Phoenix, AZ – Grey Daze, the ‘90s era band helmed by Chester Bennington and featuring drummer Sean Dowdell, bass player Mace Beyers and guitarist Cristin Davis, give fans an early listen to their as-of-yet untitled Loma Vista Recordings’ debut album with the release of the single, “What’s In the Eye”. Listen here:

“An honest voice of pain and anger for a generation” – Rolling Stone

Before he sang, screamed, and serenaded audiences of millions throughout his storied career in Linkin Park and a host of other projects, Chester cut his teeth in Grey Daze. The mid-‘90s band released a pair of albums (Wake Me and No Sun Today), but unsurprisingly, the young Phoenix-based band was lacking the expertise and financial resources to fulfill their vision.

Prior to his untimely passing, Chester personally announced a 2017 Grey Daze reunion on social media —which would see the band members, now with those previously lacking resources, re-working and re-recording a collection of songs from those early releases. The resulting music represents an important, yet unheard chapter—the origin story of one of modern rock’s most recognizable voices—and also a full circle moment among friends.

As he never got the chance to launch the reunion himself, his bandmates, friends, family, and various collaborators stepped up to give the music the second chance it deserved, finishing what the late singer started.

“Over the years we’d become more knowledgeable, more experienced, and had more resources, so we decided to pick a selection of songs from our previously released albums and re-record them the way they deserved to have been treated back in the ‘90s when we initially wrote and released them,” explained the band in an open letter posted to their social media channels in December. “By February 2017 we started recording and in June, Chester and Sean announced the reunion, with a live performance planned for that Fall. Unfortunately, as we all know, that never happened.”

Originally recorded in 1993 and 1996, “What’s In the Eye” was re-written and modernized by Grey Daze under the guidance of producers Chris Traynor (Bush, Helmet, Orange 9MM), Kyle Hoffman, and Jay Baumgardner. Using Chester’s original vocals, the song showcases that, even at the age of 17, Chester was already “delivering intense, almost physically palpable emotion” (New York Times).

“What’s In The Eye” was written lyrically in different phases by both Sean and Chester collaboratively. The song focuses on a friend’s premature death in a car accident and trying to understand the loss, relaying an emotional intensity that every listener will not only understand, but instantly connect with. The beauty of Chester’s gifts were that he made others able to understand and cope with their own emotional pain, simply by listening to Chester’s vocal expression.

“As a teenager, when these recordings were done, he had this incredible raw and somewhat undeveloped voice that had an incredible tone. He had this ability to sing great rock melodies punctuated by that unmistakable guttural scream. Chester’s voice had a personality that made you a believer,” said Loma Vista Recordings founder and President Tom Whalley. “Listening to the new versions of these tracks, I think it represents everything that the band members and the family told me that Chester wanted to achieve with re-recording this body of work.”

“One of the finest male voices of a generation” – NME

Additional details about the album will be revealed in the coming weeks. A series of letters about the project and passion behind its release were posted on various social media channels in December. Aside from his Grey Daze bandmates, Chester’s widow, Talinda Bennington, his mother, Susan Eubanks, and his son Jamie Bennington, shared their thoughts about the forthcoming release:

Open Letter from Talinda Bennington (Chester’s Widow):

Open Letter from Susan Eubanks (Chester’s Mom):

“It’s hard for me to remember a time when Chester didn’t tell me he was going to be a rock star. He had discovered music at a very young age, and I can even recall the first time I saw him sing: a two-year-old mimicking the songs to “Grease!” he loved to sing Olivia Newton John’s!

“Music was a constant for him. He was always listening to bands, but it was when he was 13 that he began to tell me that he was going to be a singer. He was trying out for local bands, playing with friends, and doing what normal teenage boys do when they dream about becoming a “rock star.” I was encouraging, but obviously wanted him to keep his feet firmly planted on the ground and focused on his education.

“At 15, he came home with his slightly older friend, who seemed immensely older to me in comparison to Chester, Sean Dowdell. I laugh now when I think that Sean was a mere 17 at the time. Sean was forming a local band that was in need of a singer, and Chester was eager to fill that role. That band would become Grey Daze. As any parent would be, I was reluctant to have my 15-year-old son going to clubs but I cautiously gave my permission once I saw how Sean treated Chester, not just as a new bandmate, but as a protective older brother. Over the past 25 years, Sean has become a part of our family.

“Missing Chester is now a part of my daily life but of course, grief comes in waves, so most of the time I try to remember the joy he brought to me, and the happiness his music brought to so many people. It was in that mindset that I gave Sean my blessing to continue the work he and Chester had begun on reimagining the Grey Daze music. A year later, Sean very proudly played me the results of his, Mace, and Cristin’s work, allowing me to be one of the first people to hear it. When that voice rang out, I remembered the teenage Chester and Sean and thought of how remarkable they would have found all of this. I am grateful that because of Sean’s efforts Chester’s fans have the opportunity to hear his music again.“

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Open Letter from Jamie Bennington (Chester’s Son):

Open Letter from Grey Daze:

“Voice of a generation” – BBC

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