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The New York hardcore scene that arose in the early '80s was an intense but accurate reflection of a city in crisis, and no band better typified the sound and fury of the time than Agnostic Front. Taking the speed and simplicity of early N.Y.C. punk acts like the Ramones, the Dead Boys, and the Dictators, stripping the tunes to their frameworks, and upping the speed, impact, and overall rage, Agnostic Front provided the ideal and inevitable soundtrack for a city mired in debt and crime, with hundreds of underprivileged kids in Manhattan and its outlying boroughs forming bands to rail against the everyday trials, dangers, and prejudices of urban existence. The elemental sound of early Agnostic Front classics like 1984's Victim in Pain and 1986's Cause for Alarm were massively influential in the American hardcore scene, as well as providing a key stepping stone toward speed and thrash metal. 1998's Something's Gotta Give, their first album for punk powerhouse Epitaph Records, was a more refined effort but showed that their rage and muscle were still there. And just as Agnostic Front influenced metal, metal would influence Agnostic Front, and later efforts like 2007's Warriors and 2011's My Life My Way sounded beefier, full of the stuttering drums and shards of guitar that typified the harder edges of the metal scene. Agnostic Front guitarist and co-founder Vinnie Stigma was a first-generation punk rocker and an early-'80s skinhead who finally got around to forming his own band, Zoo Crew, in mid-1982, with vocalist John Watson. But Watson only lasted a few months before being replaced by Cuban-born Union City, New Jersey native Roger Miret, a product of refugee parents with firsthand experience in social injustice and opinionated views about politics coursing through his veins. When combined with Stigma's ferocious, primal rhythm guitar, Miret's charisma as a decadent urban messiah would come to personify AF's sound. Bassist Adam Moochie and drummer Ray Beez joined soon after and, after adopting the new name Agnostic Front (at Stigma's insistence because he thought it sounded like a movement), they recorded their first independent release, the United Blood EP, the following year. This was followed by 1984's career-defining Victim in Pain album, which contained a 15-minute blast of pure New York hardcore and saw the arrival of new members Rob Kabula (bass) and Jimmy Colletti (drums). It also confirmed Agnostic Front's brief status as leaders (along with precursors the Cro-Mags and Murphy's Law) of the already cresting movement, which found its weekly showcase via the now legendary Sunday matinees at favorite Lower East side haunts A7 and CBGB's. But Agnostic Front were always on the verge of collapse due to Miret and Stigma's mercurial relationship and, like most of their hardcore brethren, were already tampering with their sound. Inevitably, as their musicianship continued to improve, the bandmembers (including drummer Louie Beatto and additional guitarist Alex Kinon) began losing some of their raw hardcore spontaneity, and with heavy metal growing in popularity day by day, it was no surprise when they started experimenting with the tightly controlled velocity of thrash metal (i.e., buzzsaw riffing and double kick drums). Coincidentally picked up by the speed metal-friendly Combat Records, they struggled through the sessions for what would become 1986's Cause for Alarm album, today acknowledged as a crossover landmark alongside efforts by D.R.I. and Corrosion of Conformity. It was also considered a betrayal and a travesty by many of the band's early supporters, who couldn't have cared less that Cause for Alarm was teaching thousands of metal heads to appreciate hardcore. Some saw 1987's subsequent Liberty & Justice For..., which featured an entirely revised cast of backup musicians in guitarist Steve Martin (no relation), bassist Alan Peters, and drummer Will Shepler, and did away with the metal-style drumming to pursue a looser, less disciplined direction as an act of compromise. Not that it mattered: the original hardcore scene had pretty much disintegrated by this time anyway, with growing dissension among the movement's many factions (straight-edge, skinheads, etc.) transforming most concerts into armed combat, and leading to many clubs being shut down. Released in 1989, Live at CBGB (with bassist Craig Setari) collected Agnostic Front's best-loved material as heard in the band's natural element and, in a way, symbolized NYHC's official wake. As if to punctuate that fact, Roger Miret was arrested soon thereafter on serious drug charges and sentenced to nearly two years in prison. In the interim, Vinnie Stigma and Agnostic Front carried on as best they could, undertaking their first European tour with guitarist Matt Henderson and substitute singer Alan Peters, while Miret found solace writing lyrics about his predicament. These would comprise the bulk of 1992's comeback album, the overtly metallic One Voice, which was pretty much dead on arrival, since much of Agnostic Front's following had moved on to other things during the band's extended absence. A greatest-hits set entitled To Be Continued was also issued at this time, prompting Agnostic Front to call it a day following a farewell concert at (where else?) CBGB's. The final show was recorded for 1993's Last Warning, after which Stigma and Henderson formed Madball with Miret's younger brother Freddy Cricien. Come 1997, however, Stigma and Miret began discussing a possible comeback for Agnostic Front. And when top punk label Epitaph Records showed interest, the band's long-rumored resurrection became fact, with former members Rob Kabula and Jimmy Colletti completing the lineup that recorded both 1998's Something's Gotta Give and 1999's Riot, Riot, Upstart in quick succession. The latter boasted an especially strong set of retro-hardcore, and featured guest appearances from M.O.D.'s Billy Milano and Rancid's Lars Frederiksen, among others. With the hardcore scene that they'd helped build effectively dead in the dirt, few listeners outside the band's New York stomping grounds seemed to care about their return, but Agnostic Front continued to perform and record occasional albums like 2001's Dead Yuppies (with bassist Mike Gallo), 2003's Working Class Heroes, 2005's Another Voice, 2011's My Life My Way, and 2015's The American Dream Died. Stigma, Miret, and Gallo teamed with lead guitarist Craig Silverman and drummer Pokey Mo to record 2019's Get Loud; the cover art was an update of the images on Cause for Alarm, created by the same artist, Sean Taggart.
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Tracks:
| Title | Album |
| 9 Seconds Remaining |
Unity
|
| A Mi Manera |
My Life, My Way
|
| A Wise Man |
The American Dream Died
|
| A.F. Stomp |
Get Loud!
|
| Addiction |
Warriors
|
| Addiction |
Music By People Like Us
|
| All Is Not Forgotten |
Rock Sound Volume 68
|
| All Is Not Forgotten |
Nuclear Blast All Stars: Out Of The Dark
|
| All Is Not Forgotten |
Another Voice
|
| All Right |
|
| All These Years |
Warriors
|
| Alright |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Another State |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Another Voice |
Another Voice
|
| Anthem |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Anthem |
Sunday Matinee: The Best Of N.Y.C. Hardcore
|
| Anthem (Live) |
To Be Continued
|
| Anthem (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Anthem/The Eliminator (Live) |
Last Warning
|
| Anti-Social |
Get Loud!
|
| Attack! |
The American Dream Died
|
| Attention |
Get Loud!
|
| Bastard |
One Voice
|
| Before My Eyes |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Before My Eyes (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Believe |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Believe (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Believe (Spanish Version) |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Black And Blue |
Warriors
|
| Blind Justice |
Victim In Pain
|
| Blind Justice |
To Be Continued
|
| Blind Justice (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Blind Justice (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Blind Justice (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Blind Justice/Last Warning (Live) |
Last Warning
|
| Blinded |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Blitzkreig Bop |
Digging The Roots
|
| Blood, Death And Taxes |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Bloodsucker |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Bomber Zee |
Cause For Alarm
|
| Break The Chains |
For My Family
|
| Bullet On Mott Street |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Bullet On Mott Street (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| By My Side |
Warriors
|
| Casualty Of The Times |
Another Voice
|
| Censored |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Change Your Ways |
Warriors
|
| City Streets |
My Life, My Way
|
| Club Girl |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Come Alive |
Warriors
|
| Conquer And Divide |
Get Loud!
|
| Crime Without Sin |
One Voice
|
| Critic |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Crucial Changes |
United Blood
|
| Crucial Changes |
Last Warning
|
| Crucial Changes (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Crucial Changes (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Crucial Changes (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Crucial Moment |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Crucified |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Crucified |
To Be Continued
|
| Crucified |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Crucified (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Crucified (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
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| Crucified (Live) |
Last Warning
|
| Dead Silence |
Get Loud!
|
| Dead To Me |
For My Family
|
| Dead To Me |
Warriors
|
| Dead Yuppies |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Dedication |
Another Voice
|
| Devastated |
Get Loud!
|
| Discriminate Me |
Last Warning
|
| Discriminate Me |
United Blood
|
| Discriminate Me (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Discriminate Me (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Discriminate Me (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Discriminate Me (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Discriminate Me (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Discriminate Me (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Do Or Die |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Empty Dreams |
My Life, My Way
|
| Enough Is Enough |
The American Dream Died
|
| Existence Of Hate |
Cause For Alarm
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| Fall Of The Parasite |
Another Voice
|
| Fascist Attitudes |
Victim In Pain
|
| Fascist Attitudes (Live) |
To Be Continued
|
| Fascist Attitudes (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Fascist Attitudes (Live) |
Last Warning
|
| Fight |
Last Warning
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| Fight |
United Blood
|
| Fight (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Fight (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Fight (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Fight (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Final War |
United Blood
|
| Final War |
Last Warning
|
| Final War (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Final War (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| For My Family |
Warriors
|
| For My Family |
For My Family
|
| Force Feed |
One Voice
|
| Forgive Me Mother |
Warriors
|
| Friend Or Foe |
United Blood
|
| Friend Or Foe |
Last Warning
|
| Friend Or Foe |
24 Hours Of Hardcore
|
| Friend Or Foe (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Friend Or Foe (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Friend Or Foe (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Friend Or Foe (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Friend Or Foe (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Frustration |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Fuck All Authority (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Fuck All Authority (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Genesis |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Genesis (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Get Loud! |
Get Loud!
|
| Get Out/Final War (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Gotta Go |
Punk-O-Rama Volume 3
|
| Gotta Go |
Metal Hammer: Hammered Volume 1
|
| Gotta Go |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Gotta Go (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Gotta Go (Spanish Version) |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Growing Concern |
Cause For Alarm
|
| Happened Yesterday |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Hardcore! (The Definition) |
Another Voice
|
| Hiding Inside |
Victim In Pain
|
| Hiding Inside (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Hypocrisy |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Hypocrisy |
To Be Continued
|
| I Can't Relate |
The American Dream Died
|
| I Had Enough |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| I Live It |
Another Voice
|
| I Remember |
Get Loud!
|
| I Wanna Know |
Dead Yuppies
|
| I'm Still Here |
Last Warning
|
| In Control |
Last Warning
|
| In Control |
United Blood
|
| In Control (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| In Control (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| In Control (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| In My Blood |
Get Loud!
|
| Infilrtrate |
One Voice
|
| Infiltrate/Strength (Live) |
Last Warning
|
| Intro |
The American Dream Died
|
| Isolated |
Get Loud!
|
| It's For Life |
Another Voice
|
| It's My Life |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| It's My Life |
Punk-O-Rama Volume 4
|
| It's My Life (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| It's Time |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Jailbreak |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Just Like Yesterday |
The American Dream Died
|
| Last Warning |
Victim In Pain
|
| Last Warning |
United Blood
|
| Last Warning |
Last Warning
|
| Last Warning (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Last Warning (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Last Warning (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Last Warning (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Last Warning (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Last Warning (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Last Warning (Live) |
To Be Continued
|
| Liberty |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Liberty |
Give 'Em The Boot III
|
| Liberty And Justice |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Liberty And Justice |
To Be Continued
|
| Liberty And Justice (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Lost |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Love To Be Hated |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Love To Be Hated |
Punk-O-Rama Volume 7
|
| More Than A Memory |
My Life, My Way
|
| My Life, My Way |
My Life, My Way
|
| My War |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Never Walk Alone |
The American Dream Died
|
| New Jack |
One Voice
|
| New Jack |
To Be Continued
|
| No Fear |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| No Fear (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| No Mercy |
Dead Yuppies
|
| No One Hears You |
Another Voice
|
| No One Rules |
United Blood
|
| No One Rules |
Last Warning
|
| No Regrets |
Warriors
|
| No Rights (No One Rules) (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| No Rights (No One Rules) (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| No Rights (No One Rules) (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| No Rights (No One Rules) (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| No War Fuck You |
The American Dream Died
|
| Nothing's Free |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Now And Forever |
My Life, My Way
|
| Now And Then |
One Voice
|
| Nowhere To Go |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Old New York |
The American Dream Died
|
| One Voice |
To Be Continued
|
| One Voice |
One Voice
|
| One Voice (Live) |
Last Warning
|
| Only In America |
The American Dream Died
|
| Out For Blood |
Cause For Alarm
|
| Out Of Reach |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Outraged |
Warriors
|
| Over The Edge |
One Voice
|
| Over The Edge (Live) |
Ball Of Destruction
|
| Pauly The Dog |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Pauly The Dog (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Peace |
Another Voice
|
| Pedophile |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Police State |
To Protect And Serve? Songs For The Riots
|
| Police State |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Police State (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Police Violence |
The American Dream Died
|
| Police Violence |
Bridge Nine Records: 2015
|
| Politician |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Power |
Victim In Pain
|
| Power |
To Be Continued
|
| Power (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Price You Pay |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Pride, Faith, Respect |
Another Voice
|
| Public Assistance |
To Be Continued
|
| Public Assistance |
Cause For Alarm
|
| Public Assistance (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Public Assistance/Over The Edge (Live) |
Last Warning
|
| Pull The Trigger |
Get Loud!
|
| Rage |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Reasonable Doubt |
The American Dream Died
|
| Remind Them |
Victim In Pain
|
| Remind Them |
New York Hardcore: 1982-1990
|
| Retaliate |
One Voice
|
| Revenge |
Warriors
|
| Riot, Riot, Upstart |
Punk-O-Rama Volume 5
|
| Riot, Riot, Upstart |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Riot, Riot, Upstart (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Rock Star |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Rock Star (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Self Pride |
My Life, My Way
|
| Shadows |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Shoot His Load |
Cause For Alarm
|
| Sickness |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Sickness (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Sit And Watch |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Sit And Watch (Demo Version) |
Unity
|
| Sit And Watch (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Skins Go Marching In/We Can Do Anything (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Smell The Bacon/What's With You (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Smell The Bacon/What's With You (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Snitches Get Stitches |
Get Loud!
|
| So Pure To Me |
Another Voice
|
| Social Justice |
The American Dream Died
|
| Society Sucker |
Victim In Pain
|
| Society Sucker |
To Be Continued
|
| Society Sucker (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Society Sucker (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Something's Gotta Give |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Spray Painted Walls |
Get Loud!
|
| Standing On My Own |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Still Here |
Another Voice
|
| Strength |
Liberty And Justice For All
|
| Strength (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Suburban Rebels |
Worldwide Tribute To The Real Oi! Volume 1
|
| Take 'Em All |
Worldwide Tribute To The Real Oi! Volume 1
|
| Take 'Em All |
We're Comin' Back: A Tribute To Cock Sparrer
|
| Take Me Back |
Another Voice
|
| Test Of Time |
The American Dream Died
|
| That's Life |
My Life, My Way
|
| The American Dream Died |
The American Dream Died
|
| The Blame |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| The Blame (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| The Eliminator |
Cause For Alarm
|
| The Eliminator |
To Be Continued
|
| The Eliminator (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| The Pain Song (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| The Sacrifice |
My Life, My Way
|
| The Tombs |
One Voice
|
| Time Has Come |
My Life, My Way
|
| Time Will Come |
To Be Continued
|
| Time Will Come |
Cause For Alarm
|
| Time Will Come (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Time Will Come (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Today, Tomorrow, Forever |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Toxic Shock |
Cause For Alarm
|
| Toxic Shock |
To Be Continued
|
| Toxic Shock (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Toxic Shock/United And Strong (Live) |
Last Warning
|
| Traitor |
Last Warning
|
| Traitor |
Short Music For Short People
|
| Traitor |
United Blood
|
| Traitor (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Traitor (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Traitor (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Traitor (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
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| Trust |
Riot, Riot, Upstart
|
| Uncle Sam |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Undertow |
One Voice
|
| Undertow (Live) |
Last Warning
|
| United And Strong |
To Be Continued
|
| United And Strong |
Victim In Pain
|
| United And Strong (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| United And Strong (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| United Blood |
United Blood
|
| United Blood |
24 Hours Of Hardcore
|
| United Blood |
Last Warning
|
| United Blood (Live) |
Last Warning
|
| United Blood (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| United Blood (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| United Blood (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| United Blood (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| United Blood (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| United Blood (Live) |
Ball Of Destruction
|
| United Blood (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| United Blood (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| United Blood (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Until The Day I Die |
My Life, My Way
|
| Urban Decadence |
Dead Yuppies
|
| Urban Decay |
Get Loud!
|
| Us Against The World |
My Life, My Way
|
| Victim In Pain |
24 Hours Of Hardcore
|
| Victim In Pain |
Victim In Pain
|
| Victim In Pain |
Skins 'N Pinz Volume III
|
| Victim In Pain |
To Be Continued
|
| Victim In Pain (Live) |
Working Class Heroes
|
| Victim In Pain (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Victim In Pain (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| Voices |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Voices (Spanish Version) |
Something's Gotta Give
|
| Warriors |
Warriors
|
| We Should Care (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| We Should Care (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| We Should Care (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| We Walk The Line |
The American Dream Died
|
| We Want The Truth |
Warriors
|
| With Time |
Victim In Pain
|
| With Time (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
|
| With Time (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Your Fall |
One Voice
|
| Your Mistake |
To Be Continued
|
| Your Mistake |
Victim In Pain
|
| Your Mistake |
To Be Continued
|
| Your Mistake |
Cause For Alarm
|
| Your Mistake (Live) |
Raw Unleashed
|
| Your Mistake (Live) |
Live at C.B.G.B.'s
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| Your Mistake/Victim In Pain (Live) |
Last Warning
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| Your Worst Enemy |
My Life, My Way
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