The Agony Scene
Encyclopedia
The Agony Scene was a metalcore
/deathcore
band from Tulsa, Oklahoma
, USA
. On October 8, 2008, frontman Mike Williams confirmed that the band had broken up in the spring of that year. Although The Agony Scene was known for blending several corrosive elements from genres including thrash metal
, black metal
and hardcore punk
, the band was also generally considered to be a part of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal
.http://www.sputnikmusic.com/band/The+Agony+Scenehttp://www.sweetslyrics.com/bio-THE%20AGONY%20SCENE.html
The band had released three albums, one on Solid State Records
, one on Roadrunner Records
, and one on Century Media Records
. It had been signed to Abacus Records for a while when it folded.
For the first year The Agony Scene made a name for themselves in the Tulsa hardcore scene and playing shows around the Midwest with fellow Tulsa acts Enlow and Plan B. In late 2001, Williams left the band to join Tulsa grind
outfit Thirty Called Arson
and was replaced by Garrett Grover.
January 2002 saw TAS’s first studio recorded demo which subsequently landed in the hand’s of Seattle based label Solid State Records
, that eventually granted the band a record deal. Immediately following their performance at Cornerstone
that year, Burguiere stepped down from vocal duties and was replaced by former bassist Mike Williams.
Although the band was signed on with Solid State Records
for a time, which mostly signs Christian acts, The Agony Scene confirmed in an interview with HM magazine that they were not a religious band.
In late 2006 the band parted ways with drummer Brent Masters and invited Ryan Folden - a Spokane, WA based drummer - to join the band.
In early 2008 the band dropped out of a tour with Himsa due to "some major personal situations that make performing on this tour impossible", according to Himsa's management.
It was unknown at the time whether the group has subsequently managed to resolve such issues or had in fact broken up. The group's official website had also been shut down, which furthered the assumption that the group had disbanded.
Slipping by the radar, The Agony Scene actually broke up in the spring of 2008 following their pulled tour with Himsa earlier in the year. Band frontman Mike Williams had the following to say about the split: "The Agony Scene is no more, for those of you who didn't already know. We reached a point where it wasn't making financial sense and we felt it was better to quit while we were ahead rather than dragging it out and dragging ourselves further into debt. I'm sad to see it end before I was ready to move on, but tastes change and times change and it just felt like the right time to call it quits. I had some amazing experiences over the last 5 years, met some amazing people, played shows with Danzig
which is insane, traveled abroad and all that. We had a great run and I got everything out of it that I wanted to. The shitty part is when you put your whole life on hold and have to figure out what to do with yourself now that it's over. I'm starting something new musically, something that couldn't be further away from metal and hardcore. I'll post something when it gets recorded."
At present, Williams has been working on some solo material. Drummer Ryan Folden went on to join Burn Halo
but left it and now is a member of After Midnight Project
. Johnny Lloyd is now a distinguished graduate fellow at Oklahoma State University where he is working on an advanced degree in molecular genetics
. Rod Burguiere enlisted in the US Navy as a Hospital Corpsman and did a tour in Iraq with 1st Battalion, 7th Marines.
He completed his active duty and is now a brewer at Stone Brewing Company
in Southern California.
Previous
Metalcore
Metalcore is a subgenre of heavy metal combining various elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. The name is a portmanteau of the names of the two genres. The term took on its current meaning in the mid-1990s, describing bands such as Earth Crisis, Deadguy and Integrity...
/deathcore
Deathcore
Deathcore is an extreme metal music genre that combines elements of death metal with elements of metalcore or hardcore punk, or both. It is defined by an "excessive" use of death metal riffs, blast beats and use of hardcore punk breakdowns...
band from Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. On October 8, 2008, frontman Mike Williams confirmed that the band had broken up in the spring of that year. Although The Agony Scene was known for blending several corrosive elements from genres including thrash metal
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...
, black metal
Black metal
Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, raw recording, and unconventional song structure....
and hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
, the band was also generally considered to be a part of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal
New Wave of American Heavy Metal
The New Wave of American Heavy Metal is a movement in that originated in the United States during the early to mid 1990s and has expanded most in the recent 2000s. Some of the bands considered part of the movement had formed as early as the late 1980s, but did not become influential or reach...
.http://www.sputnikmusic.com/band/The+Agony+Scenehttp://www.sweetslyrics.com/bio-THE%20AGONY%20SCENE.html
The band had released three albums, one on Solid State Records
Solid State Records
Solid State Records is a Christian record label, a division of Tooth & Nail Records. Unlike Tooth & Nail, Solid State signs hardcore and metal bands. Like Tooth & Nail, Solid State is primarily a Christian label. However, they have signed several bands that don't label themselves as Christian,...
, one on Roadrunner Records
Roadrunner Records
Roadrunner Records is an American record label that concentrates primarily on heavy metal bands. It is currently a subsidiary of Warner Music Group.-History:...
, and one on Century Media Records
Century Media Records
Century Media Records is an Independent record label with offices in the United States, Germany, Australia, France, Italy, Sweden, Finland, and the United Kingdom.- Background :...
. It had been signed to Abacus Records for a while when it folded.
History
Formed in early 2001, The Agony Scene was the brainchild of three Tulsa musicians: Johnny Lloyd, Rod Burguiere, and Daniel Hickman. Originally looking to form a spirit-filled hardcore band in vein of Zao and Overcome, Lloyd and Hickman took guitar duties with Burguiere as the frontman. The arduous search for a rhythm section eventually exasperated Hickman, who left to join Tulsa metalcore outfit Enlow. Burguiere then looked to his former bandmates Mike Williams and Brent Masters and things began to mesh. The four piece, with Williams on bass and Masters on drums, eventually came across Chris Emmons as a second guitar and the lineup was solidified.For the first year The Agony Scene made a name for themselves in the Tulsa hardcore scene and playing shows around the Midwest with fellow Tulsa acts Enlow and Plan B. In late 2001, Williams left the band to join Tulsa grind
Grindcore
Grindcore is an extreme genre of music that started in the early- to mid-1980s. It draws inspiration from some of the most abrasive music genres – including death metal, industrial music, noise and the more extreme varieties of hardcore punk....
outfit Thirty Called Arson
Thirty Called Arson
Thirty Called Arson was an American metalcore band from Tulsa, Oklahoma that signed with Pluto Records in 2003. In the same year they recorded the album "You're Only a Rebel from the Waist Downward".The tracklist of the album is as follows:...
and was replaced by Garrett Grover.
January 2002 saw TAS’s first studio recorded demo which subsequently landed in the hand’s of Seattle based label Solid State Records
Solid State Records
Solid State Records is a Christian record label, a division of Tooth & Nail Records. Unlike Tooth & Nail, Solid State signs hardcore and metal bands. Like Tooth & Nail, Solid State is primarily a Christian label. However, they have signed several bands that don't label themselves as Christian,...
, that eventually granted the band a record deal. Immediately following their performance at Cornerstone
Cornerstone Festival
Cornerstone Festival is a Christian music festival put on by Jesus People USA and held annually around the 4th of July near Bushnell, Illinois. In a given year, many artists that play at Cornerstone also play at other events such as Creation Festival and mainstream festivals and tours such as the...
that year, Burguiere stepped down from vocal duties and was replaced by former bassist Mike Williams.
Although the band was signed on with Solid State Records
Solid State Records
Solid State Records is a Christian record label, a division of Tooth & Nail Records. Unlike Tooth & Nail, Solid State signs hardcore and metal bands. Like Tooth & Nail, Solid State is primarily a Christian label. However, they have signed several bands that don't label themselves as Christian,...
for a time, which mostly signs Christian acts, The Agony Scene confirmed in an interview with HM magazine that they were not a religious band.
In late 2006 the band parted ways with drummer Brent Masters and invited Ryan Folden - a Spokane, WA based drummer - to join the band.
In early 2008 the band dropped out of a tour with Himsa due to "some major personal situations that make performing on this tour impossible", according to Himsa's management.
It was unknown at the time whether the group has subsequently managed to resolve such issues or had in fact broken up. The group's official website had also been shut down, which furthered the assumption that the group had disbanded.
Slipping by the radar, The Agony Scene actually broke up in the spring of 2008 following their pulled tour with Himsa earlier in the year. Band frontman Mike Williams had the following to say about the split: "The Agony Scene is no more, for those of you who didn't already know. We reached a point where it wasn't making financial sense and we felt it was better to quit while we were ahead rather than dragging it out and dragging ourselves further into debt. I'm sad to see it end before I was ready to move on, but tastes change and times change and it just felt like the right time to call it quits. I had some amazing experiences over the last 5 years, met some amazing people, played shows with Danzig
Danzig (band)
Danzig is an American heavy metal band, formed in 1987 in Lodi, New Jersey. The band serves as a musical outlet for the singer/songwriter Glenn Danzig. Danzig can be seen as the third stage in Glenn Danzig's musical career, preceded by the horror punk bands The Misfits and Samhain...
which is insane, traveled abroad and all that. We had a great run and I got everything out of it that I wanted to. The shitty part is when you put your whole life on hold and have to figure out what to do with yourself now that it's over. I'm starting something new musically, something that couldn't be further away from metal and hardcore. I'll post something when it gets recorded."
At present, Williams has been working on some solo material. Drummer Ryan Folden went on to join Burn Halo
Burn Halo
Burn Halo is a hard rock band, originating from Orange County, California and Tulsa, Oklahoma. It was formed by James Hart, former lead singer of Orange County metalcore band Eighteen Visions.-Formation and self-titled debut album :...
but left it and now is a member of After Midnight Project
After Midnight Project
After Midnight Project is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, currently signed to Universal Motown.-History:...
. Johnny Lloyd is now a distinguished graduate fellow at Oklahoma State University where he is working on an advanced degree in molecular genetics
Molecular genetics
Molecular genetics is the field of biology and genetics that studies the structure and function of genes at a molecular level. The field studies how the genes are transferred from generation to generation. Molecular genetics employs the methods of genetics and molecular biology...
. Rod Burguiere enlisted in the US Navy as a Hospital Corpsman and did a tour in Iraq with 1st Battalion, 7th Marines.
He completed his active duty and is now a brewer at Stone Brewing Company
Stone Brewing Company
Stone Brewing Co. is a craft brewery headquartered in Escondido, California. Founded in 1996 in San Marcos, California, it is the largest brewery in Southern California...
in Southern California.
Members
Final- Mike Williams - vocals
- Chris Emmons - guitar
- Brian Hodges - guitar
- Ryan Folden - drums
Previous
- Rod Burguiere - vocals
- Matt Shannon - bass
- Brian Stewart - bass
- Garrett Grover - bass
- Brent Masters - drums
- Matt Horwitz - drums
- Johnny Lloyd - guitar
- Stephen Kaye - guitar
- Pete Webb - drums
- Chris Rye - bass
- BCS - drums
Discography
| Date of Release | Title | Label |
| unknown | live june.03.01 Live June.03.01 Live June.03.01 is an album from The Agony Scene that was recorded live at The Other Side by Hank Charles of Valcour Sound.-Album line-up:* Rod Burguiere - Vocals* Chris Emmons - Guitar* Brent Masters - Drums* Michael Williams - Bass... |
none |
| June 10, 2003 | The Agony Scene The Agony Scene (album) The Agony Scene is the debut self-titled album released by the metalcore band The Agony Scene.-Track listing:# "We Bury Our Dead At Dawn" – 3:06# "Habeas Corpus" – 3:23# "Judas" – 4:08# "The Lines Of Suicide" – 3:12... |
Solid State Records Solid State Records Solid State Records is a Christian record label, a division of Tooth & Nail Records. Unlike Tooth & Nail, Solid State signs hardcore and metal bands. Like Tooth & Nail, Solid State is primarily a Christian label. However, they have signed several bands that don't label themselves as Christian,... |
| May 24, 2005 | The Darkest Red The Darkest Red The Darkest Red is an album from The Agony Scene that was released under Roadrunner Records in 2005. The song Prey was included on the 2005 game "Infected", released on the PSP... |
Roadrunner Records Roadrunner Records Roadrunner Records is an American record label that concentrates primarily on heavy metal bands. It is currently a subsidiary of Warner Music Group.-History:... |
| October 23, 2007 | Get Damned Get Damned Get Damned is the third and final studio album from the Metalcore band The Agony Scene, which was released under Century Media Records on October 23, 2007. The original release contained only 11 tracks. The cover art that is most commonly displayed is not the true "cover", to say; it is merely a... |
Century Media Records Century Media Records Century Media Records is an Independent record label with offices in the United States, Germany, Australia, France, Italy, Sweden, Finland, and the United Kingdom.- Background :... |