First Blood

Metallic hardcore outfit First Blood first took shape in San Francisco’s Bay Area during 2002, launched as a side project by Terror’s Carl Schwartz on vocals and Doug Weber on guitar, both of whom had earlier stints in Sworn Vengeance. Schwartz’s staunch veganism underscored the band’s socially and politically conscious stance, though the members never viewed the group as a full-time commitment. Local impact came immediately when the unit played its inaugural show alongside hardcore icons Cro-Mags. By 2003, with drummer Nate and bassist Joe rounding out the lineup, First Blood issued its self-titled EP on Division 36 Records, distributed through Bridge Nine, and appeared at Syracuse, New York’s annual Hellfest. The following year a split 7" with Philadelphia’s Blacklisted arrived via Deathwish Inc., introducing drummer Nick Jett, also of Terror, bassist Manuel Peralez, and second guitarist Kyle Dixon, formerly of Embrace the End. Persistent scheduling conflicts with other projects triggered repeated lineup shifts, prompting Schwartz to leave Terror after its final tour in fall 2005 and commit exclusively to First Blood. Stability arrived with the addition of guitarist Daniel Fletcher and drummer Mike Orris, Jr. alongside Dixon and Peralez, though the drum chair continued to rotate between recordings and live dates. Aligning with Trustkill, the band joined Ignite and Comeback Kid for an early 2006 tour that preceded the spring arrival of its debut full-length, Killafornia. The long-awaited follow-up Silence Is Betrayal surfaced in 2008, after which nearly a decade passed before the group returned to the studio. A 2016 agreement with Pure Noise led to the 2017 release of the third album, Rules.