A Life in Vain

Having formed in March of 2004, A Life In Vain has become one of the Top bands in Northern California due to their anthemic songwriting, fierce live shows and tireless work ethic. They continually strive to insert a breath of fresh air into a music scene that is dominated by sound a like hardcore and run of the mill screamo. They accomplish this endeavor by bringing a fearless aesthetic to songwriting and exploring any idea that may come to mind, caring little of what genre of influence it was taken from. It is not uncommon for an average A Life In Vain song to encompass everything from hardcore to metal to punk to indie in the span of three and a half minutes. Lyrically, they also opt to not take the easy route of bellyaching about girls and such, but instead take the more cerebral venture of thoughtful, ambiguous, word collages that exude different meanings to different people. A large part of A Life In Vain's success is also due to the fact that each person in the band brings their own unique style to their instruments. Guitarist, Robert Boyle, is a long term metal head who makes it evident in his fleet fingered leads and penchant for Iron Maiden-esque guitar harmonies. Nick Vitols proves to be Robert's perfect foil in his driving, punk inflected rhythm guitar that is deceptively complicated. He is in actuality the bands backbone. Kelsey Mayer's is anything but your average bass player. His bass lines are both melodic and rhythmically challenging, giving each song an added depth of sophistication. Justin Estep(the bands newest member) is, simply put, a machine. Rock solid, dependable, never breaks down. The twin vocalists of Woody Harper and Steve Muscatell give A Life In Vain a double barreled shotgun of fire and brimstone. Steve's guttural screams perfectly compliment Woody's bed of nails singing and apocalyptic lyrical take. They prove to be the ideal ring masters of the six ring circus known as A Life In Vain. A Life In Vain is a band that demands to be heard. It is obvious through their words, their music, and the fact that they leave every inch of their souls on stage just in case there is that one person in the audience that is seeing them for the first time. They are the new breed, ladies and gentlemen...no one is safe.