Summers End

After failing to get their careers off the ground with short-lived New Jersey bands like Abysmal Gates and Blood Runs Cold, vocalist Josh Hansen and guitarist John Letzkus returned to their native Washington D.C. in 2002 and vowed to start anew. Naming themselves Summer's End, they began composing songs in what they defined as a "horror-core" style, but which most listeners would instantly identify as almost entirely hardcore-free, metallic death-thrash. They then recruited rhythm guitarist Paul Macatee, bassist Bucky Griffin, and drummer David Eaton to begin touring with various East Coast heavy metal bands and recorded a self-titled debut album with producer Eric Rachel. This was eventually released in early 2005 by Hand of Hope Records, but by then, the founding duo had reconfigured Summer's End's lineup to include new rhythm guitarist Brian Mitchell, ex-the Burning Season bassist Dave Clarke, and former Walls of Jericho drummer Alexei Rodriguez.