Spiritbox: The Female-Fronted Act Bringing Metalcore to the Masses

What Genre Is Spiritbox?

Spiritbox is a metalcore band founded in 2017 that blends electronic elements with genres like progressive metal, djent, and deathcore to create their distinct style of technical instrumentals, brutal screams, and anthemic choruses. Spiritbox uses a versatile range of pop-influenced vocal hooks, extreme vocal styles, and heavy instrumentals to create their unique sound.

Who Are The Members of Spiritbox?

The band currently consists of lead vocalist Courtney LaPlante who is married to the band's Guitarist, Mike Stringer. All other members include Zev Rose (Drums), and Josh Gilbert (Bass).

Spiritbox's History

Around 2013, prior to Spiritbox, Canadian musicians Mike Stringer and Courtney Laplante were in the band iwrestledabearonce, a playfully experimental emo/metalcore act that was signed to Century Media Records.

By 2015, Courtney Laplante and Mike Stringer decided to leave iwrestledabearonce due to wanting to start their own band with a different creative direction. Mike Stringer said this in an interview with Revolver Magazine:

"I just want to write a song and not worry about how many notes I'm putting in. Before I was just so into shock value — how fast something could be, or how extreme I could push an instrument. When we were starting Spiritbox, it was more like, 'Could I have that same attitude, but with songwriting? How catchy can I make something?"

By 2016, Courtney Laplante and Mike Stringer officially tied the knot and began songwriting and working on a demo. After receiving nearly $40,000 in funding from the Foundation to Assist Canadian Talent on Records (FACTOR), the duo recorded and released their debut 7-song self-titled EP in October of 2017.

Unfortunately, Spiritbox had a major problem at the time — they were a 2-piece band and had no way to play their music in a live setting. By 2018 they had secured Bill Crook (bass) and Ryan Loerke (drums), forming a complete lineup for live shows.

After signing a deal with Pale Chord, the band focused on online promotions and building a fanbase rather than starting to tour before it was fully worthwhile for the act. As Spiritbox focused on growing, they released their 5-song EP "Singles Collection" in mid-2019.

By November of 2019, Spiritbox released one of their first standout singles "Rule of Nines". This marks a notable shift in the band's songwriting from mostly 5-6 minute tracks to more compact 3-4 minute tracks with a focus on catchy melodies. "Rule Of Nines" excellently blended Courtney Laplante's singing with her screams and the band's technical metalcore instrumentals in a way that helped them start to garner some attention in the industry.

Spiritbox Takes Off

2020 really was the year for Spiritbox with "Blessed Be" releasing in February and showcasing an incredibly catchy chorus that truly showed the band's songwriting genius. "Holy Roller" was released in July and despite featuring no singing vocals it is undeniably catchy. The short and intensely heavy song, made a name for the band, racking up millions of streams and exponentially increasing the band's hype in the metal scene. After the departure of their drummer at the time, Ryan Loerke, Spiritbox's current drummer, Zev Rose, joined the band.

Touring Troubles

As the band continued to grow, they were scheduled to tour with After The Burial in Europe in 2020 which was canceled due to COVID-19. In July of 2021, Spiritbox began a tour with Limp Bizkit which was canceled after only a few shows again due to the pandemic. As large tour fees had already come out of Spiritbox's pockets, they were in financial trouble from the cancellation. Fortunately, fellow touring artist We Came As Romans waived lighting package fees, and Shinedown's vocalist, Brent Smith, donated a generous $10,000 to help compensate Spiritbox for the tour.

Eternal Blue

Following the release of two singles, "Constance" and "Circle With Me" Spiritbox stunned the metal scene with their full album drop in September of 2021. "Eternal Blue", the band's 12-song debut was released via Rise Records. The album's duality of brutal heaviness and haunting vocals drew waves of new fans and gained Spiritbox mainstream appeal, placing at Number 3 on the "Top Album Sales" and 13 on the "Billboard 200" charts. With a progressive sound that followed a metalcore-inspired sound, Spiritbox exploded in popularity quickly. "Eternal Blue" even features Architects lead singer Sam Carter on "Yellowjacket".

A New Era

In May of 2022, Spiritbox collaborated with huge electronic artist ILLENIUM. The electro-metal mashup brought Spiritbox's music to a new frontier of fans and helped them achieve another sizable jump in listeners. With dubstep breakdowns, clean vocals, and Courtney Laplante's signature screams, the song showed an experimental sound that fans had not seen before. Spiritbox announced bassist Bill Crook's decision to leave the band and introduced previous As I Lay Dying bassist Josh Gilbert as the new permanent member.

In June of 2022, Spiritbox released 3 song EP, "Rotoscope" with the songs displaying a familiar yet experimental style from the band. "Rotoscope" mixed dance-worthy grooves, synth soundscapes, and djenty metal riffage.

In April of 2023, Spiritbox released "The Void" followed by singles, "Jaded" and "Cellar Door" before the full release of "The Fear of Fear" EP featuring the previous 3 tracks alongside 3 new songs. "Jaded" earned the band a Grammy Nomination for "The Best Metal Performance".

In November of 2023, Spiritbox unleashed a completely unexpected collaboration with mega-pop artist Megan Thee Stallion. The remix of "Cobra" features heavy guitar instrumentals, Spiritbox's ambient atmospheres, and screaming/singing vocals from Courtney Laplante.

Closing Remarks

Spiritbox has cemented themselves as one of the most exciting and popular modern metal bands and has achieved so much in the short 7 years since their origin. With only 1 full album out, Spiritbox has so much potential and leaves us excited to see what direction the band will head next.

With major collaborations, Spiritbox will certainly continue to grow in popularity and is moving towards being one of the next generation's main headliners.

If you are new to Spiritbox we recommend starting with "Holy Roller" as it was the track that introduced many of us to Canada's beloved metalcore act.

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