Neil Perry - Discography (1998-2003)

    

    Neil Perry was a hardcore / screamo band from New Jersey who formed in 1998 and split up in 2003 after releasing a discography 2xCD containing all their recorded tracks. They had split releases with Kaospilot, Usurp Synapse, Joshua Fit For Battle, A Day's Refrain, and A Satelite Crash. The band is named after a character from the film Dead Poets Society (1989). Members of Neil Perry were also in You & I, Welcome To The Plague Year, Instill, Hot Cross and more. 

    Neil Perry mixed intense screamo-style vocals with ear shredding elements of grindcore creating a chaotic, noise-driven heaviness that would become popular among DIY hardcore in the early oughts. Hailing from New Jersey, Neil Perry ripped their way through the hardcore scene making connections, playing shows and releasing splits with many bands from around the US. They managed to record around 40 songs over their years as a band firmly landing them a place in hardcore history. Not quite as metalcore influenced as You & I or as emocore as Welcome To The Plague Year, Neil Perry landed somewhere in the middle mixing elements of both bands and adding a touch more grindcore to the mix. 

    Along with Love Lost But Not Forgotten and Joshua Fit For Battle, Neil Perry stands out to me as one of the best to do it in the early oughts, among a sea of mediocrity in the hardcore scene. The early 2000s was a weird, shifting time for DIY hardcore and unlike the 90s there weren't a ton of great bands around for a few years, however, Neil Perry is one of the good ones. Bringing trends of the 90s emo-hardcore scene back and mixing them with the chaos and noisiness that became popular around the 2000s, they created a sound all their own. 

Lineage Situation (Discography)

Joshua Fit For Battle / Neil Perry - Brothers From Different Mothers split 12" 2001 (Level Plane Records)

S/T 7" 1999 (Spiritfall Records)

Neil Perry / Usurp Synapse - The Chilling Tale Of Usurp Synapse As Told By Neil Perry split 7" 2000 (Level Plane Records)

Gettin' Our Tour On 7" 2001 (Level Plane Records)

Specimen 7" 2002 (Witching Hour)

Neil Perry / Kaospilot split 7" 2002 (Level Plane Records)

A Days Refrain / Neil Perry split CD 2002 (Robotic Empire)

Young Lovers Fan Club #1 5" 200? Blood Of The Young Records

Lineage Situation CD 2003 (Level Plane Records)

Miss Black America - S/T 12" (2011)

    Miss Black America was a hardcore/screamo band from Vancouver, British Columbia who was active in the early 2010s, they released one full-length album as a 12". Glenn Alderson and Chris Vanderlann and of The Corta Vita and The Day After Tomorrow band, as well as members of Preoccupations, North Of America and D.B.S played on this record. 

    Miss Black America had a tense, chaotic sound full of ear-piercing screams and tension-filled instrumentals. The vocals sound shrill and desperate with a touch of spazzy, sass reminiscent of bands like Terrifying Girls Highschool also of Vancouver. Miss Black America seamlessly incorporated the sound of 90s hardcore and emo and elements of 2010s screamo culminating in an unforgettable sound. 

    Incredibly, the band was only active for a week during which they wrote and recorded their entire album during rehearsals and then played one show at the end of the week before splitting up. Listening to the finesse and talent the band clearly has on their album makes it nearly impossible to believe they recorded those tracks within a week of forming. 

    Years later in 2015, the band Wars, which included Vanderlann of Miss Black America, released an album as a "follow-up" to the self-titled 12". Despite being a very different band, Vanderlann got together a group of people to create an album in the vein of Miss Black America. The album is similar in many ways but drives into the spazziness that Miss Black America played around with. With multiple vocalists/styles ranging from shrill to much lower and growlier and noisy chaotic instrumentals, I would describe this album as a little more artsy and experimental while remaining within that small but distinct screamo sound of the 2010s. 

    Miss Black America remains one of my favourite bands of the 2010s, creating their own alluring sound that keeps them a firm staple of Canadian screamo. 

    Note: If anyone has any additional info on or photos of Miss Black America and related projects please let me know! 

Note 2: Thank you to Chris Vanderlann for giving me some more info on the band and sending their album under the name Wars!

S/T 12"

Facetime: Return To Mushroom Island, We Will Smoke Again (Wars)

Bandcamp

S/T 12" 2011(Boat Dreams From The Hill)