Brampton, Ontario, doesn’t exactly have the type of reputation you’d expect for a place with a thriving hardcore scene. The sprawling Toronto suburb is well known for its multi-cultural heritage, good shopping malls and traffic congestion. Like kids in most other Southern Ontario satellite cities, any young Bramptonian looking for a little bit of rock 'n’ roll rebellion might be inclined to hop on the GO Train and make the hour-plus commute to downtown Toronto.
But since 1996, Brampton’s population has nearly tripled, thanks in part to a large wave of new and first-generation Canadians looking for good neighborhoods to start families. The Brampton boom babies have officially outgrown splash pads and school break summer camps. They want something fun, kinetic, and easy to be a part of. Enter Flower City Hardcore, a slow-burning vision the kids in Mile End and their friends began realizing in 2017 while still in high school.
When the band’s self-titled debut LP drops tomorrow (November 15th) on New Morality Zine, it will be cause for celebration, not just for the Flower City faithful but Southern Ontario hardcore at large. As a bonus for No Echo readers, the Chicago-based label has blessed us with an early stream of the entire album:
For the boys in Brampton’s biggest band, though, the party started years ago when they began writing their love letter to a thriving DIY scene in a town that’s historically been overlooked, overshadowed, and left for greener pastures.
That alienation and the chip-on-shoulder motivation it creates are the inspiration for “No Excuse," the album’s second promotional single. The song features vocals from fellow Brampton OG Dear-God, who’s played countless shows with Mile End and even engineered their earliest material.
“When we first started claiming our hometown people turned their nose up to it,” explains vocalist Jake Thompson. “Either it has to do with racial undertones or straight up unmotivated hate for the city. We’re talking our shit, being a little cocky, showing why Brampton has got the illest scene and community. It’s all homie shit, it’s all about hardcore, it’s all about putting on for Brampton. This is a scene we built up with our homies from when we were young, we’re still doing it and we’re not gonna stop.”
Mile End belongs to Brampton, but over the last four years, it’s impossible to separate them from Southern Ontario at large. I first met Jake in November 2021 at an early post-pandemic club show in Toronto. I was patiently waiting for local heroes Friction to take the stage and play songs from their new EP when a kind-looking kid with long, curly hair and a bushy moustache approached me. I’d just started writing for No Echo, and one of my first pieces was a favourable review of Mile End’s “debut” release, their self-titled 2021 EP.
I thought that record sounded like Touché Amoré with Backtrack-style mosh parts, so imagine my surprise when I finally caught Mile End live for the first time at the Killroom in Hamilton and their set consisted of kids spin-kicking each other to jun jun riffs. The band was already writing for the next phase of their evolution by that point, and they were clearly going heavier.
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Mile End’s sound has been in a constant state of flux since 2022, when they started setting goals for touring, recording and refining their music. I’m not sure if “Stay Still” was among the unreleased tracks they played when I saw them at the Killroom in early 2022, but they started writing it around then. The song has gone through numerous revisions. For the LP version, they drop the intro and come in right at the first verse. The production also sounds heavier and grittier, thanks in large part to Davis Maxwell at Schoolhouse Studios, who also acts as the band’s mentor and sounding board.
Davis’ first production credit with Mile End came on the 2022 digital single version of “F.C.H.C.," another song that’s undergone considerable changes since they penned it on a whim in late 2022. Since then, the band has worked exclusively at Schoolhouse, refining their '90s-inspired, metallic sound. While every Mile End release has unique qualities, the new LP feels most cohesive in terms of its vision.
Promo 2023, released late last year on NMZ, sounded like modern hardcore kids nodding towards Threadbare and Snapcase. While the new LP doesn’t exactly feel like a relic of the nineties, it does a good job capturing the palpable menace, grit and despair of that era, along with the Solid-State guitar tones and crackling drum sounds.
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The mids are appropriately scooped. Jake’s voice is like nails on sheet metal. The only remnant of post-hardcore influence comes on the back stretch of “Dudley," where the band slyly transition from a skronky bridge into a dreamy post-rock passage that ends with hints of soft piano amid washed-out guitars. It’s a welcome exhale from the chaotic rumble of “fat black x” mosh riffs and fist-pumping grooves you’d expect from kids who cut their teeth going to shows in the late 2010’s, where you’d be just as likely to see a Slipknot logo on the front of someone’s shirt as a big lock on the back.
It’s surprising how young Mile End are, given their “scene elder” status in Brampton and relative success at large. I was shocked last summer when Jake told me he was only 22 years old. The vision, poise and dedication they approach the band with are skills I didn’t even know I could possess at that age. (I also think Jake’s moustache makes him look a bit older). Mile End’s rapid sonic evolution makes sense when you realize the members are just reaching an age where most people’s tastes start to calcify.
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They’ve also hit the point where their musical interests go beyond the scope of their band. Jake is a fixture at Toronto democore shows. Spider is often seen rocking vintage death metal merch onstage. Patrick moonlights in a powerviolence band called Mauling. No longer are they drawing inspo from whatever strikes their fancy. They’ve worked to establish a cohesive sound, and the full-length goes a long way in cementing that.
In fact, this album establishes the band’s own subtle musical hallmarks. Jake’s wordless, exasperated EEEEUUUUGHHH is heard all over the record. The drums “picking it up” to transform a dissonant metallic stomp part into a swaggering two-step riff is quintessential Mile End at this point. During live performances they semi-regularly do a natural tempo increase while repeating a part, a la Converge’s “The Saddest Day." That slight idiosyncrasy is finally captured on record during the song.
While Mile End's sound progressed, their commitment to Brampton never wavered. The best example of that dichotomy is the album opener, “F.C.H.C.” Originally released in late 2022 as a promotional single for their set at Hold Your Ground Fest in Mississauga, version one featured gaze-y guitar effects slapped over a pattern chug in a likely attempt to bridge the band’s post-hardcore roots with the radical departure they were about to take. That part is now accented by some metallic tremolo leads, a decision that feels more cohesive and considered.
Jake tapped me to write a No Echo piece for “F.C.H.C”’s original release, and even then, it was apparent they had a hit on their hands. I remember him excitedly explaining how they played the song as both the opener and closer on a short run of shows in Eastern Canada, where local fans in other towns piled on and shouted “this is for Flower City! FCHC!”
People went ballistic when they played it at HYG, which took place about 5km from Brampton city limits. I’m sure folks were already repping Flower City Hardcore at that point, but it was the first time I’d ever heard someone claim it. Since then, you’d be foolish to talk about Ontario hardcore without mentioning Brampton.
When old heads wax poetic about what a hardcore scene “should be," they’re describing FCHC It’s diverse in almost every aspect, fiercely DIY, draws from its own set of influences, and maintains a distinct regional flavour. The shows skew very young with lots of participation from literal high schoolers.
As an outsider, I don’t pretend to know the exact trajectory of how it all happened. From where I stand, though, Mile End planting their flag and giving their hometown its own rallying cry helped coalesce the energy into an actual movement.
Mile End is out tomorrow (November 15th) via New Morality Zine (pre-order).
Upcoming Mile End shows:
11/22 - Brampton - Bramalea Lions Hall w/ Si Dios Quiere, Cloned apparition, 100%Pure and Wrought
11/23 - London - The Holy Diver w/ Si Dios Quiere, 100%Pure and Mace
11/24 - St Catherines - Archives - w/ 100%Pure and Zero
12/13 - Chicago - Subterranean - w/ Si Dios Quiere, Prevention, Squint and Pasture
12/14 - Muskegeon - Rake Beer - w/ The Sissy Boys
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