The future of punk rock lies in the past

Rise Against to make sure the torch of punk is passed on

By Chris Nixon
For the Union-Tribune
October 26, 2006

Tim McIlrath, lead singer of Chicago-based hardcore quartet Rise Against, fears for the future of punk rock.

“I'm just afraid that there won't be kids like us in the next generation,” said McIlrath recently from his home in Chicago. “I feel like the generation before us did such a good job of passing on that torch, passing on that legacy of punk and everything involved with it.

“I feel like less and less people are passing it on because there are guys that are just so jaded that they don't talk to the next generation of kids about what they believe. Or maybe they just don't believe anymore. Who knows?”

Rise Against believes passionately in the future of punk and educating the leaders of tomorrow through their lyrics, music and even the band's liner notes. Along with a musical laundry list of early punk bands (Minor Threat and Black Flag), McIlrath and his mates include a reading list in the liner notes of Rise Against's albums.

For the 26-year-old singer, books like Ray Bradbury's “Fahrenheit 451” shaped who he is and his outlook on the world.

“When you read a book like 'Fahrenheit 451' at the age of 15, it just blows your mind,” McIlrath said. “You're thinking this is a cool sci-fi novel about some future time when people burn books, then you realize he's talking about our world. This is talking about the world we live in and the world we could live in if we allow these things to happen.

“When you look up from that book, you see the world with a whole different view. A lot of those authors are what led me to find punk rock instead of mainstream music.”

Rise Against formed in 1999, emerging from a Chicago scene known more for its indie rock (Tortoise and Shellac) than its old school political punk. McIlrath wanted to bust out of the shoegazer mentality and offer more passion and energy in his music.

Rise Against recorded and released “Siren Song of the Counter Culture” in 2004 but received little support from the Geffen label because no one really knew the band at the label. McIlrath, along with guitarist Chris Chasse, bassist Joe Principe and drummer Brandon Barnes, took the cold shoulder in stride. Using a page from their DIY predecessors, the quartet went on tour nonstop and earned listeners one city at a time.

Without label support, Rise Against sold enough records to pique the interest of the label, and ever since, the four guys from Chi-town have had the major-label backing they deserve: “Everyone there is really into the band and into the message. We still don't sell a million records like other artists on Geffen, but they care about us like we do.”

Touring in support of this year's “The Sufferer and the Witness,” Rise Against will play a Halloween show at SOMA.

“I just hope the kids in the front row of a Rise Against show are the next big wave of bands,” McIlrath said. “I want to be able to say those are the kids that are going to write songs that are going to change lives 10 years from now.”

Chris Nixon is a San Diego writer.

Hawthorne Heights in N&D

Hawthorne Heights hits the road following a dream

By Chris Nixon
For the Union-Tribune
October 26, 2006

I was born in a small town, and I can breathe in a small town, sang Ohio native John Mellencamp in his well-worn '80s hit song. But breathing don't pay the bills. In reality, Mellencamp had to leave his small town in order to attain fame and notoriety.

So did Hawthorne Heights, the emo-pop fivesome from Dayton, Ohio. But for drummer Eron Bucciarelli, vocalist JT Woodruff, bassist Matt Ridenour and guitarists Casey Calvert and Micah Carli, the escape from Dayton set Hawthorne Heights on a rapid ascendance to record label contracts and a full-time gig making music.

“We understood early on that if we were going to realize our goal and our dream of being professional musicians, then we'd have to get out of Dayton and play elsewhere,” said Bucciarelli on a recent stop in Arkansas on the current Nintendo Fusion Tour. “Our fans aren't really swarming all over Dayton or anywhere in the Midwest.”

Formed in 2001, Hawthorne Heights came out of a hardcore, punk and metal background. But as years progressed and the band matured, more pop sentiment and mainstream sentimentality worked its way into the group's music: “As we've gotten older, we've gotten more into pop and songwriting, so we like to blend all those elements together.”

Hawthorne Heights signed with Victory Records and released two albums – 2004's “The Silence in Black and White” and this year's “If Only You Were Lonely” – gaining more fans through national distribution and constant touring. Mixing grinding guitars, metal growls and saccharine sweet pop hooks, Hawthorne Heights found a foothold in the disenchanted youth of America.

Despite all the promise, the relationship with Victory would end as most disagreements do in the music industry: in a court of law. Hawthorne Heights is currently suing the label for breach of contract, copyright and trademark infringement, fraud and abuse.

“I guess we've learned that you really can't trust anybody. You have to look out for yourself. If I had one piece of advice: Definitely get a good entertainment lawyer to watch your back,” said Bucciarelli.

Until the legal issues get sorted out, Hawthorne Heights remains in a holding pattern regarding fresh material and new albums. But on the current tour, which hits SOMA tomorrow, the kids from Dayton are writing the songs that will become the band's next record.

“We were in the back of our bus working on a new song,” Bucciarelli said. “As far as a new record label, we kind of have to see what happens. But we're open to any possibilities.”

Chris Nixon is a San Diego writer.