the core of Underoath they were the first metalcore band I ever listened to and I own all there albums I sure am going to miss that kick-a drumming and vocals.

[triky66]

GeekInThePink wrote:

Aborticide1986 wrote:

triky66 wrote:Cheer up boys, your makeup is running.

This.

Underoath =/= Emo

I'm aware of the Foo Fighters reference.

I thought the reference would be fitting. The band is still going to go on and play their style of preachy-heavy (some kind of "core") music, the severance was done in positivity, and the only thing they need to work on now is the void that is going to be left where Gillepsie's vocals were. The drums shouldn't be too hard to replace.

[guitar_freak91]

i do believe that their one album name is fitting for this situation.

"The Changing of Times"

[Gu!TaR PRo]

I just died inside =(..

[dannymyboy]

well there goes the best band ever

[Violent_Angel15]

The last paragraph brings light to it that makes it less WOAH.....but Aaron is the founder of the band! Dallas leaving is one this, but this tops it! I mean it's REALLY not gonna be UnderOath without him and it makes me loose interest in the band, but who knows, maybe the next album will be amazing.

[gareno]

the only thing i ever liked about this band is the guitar solo in "the last"

[Human371]

fxt_fella wrote:

Finding a new drummer won't be hard at all. After all, Aaron has had to leave tours due to sickness before and they've managed quite fine.

However, I think it will be his songwriting and singing that they miss the most. Tim will be OK filling in but he doesn't have the voice that Aaron does.

Maybe they can just do what they did when Dallas left and not play stuff from the older periods of the band.

That would really suck... i actually wish they would do when the sun sleeps at a show...the crowd would go nuts! but yeah, when they didnt have aaron for tours, tim and spencer did his parts. Tim will have to step it up a little but spencer is stronger on each release. He can really help get the slack.

[mister alex]

Daniel Davison is replacing Aaron, but i'm assuming that Tim is probably taking over Aarons vocals :\ even though Aaron is technically the last original member, i like to think of Chris as an original, seeing how hes been the only one to play keys.

[mister alex]

oh and in case u didnt know, Daniel was one of the creators and original drummer of Norma Jean.

[dec0mposed]

well, best of luck to underoath. Kick ass band, loved every album they came out with. I'm interested to see future albums they come out with. I really do hope they don't go to an all scream band, it wouldn't be the same. They need those beautiful tones over those grungy screams of spencers.

[guitartabman999]

oh my gosh this is terrible. It's killing. Aaron was my favorite drummer out of anybody. and now he's gone and he was the only member who was in the band from the very start. this sucks.....

[metaldrummer213]

this suks, underoath was lyk perfect, i thort theyd b togetha 4eva to b honest, they seemed made for each otha. the next album will be lackng without him 4 sua

[babyboi]

WTF aaron was the shit he made the band with his vocal's and drumming no body on earth can replace him(unless they get me) but intill then this ****ing sucks eggs!!!

[babyboi]

FUCKKKKinsssss

[babyboi]

babyboi wrote:

WTF aaron was the shit he made the band with his vocal's and drumming no body on earth can replace him(unless they get me) but intill then this ****ing sucks eggs!!!

[Ortizsensei]

This is some serious bull! UO is gonna have a hard time replacing aaron, he was not only a great drummer and songwriter, but he WAS the voice of this band. UO mite as well call it quits now, or at least change their name.
PS: Does anyone else think he maybe alluded to his departure in desperate times, desperate measures ("This may be my last one, its gonna be good and hard...") or is this just me???

[johnhimura]

HEY!! your no underoath!! change your fckin name!!! dont take the name of a cool band!! u suck!!!!!