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Agnostic Front is an American hardcore punk rock band from New York City. It was formed by Vinnie Stigma and Roger Miret in 1982, who soon added Ray Barbieri and Adam Moochie to form the original line-up. Their debut EP, United Blood, was released in 1983 on an indie label. It was hardcore and lyrically charged and has become a collector's item. The follow-up was Victim in Pain (1984), now typically regarded as the band's best LP. Dave Jones replaced Ray Barbieri on drums. The album pushed the band to the forefront of New York's fledgling hardcore scene, which was centered around ...read more
Agnostic Front is an American hardcore punk rock band from New York City. It was formed by Vinnie Stigma and Roger Miret in 1982, who soon added Ray Barbieri and Adam Moochie to form the original line-up. Their debut EP, United Blood, was released in 1983 on an indie label. It was hardcore and lyrically charged and has become a collector's item. The follow-up was Victim in Pain (1984), now typically regarded as the band's best LP. Dave Jones replaced Ray Barbieri on drums. The album pushed the band to the forefront of New York's fledgling hardcore scene, which was centered around CBGB's, where they played with bands like The Cro-Mags and Murphy's Law. 1986's Cause for Alarm was a difficult album to record, due to constant line-up changes and personnel problems. Released on Combat Records, Cause for Alarm added thrash metal influences, one of the first bands to combine thrash and punk rock. Many of Agnostic Front's supporters considered the album a travesty and a sell-out, but it vastly expanded their audience. With yet another new lineup, the band soon released Liberty & Justice in 1987. The hardcore scene had collapsed by this time, and the album featured stripped down punk and a lack of thrash influences. It was a failure, however, compared to previous records. Miret was arrested on drug charges after releasing a live album, and spent his time in prison writing new songs while Stigma and the band toured Europe for the first time. The prison lyrics became most of 1992's One Voice, which sold poorly and signaled the end of the band's career. Their last concert was at CBGB's in 1993. Stigma and Miret reformed Agnostic Front in 1997, signing to Epitaph Records. Their comeback albums have sold well and been mostly acclaimed by music critics for their pure hardcore/oi sound. In 2001 they released the album Dead Yuppies. Recently as of 2002, Miret worked on a side project band Roger Miret and the Disasters to further explore his punk rock and oi leanings, and released a self-titled album. Agnostic Front went back to the album drawing board again in 2004/5 for a new album. This time they wanted to go back to their "old-school" hardcore roots, established in their earlier years, their ultimate goal being a much heavier edge akin to many bands they helped influence such as Hatebreed or All Out War. The album Another Voice was created, mainly as a follow up to One Voice, going back to the way they say their hardcore should be. This album, however, did receive some criticism from fans and the press for seeming to change their music to fit the current wave of "toughguy" bands. Miret's voice on the album particularly seemed to turn off many less hardcore oriented fans. "While Miret no doubt influenced Rick Healy from 25 Ta Life, this new album sounds like Miret began stealing some influence back, which legends such as Agnostic Front should never need to do," one reviewer pointed out.Since that time, Agnostic Front has released three more studio albums, Warriors in 2007, My Life, My Way in 2011 and The American Dream Died in 2015. Northeastern hardcore never packed a harder punch. "Crucified for your sins. They don't know our feelings, only desperate cries. They see reflections through distorted eyes." « hide |
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