Anklebiter is one of the newest bands to rise in the hardcore scene and was one of the bands to play the Act Like You Know festival this past weekend in Tulsa, Oklahoma. They’re a four piece straight edge band from the Northeast and they dropped their debut demo earlier this year via Sunday Drive Records.
On this demo, producer Will Hirst captures Anklebiter’s raw and furious energy on every track. While the sound is fast and upfront, the band knows when to pull back to make a balanced, dynamic, and exciting sound.
Anklebiter is Rachael, Nick, Evan, and Logan.
They differ from their contemporaries in 2022 with a refreshing, yet familiar sound. Referencing early-mid ’00s hardcore from their region—particularly the sound of Lockin’ Out bands like Mental and Righteous Jams, mixed with the modern sounds from Result of Choice and Krimewatch, Anklebiter plays classic loud & fast hardcore.
They just finished up a tour with Scowl and Strange Joy and on the way to the fest, they played a few shows with Broken Vow, Slug, and Prevention. All other bands who also played the fest this weekend.
During their Act Like You Know set, they have a limited straight edge jersey available to buy and it was super cool to see people in the pit wearing this jersey.
Read the complete interview below!
Another band playing, Scowl, and you just announced a tour together. How do you feel about it?
Evan: We’re really excited! Being a faster, more punk leaning hardcore band, a sound that is not particularly popular right now, Scowl was one of our bands that we all agreed were a target to tour with when we started the band. They’re incredible musically and have done something special in the short time as a band. Malachi, who plays guitar in Scowl, has given me a lot of guidance as of late and I really think that this tour will provide an opportunity for us to learn a lot from a more seasoned, well polished band. We all really get along as well and I have a feeling that’s going to be a band we hang out with a lot outside of the shows this tour.
Nick: Stoked! That’s all one of our favorite bands and great people. Every band on the tour we consider friends and we can’t wait to just hang and mosh every night.
Rachael: Hyped to shit. All these bands are dope. We’ve become great friends with Scowl, so it’ll just be hangs all the time. I’m so beyond excited to see Jivebomb for the first time, and Restraining Order is my for sure mosh nightly band.
On Demo 2022, your music is raw and energetic. Do you think you are going to experiment with your sound for your next project?
Evan: Not particularly. We came into this band wanting to do Nick and I’s favorite style of hardcore really well. We hope to get better and better with each release but I don’t think a major sound change is on the horizon.
Nick: We’ve got another release ready to record that doesn’t stray far from the path we’re on. It’s hardcore, if it’s not raw and energetic something is wrong.
Rachael: We didn’t do anything groundbreaking the first time. This new shit is definitely catchier, maybe more complex, but nothing that different. If you can tell the difference between the demo and the EP, I’ll give you my personal blu-ray copy of 8 Mile.
What has been your favorite show you’ve played so far?
Nick: We just played a show in Allston that had potential to be wack that we just had fun with. Door guy was wack as hell (fuck you if you’re reading this), late start time, the cards weren’t in our favor but we all just played fast and made jokes as much as we could and walked away smiling. Kids moshed and that’s all I care about.
Evan: Definitely our show in Allston the other night. The guy running doors was really cool! I love 21+ venues, they’re really good for the scene! Too bad all the other bands were terrible though :/
Rachael: Simmons Farm on our demo weekender. I got to see Gel and about 50 preteens in juggalo makeup. The Anklebiter gathering was everything I dreamed of (woop woop).
4) What was your reaction to being asked to play at the festival?
Nick: We kind of got Aaron to entertain the idea literally just weeks after we decided a band name and what direction we were gonna take it. We thought it was a joke but once we had rough mixes of the demo we sent it over and he was on board which rocks. I think he might be the first person to hear the demo outside of our camp.
Evan: Beffudled. Aaron added us to Act Like You Know Fest before he even knew what we sounded like. He’s real for that. Now that I think about it I don’t think we ever got an offer. We told him we wanted to play and he was like “release music first” and then before we even recorded, he was sending out schedules to everyone with us on the fest. Aaron if you’re reading this, congrats on selling out the fest.
Rachael: We got the “offer” as a joke before we played a show or really wrote any music. Then we found out he was serious around April or May. Aaron goated.
What other bands are you excited to see?
Nick: GRIDIRON.
Evan: Every but Broken Vow. Anxious, Gates to Hell, Ozone, and Prevention are prob my picks. Shoutout to literally everyone on the bill though. Except Broken Vow.
Rachael: Gridiron is the best band on the fest. But any band from the northeast is gonna have me moshing silly. Especially Spaced.
