Up in Arms

Up in Arms earned the label “Milwaukee’s answer to Hatebreed,” a tag their savage, relentless, and floor-pounding brand of metallic hardcore makes immediately understandable. Passion, honesty, and occasional flashes of nuance color their material, yet the dominant impression remains one of anthemic, charging, often ominously simmering riffs paired with ferocious shouts that land with the force of a runaway locomotive. The group came together in 1998 and issued a 7" EP on Undecided not long afterward; the recording captured a young outfit still shaping its identity while striving to carve a distinct place inside the punishing metalcore landscape. Jason Strout’s vocal roar gained further power on the band’s first full-length, Fight to the Death, which Uprising put out nearly two years later. A Muay Thai kickboxer, Strout matches the ferocity of his delivery with guitarists Todd Evirs and Kevin Herwig, bassist Jesse Smith—distinct from the Zao drummer of the same name—and drummer Jared Logan, who also serves in 7 Angels 7 Plagues after stepping in for Jon Kraft. Racetraitor frontman Mani Mostofi first alerted Uprising to the band and later contributed dense backing vocals to the album. Throughout 2000 and 2001 Up in Arms promoted Fight to the Death by sharing stages with Zao, Trial, Eighteen Visions, Botch, and similar acts.