BARONESS formed in 2003 in Savannah, GA, comprised of a group of friends who grew up together in Lexington, VA, a small town in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Shortly after their formation, the band released two EPs and a split EP with Unpersons entitled respectively, First, Second andA Grey Sigh in a Flower Husk. From their origin right through the release of these EPs, BARONESS toured non-stop throughout America and Europe, building up a steady underground fan base.
In late 2006, the band began working on their first proper full-length, and debut for Relapse, Red Album. Recorded by Philip Cope (Kylesa), the album was a big step forward from the band’s earlier material; they began to develop a sense of melody and song structure as a counter-balance to the EP’s brute intensity. The release of Red Album saw the band touring world-wide and year-round for the next two years. The record received high critical praise, eventually garnering the #1 Album-of-the-Year slot in Revolver Magazine.
In between tours, and exactly two years after writing Red Album, BARONESS returned to the studio to record a follow-up record. The band enlisted the help of Grammy-nominated engineer/producer John Congleton (Explosions in the Sky, St. Vincent, Black Mountain, etc.). In 2009, Relapse released Blue Record, another comprehensive step forward for the band’s ever-evolving sound. The record continued the band’s growing sense of melody while directing the focus to an “album-as-an-art-form” concept. Blue Record was named 2009’s Album-of-the-Year by Decibel Magazine, and made an impact on the Best-Of lists in publications as varied as Pitchfork, Village Voice, PopMatters, Revolver, Rock Sound and Metal Hammer.
BARONESS’ mission statement has always been simple: keep an open mind, confront challenges, avoid repetition and take the music to diverse audiences. BARONESS toured constantly and extensively for two years straight with Blue Record, sharing the stage with such bands as METALLICA, MASTODON, DEFTONES, and ISIS. The band also played a variety of festivals, including Coachella (US), Oya (Norway), Bonnaroo (US) and Soundwave (AUS).
BARONESS took the year off in 2011 for the first time in nearly a decade in order to focus on writing a new and more challenging third full-length. After a year of writing and refining, the band entered Water Music Studios in Hoboken, NJ with co-producer John Congleton to record their highly anticipated third full-length, Yellow & Green. Tracked in both Hoboken and Congleton’s own Elmwood Studio in Dallas, TX, the new full-length was released in July 2012 via Relapse Records and debuted at #30 on Billboard’s Top 200 Album chart. The double-album was dubbed a “thrilling hard-rock epic” by Rolling Stone, the New York Times said the 18-track release included “a grand sprawl of riffs and ruminations” and Artist Direct, after awarding the band “Rock Band of the Year” honors said “they epitomize the spirit of the greats like Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, while remaining wholly unique. It’s something we need more of. Baroness are everything that a rock band should be — and more.”
The band supported the album with a sold-out North American tour as direct support for Meshuggah and a main stage appearance at Metallica’s inaugural Orion Music + More Fest. In late July, they headed to Europe for a round of summer festival appearances and headlining dates which was tragically cut short due to a near fatal bus accident in Bath, England. The band and crew suffered a variety of injuries in the 30 foot plummet and have been at different stages of recovery since.
As the year came to a close, Baroness dominated year-end lists with Entertainment Weekly and Spin both naming Yellow & Green their #1 metal release of 2012 and iTunes awarding “Take My Bones Away” the distinction of best metal song of the year. Decibel (#2), Guitar World (#15), Loudwire (#4), Magnet (#12), Pitchfork (#3 on Metal Albums, #25 Best Albums of 2012), Revolver (#4), Stereogum (#18) and the Village Voice (#6) also gave the album top honors.
Internationally, the album fared similarly, receiving top honors from Terrorizer (#2), BBC Music (#13), Metal Hammer Germany (#4), Metal Hammer Norway (#4), Metal Hammer UK (#14), Close Up Sweden (#4) and Visions Germany (#4).
2013 is the year that Baroness will get back on their feet and come back stronger than ever. The band is planning a series of shows and festival appearances to show the world that even the worst of tragedies cannot hold them back.