Wikipedia

Orchid (hardcore punk band)

For the Californian band of the same name, see Orchid (heavy metal band).

Orchid is an American screamo band from Amherst, Massachusetts. Originally active from 1997 until 2002, they released several EPs and splits as well as three studio albums. The band consists of lead vocalist Jayson Green, drummer Jeffrey Salane, guitarist Will Killingsworth, guitarist Brad Wallace and bassist Geoff Garlock.

Orchid
Jayson Green (front) and Jeffrey Salane (back) performing in Bloomington, Indiana in 2000.
Jayson Green (front) and Jeffrey Salane (back) performing in Bloomington, Indiana in 2000.
Background information
OriginAmherst, Massachusetts, U.S.
Genres
Years active
  • 1997–2002
  • 2024–present
Labels
  • Ebullition
  • Clean Plate
Spinoffs
Members
  • Jayson Green
  • Will Killingsworth
  • Jeff Salane
  • Geoff Garlock
  • Brad Wallace

Orchid released three full-length albums during their initial run and played their final show on the same day as the release of their final album. The band reunited for a tour in 2024, their first shows in 22 years.

History

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The band was formed while Jayson Green, Will Killingsworth, and Brad Wallace were studying at Hampshire College, and Jeff Salane was attending the University of Massachusetts Amherst in early 1998.[2]

Orchid released three albums: Chaos Is Me in 1999, Dance Tonight! Revolution Tomorrow in 2000 and Gatefold in 2002. The band played their final show of their original run on July 9, 2002, the release date of Gatefold.[3]

In 2005, a compilation album titled Totality was released posthumously. It comprised 24 tracks, featuring out-of-press and hard-to-find B-side and split EP materials that were previously only available on vinyl.[4]

Jayson Green later formed a hardcore punk supergroup named Violent Bullshit, with members of Black Army Jacket and the Fiery Furnaces.[5] Jayson Green, Will Killingsworth, and Geoff Garlock currently play together in the band Ritual Mess.[6]

Green provided vocals on "Pow Pow", the lead single to LCD Soundsystem's 2010 album This Is Happening.[7]

The band received numerous offers to reunite, the most lucrative coming from Roadburn Festival in the Netherlands, but Green did not tell his bandmates as the band had been disinterested in coming back. After an interview with Machine Music[8] Green, Killingsworth and Wallace, the band began the process of reuniting.[9] In December 2023, Orchid announced a reunion and tour in 2024.[10] The band's first show in 22 years took place on May 5, 2024 at The Drake in Amherst, Massachusetts.[11] For their reunion shows, original bassist Brad Wallace rejoined the band as an additional guitarist.[9]

Style

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Orchid's musical style (which primarily has been described as hardcore punk and screamo) is highly dissonant, fast, and chaotic.[12][4] It combines the melodic and poetic approach of post-hardcore[13] and emo[14] with the extremity of powerviolence (a fusion sometimes termed emoviolence) and grindcore.[14] Italian site "Emotional Breakdown" gave a positive review of Orchid's compilation album Totality, saying: "[Orchid] are the concentrated essence of the most poignant music you can imagine: the vocal cords that are pulled until they tear, the music sounds dark and desperate. They possess all these characteristics as the undisputed masters they have taught many proselytes, in all of their cynical splendor."[15]

Legacy

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Orchid is regarded as a prominent and quintessential band in screamo.[4] Lars Gotrich of NPR music credited Orchid (alongside bands Pg 99, Circle Takes the Square and Majority Rule) as being prominent influences on emotional post-hardcore.[13] Green said, "we just called ourselves a hardcore band."[9]

Canadian post-hardcore band Silverstein covered "Destination: Blood" on their album Short Songs.[16] A tribute album, Epilogue of a Car Crash!, was released in 2013 on Dog Knights Productions.[17] Piet Onthel covered "Weekend At The Fire Academy" on their demo in 2018.[18] Letters of Marque covered "Lights Out" on Spring Roots & Lullabies, a charity compilation for Trans Lifeline released in 2023.[19]

Members

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  • Jayson Green – vocals, keyboards, percussion (1997–2002, 2024–present)
  • Will Killingsworth – guitar, keyboards (1997–2002, 2024–present)
  • Jeffrey Salane – drums, percussion (1997–2002, 2024–present)
  • Brad Wallace – bass (1997–1999), guitar (2024–present)
  • Geoff Garlock – bass (1999–2002, 2024–present)

Timeline

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Discography

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Albums

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Compilations

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  • Dance Tonight! Revolution Tomorrow! + Chaos Is Me (Ebullition, September 10, 2002)
  • Totality (Clean Plate, CD January 15, 2005, Vinyl 2014)

Singles & EPs

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  • We Hate You Demo (Self-Released, 1997)
  • Split with Pig Destroyer (Amendment, 1997)
  • Orchid 7" (Hand Held Heart, 1998)
  • Split with Encyclopedia Of American Traitors (Witching Hour Records, 1998)
  • Split with Combat Wounded Veteran (Clean Plate, 2000)
  • Split with The Red Scare (Hand Held Heart, 2000)
  • Split with Jeromes Dream (Witching Hour Records, 2000)

Compilation appearances

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  • "Weekend at the Fire Academy" on Songs Of The Dead (1998, Ape Records)
  • "September 18th, 1993" featured on Falafel Grind (1999, Obscene Productions)
  • "How Far It's Gone" featured on Better Luck Next Time (1999, Witching Hour Records)
  • "Flip The Tape" featured on Tribute To Fort Thunder (US Pop Life Vol.12) (2001, Contact Records)

References

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  1. ^ Stewart, Ethan (May 25, 2021). "From Hardcore To Harajuku: The Origins Of Scene Subculture". PopMatters. Retrieved October 31, 2023.
  2. ^ Barnard, Laurent (December 3, 2015). "This Is Hardcore: Orchid – Chaos Is Me". louder. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  3. ^ "Orchid – Last Show Ever (Full Set) 7/9/02: Cambridge, MA". Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved July 8, 2021 – via YouTube.
  4. ^ a b c Anchors (December 27, 2005). "Punknews.org Orchid – Totality". Punknews.org. Retrieved March 26, 2011.
  5. ^ Ryan Duffy (August 8, 2008). "NEW YORK – VBS IS VIOLENT BULLSHIT". Vice Magazine. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
  6. ^ Zachary Lipez (August 31, 2014). "Listen to a New Track by Orchid Spinoff, Ritual Mess". Vice Magazine. Retrieved December 28, 2014.
  7. ^ "You Were There: The Complete LCD Soundsystem". Pitchfork. March 28, 2011. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  8. ^ "Pillars of the 90s: An Interview with Orchid". Machine Music. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
  9. ^ a b c Ozzi, Dan (May 16, 2024). "An Interview with Jayson Green (Orchid)". ZERO CRED. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  10. ^ "Orchid announce first shows in over 20 years!". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  11. ^ Saucier, Crissy. "Orchid reunites in Amherst after 22 years". Massachusetts Daily Collegian. Retrieved May 11, 2024.
  12. ^ "Orchid". NTS. Retrieved August 29, 2018.
  13. ^ a b Gotich, Lars (August 17, 2011). "pg. 99: A Document Revisited". NPR. Retrieved December 30, 2011. [...]there's a renewed interest in the emotional post-hardcore that bands like pg. 99, Orchid, Circle Takes the Square and Majority Rule pioneered, mostly by an audience that was far too young to hear it the first time around.
  14. ^ a b Greg, Pratt (September 22, 2010). "Altered States, Grindcore Special part 2". Terrorizer (181). United Kingdom: Miranda Yardley: 43. Another interesting sub-subgenre was this strange crossover of first-generation emo and grind. Bands like Reversal of Man or Orchid may not have stood the test of time, but it was a pretty cool sound at the time and one that was pretty uniquely American
  15. ^ "Emotional Breakdown – Recension/Orchid – Totality" (in Italian). Emotional Breakdown. Archived from the original on January 7, 2008. Retrieved October 20, 2009. Italian: "[Orchid] trovate concentrata tutta l'essenza della musica più straziante che possiate immaginare: corde vocali tirato allo spasimo fino a strapparsi, suoni cupi e disperati. Ovvero tutte quelle caratteristiche che loro, da maestri indiscussi, hanno insegnato a tanti proseliti e che qui troviamo in tutto il loro cinico splendore."
  16. ^ Paul, Aubin (December 1, 2011). "Silverstein album features Rise Against, Propagandhi, Anti-Flag, Swellers members". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 10, 2012.
  17. ^ "DK034: Epilogue of a Car Crash...a Tribute to Orchid 12" LP, by Dog Knights Productions - Various Artists". Dog Knights Productions. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  18. ^ "(demo)lanitaksupo(mulo), by Piet Onthel". no funeral records. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  19. ^ "spring roots & lullabies, by BSDJ". BSDJ. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
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