18 years ago today, Canadian five-piece Silverstein released their sophomore album, Discovering The Waterfront. Featuring such enduring hits as “My Heroine” and “Smile In Your Sleep,” the LP launched a new era for the post-hardcore band – both creatively, as they shifted towards punk influences, and commercially, as they made their debut on the US charts.
Now, as the Juno-nominated band celebrates more than two decades together, the long out-of-print album will return to vinyl. In stores September 29 and available for pre-order today, Discovering The Waterfront can be found on classic black vinyl, while select retailers will offer the LP in a variety of limited-edition colors including brown (via Urban Outfitters), green (via Revolver), green and brown marble (via Craft Recordings), and blue marble (via the band’s official store).
The busy band is also gearing up for an extensive global tour this fall. Dates kick off October 14 and 15 in Shibuya City, Japan, with a two-night engagement at Cyclone. The band will continue through the end of the year with stops in Australia, the Philippines, and North America. Ahead of that, fans can catch Silverstein at Chicago’s Riot Fest (September 15) and the Is For Lovers Festival in Mansfield, MA (September 17).
Formed in 2000 in Burlington, Ontario, Silverstein has long been at the forefront of the hardcore scene, thanks to their dynamic mix of melody and aggression – all blended with the unabashed earnestness of emo. When the five-piece – whose name was inspired by a shared fondness of the poet Shel Silverstein – joined Victory Records in 2002, they had already released two EPs (Summer's Stellar Gaze and When The Shadows Beam) and established a strong regional fanbase. Their acclaimed full-length debut, When Broken Is Easily Fixed, followed a year later and offered a bold introduction to the band, thanks to tracks like “Giving Up” and “Smashed into Pieces.”
After more than a year of non-stop touring with bands like Rise Against, Bayside, and Hawthorne Heights, Silverstein was eager to begin work on their follow-up. Their first of several records with GRAMMY®-winning producer Cameron Webb (Motörhead, Kelly Clarkson, Disturbed), Discovering the Waterfront found the band broadening their sound, as they integrated the urgency of punk rock and the catharses of hardcore with lyrical songwriting and infectious melodies.
The result was a dynamic album that was chock-full of anthemic hooks, including the pop-punk opener “Your Sword versus. My Dagger,” “Call It Karma,” and single “Smile In Your Sleep.” Throughout, Shane Todd demonstrated the breadth of his vocal abilities – particularly in tracks like “My Heroine,” in which he guided listeners through a rollercoaster of emotional balladry and ferocious breakdowns. Todd also displayed his sensitive side in the reflective “Discovering The Waterfront,” which featured string arrangements and a performance by Yellowcard violinist, Sean Mackin.
The band’s stylistic shift paid off: Discovering The Waterfront was embraced by fans and served as their commercial breakthrough in the US. Marking Silverstein’s debut on the Billboard 200, the record peaked at No.34, while it landed at No.3 on the Independent Albums chart. By the year’s end, it had sold over 100,000 copies and ranked among the Top 50 best-selling Independent Albums of 2005. Today, those figures have more than quadrupled.
Today, Discovering the Waterfront remains the group’s highest-selling album and continues to be a perennial favorite among fans, while “My Heroine” endures as the band’s biggest hit. In 2015, as a testament to the album’s popularity, Silverstein embarked on a tenth-anniversary tour of the record, performing it in venues across North America, Europe, the UK, and Australia.
Speaking to the latest reissue, the band declares: “Our long out-of-print sophomore album, Discovering The Waterfront, has finally returned to vinyl! We still cherish this album and celebrate it any chance we get, so we’re glad our fans can pick up a new physical copy. We’ve been doing this for over 23 years, but never forget our roots. Whether you heard Discovering The Waterfront back then, or just discovered it now, we appreciate you listening.”
In the years following Discovering The Waterfront, Silverstein (whose current line-up includes vocalist Shane Told, guitarists Paul Marc Rousseau and Josh Bradford, bassist Billy Hamilton, and drummer Paul Koehler) has played thousands of shows around the world (including multiple mainstage runs with the Vans Warped Tour) and released over a dozen studio, live, and compilation albums, including the popular Arrivals & Departures (2007) and the Juno-nominated A Beautiful Place to Drown (2020). Last year, the band released their 11th studio album, Misery Made Me.
Preorder here.
Tracklisting:
Side A
“Your Sword Versus My Dagger”
“Smile In Your Sleep”
“The Ides Of March”
“Fist Wrapped In Blood”
“Discovering The Waterfront”
“Defend You”
Side B
“My Heroine”
“Always And Never”
“Already Dead”
“Three Hours Back”
“Call It Karma”
Tour dates:
September
15 – Chicago, IL – Riot Fest
17 – Mansfield, MA – Is For Lovers Festival
October
14-15 – Shibuya City, Japan – Cyclone
18-19 – Brisbane, Australia – The Fortitude Music Hall
21 – Moore Park, Australia – The Hordern Pavilion
24 – Adelaide, Australia – Hindley Street Music Hall
25-26 – Melbourne, Australia – Forum
28 – Northbridge, Australia – Metro City
29 – Fremantle, Australia – Metropolis Fremantle
31 – Quezon City, Philippines – SM Skydome
November
23 – Toronto, ON – The Opera House
25 – Montreal, QC – Club Soda
26 – Brooklyn, NY – Warsaw
28 – Philadelphia, PA – Theatre Of Living Arts
29 – Silver Spring, MD – The Fillmore
December
1 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade
2 – Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl Nashville
3 – St. Louis, MO – Red Flag
5 – Dallas, TX – Granada Theater
6 – San Antonio, TX – Vibes Event Center
8 – Tempe, AZ – Marquee Theatre
9 – Los Angeles, CA – The Regent Theater
10 – Anaheim, CA – House Of Blues Anaheim
12 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Depot
13 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre
15 – Des Moines, IA – Wooly’s
16 – Indianapolis, IN – The Vogue
17 – Detroit, MI – The Majestic Theatre
(Photo – Wyatt Clough)
