Courtney LaPlante is now set as the voice of IWRESTLEDABEARONCE, replacing Krysta Cameron who left the band following last summer’s Warped Tour after learning she was pregnant. Now she is set to begin recording the band’s forthcoming third album in a Los Angeles recording studio, due out later this year.

Photo credit: Pamela Lin

Band guitarist Steven Bradley will be producing, engineering, mixing, and mastering the forthcoming release. He commented on the new release:

“Well damn! After another two years of non-stop touring, some unexpected twists, and getting to visit some new and amazing places, we’re finally back in the studio working on full length number three!”

“I’ve 100% NEVER been this excited about an IWABO album, because it feels like we’ve finally reigned in “our sound” even further and really hit a stride in terms of songwriting. We’ve always admired bands like Deftones, Cynic, Thrice, Glassjaw, Mr. Bungle, Dredg, Cephalic Carnage, The Mars Volta, etc because they’ve never made the same album twice, and aren’t scared to keep evolving while still maintaining their signature styles. Obviously I’d never compare us to the greatness of those bands, but, in keeping with that mentality, we’ve progressed a bit more and put together our best collection of songs so far.

“The heavy parts are heavier and more interesting, the choruses are stronger, and the “weird twists” that people have come to expect in our music are way more thought-out than in the past and definitely hit harder than ever. Long story short – we’re very excited about getting this album finished and released, and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do. Thanks for listening, and keep in touch with us on our facebook/twitter/etc where we will be posting frequent updates!”

LaPlante also commented on working on her IONCEWRESTLEDABEAR debut:

“Since the day I joined this band, I’ve been anticipating this album! I was pushed to the limit creatively and technically, and I’ve never been more proud of myself or my bandmates. We’ve been through alot this year, and this is the pay-off; the result of our experiences. Most importantly, I think IWABO fans both old and new will really enjoy these songs, and we can’t wait to play them live for you this summer!”

In case you are unfamiliar with the band’s timeline of what happened, the band appeared on the Ernie Ball Stage of the Warped Tour last summer, playing to rabid fans and brand new people alike. Then Cameron, during a day off in Dallas, TX, she learns she is pregnant and drops off of the Warped Tour with the band. LaPlante was brought in as a fill in vocalist and has been touring with the band since, despite some question over whether Cameron would return.

Bradley explained the situation in a statement:

“So here it is… complete transparency. A press release written by me (Steven, original IWABO guitarist) with the truth on what’s going down.

The day before our Warped Tour show in Dallas, TX we had a day off in the DFW area. Krysta lives there now, so she went home to relax and do some laundry. The next day, we received word from her minutes before our set that she discovered she and her fiancé are expecting a kid and she would not be returning to finish Warped Tour with us. Obviously this is an insane curveball for everybody, but in typical IWABO fashion we will press on. And no matter what happens, Krysta has been our best friend for years and we want her to be happy.

So what the fuck is the plan then, you ask? Well on literally a few minutes notice, our friend Courtney LaPlante flew her ass down to meet up with us today so that won’t miss a single show of this tour. Courtney is a beast in both the singing and screaming departments and is also an incredibly awesome person. We wouldn’t tarnish the years of work that we’ve put into this band by having somebody half-ass it on stage with us, so please come to a show and give her a high-five and make her feel welcome for doing us this huge favor. It makes it feel even better and more natural since she has been a long-term fan of our band and already knows the material.

So long story short; Fear not friends and Bear Fuckers… We will continue to play Warped Tour and we hope that you will continue to support us. Getting to play for and talk to so many of you on a daily basis is honestly what we live for, and we will definitely continue with our plan to high-five everybody on Earth. We will update you with more info soon, including some new tour dates and info on our recently-finished full-length horror/comedy/whatever film A Beary Scary Movie!

And finally, thank you so much to everybody who has been so supportive of us for all these years and we hope to see you again soon!

Love,

– Steven / iwabo”