Many pop punk and hardcore music fans found shelter from the rain inside the Rose Park Activity Building Sunday night. Expire, a hardcore-punk outfit from Milwaukee, was the headliner for the evening.
Other bands who performed that evening were Kicking In, Martial Law, Heavens Final War, Dozer, We Live Like Thieves, Starve and Headlock.
Max Hicks, vocalist of Kicking In, explained this show as generally mixed, meaning several genres of music sharing a stage the same night. Shows in Abilene can range anywhere from deathcore, to acoustic sets.
“It’s weird how some of it works, but it does. You’ll get pop punk, like We Live Like Thieves, or you’ll get hardcore like us or Expire,” said Hicks.
This eclectic mix of bands does not take away from the local music scene as a whole.
“The scene here is definitely an awesome one. We get awesome bands that come through because of our location in between Dallas, Austin and Midland. A lot of bands like to stop in Abilene because Texas is so big,” said Hicks.
With most things in Abilene closed by midnight, or even sooner, concerts give people something to do.
“The music scene here is a tight knit community. Everyone knows everyone and helps each other out. It’s a very positive atmosphere,” said Hicks.
Concerts are a place to see and meet friends from outside Abilene, such as San Angelo, where Dozer is from. They are also great for meeting a lot of cool people where you can bond in a fun atmosphere.
The bands that played on Sept. 20 were all energetic and talented. Kicking In delivered fast beats suitable for a circle pit, as well as fun, spirit-filled lyrics. Many times during the show, audience members could be found right next to the vocalists singing and screaming along. Such was the case with Dozer and We Live Like Thieves. Other members of the audience were actively jumping or dancing.
Will Herridge is a local musician who came out to enjoy the music and support the bands. “Expire puts on a loud, in your face show that anyone who can appreciate hardcore will surely enjoy. I’d give them a solid 9.5 out of 10, only because the vocals could have been louder,” Herridge commented.
Acts such as Martial Law also had great stage presence and energy that connected with the fans.
“Support your local scene,” Hicks said as a piece of advice to students. “Supporting touring bands gets cool bands to come through. And support local bands because we all love to make music together.”
The local scene is definitely one of respect and support where people can get together to have good time.
There is another local show coming up on Saturday Oct. 10 at 6 p.m. at the Abilene Civic Center. The bands scheduled to play are Embrace, Adrenal Asphyxia, A Threat to The Enemy, Abigail Williams, In My Ending and Today is the Day.
