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Saint Asonia

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Saint Asonia
Saint Asonia performing at Rock on the Range 2015
Saint Asonia performing at Rock on the Range 2015
Background information
OriginToronto, Ontario, Canada
Genres
Years active2015–2024 (on hiatus)
Labels
Spinoff of
Members
Past members
Websitesaintasonia.com

Saint Asonia (stylized as SΔINT ΔSONIΔ) is a Canadian-American rock supergroup consisting of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Gontier, lead guitarist Mike Mushok, bassist and backing vocalist Cale Gontier, and drummer Cody Watkins. In 2017, the band's original drummer, Rich Beddoe, left the band and was replaced by Mushok's Staind bandmate Sal Giancarelli, and one year later bassist and backing vocalist Corey Lowery left the band to join Seether and his place was taken by Gontier's cousin Cale Gontier. The band formed in Toronto, Canada in 2015 after Gontier's departure from Three Days Grace in 2013. Their second studio album, titled Flawed Design, was released on October 25, 2019. On January 26, 2020, Art of Dying drummer Cody Watkins became the new drummer for Saint Asonia replacing Sal Giancarelli.

History

[edit]

Formation and self-titled album (2015–2018)

[edit]

In April 2014, Staind guitarist Mike Mushok and ex-Three Days Grace singer Adam Gontier began writing songs together, without the intention of creating a band.[1] They ended up writing 11-12 tracks and were impressed with what they had written. They recorded a three-song demo and garnered the interest of RCA Records.[1] The duo later enlisted former Finger Eleven drummer Rich Beddoe, and former Dark New Day bassist Corey Lowery to complete their lineup.[2] The band released their first teaser early May 2015, which featured the fact that "25 Top Ten Rock Singles" were shared between each member, 17 of which are number ones, and teased the band's first single, logo and clips of the band.[3] On May 15, 2015, the group released their debut single "Better Place".[4] They made their debut live performance at Rock on the Range as the opening act for the main stage on May 16, and were billed as a special guest.[5] When asked about the title of the band, Gontier stated that they are "...more like refugees that just hit it off creatively."[4]

In June 2015, the band announced that their debut self-titled album would be released on July 31 that same year via RCA Records featuring 11 tracks.[1] Johnny K was secured as the producer for their debut album.[4] The album's lead single, "Better Place", reached the US Mainstream Rock chart and the Canada Rock chart at number eight and number nine respectively.[6][7] The band premiered a new track titled, "Blow Me Wide Open", on June 29.[8] The album's second single "Let Me Live My Life" was released on July 17, 2015.[9] Their debut self-titled album peaked at number 29 on the Billboard 200 and sold 13,000 copies in its first week.[10] The album also topped the US Top Hard Rock Albums chart.[10] Saint Asonia embarked on a headlining tour in August 2015 in support of the album.[1] They also joined Seether in a fall 2015 tour.[11] In February 2016, Saint Asonia joined the first part of the 2016 Disturbed tour, as an opening act.[12]

Guitarist Mike Mushok, 2015

On April 29, 2016, Saint Asonia released a cover of the Phil Collins song, "I Don't Care Anymore" on their YouTube channel,[13] which was later released in the iTunes Store on May 6, 2016.[14]

On June 5, 2017, drummer Rich Beddoe confirmed that he had left Saint Asonia on good terms to do other things.[15] On July 12, 2017, the band played their first show with Mike Mushok's former Staind bandmate Sal Giancarelli on drums.[citation needed] Lowery departed the band during the summer of 2018 to join Seether full-time and was replaced by Art of Dying bassist and Gontier's cousin Cale Gontier.[16]

Flawed Design, Introvert/Extrovert and hiatus (2019–2024)

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On February 21, 2019, Saint Asonia announced that they signed with Spinefarm Records and that a follow-up album to their first album was in the works.[17] The group began recording their second studio album in 2019 with producer Brian Sperber.[16]

On July 24, 2019, the band revealed their new single "The Hunted" featuring Sully Erna. The song serves as the lead single from their second studio album Flawed Design.[18] On September 20, 2019, Saint Asonia released a new track, "Beast" and announced the release date of the album.[19] Flawed Design was officially released on October 25, 2019.[20] The album peaked at number 171 on the Billboard 200.[21] On January 26, 2020, it was announced that Art of Dying drummer Cody Watkins had joined the band as their new drummer replacing Giancarelli.[22] The group played three shows in Canada in March 2020 with The Standstills joining them.[23] The band was set to open for Alter Bridge on their Walk the Sky tour in the spring of 2020, as well as Breaking Benjamin on their summer 2020 tour, but due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, their tour with Alter Bridge was postponed and their tour with Breaking Bejamin was cancelled.[24][25]

On November 18, 2021, the band released a cover of "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd.[26] On April 19, 2022, the band teased a new single on their Twitter account with an image taken from the new music video, along with the lyrics "We've been drowning for far too long."[27] The group premiered the new single on May 6, 2022, titled, "Above It All".[28] Along with this release, they announced an EP titled, Introvert, which was released on July 1, 2022.[28] The group announced another EP, Extrovert that was released on November 18, 2022. In addition, the band released the lead single "Wolf".[29] The band released both EPs physically as Introvert/Extrovert with bonus tracks on December 9, 2022.[29] They joined Theory of a Deadman and Skillet on the Rock Resurrection tour from February to March 2023.[30] A fall leg of the tour was later announced with the group re-joining them.[31] The band also embarked on the Devastate Tour in May.[32] In November 2023, the band released a new version of "Wolf", featuring John Cooper of Skillet.[33] In December 2023, Gontier was featured on Thousand Foot Krutch's 2023 version of their single, "Let the Sparks Fly".[34]

The band joined Black Stone Cherry on a US co-headlining tour from February to March 2024.[35] In July 2024, it was announced that the group was joining Theory of a Deadman on their Unplugged Tour in October and November.[36] However, on September 13, 2024, the group dropped out of the tour citing "personal matters."[37] Shortly after, on October 3, Gontier returned to Three Days Grace full-time, with Matt Walst (who replaced him in 2013) remaining a lead vocalist as well.[38] Saint Asonia promptly announced a temporary hiatus and that they would be back soon.[39]

Musical styles and influences

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Their music has been described as post-grunge,[40][41] hard rock,[42][43][44] alternative metal[5][44] and nu metal.[42] Their debut studio album has been described as post-grunge and hard rock, blended with "catchy vocal melodies."[45] The album was compared to their peers,[46] including Filter and Nickelback.[40] Their second studio album Flawed Design, has been described as alternative rock.[47] The album's material was inspired by Gord Downie, Chris Cornell and Chester Bennington.[48] The band's EP, Extrovert focuses on hooky and melodic riffs,[44] and has been described as alternative rock.[49]

Band members

[edit]

Timeline

Discography

[edit]
Saint Asonia discography
Studio albums2
Compilation albums1
Singles9
Music videos6

Studio albums

[edit]
List of studio albums, with selected chart positions
Title Details Peak chart positions Sales
CAN
[51] 		US
[21] 		US
Alt.
[52] 		US
Hard
Rock
[10]
Saint Asonia 9 29 2 1
Flawed Design 68 171 14 7

Compilation albums

[edit]
List of compilation albums with selected details
Title Album details
Introvert/Extrovert

Extended plays

[edit]
List of extended plays with selected details
Title EP details
Introvert
Extrovert

Singles

[edit]
List of singles, with selected chart positions
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
CAN
Rock
[7] 		CIS
[54] 		US
Main.
[6] 		US
Rock
[55]
"Better Place"[4] 2015 9 247 8 31 Saint Asonia
"Let Me Live My Life" 23 — 10 33
"The Hunted"
(featuring Sully Erna) 		2019 43 — 7 40 Flawed Design
"Blind" 2020 — — 22 —
"Ghost" — — — —
"Above It All" 2022 34 — 21 — Introvert/Extrovert
"Devastate" 2023 35 — 22 —
"Let the Sparks Fly"[56]
(with Thousand Foot Krutch) 		— — — — The End is Where We Begin: Reignited
"Wolf"
(original or featuring John Cooper) 		2024 — — 21 — Introvert/Extrovert
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart.

Promotional singles

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Title Year Album
"Blow Me Wide Open"[8] 2015 Saint Asonia
"Fairy Tale"[57]
"Trying to Catch Up with the World"[58]
"I Don't Care Anymore"[14] 2016 —
"Beast"[19] 2019 Flawed Design
"This August Day"[59]
"Blinding Lights"[26] 2021 Introvert/Extrovert
"Better Late Than Never"[60] 2022
"Chasing the Light"[61]

Music videos

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Title Year Album Director(s)
"Better Place"[62] 2015 Saint Asonia P. R. Brown and Adam Gontier
"Fairy Tale"[63] 2017 Un­known
"The Hunted" 2019 Flawed Design P. R. Brown
"Ghost" 2020 Un­known
"Above It All" 2022 Introvert/Extrovert Justin Reich
"Devastate" 2023
"Wolf" 2024

Awards

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Loudwire Music Awards

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2015 Saint Asonia Best New Artist of 2015 Won[64]

Canadian Radio Music Awards

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2016 "Better Place" Best New Group or Solo Artist: Mainstream Rock Nominated[65]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d Graff, Gary (June 18, 2015). "Saint Asonia Announces Debut Album Release Date: Exclusive". Billboard. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
  2. ^ James Christopher Monger. "Saint Asonia Biography by James Christopher Monger". AllMusic. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  3. ^ Childers, Chad (May 7, 2015). "Is Saint Asonia Rock's Next Supergroup?". Loudwire. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  4. ^ a b c d Childers, Chad (May 15, 2015). "Saint Asonia Reveal Official Lineup, Lead Single 'Better Place'". Loudwire. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  5. ^ a b Daly, Joe. "Rock on the Range 2015 Day Two". Metal Hammer. TeamRock. Archived from the original on May 19, 2015. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Saint Asonia Chart History: Mainstream Rock". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 5, 2019. Retrieved August 7, 2019.
  7. ^ a b "Saint Asonia Chart History: Canada Rock". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 5, 2019. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  8. ^ a b Bowar, Chad (June 29, 2015). "Saint Asonia Unleash New Single 'Blow Me Wide Open'". Loudwire. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
  9. ^ Childers, Chad (July 17, 2015). "Saint Asonia Reveal 'Let Me Live My Life' Lyric Video". Loudwire. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  10. ^ a b c d Peak position for Saint Asonia albums on the Hard Rock Albums Chart:
  11. ^ Erickson, Anne (August 3, 2015). "Seether And Saint Asonia Touring Together". Audioinkradio.com. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  12. ^ DiVita, Joe (November 24, 2015). "Disturbed Announce 2016 Canadian Tour With Saint Asonia + Age of Days". Loudwire. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  13. ^ "Saint Asonia - I Don't Care Anymore (Audio)". YouTube. April 29, 2016. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  14. ^ a b "I Don't Care Anymore - Single by Saint Asonia on Apple Music". Apple Music. May 6, 2016. Retrieved June 7, 2016.
  15. ^ "Rich Beddoe on Instagram". Instagram. June 5, 2017. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  16. ^ a b DiVita, Joe (February 21, 2019). "Staind and Three Days Grace Members Recording Second Saint Asonia Album". Loudwire. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  17. ^ "Saint Asonia Sign With Spinefarm". Music Mayhem. February 21, 2019. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  18. ^ Childers, Chad (July 24, 2019). "Saint Asonia Announce Flawed Design Album Release Sully Erna - Featuring Single The Hunted". Loudwire. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  19. ^ a b Childers, Chad (September 23, 2019). "Saint Asonia Unleash New Song 'Beast', Add New Video For 'The Hunted'". Loudwire. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
  20. ^ Childers, Chad (October 24, 2012). "Saint Asonia's New Album 'Flawed Design' Available Now". Loudwire. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  21. ^ a b "Saint Asonia Chart History: Billboard 200". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 2, 2020. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  22. ^ @cody_watkins_ (January 26, 2020). "I'm the drummer in @saintasonia now" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  23. ^ "Saint Asonia Announces Three Shows for Southern Ontario". Brave Words. February 14, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  24. ^ Childers, Chad (February 18, 2020). "Alter Bridge Postpone North American Headline Tour with Black Stone + Saint Asonia [Update]". Loudwire. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  25. ^ Childers, Chad (May 19, 2020). "Breaking Benjamin Cancel 2020 Tour Dates With Bush, Theory of a Deadman, Saint Asonia + Cory Marks". Loudwire. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  26. ^ a b "Saint Asonia Rock Up Cover of The Weeknd's 'Blinding Lights'". Loudwire. November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
  27. ^ "Saint Asonia on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  28. ^ a b Childers, Chad (May 6, 2022). "Saint Asonia Uplift Through Challenging Times With Anthemic 'Above it All', Announce New EP". Loudwire. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  29. ^ a b "Saint Asonia Feat. Staind Guitarist, Ex Three Days Grace: "Extrovert" EP Due In November". Blabbermouth.net. October 27, 2022. Retrieved October 27, 2022.
  30. ^ Childers, Chad (February 16, 2023). "Saint Asonia Name Mike Mushok Fill-In on Theory of a Deadman + Skillet Tour". Loudwire. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  31. ^ "Skillet And Theory of a Deadman Announce Fall 2023 Leg Of 'Rock Resurrection' Tour With Saint Asonia". Blabbermouth.net. June 13, 2023. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  32. ^ "Saint Asonia - The Devastate Tour". Exclaim!. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
  33. ^ "Saint Asonia Share Lyric Video for New Version 'Wolf' Featuring Skillet's John Cooper". Sonic Perspective. November 10, 2023. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  34. ^ "Let The Sparks Fly (feat. Adam Gontier of Saint Asonia) - Single by Thousand Foot Krutch". New Release Today. December 8, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
  35. ^ "Black Stone Cherry And Saint Asonia Announce February/March 2024 U.S. Co-Headlining Tour". Blabbermouth.net. December 5, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
  36. ^ Josh Johnson (July 15, 2024). "Theory of a Deadman Announces Unplugged Tour". ABC Audio. American Broadcasting Company. Retrieved October 8, 2024.
  37. ^ @saintasonia (September 13, 2024). "Hey everyone, Saint Asonia here! Due to personal matters, we regret to announce that we will be cancelling our November dates for the Theory of a Deadman tour" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  38. ^ Childers, Chad (October 3, 2024). "Three Days Grace Reunite with Gontier (with a twist)?". Loudwire. Retrieved October 8, 2024.
  39. ^ @saintasonia (October 3, 2024). "Thank you for all of your love and support. We will be back..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  40. ^ a b James Christopher Monger. "Saint Asonia - Saint Asonia". AllMusic.
  41. ^ "Saint Asonia lifts veil on 'Wolf' live music video". Rockfreaks.net. January 17, 2024. Retrieved July 13, 2024.
  42. ^ a b "Let There Be Rock School's Zombie Kids to rock PPL Park Saturday". Delaware County Daily Times. October 8, 2015. Archived from the original on March 20, 2016. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  43. ^ Taylor Markarian (June 27, 2022). "Saint Asonia - Introvert". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
  44. ^ a b c Samuel Stevens (November 16, 2022). "Saint Asonia - Extrovert EP". Crucial Rhythm. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
  45. ^ "Saint Asonia Review". Ultimate Guitar. Retrieved December 9, 2022.
  46. ^ Johan Wippsson (September 24, 2015). "Saint Asonia - Saint Asonia". Melodic. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
  47. ^ Simon K (October 26, 2019). "Review: Saint Asonia - Flawed Design". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  48. ^ "Saint Asonia on Major Influences That Shaped Their New Album". CityNews. October 15, 2019. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  49. ^ Dave Campbell (January 18, 2023). "Extrovert: Saint Asonia (Review)". Metal Temple. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  50. ^ "Saint Asonia on Twitter: "Hey everyone – we have a tour update for you all. Unfortunately, extenuating circumstances won't allow Mike Mushok to appear on this upcoming Rock Resurrection US tour with Theory of a Deadman and Skillet."". Twitter. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  51. ^ "Saint Asonia Chart History: Billboard Canadian Albums". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 5, 2019. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  52. ^ "Saint Asonia Chart History: Alternative Albums". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 5, 2019. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  53. ^ "Introvert/Extrovert by Saint Asonia". AllMusic. Retrieved December 9, 2022.
  54. ^ "Tophit Artist: Saint Asonia". Tophit. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
  55. ^ "Saint Asonia Chart History: Rock Airplay". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 5, 2019. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  56. ^ "Let the Sparks Fly - Single by Thousand Foot Krutch, Saint Asonia, Adam Gontier". Apple Music. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
  57. ^ "Fairy Tale - Single by Saint Asonia". Spotify. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  58. ^ "Trying to Catch Up with the World - Single by Saint Asonia". Spotify. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  59. ^ Childers, Chad (October 18, 2019). "Saint Asonia's Adam Gontier Reveals Regret Filled Inspiration For New Song 'This August Day'". Loudwire. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
  60. ^ "Saint Asonia shares new track "Better Late Than Never" off 'Introvert' EP". June 10, 2022. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  61. ^ "Saint Asonia Release Chasing The Light". Heavy. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
  62. ^ "Video Premiere: Saint Asonia's 'Better Place'". Blabbermouth.net. July 31, 2015. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
  63. ^ Aegerter, Karen (June 30, 2017). "Saint Asonia Take a Virtual Reality Trip With 'Fairytale' Video". Loudwire. Retrieved April 7, 2018.
  64. ^ "Saint Asonia Win Best New Artist in the 5th Annual Loudwire Music Awards". Loudwire. December 1, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2022.
  65. ^ "Canadian Radio Music Awards Winners Announced At CMW". fyimusicnews. May 8, 2016. Archived from the original on May 10, 2016. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
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