I’ve always had a soft spot for the emo-influenced pop-punk bands of the early 2000s. I’ve consistently listened to a handful of bands that fall into this category since I’ve found out about them: Thursday, Taking Back Sunday’s first album, etc. One of my first live experiences with this subgenre was seeing A Week In July at the infamous American Music Cafe in Murrysville. I had gone to see Punchline (and possibly one or two of the openers, I can’t recall) but was instantly turned on to AWIJ after watching their set. They had the pop-punk melodies down and the unavoidable pop-punk stage presence, but would occasionally slip into the screaming-while-rolling-on-the-floor realm of screamo at the time. This may all sound pretty dumb now, but my 15-year-old ass was totally into it. The band was picked up by Orange Peal Records out of California, who released their only(?) album, Near Fatal Explosion, before their demise. I don’t think any of these guys did anything after this band, which is a shame. But if melody is your thing, this album has a lot of it. Check it below.
Old Accusers – Of And Beyond
Technical prowess in heavy music seems to be reserved for corny “progressive” deathcore bands and bands that people usually don’t get. Old Accusers is definitely at the forefront of current Pittsburgh bands that people don’t get. Blending the traditional sounds of metalcore icons Coalesce and Botch with a little Jesus Lizard influence and a pinch of beatdown, Old Accusers are definitely in a league of their own in the Pittsburgh area. While the band is collectively from Sharon, they’ve been adopted by the Steel City since their formation. “Of And Beyond” is six tracks of heavy and complicated metal-tinged hardcore that will keep you on your toes throughout the duration of the band’s debut EP.
A Call For Blood – A Tribute To Hatebreed
So for the past few years, I had always heard of the infamous Hatebreed tribute released by Tributized Records, featuring such heavy-hitting bands as Shockwave, Redtops, A Well Thought Tragedy, Endless, and an undisputed 7 tracks by the legendary Built Upon Frustration. Until this past year at Sincerity Fest, I had never seen a physical copy of the tribute, and thus was skeptical about its existence. However, sitting idly behind AJ’s distro was none other than a copy of A Call For Blood – A Tribute To Hatebreed. I couldn’t believe my eyes… “7 songs by Built Upon!?” I thought to myself. I had to hear it. Luckily I found a download link (featured below) just now, but haven’t checked it for validity as I’m posting this from the Point Park 24-hour computer lab. I’d like to post some more selections from the Da Core discography (coincidentally I just found a copy of Endless’ self-titled CD at Half Price Books in Monroeville for $.50), so hopefully there will be more of those in the near future.
Drain This Blood – Contempt For Tradition
Today we have a download for Drain This Blood’s EP, Contempt For Tradition, in a high-quality rip straight from the man himself. Pre-Path To Misery/Nothing Sacred/Unreal City. If you’re into Terror and other early 2000s hardcore, snag this. You can still find copies of the 7″ around the Pittsburgh area.
A shot of their reunion show at Roboto:
First CD Press (thanks list on back)
150 green
100 purple
100 orange
100 red
Second CD Press (song titles on back)
50 purple
50 orange
50 red
Vinyl Press
50 Final Show Presses (hand-numbered)
250 on clear green vinyl
23 Test Presses (hand-numbered)
Roboto Memories
Now that the time of the demise of The Roboto Project’s Wilkinsburg location has come and gone, a lot of people are rehashing their favorite and most unique memories of attending the space over the last decade.
My very first experience at Roboto was a benefit show I played with my old band along with The Code, HTML, and Unarmed in 2005. Needless to say, a show with a synth-pop band playing with 3 punk bands caused us to stick out like a sore thumb. Our reaction was a unanimous one full of crossed arms and straight faces, however the rest of the show was fantastic. Kids were raging for The Code (I even got kicked in the junk by a kid in a Cannibal Corpse shirt while he was circle pitting) and the other bands ruled.
My attendance at Roboto started increasing steadily, hitting up punk shows and such with my suburban brethren. Here’s a list of some of my favorite moments and shows:
-Seeing The Endless Blockade for the first time and there being 150 other people at the show
-My friends’ mosh injuries sustained during separate shows with Reign Supreme and Blacklisted
-The “secret” Terror show
-Booking Hatred Surge/Mammoth Grinder/Punch and it doing well
-Path To Misery’s CD release show (and joining the band 2 days later)
-Have Heart/Ceremony/Blacklisted November 08
I’m sure there’s more but those are just off the top of my head. Now comes the trick part: Surviving during Roboto’s downtime. I’ve started booking house shows again and I’ve seen a lot of hardcore shows start to pick up at venues around town like The Smiling Moose and other places. Keep it alive and keep it DIY.
Talk About It – By Our Powers Combined
Usually I try to wax nostalgic about Pittsburgh music, but I just had to post this. A brand new EP from local pop-punk band Talk About It titled “By Our Powers Combined” is a great mix of traditional pop-punk and positive hardcore. If bands like The Wonder Years and Four Year Strong are your thing, check this out.
Run For India – The Early Fall
2002 was a year for discovering the sadder aspects of life through bands like Benton Falls, Cursive, and Bright Eyes. Run For India was the Pittsburgh equivalent of what was going on in the Saddle Creek-dominated scene of Kansas and the surrounding states at the time. “The Early Fall” is seven tracks of early 21st-century indie/emo, which features Steve Jarrett of Orgone/Path To Misery/Kamikabe notoriety. Made me feel young again, I can tell you that much.
