Pre-order the vinyl reissue set of Glassjaw’s first two albums + new live album with exclusive packaging in our shop.

Glassjaw‘s 2000 debut album Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Silence turned 20 in May 2020, when global lockdown prevented the band from properly celebrating, and their sophomore album Worship and Tribute turns 20 in 2022, so the band will be doing one big celebration for both albums’ anniversaries next year. As mentioned, that includes a limited color vinyl reissue set with EYEWTKAS on cyan vinyl, W&T on magenta, and the new 2011-recorded live album Live At The Forum on yellow. Glassjaw will also be doing a tour where they’ll perform both albums in full.

Pre-orders for the three-piece vinyl set (which is not being sold separately) are up now, and the standard vinyl packaging version is only available in our stores. The set is also only available to ticket-buyers for the upcoming tour, and ticket-holders will pick up their purchased vinyl at the show they attend. Ticket links for all tour dates are listed at the bottom of this post.

In honor of the celebration, we spoke to a few different musicians about their experiences with the first two Glassjaw albums, including one musician who helped pave the way for Glassjaw, a very close peer of the band, and a couple musicians who grew up listening to Glassjaw and later formed great bands of their own. Read on for what each one had to say…

Walter Schreifels (Quicksand, Gorilla Biscuits, Rival Schools, etc)

Glassjaw’s aptly titled Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Silence is a soundtrack to soothe the lonely soul, torn between hope and despair, faith and deceit, the silence can be deafening and this record is for you. As they seamlessly swing from the ultra heavy to the eternal lightness of being, these songs morph into an unfiltered truth telling voice inside your head, where it’s normal to completely break down and lay your soul to bare.

Charged by vocalist Daryl Palumbo’s electric performance the album takes off with the blistering panic attack of “Pretty Lush,” setting the tone early with unhinged verses offset by heartfelt melodies in the choruses. Meanwhile, the bludgeoning guitar interplay of Justin Beck and Todd Weinstock grab the listener by the throat only to float downstream to cascading sonic landscapes that would not be out of place on a Cocteau Twins record.

Drummer Sam Siegler provides the pulsing kick drum at the center of much of the record, powering songs “Siberian Kiss,” “Hurting And Shoving,” “Motel Of The White Locust” with rapid fire fills ready to elevate the transitions at any turn. Perhaps Glassjaw’s most secret weapon is bassist Manuel Carrero and his low key ability to switch from supporting presence to front and center featured player in an instant, his lyrical style is enough to carry the song whenever called to do so.

What strikes most about this album is not only the musical dexterity of the players but the deep emotional range of the songs. Contrast the brooding rumble of “When Eight Becomes Two Zeroes” to the post hardcore angst of “Babe” and you can get an idea of how deep the bench truly is. After getting pummeled across the room by “Lovebites And Razorlines” you might want to bathe in the calming waters of “Her Middle Name Was Boom” in all its transcendent glory. There are worlds within worlds to be discovered.

Much credit is also due producer Ross Robinson, known at the time for his work with Korn and Limp Bizkit. Robinson does a spectacular job of capturing the fiery feel of a live album deftly balanced by subtle mic placements, sweeping guitar pans and fourth wall breaking out takes to keep it intimate and fun. The production style remains faithful to the rawness that initially got Glassjaw noticed while encouraging the artfulness that would ultimately set them apart from their peers.

It’s rare that a band makes their first record with this level of confidence and quality that it would already sound like their third. Twenty years on and Everything You Need To Know About Silence maintains that timeless quality that calls back for repeated listens continues to be a treasure for new fans to discover. Play it loud.

Vinnie Caruana (The Movielife, I Am The Avalanche, etc)

I have a vivid memory of sitting in my car with Daryl in front of my parents’ house and listening to the demos for EYEWTKAS. Our whole crew knew something special was about to happen. Shows used to be our friends up front straight ruining the show for everyone. Young rascals. That record came out, everything changed. The world took notice.

Michael York (Pianos Become The Teeth)

It’s surreal to me that so many years have passed since so many seminal records of my youth have been released. Glassjaw is one of those bands that was hard to classify. They were punk but had an avant-garde side that many punk bands didn’t. They were as brash as many hardcore bands but had a depth to them that many bands couldn’t achieve. Some of it tiptoed into noise? I am always so impressed with musicians that take their instruments and push them into a realm where they no longer resemble what they should. Justin Beck plays guitar unlike any other guitar player on earth. It’s like a vocalist with strings. It’s rare when any band can truly reinvent themselves every time they release something and Glassjaw did just that. Still to this day I don’t know what you would classify them as. “Cosmopolitan Blood Loss” felt catchier than anything else that was on the radio but still couldn’t be called just a “rock” song. “Ape Dos Mil” proved that this band wrote music that was equally as deep and cerebral as Daryl Palumbo’s vocals. They are a force to be reckoned with. Still a bucket list band that I would love to tour/play with.

Chris Teti (The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die)

Worship and Tribute is a record that taught me that dissonance and noise can be a critical songwriting tool. As much as it may feel random and chaotic, everything exists for a specific reason to serve the song. I love that a clean/atmospheric guitar focused track such as “Must’ve Run All Day” can exist right between “Pink Roses” and “Stuck Pig” without feeling forced on the LP.

The album was absolutely a gateway into me finding bands such as Blood Brothers, Dredg, and Sparta. I admittedly wrote off this album for nearly ten years, having over-listened to it as a teen. Oddly enough in that time I got really into the Coloring Book and Our Color Green EPs, and their previous band Sons of Abraham.

Thankfully the time away let me appreciate it again with a fresh perspective on the music and immediately pick out all the elements that influenced my music taste years later.

Pre-order the new Glassjaw vinyl set here. Tour dates, ticket links, and a mock-up of the colored vinyl below.

Glassjaw — 2022 Tour Dates
03-02-22 – 1720 Los Angeles, CA – eyewtkas (sold out)
03-03-22 – 1720 Los Angeles, CA – w&t (sold out)
03-04-22 – Great American Music Hall San Francisco, CA – eyewtkas (tickets)
03-05-22 – Great American Music Hall San Francisco, CA – w&t (sold out)
03-06-22 – The Glass House Pomona, CA – eyewtkas + w&t (tickets)
03-08-22 – The Summit Denver, CO – eyewtkas + w&t (tickets)
03-10-22 – Vibes Event Center San Antonio, TX – eyewtkas + w&t (tickets)
03-11-22 – Mohawk Austin, TX – eyewtkas (tickets)
03-12-22 – Mohawk Austin, TX – w&t (tickets)
03-14-22 – Masquerade – Heaven Atlanta, GA- eyewtkas + w&t (tickets)
03-16-22 – Concord Music Hall Chicago, IL – eyewtkas + w&t (tickets)
03-18-22 – Starland Ballroom Sayreville, NJ – eyewtkas + w&t (tickets)
03-19-22 – The Palladium Worcester, MA – eyewtkas + w&t (tickets)
03-20-22 – Fillmore Silver Springs, MD – eyewtkas + w&t (tickets)
03-21-22 – Union Transfer Philadelphia, PA – eyewtkas + w&t (tickets)
03-23-22 – Warsaw Brooklyn, NY – eyewtkas (tickets)
03-24-22 – Warsaw Brooklyn, NY – w&t (tickets)
03-25-22 – The Paramount Huntington, NY – eyewtkas (tickets)
03-26-22 – The Paramount Huntington, NY – w&t (tickets)
05-27-22 – O2 Forum London, UK – eyewtkas (tickets)
05-28-22 – O2 Forum London, UK – w&t (tickets)

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