Against the Grain is the second album from The Veer Union (and their first under their current name, since they had released their debut album under the name "Veer").
The album was released by Universal Motown on April 21, 2009. Three singles were released from the album, "Seasons", "Youth of Yesterday", and "Darker Side of Me".
In a 2010 interview vocalist Crispin Earl, described the meaning behind "Seasons" as: "In life, many people come up against an obstacle and give up or are so tainted by the traumatic event that they give up. 'Seasons' is a metaphor for starting over no matter what the circumstance. We all go through rough times in life, but we are still here, and as long as we live, we must enjoy life and carry on and learn from everything we experience, thatâÂÂs what makes us human".
The Pittsburgh Penguins used "Seasons" as an unofficial theme song on their road to the 2009 Stanley Cup title. The Penguins' general manager had heard the song on the radio and fell in love with it. WWE used the song for the 2009 Backlash event. The song became downloadable content for the Rock Band music video game series on August 24, 2010, as part of the "Universal Motown Republic Rock" Pack. As of December 30, 2015, it was no longer available to purchase, due to license expirations.
All songs written by Crispin Earl and Eric Schraeder, except where noted.