[New Music] He Is Legend Premier New Single - "Sand"

Wow, this band never disappoints.

North Carolina post hardcore/rock outfit He Is Legend have just released the first single from their upcoming LP, few. He Is Legend have been one of my favorite bands ever since I first heard them when I was 15 or 16. Their blend of dark, smokey southern riffage, viscous psychedelic melodies, and ethereal singing have always brought me back to them again and again. Their newest offering, Sand, is no exception. This song is mostly driven by chunky guitars and soaring vocals, and is a great example of the wonderful black magic this band consistently uses to create some of my favorite rock songs of all time.

The album was co-produced by Adam "Nolly" Getgood of Periphery and it absolutely shows in this track. The heavy, start-stop riffs sound crisp and clear without the robotic overproduction that many modern guitar parts end up having. The vocals are perfectly placed in the mix, giving the guitars room to breathe while just high enough to evenly fill all registers. My only complaint is the lack of bass as a prominent instrument in this track. In the past, He Is Legend have always utilized bass as a significant part of the band's melody and groove. In this track, the bass is barely audible and adds very little. Hopefully the rest of the album has the bass more front and center. Regardless, this is an excellent track and I can't wait to hear the rest of the album.

Do yourself a favor and listen here.

-Austin

Introduction: Austin Zuber

Hey there!

My name is Austin. I live in Denver, Colorado and have a passion for music and a desire to write. I've always wanted to start a review/discussion blog, but I never thought I could crank out enough content to make it worth while. After meeting Ryan at a Run The Jewels show last week, I decided to stop procrastinating my writing start making content for this blog.

Musically I'm the most familiar with metal, punk, hiphop, and pop. I listen to a very wide array of genres, but expect posts on the heavier end of the music spectrum as this is what I am most familiar with.

I'm really excited to write again and be a part of this blog. Let me know if you have any review requests or discussion ideas!

Happy listening,

Austin

An Open Letter from Julia and Ryan

I wrote a short post on my Facebook about this when the news of this incident broke. This is an extension of that post.  

To whom it may concern,

I want to preface this by saying I’ve been going to hardcore shows and Warped Tours since age 13 or 14. I love going to them and I love all the friends I’ve made because of the scene. I’ve been accidentally punched, kicked, unwillingly pulled into pits, stage dove on, etc. at almost every hardcore show I’ve been to. I have seen some really intense and violent shows (not including Warped Tour). Expire, Knocked Loose and Terror, by far have the most violent crowds that I’ve seen. The crowds at those shows are similar to crowds at other shows with even heavier bands - they're predominantly all men.

This post is a response to the incident at a Code Orange show in Utah where a young woman was injured so severely she was in the ICU for six days with a severely broken jaw, a brain bleed and currently has her jaw wired shut. I don’t think it’s appropriate to discuss the details of her injuries in this post, but there is a GoFundMe set up to help with her medical expenses; you can read her full story there and in her Facebook post. During the show, a guy yelled “CROWD KILL” and proceeded to roundhouse kick her in the face. He was wearing steel toed boots. She was knocked unconscious immediately and the guy who did this to her disappeared into the crowd after it happened and he is choosing to not hold himself responsible for his actions. 

I fully understand that hardcore shows are not a ‘safe space,’ but that does not mean people can roundhouse kick others in the face, crowd kill, and intentionally injure others. That’s completely unacceptable. I completely understand participating in pits and throwing down but if you are actively in the pit, you know that you're, probably, going to get hit or hit someone else. If you are in the pit, you are responsible for your own safety and, more importantly, the safety of those around you. 

The scariest part of this whole thing is that could have been me or any one of my friends, male or female, who go to hardcore shows. Women are only a small part of this community and are oftentimes targets for violence. I am not saying that all women in hardcore are victims, I am going on my past experiences and what I see happen around me.
That being said, there have been more instances, in my experiences, of being helped out of pits and off the floor and defended from would-be crowd killers by others at shows. There have not been many of instances where I was genuinely scared for my safety but with the help of other show-goers, I was able to get myself into a safe place. 

I will add that as I have gotten older, I see more and more women coming out to these shows which is so fantastic. Girls shouldn't be afraid of hardcore, but instances like this, in my opinion, are what turns many girls off from going to shows. 

I wrote this not to sound whiny and criticize something I love. I wrote this to draw attention to issues that I have seen firsthand and that have become more public in recent history. I firmly believe that I am part of a welcoming and accepting community but I have seen things become more violent and less welcoming in recent months and years. There has been an elitist mentality that has become prevalent in the scene as well. That needs to stop. Seeing a band before they got big or being a fan for x-number of years or saying '(insert band name here) isn't hardcore. (insert band name here) are posers and ruining the scene' needs to stop. Everyone has the right to be in this scene. It doesn't matter if you listen to older bands or newer bands - if you like hardcore, you are welcome.
Hardcore is a community where everybody is welcome Hardcore shows should feel comfortable; they should be fun. They should be a place where you are welcome in this scene regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation, creed, etc. 

I hope this is the last time I hear about something like this,

-Julia

To whom it may concern,
I was not present at the time of this incident. Few people know exactly what happened to Emily; regardless of the facts, the results are what they are. A person was injured severely and by most accounts, she was injured intentionally. The problem isn't that a woman was targeted, the root of the problem is that intent to injure others is commonplace.
   Two years ago I attended an Acacia Strain show with a friend. Not even two songs into their set, a young woman was knocked unconscious for no other reason than she was standing near the front. We helped her up and took her outside until some of the staff came out to make sure she was okay. When we walked back in to the venue, we found the same guy that knocked her out running his way down the front of the audience and rabbit-punching each of them in the back of the head. When some one asked who was doing all the damage, my friend pointed at the man behaving so inappropriately, upon which my friend was greeted by a fist straight to the face. He was knocked out cold by the guy's friend. The moral of my story is that these kinds of things can happen to anyone. Male or female. Injuring anyone is wrong, period. 
   As Julia mentioned, we are a community. If you go to a show, you are a part of your community. If you support bands you love, you are a part of your community. The fact of the matter is that we are all as much to blame for what happened to Emily as the culprit himself. We all stand idly by and allow the one or two people at a show to ruin it for everyone. By not speaking out, by not stopping their destructive behavior, we encourage it. If our community is to remain in tact, we have to act as individuals on behalf of our community. We have no government, no law, no order. All we have is each other. Let's have fun, dance how you want to dance, crowd surf if you can, do whatever it is you want to do, so long as that action harms nobody but yourself. 
   Emily, I'm sorry that this happened to you. You're not the first, and I'm sure you won't be the last. But with everything comes a silver-lining. Your story could be the beginning of a cultural shift. Your story can change the narrative that has plagued our community for some time now. I'm sorry that it had to be you, but I'm grateful that you've attracted enough attention to start a conversation. Your community cares about you, from Coast to Coast (and everywhere in between) we all wish you the best.

Sincerly,

Ryan