Acceptance

Nobody knew it would become such an important record. And to be fair, when Acceptance originally put out their debut album Phantoms in 2005, the release was riddled with problems that overshadowed the band's celebration of it. But a decade after the band got back together, and two decades on from the release of Phantoms, it’s clear to see—and hear—that the influence and legacy of the band, and this album in particular, is as potent as ever.

To celebrate its 20th anniversary, the Seattle-formed band—these days comprised of vocalist Jason Vena, guitarists Kaylan Cloyd and Christian McAlhaney, drummer/percussionist Garrett Lunceford, and bassist Ryan Zwiefelhofer—are issuing a reworked version of the record called Phantoms/Twenty. And while the band did redo their parts, this isn’t just any standard re-recording. Each song features a guest vocalist, including the mid-album instrumental “Ad Astra Per Aspera”, helping the band reimagine the record and give new context to its profound and lasting legacy.

“Revisiting it with a blank slate and on your own terms is an exciting option to have,” says McAlhaney. “I don't know that anybody could have prevented what happened from happening, but it led us to where we're at now. And to redo it 20 years later, and to have people still care about it enough that they
wanted to do this has been so inspiring—especially to have people involved who are an inspiration to me now.”