Four Year Strong

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Four Year Strong
Dan, Alan, & Joe (not pictured: Jake & Josh)
Background information
Origin	Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
Genre(s)	Melodic Hardcore Pop Punk
Years active	2001–present
Label(s)	I Surrender Records Decaydance Records
Website	http://www.fouryearstrongmusic.com
Members
Dan O'Connor Alan Day Joe Weiss Jake Massucco Josh Lyford

Four Year Strong is a five-piece American Melodic hardcore band from Worcester, Massachusetts. 3/5 of the band were in the original lineup that dates back to 2001. Dan, Alan and Jake all attended Doherty Memorial High School in Worcester and met through mutual friends. After the departure of the original bassist some 2 or 3 years after formation, they met Joe and asked him to fill the gap. Their early work never included any keyboards or synthesizers, but after a while they began to incorporate it into their music. The band cycled through many keyboardists, but recruited their current keyboardist Josh Lyford in late 2006. Over the past years, the band has done multiple national tours, sharing the stage with such bands as The Starting Line, Hellogoodbye, From First to Last, Every Time I Die, Hidden in Plain View and All Time Low, The Starting Line, Bayside and Steel Train.

The band's 2007 release Rise or Die Trying hit #31 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart in 2007.^[1] Four Year Strong was signed to Decaydance in February 2008.^[2] .

1 Musical Style
2 Band Members
3 Discography
- 3.1 Full Lengths
- 3.2 Demos/EPs
4 Trivia
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Musical Style

The band's sound can be described as a blend of Pop punk, Hardcore, and Punk rock. The band simply developed their sound off the idea of playing 'exactly what they want to hear' or music that they would listen to, but no one else was playing at the time.^[3] The band has cited their influences as being Lifetime, Saves the Day, Gorilla Biscuits, and New Found Glory to name a few. Though the band would primarily start out as a post-hardcore and emo outfit, the release of their demo in 2004 would mark a shift from post-hardcore to more synthesizer-heavy tracks, where the band would began to embrace the styles of powerpop and general punk rock. Prior to the release of Rise or Die Trying the band would also incorporate more facets of modern hardcore, such as double bass drums, breakdowns, and screaming vocals with the addition of synthesizers. Since a number of the band's songs are composed of hardcore breakdowns, soaring choruses, and upbeat tempos, many fans have mistakenly dubbed their musical style as 'Happy Hardcore,' though in reality this refers to a type of dance music popular in the mid-90's.

[edit] Band Members

Current Members
Dan O'Connor - Guitar / Vocals
Alan Day - Guitar / Vocals
Joe Weiss - Bass
Jackson "Jake" Massucco - Drums
Josh Lyford - Synth

Former Members
Teddy Petsas - Vocals
Ardie Petsas - Bass
Bryan Gregoire - Vocals
John Dagnello - Guitar
Eric Stone - Synth
Tim Savas - Synth
Chris Curran - Synth
^[4]

[edit] Discography

Four Year Strong, though more widely known for the music made from the year 2004 onward, have multiple releases (dating back as far as 2002) in their catalog. "Rise Or Die Trying" marks their major label debut. In addition to these records, FYS is also notorious for leaking pre-album material of their own, whether as a "secret song" or new album demo. They go as follows:

[edit] Full Lengths

Date of Release	Title	Label
November 9, 2005	It's Our Time	Open Your Eyes Records
September 18, 2007	Rise or Die Trying	I Surrender Records

[edit] Demos/EPs

Title	Date of Release	Tracks
Demo [2002]	November 22, 2002	Run With Me The Strong, The Heartbroken The Eleventh Recalled Dream The Impossible Dream Blue Light Romance
The Glory EP	2003	This Summer Session Easier To Wait And See The Bitter Taste Of Victory One Time Too Many
Demo [2004]	2004	Baseball Bats And Boogeymen Easier To Wait And See Live From The Crime Scene
Demo [2005]	November 9, 2005	Go Long Dad Not To Toot My Own Horn But.. BEEP BEEP So Hot And You Sweat On It Your Song Beatdown In The Key Of Happy

Unreleased (Alphabetical):
1. Angels With Filthy Souls (Reworked As 'The Takeover')
2. Angels With Even Filthier Souls (Reworked As 'Maniac (R.O.D)')
3. Can You Blow Me In The Pampers? (Reworked as 'Prepare To Be Digitally Manipulated')
4. Death Is The Only Adventure We Have Left (Reworked As 'Catastrophe')
5. Heroes Fade Kid, Legends Never Die (Reworked As 'Heroes Get Remembered, Legends Never Die')
6. Heroes Get Remembered, Legends Never Die (Alternate Version) [Featured on Punk the Clock compilation]
7. Sparkle Motion
8. Your Ego Is Writing Checks Your Body Can't Cash

[edit] Trivia

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

The band was originally named A Four Year Strong.

PRP: How did you come up with the name "Four Year Strong"?
FYS: When the band was formed by Teddy, Dan and Teddy wanted a name that described the bond that they had with their group of friends and how they would always be that way. So they came up with (A) Four Year Strong, which means friendships through high school. Then they took off the "A" at the beginning, and Four Year Strong was formed.
Question taken from FYS Interview

Unlike most of the artists on the Decaydance label, Four Year Strong combines elements of pop as well as hardcore. Their pop-influenced vocals are often laid over sporadic bursts of double bass, gang vocals, breakdowns, and screaming, all staples of modern hardcore.

The band has been known to use all wood grain guitars, including the bass. Alan's guitar has a bright green pick guard, the only bright color on the guitars.