SCV // SCH: SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA VIOLENCE // SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA HARDCORE
january 10th, 2026 • julian’s house • montclair, california
full gallery can be found here
On a cold, windy Saturday night in Montclair, California, a stacked backyard show kicked off the year in proper fashion. The lineup featured One For Every Lie, SAW, Stealth X, a surprise set from Amor De Dios, Body to Ash, False Witness, and Exutoire. The show was organized by Oddball Booking, a Southern California–based hardcore booking collective.
One constant at nearly every hardcore show is the overwhelming sense of community, and this night was no exception. From the moment the first band played, the interconnectedness of the scene was obvious. Many of the musicians knew one another, shared band members, or even joined each other onstage for guest spots. Familiar faces filled the pit—spin kicking, two-stepping, and diving in—while newer kids hovered at the edges, either watching in awe or throwing themselves headfirst into the chaos. Hardcore veterans could be seen initiating the movement or grabbing the mic to shout along. Everyone seemed to know someone, and even if you didn’t, the environment made it easy to form fast, genuine connections.
While I initially came out to support two specific bands—SAW and Amor De Dios—I left impressed by every act that night. Each set was energetic and well-executed, and there wasn’t a single performance that felt forgettable. I’m looking forward to catching every one of these bands again.
The second band of the night was SAW, a group formed by five friends in early-to-mid 2025. The lineup consists of frontman Frank, guitarists Nick and Isaac, drummer Julez, and bassist Porter. Nick and Julez also play together in A Red Sun and Feed the Beast, while Frank and Julez share duties in A Red Sun and Rateater. Nick first met Isaac while attending a Mongrel set with Blake, the frontman of Amor De Dios. After the show, a group went to In-N-Out, where Nick and Isaac connected over music. They continued running into each other at shows and quickly became friends. I’ve personally met all of these guys through shows and the local music scene as well. Porter previously played in Ophedia, a band that frequently shared bills with Feed the Beast. With shared tastes, overlapping friendships, and a mutual passion for hardcore, forming SAW felt inevitable.
SAW released their first single in September 2025, followed by their debut EP, Embrace Me In The Morgue, at the end of October. The EP is packed with heavy-hitting tracks, opening with “Embrace,” an atmospheric introduction that immediately grabs attention. The song uses a deep, eerie drum pattern layered with air raid sirens, alarm sounds, a woman crying, and a robotic voice repeating “saw,” before seamlessly transitioning into “The Morgue,” the EP’s lead single. The track is a textbook hardcore anthem, slowly building toward a crushing breakdown. Their newest single, “Skin Mask,” dropped on the day of the show and has been on repeat for me ever since. While the EP is strong and cohesive, “Skin Mask” showcases noticeable growth. The band sounds more confident and locked in, capped off by a vicious pig-like squeal from Frank at the song’s end. A new EP is reportedly on the way, and anticipation is already extremely high for me.
The band’s name came from Frank. They initially tossed around ideas like “Morgue.exe”—a concept later referenced in tracks such as “The Morgue” and “Saw.exe.” Frank eventually remembered an old demo called “Scalpel” and began brainstorming names tied to surgical imagery and the like. SAW stood out to him immediately. While the name itself isn’t a direct reference to the Saw horror franchise, the band’s sound, themes, and visual aesthetic echo the bleakness and grit of the first film.
SAW took the stage around 6 p.m., opening their set with a sample of Waka Flocka Flame’s “No Hands.” Previously using Far East Movement’s “Like a G6,” the band leans into moments of humor to loosen up the crowd before unleashing their intensity. As the sample cut off and the band kicked in, Frank’s vocals hit hard, and the pit erupted almost instantly. Despite the 50-degree weather and freezing conditions, the energy in the yard quickly heated up once bodies started moving. The live debut of “Skin Mask” was met with an explosive response. Like many backyard shows, there were technical hiccups, including intermittent microphone issues, but Frank handled it effortlessly, projecting his vocals over the chaos. For a relatively new band, SAW already leaves a lasting impression, and if they continue releasing material at this level, their following is bound to grow. I’m already looking forward to the next time I catch them live.
The other band I was there to cover and support was Amor De Dios, who were not originally listed on the lineup but were announced day-of as a surprise set. The group released their debut—and currently only—EP, Heaven Sent, on November 21, 2025, and made their live debut a week later at Midnight Hour. I was fortunate enough to attend that performance. Despite having been publicly active for only about a month and a half at that point, the band had already gained notable traction within the scene. All of the members were well connected prior to the band’s formation, which certainly helped generate early momentum—but make no mistake, Heaven Sent is an outstanding release that fully earns the attention it has received.
As mentioned earlier, the sense of community within the hardcore scene is one of the primary reasons I continue to stay involved. On a personal level, frontman Blake Fragoso and I attended high school together, and I even appear in a group prom photo on his Instagram. Despite that history, we didn’t properly meet until last spring, when SAW guitarist Nick and Feed the Beast vocalist James brought me to Blake’s birthday party. Watching friends succeed while doing something they genuinely love is deeply rewarding and reinforces why this scene means so much to me.
A recurring motif throughout Heaven Sent is the use of samples from Mexican music, which serve as intros and transitions, grounding the band’s sound in their cultural identity. The opening track, “A Sinner’s Cry,” begins with one of these samples before quickly launching into heavy hardcore riffs and melodies. When listened to in sequence rather than on shuffle, the EP reveals how meticulously constructed it is: nearly every track fades seamlessly into the next, with riffs, chords, or samples carrying over across transitions. That level of cohesion is one of the most satisfying qualities an artist can achieve, and Amor De Dios executes it across the entire release.
Several tracks—most notably “Reflection of Reformation,” “Aphrodite’s Curse,” and “Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing”—feature spoken-word passages that recall elements of Movements’ “Full Circle,” as well as earlier work from Touché Amoré, particularly “To Write Content.” While neither band operates squarely within hardcore, the comparison lies in the contrast between weighty instrumentation and softer or slower spoken sections layered on top. That juxtaposition can be difficult to balance, but Amor De Dios handles it effectively. “Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing” opens with the quote “Swear to God… Swear to me,” taken from Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins (2005), a subtle nod to Blake’s well-known love of the Batman character.
While every track on Heaven Sent is powerful and stands confidently on its own, the closing song, “Conviction,” stands out as the EP’s strongest moment, with “Aphrodite’s Curse” close behind. “Conviction” opens with a sample that carries over from the previous track, followed by spoken word before fully shifting into hardcore. Midway through, the song breaks into a melodic guitar passage, eventually introducing clean vocals for two lines. It closes with another sample, mirroring the way the EP began. Despite the variety of elements at play, the song never feels cluttered or unfocused. It is deliberate, cohesive, and expertly constructed—I have no notes.
For their name, the group wanted something that reflected the Christian themed Mexican identity in the music. They felt that Amor De Dios, meaning “Love of God,” was perfect. Amor De Dios began when vocalist Blake and guitarist Mateo started collaborating at Mateo’s place, trading riffs and developing ideas rooted in their shared influences. Mateo handles all of the instrumental composition and guitar work, while Blake focuses on writing lyrics and shaping themes. As Blake described it, the band’s origin is “the classic story of a couple of friends who wanted to make music together—getting together in a garage type beat.” The remaining members—Andrew (guitar), Jacob (drums), and Don (bass)—were friends the duo met through the hardcore scene and later brought into the project to round out the lineup.
Given how quickly Amor De Dios has made an impact with such a strong debut, it’s exciting to consider what the future may hold for the band.
