Dashboard Confessional is an American band, led by singer-songwriter and guitarist Chris Carrabba, from Boca Raton, Florida, USA.

History

This current line-up includes Carrabba (vocals, guitar), John Lefler (guitar, vocals), Scott Shoenbeck (bass guitar) and Mike Marsh (drums, percussion). As of 2005, they have released three EPs and four full-length albums, three of which have been certified gold by the RIAA.

They won the MTV2 award at 2002's MTV Video Music Awards for their song "Screaming Infidelities".

In May of 2005, Dashboard Confessional entered the studio to record their fourth album with Daniel Lanois. Lanois has co-produced the albums So (Peter Gabriel) and The Joshua Tree (U2), and produced Bob Dylan's Grammy award winning album Time Out of Mind (Album of the Year, 1997). "Don't Wait" was the third single released from Dashboard Confessional's latest album Dusk and Summer, which was released on June 27, 2006. The album's second single was "Stolen". Following the release of Dusk and Summer, Dashboard Confessional went on a summer tour of the U.S. with special guests Say Anything and Ben Lee. They followed this with a co-headlining arena tour with alternative rock band Brand New.

Dashboard Confessional performed at the Brick Awards on April 12, 2007 as a featured musical guest, in addition to playing the final show of the mtvU Campus Invasion Tour 2007 at Penn's Landing in Philadelphia on April 29, 2007.

The band was featured on PBS' acclaimed music series Soundstage, with a performance taped at New York's Madison Square Garden debuting on the network July 12, 2007. The broadcast, repeated nationally over subsequent weeks, included "Don?t Wait," "Stolen," and "Screaming Infidelities".

Dashboard Confessional's Official website announced a fall 2007 North American solo tour with special guests Augustana and John Ralston.

Dashboard Confessional released their fifth studio album on October 2nd called The Shade of Poison Trees.

During an interview with Billboard, posted on September 11, 2007, Carrabba stated that he is 14 tracks into what would be the sixth studio album. He is also unsure about when it would be recorded, but plans to have 30 tracks to draw from. It may be a concept album: "only with the last three has it become, like, 'All right, these have a continuity and there's something going on,' so I'm excited to see where that leads." he also stated that the album would not be released for sometime since he has an obligation to promote the new album.

Live shows

Dashboard Confessional shows are known for their intimate atmosphere and enthusiastic participation from the crowds. Carrabba encourages the audience to sing large portions of the songs, stepping back from the mic and letting the crowd's voices be heard instead of his. This can be heard on numerous songs from the MTV Unplugged recording. Carrabba has said that this fosters a bond between concert-goers, and helps him and the audience connect on an emotional level, making all his shows intimate, personal experiences.

The band encourages the taping of their live appearances. After one recent show, the band sent out requests for a recording, after Chris started performing freestyle.

They are currently (November/December 2007) opening for Maroon 5 on their Europe tour.

References in popular culture

• The TV Series One Tree Hill has featured the songs Don't Wait, Hands Down, Currents and Stolen_ in certain episodes.
• "The Places You Have Come To Fear The Most" is the name of a 'One Tree Hill' episode.
• "As Lovers Go" appeared in the movie Shrek 2.
• "Vindicated" is a song featured in the Spider Man 2 soundtrack.
• "Stolen" was rerecorded in 2007 with the German band Juli. It has featured in episodes of Scrubs, Cold Case, and What About Brian.
• "Rooftops and Invitations" is featured on the Laguna Beach: Summer Can Last Forever soundtrack.
• "Reason to Believe" is a song featured in the Electronic Arts football game Madden NFL 07.
• "Several Ways To Die Trying" is featured in an episode of the ABC show 'Life As We Know It'.
• Dashboard Confessional is referenced in the Gym Class Heroes song "Taxi Driver".
• The song "Standard Lines" was covered by Michael Caras on the album, "An Evening with the Mickey C". It was also briefly used twice in the pilot episode of Clone High
• "Awake" is commonly listed as a Dashboard Confessional song, but is actually by "The Scaries".

Discography

Albums

All regularly released albums and their chart peak position: Billboard 200 (US), Top Heatseekers (Heat), Top Independent Albums (Indep), Top Internet Albums (Inter), Top Canadian Albums (CAN), and Australian ARIA Albums Chart (AUS), as well as the RIAA certification. A dash indicates that the album did not chart on that chart.

Singles

Singles that appeared in the Billboard Hot 100 (Hot 100), Pop 100 (Pop 100), Modern Rock Tracks (MRT) or the UK Singles Chart (UK). A dash indicates the song didn't reach a significant position on that chart.

EPs

Non-album tracks

• "Jamie" - cover released on Rock Music: A Tribute to Weezer (2002)
• "The Only Gift That I Need" - Released on the band's official website in 2002.
• "Tonight I'll Take What I Can Get" - Two versions of this song were released on the band's official website in 2002. Also released as a bonus track on the iTunes release of The Shade of Poison Trees (2007)
• "Hold On" and "This Is a Forgery" - released on the Vagrant Records re-issue of The Swiss Army Romance (2003)
• "This Old Wound" - released on non-US versions of A Mark, a Mission, a Brand, a Scar (2003)
• "The End of an Anchor" - released on non-US versions of A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar (2003) and "The End of an Anchor" single on iTunes (2003)
• "I Do" - released on the UK CD single for "Hands Down" (2003)
• "Warmth of the Sand" - released on Another Year on the Streets Volume 3 and "Vindicated" single (2004)
• "I Need a Sure Thing" - First played at the famous Valentine's Day concert in 2004. Only a few shows did this song get played at before dropping out of rotation.
• "Get What You Get" - First song ever played by Chris on the piano. Only played once, at the above mentioned Valentine's Day show.
• "Vindicated" - released on the original soundtrack to Spider-Man 2 (2004) and as a bonus track on Dusk and Summer (2006)
• "In a Big Country" - released on iTunes as part of the single for "Don't Wait" (2006) and on the German CD single for Stolen (Feat. Juli)
• "But Beautiful" - released on the Ilse DeLange album The Great Escape (2006)
• "Write it Out" - another hidden track on Dusk and Summer (2006)
• "The Promise" - Duet with Jordan from NFG on "From Your Screen to Your Stereo 2" (2007)
• "Retarded In Love" - Say Anything featuring Dashboard Confessional from the album In Defense of the Genre (2007)