In case you haven’t heard, one of the pioneers of post-hardcore (Or whatever you want to call it), Alexisonfire, called it quits a little while back, after a solid decade of rocking our eardrums. For many a metal fan, or rock fan in general, this band was a staple in any music collection. For me personally, Alexisonfire was one of the bands that really got me into the heavier stuff, way back when. I recall as a pre-teen, watching Much Music (Back when it mattered, and no one had iPods), and seeing their song Waterwingscome on, from their debut album. I was, admittedly, disgusted. “Why would they scream so that no one can understand the words??” I said to myself in blissful ignorance.
Then a few years went by, and I had heard them again and again, and the music really started to grow on me. Those words that I previously couldn’t understand, became clear. The lyrics actually made sense and meant something. At the time I had first heard them, I had previously never heard screaming vocals, so the whole concept was new to me. I began to really feel a sense of bitter, harsh emotion flow from those vocals, upon continued exposure.
I started to dig into other bands of similar styles, and explore. I came to the realization that the public’s opinion of “emo” kids, and the music they liked, could not be more misguided. I had discovered beauty in something so many simply ignore. I fell in love with metal. It just stuck. As most metal fans will agree, this style of music is not just a “phase” like many others are.
Alexisonfire really grew on me. The raw feeling their words carried was enough to keep me hooked forever. I ended up seeing them in concert a few times, and they were definitely one of the few bands on the planet that sound tighter on stage than on record. Hearing the songs fromCrisis played live just blew me away.
I was lucky enough to see their very last show on their farewell tour, and it was possibly one of the most emotional things I had ever seen. Every member of the band was in tears by the last song. The whole crowd hugged one another, and remembered how much this music touched them and how much it had meant to them over the past 10 years of their lives. It was a very special experience.
Today, the band still keeps in contact with one another, and they just released a $250 box set of all their works, posters, books, as well as vinyl. The box sets, to no surprise, sold out in 30 minutes after their release. If that doesn’t prove the impact these guys had on people, not much else can.
If you appreciated and loved this band as I did, and many others did, you’ll be pleased to hear, (if you haven’t already), that they have taken the original recordings from their very first album (self-titled), and remastered the entire thing. It has been released on iTunes for $9.99. Do yourself a favour and go get it. It’s every bit as awesome as the original, just better produced. Sounds much clearer, and really makes you feel like you’re there, as opposed to the rough sound that album always had.
I played the whole thing at least 10 times when I got it ;)
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