I met Underoath frontman Spencer Chamberlain about a month ago when I was DJ'ing at a bar in downtown St. Pete and we struck up a conversation after I played a song by Helmet. Since then, every once in a while we'd see each other out, make friendly small talk and carry on with our respective nights. He was always welcoming and modest, and when I finally asked him about doing an interview, he was more than willing to participate. It ended up being a real treat. [All photos of Chamberlain by Mike Wilson, from their November 2010 and November 2009 shows.]
What led you to becoming the vocalist of Underoath back in 2003?
Well back in the day, I was in a different band touring and playing a lot of shows with Underoath. We all became good friends and prior to joining the band I actually moved in with Chris (the keyboard player). After a while they approached me to join the band 'cause they were parting ways with Dallas. At first I wasn’t too sure, hearing the demo's they'd been working on and being in a band with my brother, I felt obligated to stick by his side. A month or so later, my brother took me out to lunch and told me I should join Underoath, that he didn’t want me to pass up a good opportunity. The rest is history; after a few practices and some shows, we wrote and record and over eight years later here I am, haha.
How important was it for you to emulate Dallas Taylor … or did you go into it with a clear head concerning your vocal style?
Umm, it wasn't really that important. It was definitely a little strange being in a band where I was “the new guy.” I kinda did what I thought they wanted on the first record. After that, though, I was defiantly doing it my way, from Define The Great Line on, I was finally comfortable.
This article appears in Mar 31 – Apr 6, 2011.