Rival Schools

 Rival Schools are a four-piece emo/post-hardcore band from New York City, New York that formed in 1999, and have been intermittently active ever since (first disbanding in 2003, then reuniting in 2008 only to disband again in 2013, and finally reforming in 2022). With such an on-and-off history, they've released three albums over two decades. The band includes singer/guitarist Walter Schreifels and drummer Sammy Siegler, both of whom were already well-established major figures in New York hardcore having both been in CIV, Youth Of Today, and Project X together prior while Schreifels is of course best known for Gorilla Biscuits and  Quicksand while Siegler was also in Judge, Bold, Shelter, Side by Side. Basically New York hardcore wouldn't be what it is without these two guys. But Rival Schools if fairly removed from their hardcore origins, at least in terms of sound. Carrying on the post-hardcore groundwork laid by Quicksand into far more melodic territory, Rival Schools plays a shimmering, intricate brand of emo influenced by Braid and Texas Is The Reason while still maintaining that sense of heavy, creative energy that they brought to their previous bands. If you're new to Rival Schools United By Fate is kind of like "the" album by them, but their later output shouldn't be overlooked either. Enjoy.

United By Fate (2001)

1. Travel By Telephone

2. Everything Has Its Point

3. High Acetate

4. Undercovers On

5. Good Things

6. Used For Glue

7. World Invitational

8. The Switch

9. Holding Sand

10. My Echo

11. Favorite Star

12. So Down On

13. Hooligans For Life

Pedals (2011)

1. Wring It Out

2. 69 Guns

3. Eyes Wide Open

4. Choose Your Adventure

5. Racing To Red Lights

6. Shot After Shot

7. A Parts For B Actors

8. Big Waves

9. Small Doses

10. The Ghost Is Out There

Found (2013)

1. Dreamlife Avenger

2. Reaching Out

3. Indisposable Heroes

4. Paranoid Detectives

5. On The Fray

6. The Soft Skin

7. Tell It All To Me

8. Missing Glider

9. Big Waves

10. Sofia Loren

11. Why Can't I Touch It

Some (2022)

1. Green Is Good

2. Take One For The Team

3. Where I'm From

4. Contraire

5. Holding Sand (Acoustic)

Note: Most songs originally released in 2001

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Dahlia Seed

Dahlia Seed were a five-piece post-hardcore/indie/emo band from New York City, New York that were around from 1992 to 1996. They released two full-lengths and a handful of splits, with most of their non-LP material being compiled in 1996 on Please Excuse All The Blood. Sonically, they evolved quite a bit in a short span of time. Their first full-length, Valentine's Kid Litter is a little punchier and rawer, with the big indie guitar sensibilities as bands as diverse as Jawbreaker or Superchunk. There's certainly pop elements to it, with the vocals often being sung with a sweet sense of melody, though they do border on a scream in certain moments. Just a year later, they followed it up with Survived By, which is markedly cleaner in tone. The disortion is turned down a bit, and the vocals are primarily sung. Both are fantastic albums that demonstrate the span of sounds that Dahlia Seed could play with. Fans of bands such as Broken Hearts Are Blue, Pohgoh and Garden Variety absolutely need to hear this.

There's actually a good amount of additional info out there on this band, courtesy of a website that was up some years ago. It can only be found via the wayback machine now, but it contains info on their releases, other projects its members were involved in, a history on the band, and more. The whole thing was curated by their drummer, and can be found here. As a quick note, there are a few things missing from this discography, though they are available on other releases. The Teas! EP consists of tracks off of Valentine's Kid Litter, and the track off their split with Cradle is on Please Excuse All The Blood. Enjoy!

Dahlia Seed/Brokenmouth (1993)

1. Dahlia Seed - UFO

2. Dahlia Seed - Red Roses

3. Dahlia Seed - Bending

4. Dahlia Seed - Satan

Note: Dahlia Seed tracks only

Greyhouse/Dahlia Seed (1993)

1. Greyhouse - Taking Gate/Offer

2. Dahlia Seed - Milk

Dahlia Seed/Garden Variety (1994)

1. Dahlia Seed - Statement of Purpose

2. Garden Variety - Parker

Valentine Kid's Litter (1994)

1. Transparent

2. Teas

3. Green To Blue

4. Catholic Dress

5. About

6. Lucky Homes

7. Paint By Numbers

8. Cry Chord

9. Milk

10. Shake A Tower

11. 50 Minute Side

12. Gomez 88

Dahlia Seed/Mothman (1995)

1. Dahlia Seed - Bee Sting

2. Mothman - Untitled

Survived By (1995)

1. Punch And Get Out

2. Archway Out

3. Butterfly Kick

4. Cover Letter

5. Spot Check And

6. Lux Perpetua

7. Jet Spin

8. Pirate Denial

9. Sugar Snow

10. Over-Ray-Tet

11. Grumpy Tongue

12. Elevator Syndrome

Please Excuse All The Blood (1996)

1. Standing 8 Count

2. Gregg Leto's Tears

3. Missing Sequences (Voivod Rules)

4. Statement Of Purpose

5. Bee Sting

6. Grumpy Tongue (Live At Brownies NYC 1995)

7. Indian Burn (Previously Unreleased Instrumental From Valentine Kid's Litter)

8. About (Live From John Hiltz' Basement 1994)

9. Archlight (Recorded live on cassette in our practive space1994)

10. Red Roses (1st 10" 1993)

11. UFO (1st 10" 1993)

12. Bending (1st 10" 1993)

13. Satan  (1st 10" 1993)

14. There Is Always Here (Bonus: 1st 10" Never Released Ever 1993)

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Fluoride

 Fluoride are a three-piece grindcore/emoviolence band from New Brunswick, New Jersey (now seemingly split between NYC and Philadelphia) that began in 2016. They scratch the itch of many fans along the extreme music spectrum, including grindcore, powerviolence, and screamo, all while still chipping away at other sounds just semi-related to them. Basically, what I'm getting at is this is a band not easily tied down by blanket genre statements, but a band with a strong statement nonetheless. Absolutely recommended to check out if you're a fan of seeing the extent an amplifier can be stressed to. Enjoy.

fluoride (2017)

1. retributivism

2. cool guy backed hard

3. due process

4. tunnel vision

5. restraint

6. offset

7. bloodroot

8. death sentence

disentanglement (2019)

1. degrade

2. alienate

3. suffocate

4. chipped away

5. still time

6. regenerate

7. neglect

8. thought reform

9. black ash

10. unconditional

11. hoax

12. deterioration

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Outburst

Outburst are a five-piece straight edge hardcore band from New York City that were originally around from 1987 to 1989, but have been playing shows again since 2017. They put out a demo (recorded by Don Fury), a few comp tracks, and one 7" during their initial run together. Since then, Outburst have been incredibly influential (notably on bands like Fury and Soul Search, among others). Their sound is distinctly NYHC, but they don't quite sound like Agnostic Front, or something like that. They've got a uniquely aggressive sound, with blunt lyrics and booming instrumentals. In addition to what's below, you can also grab some live sets from there over at Blogged & Quartered here. Enjoy.

The Demo (1987)

1. Intro

2. Learn To Care

3. Think For Yourself

4. Mission Impossible

5. Mad At The World

6. True

7. Outro

New Breed Tape Compilation (1989)

5. The Hardway
6. Thin Ice

7. Controlled

Note: Outburst tracks only

Miles To Go (1989)

1. No Choice

2. When Things Go Wrong

3. Thin Ice

4. Misunderstood

5. Miles To GO

6. S.G.I.

7. Mission Impossible

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The Van Pelt

The Van Pelt were a four-piece indie/emo band from New York City that formed in 1993 and broke up in 1997. They have since reunited a few times in 2009, 2014, and 2017. They were formed by Chris Leo, who was formerly in the seminal band Native Nod (he's also Ted Leo's brother). The Van Pelt took a decidedly less aggressive approach than Leo's previous band, and instead focusing on clean, winding guitar arpeggios, with odd song structures that fall and rise. Vocally, the stream of conscious, sung/spoken vocal he is renowned for are still present, though far more intelligible and a little more opaque. They released two full-lengths during their initial run, and a new album in 2014. If you dig 90's emo with some heavy post-hardcore leanings, you'll dig this. Enjoy.

The Van Pelt/Radio To Saturn (1994)

1. The Van Pelt - His Saxophone Is My Guitar

2. Radio To Saturn - Young Friends

3. Radio To Saturn - (She Likes The Part) About Wolves

4. Radio To Saturn - Somber Town

(Young) Pioneers/The Van Pelt (1995)

1. (Young) Pioneers - April Violence

2. (Young) Pioneers - Great White Hope

3. The Van Pelt - Everything's Alright

Stealing From Our Favorite Thieves (1996)

1. His Steppe Is My Prarie

2. It's A Suffering

3. Shame On You

4. Magic Fantasy (We Are Provincial)

5. You Are The Glue

6. Simone Never Had It This Good

7. His Saxophone Is My Guitar

8. It's New To Me

9. Turning Twenty Into Two

The Speeding Train (1997)

1. The Speeding Train

2. Evil High

3. The Democratic Teachers Union

Sultans Of Sentiment (1997)

1. Nanzen Kills A Cat

2. The Good, The Bad & The Blind

3. Yamato (Where People Really Die)

4. My Bouts With Pouncing

5. Don't Make Me Walk My Own Log

6. The Young Alchemists

7. We Are The Heathens

8. Pockets Of Pricks

9. Let's Make A List

10. Do The Lovers Still Meet At The Chiang Kai - Shek Memorial?

Live! at WMUC FM on Third Rail Radio (1997)

1. The Van Pelt - Yamato (Where People Really Die)

2. Chisel - Towncrusher

Same As Stone (2005)

1. Same As Stone

2. The Swede's Down At The Beach

Imaginary Third (2014)

1. Infinite Me

2. The Threat

3. ABCD's Of Fascism

4. Three People Wide At All Times

5. The Betrayal

6. Democratic Teacher's Union

7. Evil High

8. The Speeding Train

Artisans & Merchants (2023)

1. We Gotta Live

2. Image Of Health

3. Artisans & Merchants

4. Punk House

5. Old Souls From Different Epochs

6. Grid

7. Cold Coconuts

8. Did We Hear The Same Song

9. Love Is Brutal

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Judge

Judge are a five-piece hardcore band from New York City that formed in 1987 and broke up in 1991. They reunited in 2013, and have been playing shows ever since. I don't know how much introduction this band needs. They're easily one of the best hardcore/youth crew bands of their time, and I don't think there's much dispute there. They had a revolving door of members, many of who would also play in other notable bands, such as Youth Of Today, Side By Side, Project X, Chain Of Strength, the list really does go on.

Conveniently in 2005, Revelation Records put a compilation that included Judge's entire discography. It includes their two EP's, one full-length (titled Bringin' It Down) plus a bunch of demos and unreleased material. In addition, it contains an early version of Bringin' It Down that's become known as Chung King Can Suck It, which was only available as a very limited pressing or bootleg before. That discography is what's available below, and I can't recommend enough grabbing this if classic straight edge/youth crew is your thing, because this shit is essential. Enjoy.

What It Meant: The Complete Discography (2005)

Disc 1

1. Fed Up

2. In My Way

3. I've Lost

4. New York Crew

5. Warriors (Blitz cover)

6. Take Me Away

7. Bringin' It Down

8. Hold Me Back

9. Give It Up

10. The Storm

11. Hear Me

12. Like You

13. I've Lost

14. Holding On

15. No Apologies

16. Hear Me

17. Hold Me Back

18. Give It Back

19. Just Like You

Disc 2

1. Take Me Away

2. Bringin' It Down

3. Hold Me Back

4. Give It Up

5. The Storm

6. Hear Me

7. Like You

8. I've Lost

9. Where It Went

10. Forget This Time

11. The Storm II

12. When The Levee Breaks (Led Zeppelin cover)

Gorilla Biscuits

Does this band really need much of an introduction? Gorilla Biscuits are without a doubt one of the most influential hardcore bands ever, no debate. Hailing from New York City, they formed in 1987 and called it quits in 1991. In that time, their classic (and only) LP Start Today was released, which is a necessary listen for fans of melodic hardcore. That LP, only with their self-titled EP is really where their legacy lies. I can't really say anything else about them except "essential".

Members of Gorilla Biscuits were also active in a bunch of other classic bands, such as Youth Of Today, Project X, Warzone, CIV, Rival Schools, and Quicksand. Gorilla Biscuits have reunited a few times since their initial run. First off for a one-off show in 1997, and then in 2005 for a more formal reunion. They've been playing shows since then, and even released a new 7" in 2006 that was sold on tour containing new recorded material. Though their output is relatively small, their influence is immense, and they've garnered a legacy that won't soon be forgotten. So, do enjoy the classic Gorilla Biscuits.

Demo (1987)

1. No Reason Why

2. Big Mouth

3. Better Than You

4. Gorilla Biscuits

5. Do It Yourself

6. Finish What You Started

Gorilla Biscuits (1988)

1. High Hopes

2. Big Mouth

3. No Reason Why

4. GM2

5. Hold Your Ground

6. Breaking Free

7. Finish What You Started

8. Sitting Around At Home

9. Biscuit Power

10. Short End Of The Stick

11. Hold Your Ground 1

12. GM2 1

Start Today (1989)

1. New Direction

2. Stand Still

3. Degradation

4. Good Intentions

5. Forgotten

6. Things We Say

7. Start Today

8. Two Sides

9. First Failure

10. Competition

11. Time Flies

12. Cats And Dogs

13. Sitting Around At Home

14. Biscuit Power

Having A Great Time... Wish You Were Here (1991)

1. New Direction

2. Cats And Dogs

3. GM2

4. Hold Your Ground

5. Competition

6. Distance

7. High Hopes

8. Sitting Around At Hope

9. Big Mouth

10. New Song

11. Degradation

12. Things We Say

13. Better Than You

14. Start Today

15. Biscuit Power

16. Forgotten

17. Cowboy Song

18. Should I Stay...

Reunion Tour 7" (2006)

1. At The Matinee

2. Knee Deep In The Ocean Of Hate

Project X

First off, this has nothing to do with the movie. In fact, this is pretty much the polar opposite of the movie. Project X were a four-piece straight edge hardcore band from New York City. They were there and then gone in 1987. They are probably best known for sharing members with seminal hardcore/youth crew bands Youth Of Today, Gorilla Biscuits, and Side By Side. Some of their members would even go on to be members of Quicksand, CIV, and Glassjaw. However, at this point in time, they were still playing fast, angry, hardcore punk. They played as few as 5 shows in their time, and only released one 7" (which was recorded with Don Fury). Their sole EP has since been re-released by Bridge Nine Records in 2005. As far as 80's hardcore goes, Project X are an incredibly solid band. It may be nothing groundbreaking, but I personally love their EP. They plow through 5 songs with fury, and that's exactly how it should be. Definitely check this out if Youth Of Today and Gorilla Biscuits are your idols, this is like the long-lost child of the two. Enjoy.

Straight Edge Revenge (1987)

1. Straight Edge Revenge

2. Shutdown

3. Cross Me

4. Dance Floor Justice

5. Where It Ends

6. Dance Floor Justice/Cross Me (live)

Saetia

Saetia was a screamo band from New York City, New York, that existed from 1997-2000. They are heralded as being one of the most seminal and definitive bands in screamo, and for good reason. The band's dual guitar sounds, dynamics from distorted octave chaos to quiet melodies, and vocals that shrieked and pierced, but also spoke and shook to overdramatic poetry are just a few attributes of the genre that Saetia were a major part in founding and perfecting. These guys are easily one of the most essential and well-known bands in this genre, so I'm sure many people are already familiar with them. Their members went on to form two other amazing and noteworthy bands, Off Minor and Hot Cross, both of which you should check out immediately if you haven't yet. During their tenure, the band released a handful of 7"'s as well as one LP. All of this, plus some live songs are included on A Retrospective, which is below. Enjoy one of the best bands ever.

A Retrospective (2001)

1. Notres Langues Nous Trompent

2. The Sweetness And The Light

3. An Open Letter

4. Woodwell

5. Corporeal

6. Ariadne's Thread

7. From The Firmament

8. Postlapsaria

9. Endymion

10. Roquentin

11. The Poet You Never Were

12. Some Natures Catch No Plagues

13. The Burden Of Reflecting

14. Closed Hands

15. Venus And Bacchus

16. One Dying Wish

17. Becoming The Truth

18. The Poet You Never Were (Live)

19. Ariadne's Thread (Live)

20. Notres Langues Nous Trompent (Live)

21. The Sweetness And The Light (Live)

22. Postlapasaria (Live)

Tendrils (2025)

1. Tendrils

2. Three Faces Past

3. Corkscrew Spine