Sick of It All
Aggressive, high-velocity New York hardcore that balances street-level rage with a sense of community. Fast, loud, and built for the pit.
Aggressive, high-velocity New York hardcore that balances street-level rage with a sense of community. Fast, loud, and built for the pit.
Sick of It All is the sonic equivalent of a brick thrown through a window, but with a surprising amount of heart behind the toss. Their sound is defined by the relentless, galloping energy of New York Hardcore, characterized by Pete Koller's razor-sharp guitar riffs and Lou Koller's iconic, raspy bark. It is music that refuses to sit still, constantly shifting between breakneck thrash speeds and those heavy, mid-tempo breakdowns that practically demand physical movement.
What truly sets them apart from their peers is the underlying sense of brotherhood and positivity woven into the aggression. While many of their contemporaries leaned into pure nihilism or 'tough guy' posturing, SOIA maintained a focus on social accountability and scene unity. Their production often bridges the gap between the raw, unwashed grit of the 80s CBGBs era and a more modern, punchy clarity that highlights the technical precision of their rhythm section.
For the uninitiated, 'Scratch the Surface' is the essential entry point. It captures the band at their commercial and creative peak, offering a perfect blend of catchy hooks and punishing intensity. It is the record that proved hardcore could be massive without losing its soul, making it the definitive soundtrack for anyone needing a cathartic release of pent-up energy.
Sick of It All is an American hardcore punk band formed in 1986 in Queens, New York City. The band's lineup consists of brothers Lou and Pete Koller on lead vocals and guitars respectively, Armand Majidi on drums, and Craig Setari on bass. Sick of It All is considered a major part of the New York hardcore scene, and by 2020, the band had sold at least half a million records worldwide. Though their 1989 debut album Blood, Sweat and No Tears was a moderate success, Sick of It All did not achieve commercial success until later albums. After the release of their second album Just Look Around in 1992, East West Records saw the band's potential and signed them in 1993. Sick of It All's third and major label debut album, Scratch the Surface, was released in 1994 to critical acclaim and included the singles "Scratch the Surface" and "Step Down". They released one more album on East West, 1997's Built to Last, before signing with Fat Wreck Chords in 1998, which released the band's next three studio albums. They signed to Abacus Records afterwards, a subsidiary of Century Media. This label released their eighth studio album Death to Tyrants in 2006 to positive reviews (Abacus eventually went out of business, though Sick of It All would remain on Century Media, which released the band's next three albums). Sick of It All's latest album, Wake the Sleeping Dragon!, was released in 2018.
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