Rally Cry is a new band that was formed by friends from the Bakersfield, California punk scene. "It wasn’t until we made the conscious decision to fuse Oi! and hardcore that things started to really come together," bassist Jon Orton tells No Echo.
"We also made the decision to be a skinhead band. One that was outwardly and unapologetically anti-racist, anti-homophobia, anti-sexist, with members who weren’t afraid to take a stand and be up front about it. And that’s something we weren’t willing to compromise on."
Rally Cry's self-titled debut EP arrived on streaming outlets late last year.Getting a bit deeper into their sound, Jon offers: "We’ve been called 'heavy Oi!' and 'street hardcore.' We call it 'skinhead punk rock.' I think all are pretty accurate.
"Our influences run the gamut from Judge (hence the not-so subtle nod on the cover of our EP), to Slapshot, to Cock Sparrer, to Guns N' Roses, to 4Skins, to Thin Lizzy. All four of us seem to gravitate towards different punk subgenres with Oi!, NYHC, and early hardcore being where the Venn diagram converges. I just sincerely love punk rock in all of its forms, but I’ll always be hardcore kid."
Jon educates No Echo on the Bakersfield music community and its movers and shakers: "Bakersfield is blowing up right now! Jerry’s Pizza is legendary at this point. They’ve been doing all ages shows for 30 years and still going strong. We have a new DIY, all ages spot here called 415 that’s consistently doing shows.
"We have so many awesome, new bands making moves. There’s Thousand Yard Stare, Dear Distance, G.A.H.D. Iron Sight, Gold, Pump Fake, Disocracy, If It Kills You, Hysteria, In Balance, Scum Cuntz, Parasite Caste, and I’m sure there are a few I’m forgetting. Then we have Bulldog, Guerrero, Burn Unit, Palm Reader, and Human right up the road in Fresno. Then there’s Ill Communication and War Is Hell holding it down in mountains up in Tehachapi."
According to Jon, Rally Cry already have new songs recorded and they're currently speaking to a few labels about possibly working together, and they have other things cooking. "We’ve already been asked to play CRASH Fest next year. We’re really stoked about that. Lastly, we really want to play with more hardcore bands!"
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Rally Cry on social media: Facebook | Instagram
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