Hatebreed will celebrate their 20th anniversary as a band next Tuesday night at the Hi-Tone. Choosing to play the Hi-Tone over Minglewood Hall or the New Daisy (where Hatebreed played in 2007 on the Monsters of Mayhem II tour) is especially interesting considering that after this gig the band will immediately join Slipknot for a string of shows in places like the Super Dome and the U.S. Cellular Center.
Formed in 1994 in Connecticut, Hatebreed quickly became one of the torchbearers of early metalcore, along with bands like Earth Crisis, Converge, and Merauder. By combining elements of traditional hardcore punk and heavy metal, Hatebreed took the NYHC sound from the late ’80s and beefed it up even more, creating a sound that is still being emulated today by bands across the globe. After releasing the excellent Under The Knife EP, the band signed to Victory records and released Satisfaction Is the Death of Desire, an album still considered to be the blueprint for the perfect metalcore record by many of the genre’s purists. After touring with some of the biggest acts in heavy metal (Slayer, The Deftones), Hatebreed officially crossed over into the mainstream world of aggressive rock, meaning their merchandise started showing up in places like Hot Topic and FYE, and their music videos got airplay on MTV’s Headbangers Ball (a show frontman Jamey Jasta ended up hosting for four years).
Hatebreed
When the Hi-Tone announced several months ago that Hatebreed was coming to town, the notion that this was a once-in-a-lifetime show wasn’t lost on any local bands. Chaos Order and Reserving Dirtnaps won the honors, and both bands are a great example of the reach that Hatebreed has had over the genre since forming 20 years ago. It’s an almost sure bet the show will sell out, so get there early.
