Tromlin

by Stewart Mason A melodic emo band with an overtly Christian cast to their lyrics, Sullivan sticks to the straightforward, Sunny Day Real Estate-inspired end of emo instead of the increasingly prominent post-hardcore and screamo bands. Sullivan formed in 2002, originally around the songwriting duo of singer and guitarist Brooks Paschal and bassist Zach Harward, who were writing and recording songs with the help of a drum machine. The duo replaced their mechanical friend with real live drummer Phil Chamberlain (whose brother, Spencer Chamberlain, is the lead vocalist in Christian screamo outfit Underoath) and added second guitarist Tyson Shipman in 2004; Chamberlain and Shipman had previously worked together in the metalcore act This Runs Through with Chamberlain's brother. Sullivan's self-released demo EP, Count the Time in Quarter Tones, attracted the attention of Christian alternative label Tooth and Nail Records, which signed Sullivan in 2005 and brought in Underoath producer Matt Goldman to oversee their debut album's sessions. Sullivan's Tooth and Nail debut, Hey, I'm a Ghost, was released in the spring of 2006.