Aaron Gillespie

Aaron Gillespie
RELATED TOPICS	Christian metal Underoath
SERMONS, ESSAYS AND OPINIONS
CONTENTS

Aaron Gillespie is part of the Metalcore band Underoath and a Emo band The Almost. Gillespie, a member of Underoath since its inception, has said that he is a Christian. People have questioned his faith, however, noting that the band Underoath has used God's name as swear words in some song.

Childhood

Gillespie was born in Clearwater, Florida and grew up in a devout Christian family. He attended public schools and was a member of the church in his youth. Gillespie's parents divorced when he was 18. As a young boy his family was very poor. Aaron's Father traded a sprinkler system installation for Aaron's first drum kit at the age of four. Aaron's father also had to make Aaron's first cymbals out of bent sheet metal.

Musical career

Gillespie's mother has an interest in music, and he was around music his "whole life". When Gillespie was 14, he was asked to join his current band, Underoath, after former guitarist Luke Morton's father witnessed Gillespie play the drums in church. In 2002 when The Changing of Times was released, Aaron started occasional harmonic vocals in Underoath. When Dallas left, Underoath went through a lot of changes in their style, and by 2004, when They're Only Chasing Safety was released, Aaron started singing harmonic vocals full-time and playing the drums at the same time. Aaron is the only member to feature on every Underoath recording to date.

Underoath's 2004 release They're Only Chasing Safety was, for the most part, written about Gillespie's end of a four year relationship. He told Alternative Press, "I think I would've died if we didn't write those songs. I thought I had ruined someone's life. It's hard to explain, but you can't just pretend that things are great and go on and get married."

Gillespie is also actively pursuing a Emo side-project called The Almost, in which he played all of the instruments, excluding bass in some songs.

Define the Great Line was certified Gold by the RIAA on November 11, 2006, representing 500,000 shipped units of the album. It is the second album in Tooth & Nail history to reach that distinction (the first being Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo by MxPx in 2000).

The Almost's debut album Southern Weather hit the U.S. Billboard charts at 39 with 29,000 copies sold. As of July 11, 2007, the album had sold 123,972 copies in the USA.

Marriage

Aaron married his wife Jamie Anne Robertson on November 25, 2006. All of the members of Underoath were the groomsmen at the wedding. The two now live in a house in Salt Lake City, although Aaron doesn't spend much time there due to the demanding tour life.

Links

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