Flyover Fest—formerly Act Like You Know Fest and Promcore—returns to Tulsa, Oklahoma on November 17 to 19 for a weekend full of hardcore music. Featuring over fifty unique artists from all over the country (even Canada), the weekend promises to be unforgettable. That being said, with so many artists listed on the bill it can be difficult to figure out who you want to see, so we at For The Punks thought we’d make a column detailing various artists performing at the festival and share them with all of you!
1. Prevention
Prior to 2019 and the start of Prevention, the four members had different musical projects such as Grave Switcher, No Cash Value, and Final Order. But in 2019 they came together to release their EP, Your Bad Habits.
In the following years, they released What Do You Say No To? (2021) and The Search (2022). 2022 was a busy year for them, before releasing The Search via Delayed Gratification Records, they went on different tours with bands including Slug, Side Eye, Broken Vow, and Take It To Heart. They have also played shows with other Flyover Fest bands like En Love, Anklebiter, Hold My Own, and Squint.
On August 25 of this year they released Split the World (also via Delayed Gratification Records), having a release show on September 8. Prevention will be playing a short run of shows with World I Hate and En Love from November 15 to the 19. They will be returning to the festival again, playing on the 19.
Watch Prevention performing at the fest last year below.
2. Gnaw
Gnaw is one of the newest bands on the Flyover Fest lineup this year. Getting their start in 2022, they have not slowed down at all. Gnaw released Demo ‘22 in March of that year. They played their first show in Des Moines, Iowa the week after the release. Gnaw went to play shows through the months of July and August, with their hometown show in Minneapolis on August 26.
In August 2022, they released a three song promo called On Your Mind. This year they went on a small run of shows from April 27 to May 3, playing in different states each night. They will be at Flyover Fest on November 17.
3. En Love
En Love from Columbus, Ohio, has been playing hardcore through the Midwest with Rotting Out, Show Me the Body, and Regional Justice Center since 2018. They did not release their debut EP Love Will Drown the Nest, until October 16, 2020. It was accompanied with a music video for the song “Bodies Carried Over Doves.” Bands like Trash Talk and Ceremony were inspirations for the release, ultimately trying to make music like the kind that got them excited.
En Love released Fled in late 2022 via Delayed Gratification Records, after going on multiple different tours with bands Slug, For Your Health, and Gumm.
This year they have gone on tour with Gel and have played Live It Down’s EP Release Show in July. They will be going on tour from November 14 to the 21, stopping at Flyover Fest on the 17 and playing the after show on November 18.
Watch a video of En Love performing in September below.
4. Bazookatooth
Bazookatooth, from Nashville, Tennessee, describe their music as “boundary-defying blend of metallic hardcore and punk rock,” which sets them apart from the rest. In 2018, they released their self-titled debut EP. The rest of their discography is just as great; two EP’s, Assimilate (2020) and Kingdom of Pain (2022). The song “Deathblow” off of Kingdom of Pain received a music video, released July 1, 2022.
Since signing with Safe Inside Records and releasing Kingdom of Pain, they have played numerous tours and have other shows, such as festivals, booked. Earlier this year, they went on tour in May to promote Kingdom of Pain. They will be ending the year with Flyover on the 19.
5. End It
Forming in 2017 in Baltimore, Maryland, End It dove into the hardcore community with their self-titled EP that year. They get inspiration from 90’s hardcore, such as Gut Instinct, Leeway, and Maximum Penalty.
It took another three years for them to release the One Way Track EP, with the lead single being “Hardhead.” In 2022, another EP titled Unpleasant Living under Flatspot Records. The message of the EP? Mind your business. The six songs address everything from questioning the systems of society to gatekeeping the music scene they love. In January of this year, they released the single “Familia Finito,” which was a featured track on Flatspot Records’ The Extermination Vol. 4 Compilation that released January 27.
End It was scheduled to play Flyover Festival last year but couldn’t attend so we are very excited to welcome them to Tulsa this year. This year has been eventful for them too, performing around the Northeast and playing For the Children later this year; as well as Flyover on the November 18 date.
Watch End It perform below.
6. Morbid Visionz
Morbid Visionz is a death metal band based out of Little Rock, Arkansas. Since forming in 2021, they have released one demo, DEMO, and an EP, Cycle of Cessation. They are currently signed to Maggot Stomp, who has also signed bands like 200 Stab Wounds, Sentenced 2 Die, Undeath, Snuffed On Sight, Gates To Hell, and Vomit Forth (another band playing Flyover this year).
Their latest release is a cover of “The Mob Rulez” by Black Sabbath.
Their schedule is booked this year having played shows with other Flyover Fest lineup bands like Prevention, God’s Hate, No Cure, and BRAT. In addition to Flyover Fest on November 18, they will be playing ‘Bangin’ In The Rock’ with God’s Hate on December 8.
Watch Morbid Visionz perform live at LDB 2023 below.
7. Mouth For War
Mouth For War, a “mosh metal” band from Colorado Springs, is made up of members of the bands Bruise and Remain and Sustain. They debuted in 2019 with their single “GOD, HELP US ALL” and haven’t slowed down since.
Their highly anticipated second LP, Bleed Yourself, released on October 27, and it is their first album under MNRK Heavy. After recording in Chicago, they decided that the lead single was “Saturate Me,” which has a music video (watch here). The vocalist, Trae Roberts, says “the goal was for every measure and breakdown to smack you in the face. We thought it was the perfect track to introduce the new Mouth for War.”
Be sure to listen to Bleed Yourself today, it is sure to make your top albums of 2023 list.
Watch a video of the band performing below.
8. Fading Signal
In 2019, a few musicians from Raleigh, North Carolina, came together feeling like there were not enough hardcore bands in their community. The five musicians started to create music, becoming Fading Signal, and got to work with To Live a Lie Records. Under the label, they released a three song demo, Demo ‘20. Since then the band has remained busy, releasing two EP’s, Nothing Feels Good Anymore and Long Ago and Far Away.
Besides recording music, they have been playing shows with other bands from the Flyover Fest lineup: Candy Apple, Pain of Truth, and Anklebiter.
Fading Signal will be performing at Flyover Fest on the 19. We can’t wait to see them!
Watch a video of Fading Signal performing live below.
9. Urn
Urn is a hardcore band from Dallas, Texas, who made their debut with Demo 2017 in August of that year. Currently, they have four EP’s, with Return to Ash being their latest.
The band is not currently signed to a label, but that hasn’t stopped them from releasing new music often and touring. The band releases new music on Bandcamp first, also giving links to vinyl records, which supports the artist more. To us, being self-sustained in the music industry is impressive, and makes us support the band more.
Urn is playing shows from November 1 to the 4 in California, Nevada, and New Mexico. On November 17, they will be at Flyover Fest.
10. Squint
Squint, from St. Louis, Missouri, started playing together in late 2021. All of their members are from previous bands: Time and Pressure, New Lives, Soul Craft, and Choir Vandals. New Lives, which Ian and David were part of, were one of the first releases off of Sunday Drive Records – which Squint is signed to now.
Their first single as a band, “Ghost,” was released in March 2022, one month before their debut EP Feel It. Later that year in November, they released their second EP Wash Away. Both EP’s deliver multiple high energy songs in under ten minutes, leaving us amongst other fans hooked and wanting more.
Then, in July of this year, they released the single “All” and released their first album, Feel It All Wash Away, a combination of the two 2022 EPs.
Squint is currently on a small tour, playing five shows through the midwest until it reaches the end with Flyover Fest on the 19. We’re excited to see Squint return to the festival this year. Read our interview with the band here and watch their performance from the festival last year below.
11. Hold My Own
Hold My Own is a band from Chicago and New Jersey, consisting of members from several different hardcore bands including The Mongoloids, The Killer, MH Chaos, Youth Collapse, and Sector (who is also playing Flyover this year).
The band formed in 2021 months after guitarist Anchit Chhabra and vocalist Greg Falchetto met through One Scene Unity, where MH Chaos and Youth Collapse were featured.
Since then, Hold My Own has released four EP’s, two being from this year. Their latest, In My Way, was released October 20. Out of the six songs, two of them, “Entitlement” and “Forever True,” feature bands Sector and NUMB.
Their next show is November 10 in Chicago before they play Flyover Fest on the 18. If you can’t make it to the shows; Hate5Six has uploaded multiple videos of them performing. Watch their set from October 29, 2022, at the Cobra Lounge in Chicago below.
