page_title: Shinedown
section_title: 2007–2010: The Sound of Madness
hierarchical_section_title: Shinedown / History / 2007–2010: The Sound of Madness
caption_attribution_description: Rock band Shinedown performing at a concert.
context_page_description: Shinedown is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida, formed by singer Brent Smith in 2001 after the dissolution of Dreve, his previous band. Smith, still under contract with record label Atlantic Records, recruited the band's original lineup of Jasin Todd as guitarist, Brad Stewart on bass, and Barry Kerch on drums. Consistent for the first two album cycles, a few lineup changes followed in the late 2000s, eventually stabilizing with Smith and Kerch alongside Zach Myers on guitar and Eric Bass on bass. The group has released six studio albums: Leave a Whisper, Us and Them, The Sound of Madness, Amaryllis, Threat to Survival, and Attention Attention. Shinedown has sold more than ten million records worldwide, and has had the most number one singles on the Billboard Mainstream Rock charts out of any band, with 16.
context_section_description: Work on a third studio album began in early 2007. While the record label requested an album to be created in six months, Smith declined, stating that he was not happy with the results of working under the time restraints on the last album, and wished to take his time on the album. The label agreed to this, ultimately allowing Smith to take eighteen months to prep the album. Part of the long development time was due to internal issues within band members; during this time, Smith fired both Stewart and Todd from the band. Smith let Stewart go due to disagreements with the direction of the band, feeling that Stewart was no longer happy or committed to the band. Todd was fired due to major disagreements with Smith, and personal problems that were getting in the way of the band. Then-touring guitarist, Zach Myers, later recounted that both Smith and Todd were going through significant substance abuse issues at the time with drugs and alcohol, which lead to much infighting between the two. The band almost broke up during the period, but Smith firing Todd and stopping his drug use helped eliminate the internal issues, and helped the band move forward.
  Smith spent much of 2007 writing new material with Rick Beato of Black Dog Sound Recording Studios in Stone Mountain, GA, for the third album. Sessions were prolific, with Smith writing over 60 songs during the period, though that he now lacked a guitarist and bassist was a constant concern. Smith recruited a number of studio musicians for its recording sessions; Dave Barrett contributed most of the album's guitars, Tim Pearce contributed some additional guitar, and Chris Chaney contributed most of the album's bass guitar. The rough demos were sent from the record label to music producer Rob Cavallo, who, upon hearing them, told Smith he wanted to produce the album.
  The final result, The Sound of Madness, was released on June 24, 2008. It debuted at number eight on the Billboard 200 top album charts, selling 50,000 copies in its opening week. In order to start touring in support of the album, Smith assembled a new official lineup for the band, consisting of Nick Perri of Silvertide on lead guitar, Eric Bass on bass guitar, and upgrading touring member, Zach Myers to a permanent rhythm guitarist position. Perri toured only briefly with the band in 2008, before leaving to pursue a solo career, a move Smith was fine with, as he felt the band operated better as a quartet, leaving Myers as the primary guitarist.
  Through multiple successful single releases, and extensive touring, the album ended up being the band's best-selling, staying on the Billboard 200 charts for 120 consecutive weeks, and eventually being certified double platinum in the United States, indicating two million units sold. Six singles were released from the album: "Devour", "Second Chance", "Sound of Madness", "If You Only Knew", "The Crow & the Butterfly", and "Diamond Eyes (Boom-Lay Boom-Lay Boom)"; each one topping a Billboard rock music chart. Of particular note was "Second Chance", which crossed over to the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 7, and eventually being certified triple platinum, indicating three million units of the single sold.
  The band, with its new lineup, once again toured extensively in support of the album release, spending over two years on live performances. Of note, the band headlined the "Carnival of Madness" tour, which involved larger, 10,000 capacity arena venues, and a later "Anything and Everything Tour," which involved acoustic performances in smaller venues and Q&A (question and answer) sessions with the crowd. Somewhere in the Stratosphere, a live album/DVD, was released in May 2011, documenting performances from both tours.
caption: Shinedown live in 2008.
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