Imaginary Enemy (album)

Imaginary Enemy is the sixth studio album by American rock band the Used. It is the first album released on, and the second label the band created and own, GAS Union.

Imaginary Enemy
Studio album by
The Used
ReleasedApril 1, 2014 (2014-04-01)
Genre
Length54:09
Label
ProducerJohn Feldmann
The Used chronology
The Ocean of the Sky
(2013)		 Imaginary Enemy
(2014)		 Live & Acoustic at the Palace
(2016)
Singles from Imaginary Enemy
  1. "Cry"
    Released: February 4, 2014
  2. "Revolution"
    Released: September 17, 2014

Imaginary Enemy is the final album to feature guitarist Quinn Allman before he parted from the band in November 2015.

Recording

The album was produced by John Feldmann, who also produced all of the band's studio albums with the exception of Artwork.[1]

In an interview with Jeph, he stated that they recorded the album "backwards" by having the vocals recorded first and then having the music written to the vocals. It is the first time they have recorded like this and did so because they were unhappy with the sound of the songs when recording the music so they scrapped the dozen songs they had written and tried something new.[2]

Release

On January 20, 2014, Imaginary Enemy was announced for release in April; its track listing and artwork were revealed.[3] A week later, a music video was released for "Cry".[4] The track was released to alternative radio stations on February 4.[5] Following a performance at South by So What?! festival, the band went on a co-headlining US tour with Taking Back Sunday in March and April. They were supported by Sleepwave and Tonight Alive.[6] Imaginary Enemy was made available for streaming on March 26, before being released on April 1[7] through Hopeless Records and the band's label GAS Union.[8] The band performed at the Download Festival in the UK in June.[9] The group toured Australia with Taking Back Sunday in August[10] and the US in September and October[11] with support from Frank Iero.[12]

Partway through the tour, the group released a split 10" vinyl EP, which featured two songs by Taking Back Sunday, and "Revolution" and "Money Monster" from the Used.[13] On September 18, a music video was released for "Revolution".[14] The track was released to alternative radio stations on September 30.[15] On February 2, 2015, the band announced that guitarist Quinn Allman would be taking a temporary year of absence; Justin Shekoski of Saosin filled in Allman's role.[16] Following this, the group went on a headlining UK tour with support from Decade and Landscapes.[17] In April and May, the group went on a headlining US tour with support from Every Time I Die, Marmozets and the Eeries,[18] before embarking on a co-headlining US tour with Chevelle later in May.[19] In October, the band appeared at the Taste of Chaos festival.[20]

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[21]
Alternative Press[22]
Dead Press![23]
HM Magazine[24]
Punknews.org[25]

At Alternative Press, Evan Lucy rated the album three-and-a-half stars out of five, writing that "Whether the band's fanbase latches on to the politicism is yet to be seen, but these songs will sound great from the pit regardless."[22]

The album charted at number 14 on the Billboard 200 and number 1 on the Independent albums chart.[26]

Track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Revolution"4:04
2."Cry"3:30
3."El-Oh-Vee-Ee"3:32
4."A Song to Stifle Imperial Progression (A Work in Progress)"4:05
5."Generation Throwaway"3:05
6."Make Believe"3:27
7."Evolution"4:38
8."Imaginary Enemy"3:24
9."Kenna Song"4:20
10."Force Without Violence"5:23
11."Overdose" (ends at 3:52, hidden track "Red Heart" starts at 7:41)14:41

Additional track information

The Used released 12 tracks from the Imaginary Enemy recording session. The only b-side released to date is "Money Monster" which was released as a bonus track on the limited edition of the album. A hidden track titled "Red Heart" also appears at the end of the album.

Limited edition bonus track[27]
No.TitleLength
12."Money Monster"3:02

Limited edition

A limited edition of 15,000 numbered copies will be made featuring deluxe artwork and a bonus track titled "Money Monster".[27]

Personnel

Chart performance
Chart (2014) Peak
position
US Billboard 200 14
US Billboard Rock Albums 5
US Billboard Alternative Albums 5
US Billboard Independent Albums 1

Live debut of the songs
Song Venue Date Tour Source
Cry QuikTrip Park, Grand Prairie, Texas, U.S. Mar 14, 2014 2014 Spring Tour [28]
Revolution Kool Haus, Toronto, Canada April 8, 2014 2014 Spring Tour [29]
A Song to Stifle Imperial Progression (A Work in Progress) Egyptian Room at Old National Centre, Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. Sep 14, 2014 [30]
Overdose Palace Theatre, Los Angeles, California, U.S. Oct 11, 2015 Live and Acoustic At The Palace (special event) [31]

Release history
Region Date Format(s) Edition(s) Label Ref.
United Kingdom March 31, 2014
Standard
[32]
United States April 1, 2014
  • Standard
  • limited
 [33]
Japan April 2, 2014
  • CD
  • digital download
 Standard
  • GAS Union
  • Hopeless
  • Kick Rock Invasion
 [34]
Australia April 4, 2014
  • Standard
  • limited
  • GAS Union
  • Hopeless
 [27]
Germany
  • CD
  • LP
  • digital download
 Standard
[35]

References
  1. "The Used stream new album 'Imaginary Enemy'". KROQ-FM. March 25, 2014. Archived from the original on March 27, 2014. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
  2. Chatterjee, Upasana (October 25, 2013). "Interview with The Used". AMH Network. Archived from the original on March 26, 2014. Retrieved March 9, 2014.
  3. Crane, Matt (January 20, 2014). "The Used announce new album, 'Imaginary Enemy'". Alternative Press. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  4. Crane, Matt (January 27, 2014). "The Used release new music video for "Cry"". Alternative Press. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  5. "AllAccess.com Alternative eWeekly". AllAccess. January 28, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
  6. Crane, Matt (January 28, 2014). "The Used, Taking Back Sunday announce co-headlining tour". Alternative Press. Alternative Press Magazine, Inc. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
  7. Bliss, Tony (March 26, 2014). "AUDIO: The Used – Imaginary Enemy (Album)". Dead Press!. Retrieved March 9, 2019.
  8. Rock Sound (September 18, 2014). "The Used's Video For 'Revolution' Is A Call For Arms If We've Ever Seen One". Rock Sound. Retrieved March 9, 2019.
  9. Redrup, Zach (January 27, 2014). "NEWS: Download Festival 2014 confirm more bands, including The Used and Emmure!". Dead Press!. Retrieved March 9, 2019.
  10. Sharp, Tyler (May 10, 2014). "Taking Back Sunday, The Used announce Australian tour dates". Alternative Press. Alternative Press Magazine, Inc. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
  11. Crane, Matt (May 17, 2014). "Taking Back Sunday, the Used announce fall co-headlining tour". Alternative Press. Alternative Press Magazine, Inc. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
  12. Crane, Matt (June 18, 2014). "Frnkiero Andthe Cellabration announced as support for Taking Back Sunday/the Used fall tour". Alternative Press. Alternative Press Magazine, Inc. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
  13. Sharp, Tyler (July 29, 2014). "The Used, Taking Back Sunday announce split 10-inch". Alternative Press. Alternative Press Magazine, Inc. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
  14. Crane, Matt (September 18, 2014). "The Used release "Revolution" music video". Alternative Press. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  15. "AllAccess.com Alternative eWeekly". AllAccess. September 23, 2014. Retrieved July 4, 2016.
  16. Sharp, Tyler (February 2, 2015). "The Used guitarist to take temporary leave from band, Saosin member to fill in". Alternative Press. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  17. Bliss, Tony (January 20, 2015). "NEWS: Decade confirmed to support The Used on their February UK tour!". Dead Press!. Retrieved March 9, 2019.
  18. Sharp, Tyler (January 26, 2015). "The Used, Every Time I Die announce spring tour". Alternative Press. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  19. Sharp, Tyler (February 9, 2015). "The Used announce co-headlining tour with Chevelle". Alternative Press. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  20. Bazley, John (July 18, 2015). "Taste Of Chaos set times announced". Alternative Press. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
  21. "Imaginary Enemy - the Used | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic.
  22. Lucy, Evan (2014). "The Used – Imaginary Enemy". Alternative Press. Alternative Press Magazine. May 2014 (310): 88. ISSN 1065-1667.
  23. Bailey, Grant (April 1, 2014). "ALBUM: The Used – Imaginary Enemy". Dead Press!. Retrieved March 9, 2019.
  24. Ullman, Zane (April 17, 2014). "The Used - Imaginary Enemy". HM Magazine. HM Publications LLC. ISSN 1066-6923. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  25. Punknews.org review
  26. "The Used | Awards". AllMusic.
  27. "Imaginary Enemy (Deluxed Edition)". The Music Shop. Archived from the original on March 20, 2014. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  28. "The Used Setlist at QuikTrip Park, Grand Prairie, TX, USA". setlist.fm. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  29. "The Used Setlist at Kool Haus, Toronto, ON, Canada". setlist.fm. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  30. "The Used Setlist at Egyptian Room at Old National Centre, Indianapolis, IN, USA". setlist.fm. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  31. "The Used Setlist at Palace Theatre, Los Angeles, CA, USA". setlist.fm. Retrieved April 21, 2020.
  32. "Imaginary Enemy". Amazon UK. Retrieved March 25, 2014.
  33. "Imaginary Enemy". Amazon. Retrieved March 25, 2014.
  34. "Imaginary Enemy" (in Japanese). Retrieved March 25, 2014.
  35. "Imaginary Enemy". Amazon Germany (in German). Retrieved March 27, 2014.
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