Sleepwave

Three years after he took the stage at Soundwave as the frontman of Underoath, Chamberlain will make his return to Australia next year – this time with his new project, Sleepwave, and a fresh outlook on music.

“To gain it all, you have to risk everything, and a lot of times you don’t have to lose it all but I definitely did,” Chamberlain says. “For ten years I’d put all my chips in one basket and I had to taste dirt before I could stand up again. It’s very humbling and it teaches you a lot about who you are, learning how to start from the bottom again.”

The collapse of Underoath meant a long way to fall from grace, and Chamberlain learnt just how quickly everything can disappear. The moment that really highlighted his downfall was the night when, while sitting at his dining room table with his two gold records hanging on the wall, Chamberlain had to empty out his piggy bank to buy a 99-cent burger. It was the first time he’d eaten in two days.

“Being in the position that I was in, all the way to being homeless and flat broke – being a literally starving musician – makes you really appreciate the things that are to come and have already come to me at the beginning of Sleepwave.”

Sleepwave is not only a new musical project for Chamberlain, it’s a clean slate. The project began while he was still a part of Underoath as a way to let off steam and explore his creativity between tours. But what started out as a bit of fun between friends soon grew into a serious venture.

“I’ve always written music, since I was a little kid. I just started writing songs with my friend Stephen Bowman, and I’d do it when I came home from tour just for fun; we’d just pick up guitars and just make noise. Then when we learnt that Underoath was sadly going to call it quits, I remember getting on the phone with him and being like, ‘So you know those ideas we had? Let’s shape them up into songs.’ So I came into it with a different mentality and we sat down together in a different light.”

One listen to Sleepwave’s debut album, Broken Compass, and it’s hard to imagine the record was written by the same person who fronted a successful metal band. Chamberlain understands there will be fans who disagree with his new direction, but it’s something he accepted before he began this venture.

“I feel Underoath was a good ground to jump off of, because people are going to listen to what I have to say now if they liked what I used to say. But after spending ten years doing the same thing, why would I do it all over again?

“There are going to be haters because it’s not metal or hardcore or whatever you want to call Underoath, but why would I do Underoath Part Two with a new group of guys? That would just feel wrong to me. If I’m going to play Underoath’s style of music, I’m going to play that with the Underoath guys.”

Having already performed on two Soundwave tours and multiple Australian dates over the last decade, next year’s Soundwave will mark a return to Australian stages for Chamberlain. While he understands things are going to start slow for Sleepwave, he holds every hope that things will take off soon.

“I remember looking at the lineup and going, ‘Damn, I wish we were on that.’ As far as Underoath goes, they were some of my favourite tours we ever did. Australia has always been so good to me, so I’m hoping that it will continue with Sleepwave and us continuing to come back to Australia.

“Outside of America, Australia was the absolute hands down best country for Underoath to tour. I just can’t wait to start a new chapter with Sleepwave. It’s the start, so it’ll be a little smaller at first, but after coming back a couple of times I’m sure we’ll be great.”

Once a chapter has closed, it’s easy to look back on the past and pick out all your mistakes. After a decade touring the world in Underoath, and then watching the rug pulled from underneath him, having a chance at a fresh start is the only way for Chamberlain to move forward. And he’s ready to make up for missed opportunities.

“If I could go back and meet myself, I would tell him to try to get out more and appreciate things a little bit more, because you’re touring so much, you get comfortable. I felt like I had no time. I would tell myself to make sure I get up and go and look at some of the beautiful places that are right in front of my face.”

For ten years, Spencer Chamberlain stood at the helm of one of the biggest metalcore bands in the world. He’d helped create four albums, two of which went on to be certified gold, scored two Grammy nominations and amassed a legion of fans around the world. But at the end of 2013 all that came to a close, and suddenly Chamberlain was left starting again.