Comeback Kid

Comeback Kid are a five-piece melodic hardcore band from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada that formed in 2001. Since then they've released two albums and maintained a relentless touring schedule, becoming one of the most well-known and celeberated bands the genre has had to offer in the past 20 years or so. Thus, I don't know how much of an introducion this band really needs, but to give you a super abbreviated version of their history, they started off as the side project of another band called Figure Four, recorded a demo in 2002 that lead to their debut in 2003. They took Comeback Kid on full-time, signed to began touring, ended up signing to Victory Records and released their sophomore album, Wake The Dead in 2005, produced by Bill Stevenson. Both of their first two albums are considered bona fida classics, but this one especially is highly regarded, and often considered one of the many high points 2000's melodic hardcore had to offer. The title track often finds its way into conversations regarding "greatest hardcore songs of all time", alongside the likes of "Firestorm" and "Start Today". As ridculous of a conversation that can be, this album and this song do deserve a mention.

Following Wake The Dead, the band underwent a major line-up shift with the departure of vocalist Scott Wade. Founding member and rhythm guitarist/backing vocalist Andrew Neufield eventually takes over as the band's lead vocalist, with Casey Hjelmberg taking over his previous position for a couple years, eventually leaving in 2012. Stu Ross (of Misery Signals) joined in 2012, who is holding the rhythm guitar/backing vocals down for the band to this day. To back up a bit, with Neufield as vocalist they release Broadcasting... in 2007, not skipping a beat from their previous two albums, and actually garnering quite a bit of attention outside the hardcore scene in the process. Since then they've undergone a few other line-up changes, with Neufield and lead guitarist Jeremy Hiebert being the two remaining founding/consistent members. The band have consistently been releasing blood-pumping music, with a steady stream of albums and a handful of EP's suggesting they show no signs of slowing down. They're one of the biggest names in hardcore, chances are you've at least heard of them, and if not I implore you to listen to them yesterday. Admittedly they're not one of my personal favourites, and I never fell in love with them the way I did Modern Life Is War or American Nightmare, but again, those first few albums I can come back to anytime and remain impressed by. Since I didn't mention it specifically Symptoms + Cures is also as solid as they come, but beyond that I haven't really listened to anything enough to properly comment. However, going back to these first four records for this post has inspired me to give those later albums more tries. Wake up the dead. Enjoy.

Demo '02 (2002)

1. Without A Word

2. All In A Year

3. The Operative Word

4. Step Ahead

5. Playing The Part

6. Give And Take

Turn It Around (2003)

1. All In A Year

2. Give And Take

3. Die Tonight

4. Changing Face

5. Playing The Part

6. Always

7. Step Ahead

8. Operative Word

9. Biting Tongue

10. Something Less

11. Never Fade

12. Without A Word

13. Lorelei

Wake The Dead (2005)

1. False Idols Fall

2. My Other Side

3. Wake the Dead

4. The Trouble I Love

5. Talk Is Cheap

6. Partners In Crime

7. Our Distance

8. Bright Lights Keep Shining

9. Falling Apart

10. Losing Patience

11. Final Goodbye

Broadcasting... (2007)

1. Defeated

2. Broadcasting...

3. Hailing On Me

4. The Blackstone

5. Industry Standards

6. Give'r (Reprise)

7. One Left Satisfied

8. Come Around

9. In Case Of Fire

10. Market Demands

11. In/Tuition

Through The Noise (2008)

1. False Idols Fall

2. Die Tonight

3. Broadcasting...

4. Partners In Crime

5. Changing Face

6. Industry Standards

7. Defeated

8. All In A Year

9. Step Ahead

10. Talk Is Cheap

11. The Trouble I Love

12. Hailing On Me

13. Our Distance

14. Lorelei

15. Wake The Dead

16. Give'r (Reprise)

17. Final Goodbye

Note: Live Album, recorded in Leipzig, Germany on November 23, 2007

Symptoms + Cures (2010)

1. Do Yourself A Fvour

2. Crooked Floors

3. G.M. Vincent And I

4. Because Of All

5. The Concept Says

6. Balance

7. Symptoms + Cures

8. Manifest

9. Get Alone

10. Magnet Pull

11. Pull Back The Reins

Die Knowing (2014)

1. Die Knowing

2. Lower The Line

3. Wasted Arrows

4. Losing Sleep

5. Should Know Better

6. I Depend, I Control

7. Somewhere In This Miserable...

8. Beyond

9. Unconditional

10. Didn't Even Mind

11. Full Swing

12. Sink In

Rain City Sessions +1 (2015)

1. Wake The Dead

2. Should Know Better

3. All In A Year

4. Losing Sleep

5. The Concept Stays

6. Lower The Line

7. Territorial Pissings (Nirvana cover)

Outsider (2017)

1. Outsider

2. Surrender Control

3. Absolute (feat. Devin Townsend)

4. Hell Of A Scene

5. Somewhere, Somehow

6. Consumed The Vision (feat. Chris Cresswell)

7. I'll Be That

8. Outrage (Fresh Face, Stale Cause)

9. Blindspot

10. Livid, I'm Prime

11. Recover

12. Throw That Stone

13. Moment In Time (feat. Northcote)

Beds Are Burning (2018)

1. Beds Are Burning

2. Little Soldier

Heavy Steps (2022)

1. Heavy Steps

2. No Easy Way Out

3. Face The Fire

4. Crossed (feat. Joe Duplantier)

5. Everything Relates (feat. JJ)

6. Dead On The Fence

7. Shadow Of Doubt

8. True To Form

9. In Between

10. Standstill

11. Menacing Weight

Trouble EP (2024)

1. Trouble In The Winners Circle

2. Disruption

3. Chompin' At The Bit

4. Breaking And Bruised

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Drive Your Plow Over The Bones Of The Dead

Drive Your Plow Over The Bones Of The Dead are a three-piece screamo/emoviolence band from Vancouver, British Columbia that formed in 2022. Following up their demo last year, their debut "full-length" (clocking in at an exquiste 18 minutes) came out earlier this month, and it hits hard. Its blend of noisy dissonance, breakneck rhythms, octave chord shredding, and occasional exercise in control makes for a chaotically pulverizing but impressively executed listen. If you're into bands like One Eyed God Prophecy, Union Of Uranus, Jeromes Dream, Orchid, and Ostraca, this is not to be missed. Enjoy.

Demo (2023)

1. Marionette

2. Propitation

3. When What Once Worked Suddenly Breaks

4. Aspected Of Dust

Tragedy As Catharsis (2024)

1. Spirit Incantation

2. Glimmer Fate

3. Etchings

4. PErish Song

5. A Deeper Shade Of Night

6. Spiteful Enemy

7. Suzerain

8. Malediction

9. Ritual Symmetry

10. Blood Astronomy

11. Arrangement

12. Meadow Rue

13. Baleful Solitude

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Japandroids

Post #1200 in our 12th year. I was admittedly dragging my feet trying to figure out what band to use to mark this milestone, because I didn't another gargantuan undertaking like The Replacements and Jimmy Eat World were. Down the line both bands I was considering will still get that treatment (Sleater-Kinney and the Descendents, for the two of you wondering), but as soon as this band popped into my head, I knew I had found the perfect gateway back to posting. Like I said earlier, this blog has been running for 12 years, which coincides with the same number of summers Celebration Rock has been the soundtrack to. With the May 24 weekend upon us (hola Canada), Japandroids season is in session.

Japandroids are two-piece rock/alternative/punk band from Vancouver, British Columbia that formed in 2006. Since their inception, their sole two members have been guitarist/vocalist Brian King and drummer/vocalist David Prowse. They self-released two EP's in their earlier years (which were later compiled as No Singles) before self-producing their debut full-length, Post-Nothing. The band almost called it quits, but thanks to the online traction that their debut picked up, they ended up embarking on a world tour following its release. It's unsurprising that their sound caught on so quickly, as their energy is positively infectious. In brief summary, they lay a base of noisy garage rock with pounding drums and huge, Hüsker Dü-esque guitars that shimmer with reverb and high-end melodies, while droning open strings to fill in the bass end. While that covers their exterior, these songs at their core take influence from the blue-collar, bleeding heart, youthful exuberance, and personal storytelling of someone like Bruce Springsteen, which is what elevates these songs to become anthems of fist-pumping hot summer nights.

While I do love their debut (try listening to "Wet Hair" without smiling), it was their sophomore release that put them in the stratosphere. The aptly titled Celebration Rock is 8 cuts of giddy euphoria, from the crackle of fireworks and anything-is-possible introduction of "The Nights Of Wine And Roses" to the hesitantly assured closer of "Continuous Thunder", I've always thought that this thing takes place over the span of that one night everyone wants to re-live forever. I'm not going into it too much, but if you're unfamiliar with this band, please start with this.

Following another huge tour in the wake of their massively successful sophomore album, the band were quiet for a few years until their date (and final to date) album, Near To The Wild Heart Of Life. This one features a lot more studio and production tinkering than anything they had done before, resulting in a cleaner sound compared to their off-the-floor-style recordings of their early years. I prefer the first two albums personally, though still think this is a solid addition to expand the Japandroids canon. During the tour for this album, they recorded their show at Toronto's Massey Hall, which was released back in 2020 as a live album, and unfortunately that's the last we've heard from them. As a quick note to go complete the discography breakdown, they recently a series of singles throughout their tenure, most being album tracks on the A-side and covers on the B-side, which choices shows their wide array of influence. The only non-album single cuts are "Heavenward Grand Prix" and "Art Czars", if you're just looking for their originals. In closing, this is music meant for blaring out the car speakers, windows down on a sunny day. Nothing but an open highway around you, and all the time in the world ahead of you. Enjoy.

Post-Nothing (2009)

1. The Boys Are Leaving Town

2. Young Hearts Spark Fire

3. Wet Hair

4. Rockers East Vancouver

5. Heart Sweats

6. Crazy/Forever

7. Sovereignty

8. I Quit Girls

Art Czars (2010)

1. Art Czars

2. Racer-X (Big Black cover)

No Singles (2010)

1. Darkness On The Edge of Gastown

2. No Allegiance To The Queen

3. Sexual Aerosol

4. Lovers/Strangers

5. Lucifer's Symphony

6. Couture Suicide

7. Avant Sleepwalk

8. Coma Complacency

9. To Hell With Good Intentions (Mclusky cover)

10. Press Corps

Younger Us (2010)

1. Younger Us

2. Sex And Dying In High Society (X cover)

Heavenward Grand Prix (2010)

1. Heavenward Grand Prix

2. Shame (PJ Harvey cover)

The House That Heaven Built (2012)

1. The House That Heaven Built

2. Jack The Ripper (Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds cover)

Celebration Rock (2012)

1. The Nights Of Wine And Roses

2. Fire's Highway

3. Evil's Sway

4. For The Love Of Ivy

5. Adrenaline Nightshift

6. Younger Us

7. The House That Heaven Built

8. Continuous Thunder

Near To The Wild Heart Of Life (2017)

1. Near To The Wild Heart Of Life

2. North East South West

3. True Love And A Free Life Of Free Will

4. I'm Sorry (For Not Finding You Sooner)

5. Arc Of Bar

6. Midnight To Morning

7. No Known Drink Or Drug

8. In A Body Like A Grave

Near To The Wild Heart Of Life 7" (2017)

1. Near To The Wild Heart Of Life

2. Love --> Building On Fire (Talking Heads cover)

North East South West (2017)

1. North East South West

2. Fire In The Western World (Dead Moon cover)

Massey Fucking Hall (2020)
1. Intro: Near To The Wild Heart Of Life

2. Near To The Wild Heart Of Life

3. Fire's Highway

4. Heart Sweats

5. Arc Of Bar

6. Intro: Younger Us

7. Younger Us

8. North East South West

9. The Nights OF Wine And Roses

10. Intro: No Known Drink or Drug

11. No Known Drink or Drug

12. Continuous Thunder

13. Young Hearts Spark Fire

14. Sovereignty

15. Intro: The House That Heaven Built

16. The House That Heaven Built

Fate & Alcohol (2024)

1. Eye Contact High

2. D&T

3. Alice

4. Chicago

5. Upon Sober Reflection

6. Fugitive Summer

7. A Gaslight Anthem

8. Positively 34th Street

9. One Without The Other

10. All Bets Are Off

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Growing Fins

Growing Fins are a four-piece emo band from Toronto, Ontario that formed in 2015. Thus far, they've released two fantastic EP's, with their most recent being a self-titled release that came out in the summer of 2021. This band plays an energetic, heavily math rock-inspired style of midwest emo, with some frenzied fretwork and some gruff yet melodic vocals that often push into screamo territory. If you're a fan of bands including Gulfer, Macseal, You Blew It!, Tiny Moving Parts, or 1994! you should absolutely check out Growing Fins. Their self-titled EP in particular is incredible, and the rambunctious opener "Ogilvie" and epic finale of "...and then I hotboxed my washroom." are worth the price of admission alone. Enjoy.

Oakcrest (2016)

1. Pizza Elbow

2. The Party Planning Comittee

3. Scotland

Growing Fins (2021)

1. Ogilvie

2. Highway To Heck

3. Caelin's House

4. Yikes (Pt. 1)

5. Pronounced Liked Nikes (Pt. 2)

6. ...and then I hotboxed my washroom

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Boxcutter

Boxcutter are a three-piece screamo band from Toronto, Ontario that formed in 2022. They put out their debut EP that same year. It's a raw recording in the best sense, capturing the band's cutting guitar and pounding rhythm section in its most organic essence. They often tread the light between melody and abrasion, with an insanely heartfelt vocal delivery and incredible lyrics to boot. It's an incredible document that I think captures the appeal of screamo, which is found in its vulnerability and kinetic energy. I don't know if that makes any sense, but this band is not to be missed and I highly recommend giving them a listen. Enjoy.

it's more like embracing (2022)

1. the surface of lake ontario lies below the bottom of lake erie

2. navier stokes would have a field day with this one

3. at 6:45am i saw your ghost by my bedroom window

4. quetiapine is a beautiful name for a girl

5. a girl is a knife

What Good Does Getting Angry Do? (2023)

1. Treehouse Of Horror - Jeff The Killer

2. Please Don't Crash - Quiet 

3. boxcutter - stray

4. Treehouse Of Horror - Ben Drowned

5. Please Don't Crash - Cut Off My Hands

6. boxcutter - she/her/hearse

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Treehouse Of Horror

Treehouse Of Horror are a three-piece emo/screamo band from Toronto, Ontario that formed in 2021. Following a single demo, their debut EP came out in October of last year. This band plays an energetic style of twinkly emo, with tons of tight instrumental interplay amidst the expected clean noodley bits.  The dual vocals are also a major highlight as an additional dynamic layer, and as they often veer into screamo territory with some impassioned execution. It's a solid EP I'd definitely recommend checking out if you're a fan of bands like Grown Ups, Hightide Hotel, CSTVT, or Merchant Ships, and look forward to what this band does next. Enjoy.

See you next Tuesday - Demo (2021)

1. See you next Tuesday - Demo

Songs We Wrote (2022)

1. See You Next Tuesday

2. Catnip

3. Joan Of Arc

4. Sadgasm

What Good Does Getting Angry Do? (2023)

1. Treehouse Of Horror - Jeff The Killer

2. Please Don't Crash - Quiet 

3. boxcutter - stray

4. Treehouse Of Horror - Ben Drowned

5. Please Don't Crash - Cut Off My Hands

6. boxcutter - she/her/hearse

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I Spoke

I Spoke were a four-piece screamo band from Toronto, Ontario that were active from 2002 to 2005, with reunion shows occurring in 2012. Their output was fairly limited, though thankfully documented via their Bandcamp. They put out two EP's in 2003, though recorded more material that went unreleased for years (Destroying A Masterpiece, The Forgotten EP). The band underwent a change in vocalist at the end of that year, with no new material surfacing until 2005. They put out splits with Panserbjorne and Beaumont Hotel. All their material on those splits and more culminated in the release of Autobiography. Sonically, the band made frequent use of subdued, melancholic arpeggios with sporadic breaks of all-out tremolo-heavy emoviolence assault. This was paired with a screamed, forlorn vocals, often delivering lyrics that touched upon some overt politial subject matter. They can be loosely compared to bands such as City Of Caterpillar, I Would Set Myself On Fire For You, and Cease Upon The Capitol, though with significantly shorter song runtimes. Enjoy.

Faith In Chaos (2003)

1. You Broke My Heart... So I Cut Your Breaklines

2. Why Make Sense, When Art Is Dead?

3. Lies My Parents Told Me That I Still Believe To This Day

4. The Demons That Live Inside My Statue Of The Virgin Mary

5. Returning The Bullets Once Lodged In My Body To Wal-Mart

6. Random Beatings By Lee Majors

Destroying A Masterpiece (2003)

1. Destroying A Masterpiece

A Collective Journey (2003)

1. The Firefly Tree

2. Instrumental One

Autobiography (2005)

1. That Which Divides Us

2. Friends Not Fans

3. Untitled

4. Selling The Myth Of Nationalism

5. Ideology Of The Cancer Cell

6. Forgotten Histories, Stolen Lives

7. Exclusion By Language

8. Whose Voice?

The Emo Apocalypse (2006)

29. Is Dead

The Forgotten EP (2012)

1. 13 Ways To View A Cardboard City

2. An Obvious Statement

3. Rapid Eye Movement

4. Stepping Through Consciousness

Note: Recorded in 2003 but unreleased until 2012

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Grade

 

Grade are a five-piece hardcore/emo band from Burlington, Ontario that began in 1994 and initially broke up in 2002, before reuniting for shows in 2006, and ha,ve been fully reformed since 2009, though less active than in their formative years. They technically began in 1992 under the name Incision, but after a few line-up changes they finalized as Grade in 1994, with their debut LP coming out a year later. After three more albums, other assorted releases, and some relentless touring, they disbanded in 2002. They reunited in 2009 to record new material, as well as sporadically tour and play shows. 

Sonically, this band is often praised as being pioneers of the hardcore/emo blend that would become more widely popular in the 2000's. They developed a strong following, but never got any widespread recognition, thus why words like "underrated" and "influential" are often thrown their way. Rightly so, I might add. The band had the unique ability to blend metallic riffs of hardcore heavies like Chokehold with the more melodic, cathartic octave-chord crescendos of early emo bands like Evergreen or Sunny Day Real Estate. They were also one of the earliest bands to incorporate both screamed and cleanly sung vocals, a sound that again wouldn't become widespread until the next decade. If you're looking for a place to start with this band, Under The Radar is probably their most popular album, though I've always been partial to the rawer sound of And Such Is Progress. In regards to their discography, everything is below is near-complete, though there are a few minor things missing. Most notably some compilation tracks, as well as the early Afterthought single and Incision split, though all tracks from those two releases do appear elsewhere here. Enjoy!

Grade/Believe (1994)

1. Grade - Cripple

2. Grade - Choda

3. Grade - Impulse

4. Grade - Hairdie

5. Grade - Digga Digga Song

6. Grade - Classified

7. Grade - Melodic Song

8. Grade - Entangled

9. Believe - Pot O' Gold

10. Believe - Drowning

11. Believe - Last Chances

12. Believe - Second Coming

13. Believe - Joel's Song

14. Believe - Escape

15. Believe - Regret

And Such Is Progress (1995)

1. Weave

2. Miracle Ear

3. CFNY

4. Bedhead

5. Tearjerk

6. Hive

7. Pocket Rocket

8. And Such Is Progress

Grade (1996)

1. Chancre

2. Not Heroic

3. Abandon The Need

Separate The Magnets (1997)

1. Conceptualizing Theories In Motion

2. Symptoms Of Simplifying The Simplistic

3. The Adaption Of Means

4. Life Gets In The Way Of Living

5. To Illustrate And Design New Parameters

6. The Joy Of Stupidity

7. The Tie That Binds

Triumph & Tragedy (1999)

1. Triumph & Tragedy

2. Stolen Bikes Ride Faster

3. Panama (Van Halen cover)

Under The Radar (1999)

1. The Inefficiency Of Emotion

2. For The Memory Of Love

3. Seamless

4. The Tension Between Stillness And Motion

5. Victims Of Mathematics

6. A Year In The Past, Forever In The Future

7. The Worst Lies Are Told In Silence

8. Second Chance At First Place

9. Stolen Bikes Ride Faster

10. When Something Goes To Your Head

11. Triumph and Tragedy

The Embarrassing Beginning (2000)

1. Cripple

2. Punk Rock Song

3. Impulse

4. Hairdie

5. Digga Digga Song

6. Classified

7. Instrumental Song

8. Entangled

9. Afterthought (Demo)

10. The Tension Between Stillness & Motion (Demo)

11. Triumph & Tragedy (Acoustic)

12. Stolen Bikes Ride Faster

13. Panama (Van Halen cover)

14. A Year In The Past (Radio Version)

15. Seamless (Acoustic Version)

Note: Compilation including songs from the Grade/Believe split, Triumph & Tragedy

Headfirst Straight To Hell (2001)

1. Termites Hollow

2. Becoming Not Being

3. In The Wake Of Poseidon

4. Bleeding Warm & Newly Dead

5. Overthrowing Creation Itself

6. Little Satisfactions

7. Vertical Transmission

8. Will Bending

9. In Ashes We Lie

10. Sixth Chamber

11. The Empress

12. Twenty Moons

13. Winds Of Hell / The Glorious Dead

At Both Ends (2009)

1. Bane - Non-Negotiable

2. Bane - Struck Down By Me

3. Grade - These Eyes Are On The Exit

4. Grade - Optical Portions

5. Unrestrained - Immaculate Deception 

6. Unrestained - Anak Krakatau

7. Between Earth And Sky - Skin And Stone 

8. Between Earth And Sky - Flow

Collapsed Lungs (2014)

1. Collapsed Lungs

2. Unstoppable Force vs. Immovable Object

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