The Almost

The Almost first surfaced toward the end of the 2000s as an emo-inflected alt-rock vehicle for Aaron Gillespie, the one-time drummer and sporadic frontman of Underoath, the Christian metalcore group he helped establish in 1998. Although Gillespie essentially handled every part on the project’s 2007 debut Southern Weather, later efforts Monster Monster and 2013’s Fear Inside Our Bones shifted the endeavor toward a genuine ensemble sound marked by greater collective input. After an extended pause the outfit resurfaced in 2019 with its fourth full-length, Fear Caller.

Inspired by Dave Grohl’s example of stepping away from the drum kit, the Florida-raised Gillespie—who moved to Salt Lake City in early 2007 after getting married—sought an alternate creative channel apart from his intense primary band. The material for Southern Weather was composed while Underoath tracked its widely praised 2006 album Define the Great Line and captured shortly thereafter; the resulting melodically focused record deliberately steered clear of that band’s metalcore aesthetic. Its lead track “Say It Sooner” even incorporated a rhythm-guitar approach modeled on Luther Perkins, Johnny Cash’s longtime collaborator. Although Gillespie performed every instrument on the album, issued jointly by Tooth & Nail and Virgin, he quickly assembled a touring lineup that included himself on vocals, guitarist Jay Vilardi, bassist Alex Aponte, and drummer Kenny Bozich.

For the follow-up Monster Monster, released in 2009 on Tooth & Nail, Gillespie deliberately shared songwriting duties and recorded alongside the full group, completing the transition from solo outlet to band proper. He formally exited Underoath in 2010 and issued a worship-oriented solo album under his own name the following year. Attention returned to the Almost for the 2013 long-player Fear Inside Our Bones, after which the project was shelved for several years while Gillespie pursued solo recordings and served as Paramore’s touring drummer. Six years after that previous release, the Almost returned in 2019 with Fear Caller.