Polaris are an Australian metalcore band from Sydney.[1] The band consists of vocalist Jamie Hails, guitarist Rick Schneider, bassist/vocalist Jake Steinhauser and drummer Daniel Furnari.
They released their debut album, The Mortal Coil on 3 November 2017 to critical acclaim and it was nominated for the 2018 ARIA Award for Best Hard Rock.[2] On 14 November 2019 Polaris announced their second full length titled The Death of Me, released on 21 February 2020 through Resist/SharpTone records subsequently earning their second ARIA Award nomination.[3] Shortly after announcing the upcoming release of their third studio album, Fatalism, the band confirmed via social media platforms that lead guitarist Ryan Siew had died on 19 June 2023.[4]
Polaris are known for their metalcore and progressive metalcore[5] sound with progressive and ambient soundscapes, electronics and melodic hooks, intertwined with personal lyrics – often dealing with anxiety, depression and loss.
History
Early career and Dichotomy (2012–2013)
Polaris was formed in 2012 by drummer Daniel Furnari and guitarist Jake Steinhauser after meeting at their high school battle of the bands, quickly discovering a mutual love for metal and alternative music. Josh O'loughlin was the first main vocalist. The two then recruited guitarist Rick Schneider and vocalist Jamie Hails through mutual friends and word of mouth. Matt Steinhauser, Jake's brother, was brought on board to handle bass duties and completed the line-up with James West on synth/keys. The group began working on music together writing and recording their first single "Summit" and the majority of the Dichotomy EP in early 2012. In late 2012, Polaris announced the departure of both Matt Steinhauser and West. Guitarist Jake then switched onto bass to focus on his singing, as the band was pushing towards a more progressive sound.
The band began looking for a new guitarist, holding public auditions. On 18 November 2013, the band announced Ryan Siew, as their new guitarist, who was 15 years old at the time.[6] Shortly after joining the Dichotomy EP was released on 29 November 2013 independently.[7]
The Guilt and The Grief (2014–2016)
On 3 March 2015, the single "Unfamiliar" was released; it was the first track to feature Siew as lead guitarist. Polaris continued to write and finished an additional 5 tracks to complete their second EP titled The Guilt & The Grief. The EP was recorded with Sonny True Love and Evan Lee at STL studios on the North Coast of NSW, and it was mixed by Carson Slovak and Grant McFarland of Atrium Audio in Pennsylvania, USA. The Guilt & The Grief was released independently by the band on 29 January 2016 and landed at No. 34 on the ARIA charts.
On 21 February 2020, Polaris released their second studio album The Death of Me, also through Resist Records and Sharptone Records. The album was nominated for the 2020 ARIA Award for Best Hard Rock or Heavy Metal Album. On 3 July 2020, the band released the instrumental editions of their albums, The Mortal Coil and The Death of Me.[8][9]
In an interview with Wall of Sound, Jamie Hails confirmed the band have been working on new material during the pandemic, which they would not be releasing until they have toured The Death of Me internationally.[10]
On 27 July 2022, Australian electronic artist and producer PhaseOne released a collaboration track with the band entitled "Icarus", marking the first time the band have collaborated with another artist on new music.[11]
On 4 November 2022, Polaris announced via social media "We have entered the studio to begin assembling our next body of work" with their live sound engineer Lance Prenc at Kinglake Studios in Melbourne.
On 24 May 2023, Polaris announced on social media that their new song "Inhumane" would debut on radio station Triple J on 25 May at 4:30 pm.[12] The song had previously been played live on their ten-year anniversary Australian tour. Upon "Inhumane"'s release, the band announced their third studio album Fatalism, which was set to be released on September 1.[13] The following week, a headlining Australian tour was announced with August Burns Red, Kublai Khan Tx and Currents.[14] The band then headed to Europe for a run of festival dates; on 20 June, however, Polaris announced via social media that they were "withdrawing from all remaining dates" of their tour due to a "serious personal crisis".[15] On 27 June 2023, the band confirmed via social media platforms that guitarist Ryan Siew had died on the morning of 19 June.[16]
The following month, on July 24, the band announced that they would be going forward with the release of Fatalism and its accompanying tour in honour of Siew, after lengthy discussions between the band and Siew's family. "This is the last set of complete songs that we wrote together with Ryan," the band said, "and though the circumstances of their release are now framed by this tragedy, the meaning of the songs and the love we have for them has not changed."[17] The album's second single, "Nightmare", was released later that week on 26 July.[18] On 24 August, the band released the album's third single, "Overflow", ahead of the album's official release on September 1.[19]Fatalism debuted at number one on the ARIA Albums Chart the week of its release, marking the band's first-ever chart-topping album.[20]
On March 23, 2024, the band announced that drummer Daniel Furnari was withdrawing from the European leg of the Fatalism tour due to ill health[21] and replaced by Conjurer drummer Noah See. Furnari would return to the lineup for the band's tour of regional Australia with Ocean Grove, as well as Sydney bands Bloom and Inertia.
Members
Current members
Daniel Furnari – drums (2012–present)
Jamie Hails – vocals, percussion (2012–present)
Rick Schneider – lead guitar (2012–2013, 2023–present), rhythm guitar (2013–present)
The Australian Independent Record Awards (known colloquially as the AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector.
The Australian Music Prize (the AMP) is an annual award of $30,000 given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. It exists to discover, reward and promote new Australian music of excellence.[35]
