Vermont Cynic

Issue date: 3/14/06 Section: Arts and Entertainment

Media Credit: Ike Messmore Lead Singer JT Woodruff

Three guitars, ridiculously high energy and the ability to inspire mosh pits are just three of the ways to describe this five-man-band from Dayton, Ohio and their performance at Higher Ground this past Saturday. However, Hawthorne Heights is so much more than just another "Emo" band. They're a group of guys, doing what they love, loving what they do and handling their steady rise to the top of the music industry with passion and poise.

Their music, which falls into the same category as Fall Out Boy and Thursday, has been described many different ways. Some reviewers have said that their music is "Screamo", or pop-punk. Eron Bucciarelli, the drummer and business man of the group, was nice enough to take time to provide the information for this article. He says they describe their music as, rock, emo and pop-punk with hardcore influences. "It's not straight up Emo or pop-punk." Their unique, forceful sound comes from having three guitarists. The advantage of having three guitarists, says Eron, is that their songs sound the same recorded as they do live. In recording studios, bands have the option of playing guitar parts over other guitar parts to create a more powerful sound. Hawthorne Heights is ahead of the game in that department, with three guitars on stage they can carry their powerful sound out of the recording studio and directly into the ears of eager fans.

Originally called A Day in the Life, the band went through a couple band member changes and a name change to become what is now Hawthorne Heights. Only one of the original band members from A Day in the Life, the lead singer, JT Woodruff, is now, still a part of the band. In terms of why there were so many band member changes, "Things come up." said Eron. There were personality conflicts and different ideas as to what the direction the band should have been headed in. Now, they have a solid group of people with the willingness to work together toward a common goal.

Eron, originally from Princeton, New Jersey, met and joined the band after he moved to Dayton, Ohio to pursue a degree in communications and marketing at the University of Dayton. I asked Eron if he thought that kids with dreams of becoming musicians, should go to college before embarking on their career in the music industry. He replied, "It doesn't hurt." He went on to say that it's easy for kids to go to college and graduate with a degree by the time they're twenty-one and then start in the music industry, "I'm a perfect example." he said.

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