Hello everybody, welcome back to the page! As the fall begins to set in and the season changes we get to reflect on an amazing Spring/Summer of shows, including the amazing local pop punk/emo/punk festival right here in Pittsburgh! This would be my third time going to Four Chord and every year you can see how much it has grown. So much so in fact, that this year it would be held in Highmark Stadium, home to the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, and have a pretty vastly different sound for day one compared to any other day in the festival's history! You’ll see through just looking at the bands, but this day was one for all the heavier, more punk/emo/metal fans of the area. So let's begin the list and see who all played!

Pain Clinic, 1:35-2:05:

For those of you unfamiliar, Pain Clinic are local legends of the hardcore scene right here in Pittsburgh, so for them to open up the first day of the whole weekend is monumental. And the attendees already in the door made that known! For being the first band of the day they still managed to draw a pretty big crowd for just after 1:30 in the afternoon, even having people moshing immediately making it clear that people showed up early just to see them. It definitely helped how insane the band's performance was, bringing the energy as soon as they stepped on stage. Minus appearances, you wouldn't be able to tell that these guys have been doing it for around 20 years, they just rocked right along and kept the crowd's attention and energy going the whole set. Even though they were slotted for a full 30 minutes I believe they only played around 20, making the set short and sweet but wanting more after they left.

Facewreck, 2:10-2:40:

To continue on with the local legends, we have Mr. AJ of Preserving Hardcore himself’s band to follow up with another insane set. They were almost as similar as Pain Clinic with sound and style, representing that Pittsburgh hardcore well, but Aj’s vocals are more deep and hard hitting. This is actually the first time I’ve seen them shockingly for how much we’re at Preserving itself, but I’m glad I finally got to because it was an amazing set to behold. The whole band sounded great and Aj as well gave it their entire fiber to put on a great performance and have the crowds energy continuously rolling from Pain Clinics set. Speaking of, not only did Pain Clinics vocalist come out to feature on a song, but local hero Ryan Sharp himself would come on stage to sing an entire song. Facewreck would also seemingly play shorter than what they were billed for, giving that quick but hard hitting performance to keep the crowd buzzing the rest of the day.

Thousand Below, 2:45-3:15:

To change the flavor for the day, being the first “mainstream” band of the day, would be the more softer octane/metalcore groove. Although not being straight up hardcore like the two locals, the band would still play a heavier set compared to other times we have seen them in the past. This may account for how big of a crowd they drew for being just the third band of the day, but after they started the scattered crowd all seemed to consolidate to their stage. Even though being more tame compared to the openers they still jammed out, managing to keep the crowd's energy amped up for the rest of the day. This may have been contributed to them playing more of the hits for their set as well, bringing that festival setlist to make sure they kept the crowds attention.

Millitarie Gun, 3:20-3:50:

Aside from obviously wanting to see and support the local bands that opened the day, this would be the first band of the day that I was really anticipating seeing. These guys are fairly new but already making waves, deservedly so. They kick ass anytime one of us sees them live, bringing the faster-paced, upbeat, high energy. This set was no exception, having the crowd blast back into action as soon as the first song started to play. Even being the first band to have a crowdsurfer during their set! I can’t say I’m surprised as the band had an amazing energy the whole time, playing all the hits they had to ensure it was a perfect set. While still faster than Thousand Below before them, the vibe still felt pretty relaxed and chill. They’re perfect at having the slower, more laid back moments while also maintaining a fairly high-energy and bumping performance for their set. They were short and sweet much like the two hardcore bands before them, not overstaying their welcome but making the time last while they had it.

Haywire, 3:55-4:25:

Right back to the hardcore scene, as I said above this was the heavier day of the fest, we have another legendary act for the East Coast hardcore scene. While being around for a bit of time themselves, the band just recently formed in 2023 and started to blow up in numbers and attention soon after, which they deserve every bit. Hailing from Boston, so local enough, the crowd made them feel right at home with bringing back the energy way up. It helped that their amazing frontman and vocalist, Austin, had the crowd in the palm of his hand. He was great with connecting with the fans and getting them to participate in moshing or surfing, which there was plenty of. This definitely woke everyone back up as it was just quick, fast-paced, badass music that would keep the crowd rolling from the previous sets, ensuring they would be amped for the rest to come. The future for these guys is on the up and continuing from there!Bayside, 4:30-5:Now, changing the vibe once again, we go to the softest band of the first day. That’s not a bad thing also, it just means everyone gets a nice breather from the moshing and surfing. Being the middle of the day as well the chiller mood was definitely welcomed, but that didn’t mean the moshing stopped completely or the crowd was fully still the whole time. The set was still fantastic, they played all the hits you could hope for, and the band themselves put on a fantastic performance. Travis and I both said on day two that they should’ve switched Bayside with Driveways or even F!nch since the styles would have made more sense for each respective day. But, there’s nothing wrong with some straightforward rock so it fits anywhere it wants, and the crowd certainly didn’t seem to mind either!

Counterparts, 5:05-5:35:

Maybe having the softest band of the day on right before these guys was a trick all along, because these metallic hardcore legends brought it right back to the badass heavy shit. They would be the band to start the fantastic ending stretch of the night for day one, something they did very well. The band sounded phenomenal the entire set, including the vocalist themselves sounding awesome every song. This would be the set to get the crowd fully back into the day, probably getting everyone's second wind gusting up. The entire production itself too was fantastic, the light show, the mix, it was insane and kicked absolute ass! They can definitely take the heaviest band on the bill so far, because compared to everyone else that has played up till this point it's not even a question.

Superheaven, 5:40-6:10:

While the other bands beforehand drew quite a good crowd, Superheaven seemed to have got everyone wandering around to come and watch them because the crowd was impressive for being the sixth to last band of the day. But, I can't say I’m surprised as these guys rocked the whole time they were on stage, keeping the crowd jamming with them the entire time. I said up until this point they were the best set of the day so far, having an insane mix and the loudest out of any of the bands so far. They played a good amount of their hits while also playing a good mix from their newest album, sounding fantastic every step of the way. The crowd was into them so much that when they were initially cut off near the end due to time, while continuing to play, the crowd kept singing along with them and rocking out till they eventually finished their set and left.

We Came As Romans, 6:15-6:55:

Keeping the ending stretch rocking right along, these metalcore legends would keep the energy going from the last set and raise it even higher. Playing a good mix of older and newer tracks the crowd's attention was on the stage the whole set, singing along and even having the most crowdsurfers of the day so far. They sounded fantastic, especially the vocalist, and nice and crisp with the mix/production. They also made sure to sprinkle all the hits throughout the setlist while keeping the vibe mixed between groovy and straight up heavy hitters, making sure to hype everyone up for the last handful of acts to come.

Saosin, 7-7:40:

Absolutely crazy to see these guys live, keeping the insane ending stretch going right along! This would be Saosin’s first time back in the Pitt since 2016 when Anthony Green was still the full-time frontman instead of Cove, who we would see them with on this day. I couldn't imagine what they would be like with Anthony, but they did fantastic the whole set and sounded awesome with a very crisp mix regardless. Speaking of mix, their setlist was all that you could dream of, playing every song you’d want to hear from them live. The crowd would agree as they kept up with the band the whole time, matching their energy and groove. This day really felt like a Warped Tour flashback with all the legends in their respective genre and having quite a few post-hardcore acts rocking the stages.

Kublai Khan TX, 7:45-8:30:

Now this set is probably what you would expect it to be, batshit insanity and pure badassery. The only other time I saw Kublai Khan was during So What down in Texas like four years ago, before I was as into them as I am now. So, to say I appreciated this set a lot more is an understatement. They sounded fantastic the whole time, with Matt Honeycut's vocals sending chills down your spine and piercing your soul. The crowd was just as into them as me, getting the movement and energy pushed up to max. The pits would open up instantly and from here till the end of the night the crowdsurfers seemed endlessly continuous. The whole set was just beatdown, tough-guy, ass kicking music and a party the whole time.

Underoath, 8:35-9:35:

To continue the post-hardcore and heaviness, these absolute scene legends would be the second to last band of the night and rightfully so. I’ve only seen them a couple of times before day one but this was one of the best performances I’ve seen. The entire performance and energy from the band would rub off on the crowd and have everyone grooving and dancing the entire hour they played. From the first song to the last song it was electric and nonstop movement. Spencer is a fantastic vocalist and frontman, demanding the crowd's attention and participation the whole time with little effort. And if you’ve seen them before you can always appreciate the energy and dedication their keyboard player shows during every performance is admirable. These guys are scene GOATs for a reason and have stayed around since 97 simply because they’re great at what they do and love it.

Knocked Loose, 9:45-11:

This would only be the third time I have gotten to see Knocked Loose, also seeing them at So What long ago before the release of their critically acclaimed album release, then again in 2024 with Slipknot and Orbit Culture. Such a badass show. Anytime I get to see these guys is a dream come true no matter what, and this time with how huge they’ve gotten and all the releases they’ve had so far was one of the best sets I've witnessed in a long time. From the intro to the last song the set was electrifying and thrilling the entire duration of the set. I know a lot of people say they’re overrated and blah blah but I think they deserve all the praise and fame they get because the performance Bryan and the band gives is award worthy itself. The band sounded amazing, Bryan and the deeper unclean vocalist sounded fantastic, the mix was incredible, the lights/set was awesome. Everything about their whole performance made it make sense on to why they were chosen as the headliners, excluding their massive numbers and accolades they’ve already gotten. The crowd I’d like to say was as hyped and into it as I am as I believe this was the most crowdsurfers of any set throughout the day. Not to mention the pit was the most insane and largest during their set.