Miss May I

A Midwestern metalcore crew known for their searing guitar work and dual sung/screamed vocals, Ohio’s Miss May I emerged in the late aughts with a deeply technical post-hardcore sound rooted in death metal and thrash. Debuting in 2009 with Apologies for the Weak, the band have remained an integral part of the heavy music scene for over two decades, issuing a string of acclaimed albums like At Heart, Rise of the Lion, Deathless, and Curse of Existence that pair uncompromising savagery with melodic heft.
Troy, Ohio’s Miss May I came together in 2006 while their members were still in high school. Consisting of guitarists Justin Aufdemkampe and B.J. Stead, singer Levi Benton, drummer Jerod Boyd, and bassist/vocalist Ryan Neff, the quintet quickly established themselves through a series of demo recordings, eventually landing a contract with Rise Records for the release of their debut full-length, 2009′s Apologies Are for the Weak. After spending a couple of years touring with acts like Carnifex, blessthefall, and the Devil Wears Prada, the band returned to the studio to begin work on their follow-up with producer Joey Sturgis. The result was the 2010 album Monument, which reached number 76 on the Billboard 200 and was the group’s most successful record to date. Miss May I spent most of the next year touring, taking part in the Vans Warped Tour as well as tours with We Came as Romans and Pierce the Veil. They finally settled into the studio in early 2012, and their third album, At Heart, followed later that year. The Billboard-charting Rise of the Lion appeared in 2014, with Deathless, their well-received fifth full-length effort, arriving the following year.
In 2016, the band left Rise Records and inked a deal with SharpTone, joining a roster that included genre heavyweights We Came as Romans and Attila. In April 2017, Miss May I released “Lost in the Gray,” the first single from the hard-hitting Shadows Inside, which arrived later that May. The group enlisted Will Putney to produce their seventh long-player, 2022′s punishing Curse of Existence. ~ Gregory Heaney & James Christopher Monger