Anberlin — Anberlin

Anberlin came out of Winter Haven, Florida, in 2002 and spent the next decade turning Tooth & Nail rock into radio hits. They sold more than a million albums, took "Feel Good Drag" to No. 1 on the Alternative Songs chart, broke up in 2014, and came back four years later. In 2026 they have a new singer, a new album on the way and a long history behind them.

SaGoh 24/7

Singer Stephen Christian met bassist Deon Rexroat in high school, and they formed a punk band called SaGoh 24/7. Drummer Sean Hutson and guitarist Joseph Milligan joined. SaGoh released two albums on Rescue Records, Servants After God's Own Heart in 1999 and Then I Corrupt Youth in 2001. They sold about 1,300 copies. Hutson left to start a family, and Nathan Young took over on drums.

Christian, Milligan and Rexroat started a side project, and at Milligan's suggestion it moved toward rock. With leftover money from SaGoh shows, they recorded five demos with producer Matt Goldman and posted them online. Friends including Timmy McTague of Underoath encouraged them to sign with Tooth & Nail. They did.

Blueprints and Never Take Friendship Personal

Working with producer Aaron Sprinkle, who would make every Tooth & Nail record with them, the band released Blueprints for the Black Market in 2003, barely a year after forming. It didn't chart, but on the strength of "Readyfuels" it sold more than 60,000 copies.

Never Take Friendship Personal followed in early 2005. It reached No. 144 on the Billboard 200 and moved them closer to the mainstream. The singles were "A Day Late" and "Paperthin Hymn," which reached No. 38 on the Modern Rock chart. Nathan Strayer of The Mosaic had joined on rhythm guitar. We reviewed the album here.

Cities

Cities came out in early 2007, sold 34,000 copies in its first week and debuted at No. 19. It was their first top-20 album. Christian described the arc of the lyrics so far: the first album was "Man vs. World," the second "Man vs. Man," and Cities "Man vs. Self." Strayer left shortly before the release, and Christian McAlhaney, formerly of Acceptance, joined on guitar. Bayside, Meg & Dia and Jonezetta supported them on their first headlining tour. Our review of Cities is here.

New Surrender and the major label

On August 16, 2007, Anberlin signed with Universal Republic. New Surrender, made with producer Neal Avron, came out on September 30, 2008, sold 36,000 copies in its first week and entered at No. 13. A re-recorded "Feel Good Drag" went to No. 1 on the Alternative Songs chart after 29 weeks on it.

In 2009 they supported Taking Back Sunday, then toured Australia in August with The Academy Is...

Dark Is the Way, Light Is a Place

In March 2010 the band went to Blackbird Studios in Nashville with Grammy-winning producer Brendan O'Brien. Young said the album would be "less poppy" and "darker." Dark Is the Way, Light Is a Place came out on September 21, 2010, its title taken from Dylan Thomas' "Poem on His Birthday." The lead single was "Impossible." Before its release, Anberlin had sold more than a million albums. In 2011 they supported Thirty Seconds to Mars.

Vital, Devotion and goodbye

The band went back to Aaron Sprinkle for Vital, which Christian called "their most aggressive to date." It came out on October 16, 2012, and was reworked with three new songs as Devotion a year later.

On January 16, 2014, Anberlin announced that this would be their final year. They returned to Tooth & Nail for one last album, Lowborn, and played their final show on November 26, 2014, at the House of Blues in Orlando. In December 2017, former guitarist Nathan Strayer died at 34.

Coming back

In October 2018, Anberlin announced a reunion show in Tampa on Underoath's Erase Me tour, with a "secret show" at The Orpheum the night before. In May 2019 they played headlining shows across Australia, followed by a 22-date US tour. Young said at first there were no plans for a full comeback, but in May 2020 Christian said they were recording again.

"Two Graves," their first new song in over seven years, came out in September 2021. They signed with Equal Vision Records and released the Silverline EP on July 29, 2022. The Convinced EP followed in 2023, led by "Lacerate," the first song with McAlhaney on lead vocals.

A new voice

On October 10, 2023, Christian announced an indefinite hiatus from touring. Memphis May Fire singer Matty Mullins became the band's live vocalist. The 2024 album Vega combined the two EPs with two new songs sung by Mullins. The video for "Walk Alone" shows the band jokingly auditioning new singers, including Christian in disguise.

In March 2025 they released Nevertake, a re-recording of Never Take Friendship Personal with Mullins, for its twentieth anniversary. In spring 2026 they toured with Emery and Watashi Wa. On August 18, 2026, they announced their ninth album, Currency, and its lead single "Neverafter." That announcement confirmed that Christian had fully left and that Mullins was now the full-time singer.

The name

Christian has told many stories about where the name came from, and later admitted the band used to take turns making them up as a joke. He has said the real source is a background sound in Radiohead's "Everything in Its Right Place."

Why they matter

Anberlin started as two high school friends in a punk band whose first album was called Servants After God's Own Heart. They grew into a million-selling band that took the Tooth & Nail sound to No. 1 on alternative radio. Their fans have followed them through a breakup, a reunion and a change of singer. Twenty years after Never Take Friendship Personal, they went back and recorded the whole thing again.