Seether

South Africa's Seether rank among the more persistent bands to emerge from the post-grunge and alternative-metal wave that defined the early 2000s, sustaining their original sound while still evolving enough to remain current. The band first reached mainstream audiences in 2002 through the active-rock single "Fine Again," then reinforced their standing near the forefront of the genre two years later via the worldwide success of "Broken," which included guest vocals by Amy Lee of Evanescence. Later releases such as 2005's "Remedy" and 2007's "Fake It" performed strongly on the charts despite the band's heavier style, and their albums likewise connected with listeners: Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray from 2011 and Isolate and Medicate from 2014 both climbed into the U.S. Top Five. Momentum carried into the following decade as the group issued Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum in 2020 and The Surface Seems So Far in 2024.

The lineup of Shaun Morgan on vocals and guitar, Dale Stewart on bass, John Humphrey on drums, and Corey Lowery on rhythm guitar first appeared in 1999 under the name Saron Gas, borrowed from the title of a sound-effects collection, and delivered their debut album, Fragile, the next year through Musketeer Records. In a nation where pop and Indigenous music dominate, Fragile still achieved notable chart placement. Wind-Up Records in the United States noticed the rising interest and signed the South African musicians, prompting a name change to Seether because sarin gas refers to a deadly nerve agent deployed in chemical warfare.

An EP and an appearance on the Ozzfest tour paved the way for the band's first full-length album in summer 2002. Released that August, Disclaimer contained the modern-rock track "Fine Again" and triggered an extended touring cycle during which Morgan's relationship with Evanescence's Amy Lee developed. Although the road work boosted Seether's commercial profile, it also postponed their return to the studio. Several songs, among them a duet rendition of "Broken" from Disclaimer featuring Lee's vocals, surfaced on the Punisher soundtrack in March 2004. Disclaimer II followed in June, combining new material with remixed or re-recorded versions of earlier tracks; the band treated the project as a chance to correct what they viewed as an inadequate mix on the original release while supplying fresh songs to bridge the gap to a proper successor.

That follow-up, Karma and Effect, arrived in May 2005 and entered the Top Ten, while the acoustic CD/DVD set One Cold Night came out in 2006. After Morgan's split from Amy Lee and a period in rehab, Seether resurfaced in 2007 with Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces, led by the sardonic single "Fake It." In 2009 the members paused touring to record their fifth album with producer Brendan O'Brien, then spent another year on the road before issuing Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray in 2011. Their sixth studio album, Isolate and Medicate, appeared in 2014 and topped Billboard's Top Rock, Alternative, and Hard Rock charts.

Seether unveiled "Let You Down" in February 2017 as the lead single from their seventh studio album, Poison the Parish, which followed in May. They supported the record across the United States, first with Clint Lowery of Sevendust on guitar and later with his brother Corey of Saint Asonia, who became the band's permanent second guitarist. Late in 2019 the group recorded its eighth album, Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum, in Nashville; the Latin title translates as "If you want peace, prepare for war." Released in 2020, the set yielded the active-rock successes "Dangerous" and "Bruised & Bloodied." In 2021 Seether issued the companion EP Wasteland: The Purgatory, and a deluxe edition of Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum appeared the following year. Two years after that, the band delivered its ninth full-length, The Surface Seems So Far, reinforcing its reputation for merging raw aggression with inward reflection.