Scream It Like You Mean It Tour Brings Punk and Metal to SA

Courtesy photos

Despite the title, the Scream It Like You Mean It tour—appropriately hitting the White Rabbit the week before Halloween—isn’t a screamo show. Or, rather, it’s not exclusively a screamo show: there’s also some emo, hardcore, melodic hardcore, post-hardcore, alt-metal, pop-punk, dance punk and … well, you get the idea. If the kids are running around in tight circles hollering to it, it’s part of the tour. In its fourth year despite a scale-back from 19 bands to seven, Scream It is still a good deal and, if past years are any indication, a good chance to get an advance look at bands that will be tearing up the charts a few months from now. The lineup includes bands Like Moths to Flames, Capture the Crown, I Am King, Set It Off and Sienna Skies, but these are the Current’s three top picks:

Silverstein
Named for none other than children’s author/wise-ass Shel Silverstein, this Canadian outfit has always been hard to pigeonhole. Marked by a solid sense of humor and a tendency to play around with the boundaries of hardcore, they enjoy courting the creative fringes of the genre. Being hard to predict is a rare thing in a strictly regimented musical framework like theirs, but Silverstein’s decisions are always interesting if not completely successful—they recently followed up the clever Short Songs (hardcore blasts at grindcore speeds) with This is How the Wind Shifts, a much more ambitious—and intense—emo-tinged full-length.

Hawthorne Heights
This screamo quintet has been marked by tragedy, controversy and conflict; no wonder they seem so upset. Their rhythm guitarist, Casey Calvert, died on the bus during their first major national tour; they underwent a very nasty and very public feud with their former label, Victory Records; and their own label, Cardboard Empire, was a non-starter. Despite it all, though, they’ve managed to win chart success and an extremely dedicated fan base. Their new label, Red River Entertainment, has overseen the release of a vigorous, hard-edged concept album called Zero, which has rejuvenated the band creatively after some years of rowing in circles.

Story of the Year
St. Louis’ favorite post-emo whatnot is touring behind what is, amazingly, the 10-year anniversary re-recording of their first album, Page Avenue. It’s hard to believe that such an energetic group has been around for that long of a period, going from local-act obscurity to bonafide chart sensation. They’ve also weathered a lot of hard times, including a nearly three-year hiatus and a countless number of side projects, to make what could be a major comeback. Now’s a crucial time for the band, as the re-interpretation of their original material signals a desire to head in some new directions.