The Classic Crime is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 2004. The band's current lineup consists of Matt MacDonald (vocals, guitar), Alan Clark (bass), Robert "Cheeze" Negrin (guitar), and Paul "Skip" Erickson (drums, vocals). They have released three albums and an EP on Tooth & Nail Records, two of which, The Silver Cord (2008) and Vagabonds (2010), charted in the Billboard 200. In July 2011, the band left Tooth & Nail to produce a fourth album with the help of fan donations via Kickstarter, called Phoenix (2012). After the success they found in the crowdfunding approach with Phoenix, the band continued using Kickstarter as a means to fund their albums, subsequently releasing What Was Done: Vol. 1 in 2014, How to Be Human in 2017, Patterns in the Static in 2020, and GRIM AGE in 2023.

Their debut album Albatross was released on May 23, 2006. The band accumulated an estimated 10 million plays on Myspace. Albatross had the highest debut sales in the history of Tooth & Nail Records with over 4,000 sales in the first week it was released. The band's second full-length record, The Silver Cord was released July 22, 2008. They also released an EP, Acoustic Seattle Sessions. They finished their third record Vagabonds, which was released April 6, 2010.

The band has toured with A Change of Pace, A Static Lullaby, Quietdrive, I Am Ghost, Relient K, So They Say, Just Surrender, Powerspace, Mest, Allister, Aiden, and Scary Kids Scaring Kids. They have also toured with fellow Tooth & Nail bands Anberlin, Emery, MxPx, Project 86, the Fold, and Run Kid Run. The band was on both the 2006 and 2008 Warped Tour. The Classic Crime also went on a Headlining ATTICUS tour with A Change of Pace, Lower Definition, Tyler Read, Jet Lag Gemini, and Artist vs Poet. They toured in 2009 with Relient K and Owl City.

They were no longer signed to Tooth & Nail Records as of July 2011. With the assistance of a Kickstarter fundraising project, the band released the album Phoenix on August 14, 2012.

On November 8, 2011, Justin DuQue announced that he would be leaving the band following the December 16 concert at the Showbox Sodo in Seattle. He went on to say that he was leaving the band on good terms to pursue a career in health care and to devote more time to being a father.

Matt MacDonald formed a side project with his wife, Kristie, called Vocal Few. They composed an EP to raise money to provide for their daughter, Praise, who was born December 12, 2011.

In December 2012, the Classic Crime became the second band to go public on The New York Rock Exchange.

Some fans have assumed that the Classic Crime is a Christian band due to being signed on to Tooth & Nail Records. Also adding to the confusion is that many music stores and online sales list the Classic Crime as a Christian band for the same reason. This is true of iTunes Store. Also, all four of the Classic Crime's full-length albums have charted on Billboard Music's Top Christian Albums music chart. However, the Classic Crime does not label themselves a "Christian" band. As Matt writes on TCC's discussion board, "We believe faith is personal, and can be only held by an individual person. To entitle a group 'Christian' would be to assume that the group has a collective soul, or at least individual souls tied to a solid collective belief. Not everyone in our band is decidedly set in their faith, and we respect that."

• Matt MacDonald – vocals (2004–present), lead guitar (2011–present)
• Alan Clark – bass, backing vocals (2004–present)
• Robert "Cheeze" Negrin – rhythm guitar (2004–present)
• Paul "Skip" Erickson – drums, backing vocals (2004–present)
• Justin DuQue – lead guitar, backing vocals (2004–2011)

Album-by-album

Albatross

Albatross arrived on May 23, 2006 through Tooth & Nail.

Albatross is identified as the debut studio album in the band catalogue.

Albatross was recorded 2006, at Studio Barbarosa, Bavon, Virginia, and with production credited to Michael "Elvis" Baskette.

Albatross credits Matt MacDonald (lead vocals), Justin DuQue (lead guitar), Robert Negrin (rhythm guitar), and Alan Clark (bass guitar).

Albatross has a documented running time of 45:19.

The verified album record describes the release using Indie rock and Christian alternative rock.

The exact album evidence for Albatross combines release timing, the issuing label, the production credit, the running time, and the genre classifications in one verified release record.

Phoenix

Released on August 14, 2012, Phoenix was issued by Independent.

Phoenix was released independently. Phoenix is identified as the fourth studio album in the band catalogue.

Phoenix was with production credited to Matt MacDonald.

Phoenix credits Producer (Matt MacDonald), Engineer (Brandon Metcalf), Drum editing and sampling (Jef Moll), and Vocal editing (Matt MacDonald).

Phoenix has a documented running time of 52:17.

The verified album record describes the release using Alternative rock, indie rock, and emo pop.

The exact album evidence for Phoenix combines release timing, the issuing label, the production credit, the running time, and the genre classifications in one verified release record.

What Was Done, Vol. 1: A Decade Revisited

Released on October 28, 2014 (2014-10-28), What Was Done, Vol. 1: A Decade Revisited was issued by BadChristian Music.

What Was Done, Vol. 1: A Decade Revisited was recorded November 2013 – July 2014 and with production credited to Matt MacDonald.

What Was Done, Vol. 1: A Decade Revisited credits Matt MacDonald (vocals, guitars), Robbie Negrin (guitar, group vocals), Alan Clark (bass, group vocals), and Paul "Skip" Erickson (drums, group vocals).

The verified album record describes the release using Acoustic rock and indie rock.

Contemporary reviews preserved in the verified evidence for What Was Done, Vol. 1: A Decade Revisited include coverage from Was Done.

The exact album evidence for What Was Done, Vol. 1: A Decade Revisited combines release timing, the issuing label, the production credit, the genre classifications, and contemporary review records in one verified release record.

Verified recording and career context

Independent source evidence also records 1. RAGEBOI2. RIGHT NOW3. END OF EVERYTHING4. ALONE IN THE CITY5. INTO THE EARTH6. THE OLD WAYS7. STAY IN LOVE8. WHAT YOU RUN FROM9. NEW NOISE10. LOST MAGIC11. HIGH MILEAGE, All sales are final, but if you have any issues, shoot us an email at theclassicmerch@gmail.com and we'll see if we can help., The Classic Crime Merch, Shirts, Music, News, CD's, Vinyl & more, Tours, music, merch, and official information on the 173rd greatest Seattle band of all time., and ‘GRIM AGE’ first vinyl pressing with a gatefold jacket, reverseboard matte finish and custom innersleeve printed with thanks to our Kickstarter backers..