AGNOSTIC FRONT

NEW BLOOD
Young Guns Perpetuate the Legacy of Agnostic Front
by Jason Walsh

For my family, for my friends, for those that we've lost I sing.
This is a message, this is for you,
never forget the lower east side crew.
-“For My Family”

The band that started it all headlined the biggest underground show of the year. Following a successful outing at the Black ‘n Blue Bowl in Brooklyn, they then begin a daunting worldwide tour that will span the remainder of the year in support of their ninth full-length studio release. After nearly three decades of pounding the pavement, Agnostic Front proves they still have the resilience to remain one of the premiere hardcore acts of the day.

Roger Miret and Vinnie Stigma, the seminal founders of Agnostic Front, are legends in the New York hardcore scene and the true godfathers of the movement that began in the early 80s. But now, the current lineup of young blood has revitalized the band, not only in its evolution of their music, but also by ensuring its legacy will continue. Guitarist Joseph James grew up listening to Agnostic Front and now finds himself a proud member.

“The opportunity to join Agnostic Front is like a dream come true for anybody who has been a part of this and plays music,” James said. “I don’t take it for granted for a second. I try to do the band justice, give them my input and my all to make the band better than they ever were and I hope that we’re accomplishing that.”

When he first joined the band, James said in the middle of their set, it would hit him who were on stage next to him.

“In the beginning, it was really all the time that I was doing that,” he said. “Now we’ve become so tight, we know each other so well, I feel like they’re my family and I’ve kind of gotten over that and I look at them as peers. But then, there’s those instances once in a while when you see them in their element and you say ‘wow, this is a living legend.’ It’s something very cool to be a part of.”

Drummer Steve Gallo and his brother, Mike, who plays bass, represent the rest of the youthful infusion that makes up the band’s powerful rhythm section. Steve had the AF logo inked in his skin long before he joined the band.

“I got blessed,” he said. “What am I gonna say? It’s a dream come true. I got the boots on my back before I even met them.”

The new album, “Warriors,” is a return to the more metal-themed style of hardcore that began on “One Voice.” Gallo says it revisits these earlier eras in the band’s career.

“I love it,” he said. “We all had a lot to do with it. It was something that, individually, everybody in the band had a big part in writing. I’m more proud of that record than anything in my life. It’s my favorite thing in the world. I’m so proud of it.”

Stigma also had a very tongue-in-cheek appreciation for the new record.

“I’m so glad I got this new record,” he joked. “It’s my best record, I swear to God. I finally learned how to make a record after all these years. Usually, it’s a mistake and it comes out great.”

The album contains straight-forward, hyper-speed, hardcore tracks as well as anthemic breakdowns like “For My Family,” of which the band recently premiered a new video. However, there are songs like “Dead to Me,” which focuses on coping with betrayl.

“I’ll tell you, it’s funny,” Gallo said. “I wrote that and I was still with her and now we’re broken up and I listen to the song and I’m like ‘YEAH!’ There’s a whole new meaning.”

The Black ‘n Blue Bowl proved to be a very successful event, not only for the bands and promoters, but for the fans who attended as well. Gallo says that the youth involved in the scene need to continue to experience shows like this.

“It’s important for the kids to see this shit,” he said. “It’s just very important for everybody right here, for these kids to see what’s going on, to see this whole unity right now. When I pulled up the line was like 1500 people long and I’m thinking this is what it’s about.”

Gallo and James are also members of Inhuman, who played this year’s Black ‘n Blue Bowl. James hasn’t missed the festival since they restarted it back in 2005.

“I’ve been to every one,” he said. “This is probably the most packed one, the biggest promoted one, the most tickets sold, the biggest one they’ve had in New York. I’m really happy to be a part of it. I played twice, with Inhuman and with AF later.”

In the more recent times, Gallo believes that the kids are missing out on what the scene is all about and that events like Black ‘n Blue Bowl instill that sense of pride and heritage.

“What’s going on today is these kids are losing their culture. Hardcore is not just a style of music. It’s a scene. It’s about a movement and it’s about a lifetsyle and having friends. They’re not having that today and I’m kind of frustrated about that to tell you the truth and that’s why this is good for them to start doing this again.”

Following the show, Agnostic Front will spend the rest of the year on their world tour, hitting Europe with The Hoods, followed by a West Coast tour that winds north into Canada, continuing on to dates in Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, and South America.

Gallo says sometimes the huge European festivals can be a little intimidating for a guy from Long Island.

“We did the Full Force Festival in Europe. We did that twice and it usually ranges somewhere around forty to fifty thousand people. I was playing for years before I did that, and let me tell you something, you get up and look at that fucking sea of people you just take a second and think ‘oh, wow.’ It’s amazing. There’s nothing in the world like it. If I could die right after doing that, I’d be covered.”

The new lineup for a band of the ages has not only rejuvenated Agnostic Front but shows they will survive the test of time. James is proud to be a member of the Lower East Side Crew.

“I’m happy to be a part of it and I’m happy that they include me. We all work really hard to make this band continue their legacy as one of the supreme New York hardcore bands.”