Invitation to the Dance (album)
| Invitation to the Dance | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by 40 Below Summer | ||||
| Released | October 16, 2001 | |||
| Recorded | March - May 2001 | |||
| Studio | Cello Studios Sound City Studios |
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| Genre | Nu metal,alternative metal | |||
| Length | 46:05 | |||
| Label |
London-Sire (Original) Reprise/Warner Bros. (Current) |
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| Producer |
GGGarth Shawn Crahan Steven Richards |
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| 40 Below Summer chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
| Chronicles of Chaos |   |
| Rough Edge |  |
| Spirit of metal | |
| Sputnikmusic | |
Invitation to the Dance is the debut major label studio album by the American metal band 40 Below Summer. The album was released on October 16, 2001 via London-Sire Records. Two months after its release, the label went out of business, and the album was re-issued through Warner Music.
Formed in 1998, 40 Below Summer had made a name for themselves by performing heavily across their native New Jersey and New York. In late 2000, the band's self-released CD Side Show Freaks found its way to No Name Management (known for acts such as Slipknot and Mudvayne). After partnering with No Name, numerous record label showcases on both coasts followed, with up to fifteen prominent labels showing interest in the band. They eventually signed with Warner Music Group's London-Sire. In March 2001, 40 Below Summer travelled to Los Angeles to commence recording their major label debut with famed heavy metal producer GGGarth (Rage Against the Machine, Mudvayne, Kittie). Lead guitarist Jordan Plingos recalled "I think the first thing that we clicked with Garth about was that he was relaxed. He wasn't like, 'let's go, guys, let's go!' He was more like, 'get comfortable, get settled in.' His whole thing is bringing out the best in you, so pressuring you to do something doesn't help. He was all about us, which was amazing", while vocalist Max Illidge said "He’s a lot of fun. He’s crazy too. Definitely a crazy little fucker, but he’s a lot of fun and a very talented guy. He definitely helped unlock some doors inside of me."
No conceptual music videos ended up being made to promote Invitation to the Dance, in part due to issues with the band's troubled label London-Sire. Despite being one of the heavier songs on the album, "Falling Down" received moderate airplay, leading to it initially being considered. Max Illidge stated in 2002 "We could have made a video for it and maybe if the video was shocking enough it would have given us a bigger push, but London-Sire just decided to scrap "Falling Down" and go with "Wither Away" for the video. I mean we were literally going to leave in like a few days to shoot the video for ‘Wither Away" — en route to LA — we had the plane tickets and the actresses schedules and just all that, and we were about three days away from the day of shooting and we got the phone call that we weren’t doing it and they were going to wait until early next year, but we knew that they were folding. We are not ever going to get that video."
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Wikipedia