Forming in the early '00s out of Orange County, California, Stick to Your Guns are one of the most celebrated hardcore bands of their era. Over the course of seven studio albums and several EPs, the quintet's melodic strain of songwriting has gone from strength to strength, maturing but not losing bite along the way.
This coming January, Stick to Your Guns will be releasing their latest album, Keep Planting Flowers, and their first for the SharpTone Records label. The band teamed up with director Adam VillaSeñor for the music video for album single "Severed Forever," which features actor Randy Gonzalez who you might recognize from his work in such series as Mayans MC and The Walking Dead: Dead City:
Currently out on tour with Bane, No Echo sent Stick to Your Guns vocalist Jesse Barnett a homework assignment. We asked the Golden State native for a list of his all-time favorite California hardcore bands, and the dude delivered the goods.
We'll let him take it from here.
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I feel lucky to have grown up in a place that had such an eclectic spectrum of hardcore bands. It was never just one style; from Youth Crew to beatdown to metallic hardcore to screamo, and everything else in between.
I feel like this is the foundational element from where Stick to Your Guns comes from. The hardcore cultural style in Southern California was one that allowed for maybe a bit more sonic variety than the average scene may allow.
-Jesse Barnett
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Death By Stereo
This is a perfect example of what I mean. This band is melodic as fuck. Heavy as fuck. Fast as fuck. Efrem’s voice is so immediately recognizable. I remember that being hugely important to me, especially as a young person.
Sonic identity was my main motivation for STYG. Not being different for the sake of it, but to add your own sauce to what you do and make it yours.
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Ignite
Anyone who knows me knows what this band means to me. I have an Ignite tattoo: “Sometimes you fight as you win."
Ignite is melodic hardcore at its best.
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Throwdown
Beyond Repair was one of the strangest heavy albums I had heard when it came out. It was heavy music being made by kids and it was being figured out in real time. I love this fucking band. I knew I wanted to be in a band but they were the band that made me realize I could.
Their shows were always some of the most fun and that’s what everyone connected with the most. Straight edge or not - it didn’t matter. People did irresponsible things off the now legendary Showcase Theater balcony during Throwdown’s set. It was youth personified.
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Eighteen Visions
Coming back to the topic of sonic identity. Love it or hate it, I’m not sure there’s a better example. I didn’t know you could do that with hardcore. It was world expanding.
I’ve seen 18V in just about every Southern California venue you could possibly see them in. Prettiest band in hardcore but don’t let that fool you. They’ll whoop that ass.
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Terror
My favorite hardcore band of all time. Lowest of the Low and One with the Underdogs played a pivotal role in my life. They first took us on tour in 2007 and since then, we’ve toured Europe, Australia, Japan, and America with them multiple times over.
They’ve truly shown us the world and have supported us through thick and thin. We owe most of what we are to them. Terror crew tried and true.
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Keep Planting Flowers will be on on January 10th via SharpTone Records (pre-order).
The band will be celebrating the album with a release show on January 10th at Santa Ana, California's The Observatory along with special guests The Warriors, Mugshot, Stateside, and Initiate (get tickets here).
Stick to Your Guns tour dates w/ Bane:
11/8 — Dallas, TX
11/9 — Houston, TX
11/10 — Austin, TX
11/13 — San Diego, CA
11/14 — Los Angeles, CA
11/15 — Berkeley, CA
11/17 — Mesa, AZ
w/ Paleface Swiss
3/20 — Detroit, MI — Saint Andrew's Hall
3/21 — Toronto, ON — Lee's Palace
3/22 — Montreal, QC — Club Soda
3/23 — Worcester, MA — The Palladium
3/26 — Albany, NY — Empire Live
3/27 — Baltimore, MD — Soundstage
3/28 — Pittsburgh, PA — Roxian Theater
3/29 — Greensboro, NC — Hangar 1819
3/30 — Tampa, FL — The Orpheum
4/01 — Orlando, FL — The Abbey
4/02 — Atlanta, GA — The Masquerade
4/03 — Nashville, TN — Eastside Bowl
4/04 — Louisville, KY — Mercury Ballroom
4/05 — St. Louis, MO — Red Flag
4/06 — Wichita, KS — Wave
4/08 — San Antonio, TX — Vibes
4/09 — Dallas, TX — Southside Music Hall
4/10 — Albuquerque, NM — Sunshine Theatr
4/11 — Phoenix, AZ — The Nile
4/12 — Los Angeles, CA — Regent Theater
4/13 — Sacramento, CA — Goldfield Roseville
4/15 — Portland, OR — Dante's
4/16 — Vancouver, BC — Rickshaw Theater
4/17 — Seattle, WA — El Corazon
4/18 — Spokane, WA — Knitting Factory
4/19 — Salt Lake City, UT — Metro
4/20 — Denver, CO — Summit
4/22 — Omaha, NE — Waiting Room
4/23 — Iowa City, IA — Wildwood Saloon
4/24 — Minneapolis, MN — Varsity Theater
4/25 — Chicago, IL — Thalia Hall
Tagged: stick to your guns
