NORMA JEAN's explosive fourth album THE ANTI MOTHER--which Alternative Press magazine hailed as "...the best record of their career" (September 2008)--was just released last week on Seattle indie Solid State, debuting at #29 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums Chart, with over 16,000 copies sold in the first week alone. Critical reaction continues to pour in for the group. In the current Hails & Horns August cover story, writer Reyan Ali explains: "Whether you want to classify them as metalcore, hardcore, screamo or simply 'heavy,' NORMA JEAN will always remain a band more interested in chasing their own instincts and ideals than genre limitations, meshing a vicious crush of guitars with purposefully non-expository lyrics that rake deep into questions about personal and social insecurity." Revolver writer Tim Grierson claims that standout tracks "'Death of the Anti Mother,' 'Self-Employed Chemist,' and 'Vipers Snakes and Actors' have a swinging, furious urgency..." (September 2008). In the group's Alternative Press September feature story, writer Andy Kelham notes: "...amazing and potentially a standard-bearer for an entire genre, THE ANTI MOTHER is an unexpected record for Norma Jean: It's heavy without being dense; melodic, but not basely so...the crunching 'Opposite of Left and Wrong' (with Page Hamilton of Helmet) and the lush (Chino) Moreno collaboration 'Surrender Your Sons,' are not only musical firsts for the band but two signposts to their bright future..." Elsewhere Decibel magazine writer Jeanne Fury gave the album an 8-out-of-10 rating, "...with THE ANTI MOTHER, the band truly realized that they don't have to play into the hands of the brutal-is-better mentality in order to make heads roll. Just as important as the coveted hardcore breakdown is the tempered wind-up that precedes it, psychologically setting you up to blow your top. When that stuff hits, its like gorilla knuckles going through a concrete floor. You wanna get down? 'Self-Employed Chemist' is a frantic jig that sounds like a thousand rabid children hacking away at a piñata packed with explosives" (October 2008).

In other news, NORMA JEAN----CORY BRANDAN (lead vocals, guitars), SCOTTIE HENRY (guitars), JAKE SCHULTZ (bass), CHRIS DAY (guitars) and CHRIS RAINES (drums)--just shot a video for their debut single "Robots 3, Humans 0," now buzzing at commercial radio. The band picked Daniel Chestnut (Hurley Entertainment) to direct the conceptual video that delves into the song's themes of jealousy, confusion and rage. Expect to hear news of the video debut soon.

For more information on NORMA JEAN, visit www.normajeannoise.com and catch the group on the road in the following cities:

DATE CITY VENUE

Revelation Generation (Norma Jean w/Flyleaf, As I Lay Dying, Devil Wears Prada and August Burns Red)
Sat 8/30 Frenchtown, NJ Revelation Farms
Norma Jean Headlining Solid State Records' "The Anti Mother Tour" (w/Haste the Day, The Showdown, Mychildren Mybride, and Children 13:8)
Fri 10/3 Knoxville, TN Valarium
Sat 10/4 Nashville, TN Rocketown
Sun 10/5 Sauget, IL Pop's
Tue 10/7 Oklahoma City, OK Diamond Ballroom
Wed 10/8 Dallas, TX The Door
Thu 10/9 Houston, TX Meridian
Fri 10/10 San Antonio, TX White Rabbit
Sat 10/11 Odessa, TX Dos Amigos
Sun 10/12 Albuquerque, NM Sunshine Theater
Tue 10/14 Tucson, AZ Rialto Theatre
Wed 10/15 San Diego, CA Soma
Thu 10/16 Pomona, CA The Glasshouse
Fri 10/17 Ventura, CA Ventura Theatre
Sat 10/18 Santa Cruz, CA The Catalyst
Sun 10/19 Reno, NV The New Oasis
Tue 10/21 Portland, OR Hawthorne Theater
Wed 10/22 Seattle, WA El Corazon
Thu 10/23 Spokane, WA Knitting Factory
Fri 10/24 Boise, ID Knitting Factory
Sat 10/25 Salt Lake City, UT Avalon Theater
Sun 10/26 Engelwood, CO Gothic Theater
Norma Jean Headlining Solid State Records' "The Anti Mother Tour" (w/Haste the Day, The Showdown, MyChildren MyBride, and Oh, Sleeper)
Tue 10/28 Des Moines, IA People's Court
Wed 10/29 St. Paul, MN Station 4
Thu 10/30 Chicago, IL Metro
Fri 10/31 Louisville, KY Club Oasis
Sat 11/1 Pontiac, MI Clutch Cargo's
Sun 11/2 Cleveland, OH Peabody's Down Under
Tue 11/4 Buffalo, NY Xtreme Wheelz
Wed 11/5 Pittsburgh, PA Mr. Small's
Thu 11/6 Lancaster, PA Chameleon Club
Fri 11/7 Syracuse, NY Lost Horizon
Sat 11/8 Sayreville, NJ Starland Ballroom
Sun 11/9 Hartford, CT Webster Theatre
Tue 11/11 Baltimore, MD Rams Head Live
Wed 11/12 Norfolk, VA The Norva
Thu 11/13 Charlotte, NC Tremont Music Hall
Thu 11/14 Charleston, SC The Music Hall
Fri 11/15 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade

 

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