Atreyu’s 20th Anniversary Reissue of Suicide Notes and Butterfly Kisses

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Atreyu’s acclaimed debut, Suicide Notes and Butterfly Kisses, Craft Recordings announces a special slate of vinyl reissues. Click here to pre-order Suicide Notes and Butterfly Kisses on vinyl, or stream the album today. 

SIDE A
A Song for The Optimists
Dilated
Ain’t Love Grand
Living Each Day Like You’re Already Dead
Deanne The Arsonist
 
SIDE B
Someone’s Standing On My Chest
At Least I Know I’m A Sinner
Tulips Are Better
A Vampires Lament
Lip Gloss And Black

Named for the protagonist in Michael Ende’s The Neverending Story, Atreyu were formed in 1998. By the time they caught the attention of Victory Records in 2001, Atreyu had already released two EPs — the seven-trackVisionsin 1999 and the five-track Fractures in the Facade of Your Porcelain Beauty in early 2001. The latter release would lay the foundation for the metal band’s debut album, with early versions of the songs “Living Each Day Like You’re Already Dead,” “Someone’s Standing on My Chest,” and “Tulips Are Better.”

After signing to Victory, the band entered New Jersey’s Trax East studio with producer Eric Rachel (The Starting Line, The Black Dahlia Murder) to lay down the tracks for their full-length. In addition to re-imagining the three songs off Fractures in the Facade of Your Porcelain Beauty, Atreyu wrote a scorching collection of new material, deftly combining honest, reflective lyricism with the sounds of thrash, hardcore punk, and the New Wave of Swedish Death Metal. 

Among the highlights is the unrelenting “Living Each Day Like You’re Already Dead,” the cathartic “At Least I Know I’m a Sinner,” and the melodic first single, “Ain’t Love Grand,” which ruminates on the devastating pain of a breakup. “Lip Gloss and Black,” released as a follow-up single, showcases each of the band members’ prowess on their instruments – particularly lead guitarist Dan Jacobs, who channels ’80s guitar heroes in his opening riffs, and vocalist Brandon Saller, who shines through his breakneck drumming and his soaring, melodic vocals. The song – which features Atreyu’s trademark lyrics “Live, Love, Burn, Die” – was vital in bringing the five-piece mainstream attention, thanks in part to its sultry video, which aired in heavy rotation on MTV2’s Headbangers Ball and FuseTV’s Uranium.

Emotive, explosive, dynamic, and fearless, Suicide Notes and Butterfly Kisses was released in June 2002 and immediately captured the attention of the press. AllMusic called the record “Exquisitely crafted… An outstanding debut for a band that has its eyes set on the top of the heap.” Punknews.org hailed, “Atreyu accomplished what takes most bands years to do, particularly in this genre…. Perhaps the most impressive debut I ever remember hearing.” Lambgoat, meanwhile, declared Atreyu as “worthy of being placed on high as one of the best bands around.” Fans agreed wholeheartedly. Suicide Notes and Butterfly Kisses would go on to sell more than 240,000 copies worldwide, and, upon its reissue in 2004, landed in the Top 40 of Billboard’s Top Heatseekers and Top Independent Albums charts. Today, it is regarded as a defining album in the metalcore milieu.