Hawthorne Heights

Hawthorne Heights

Hawthorne Heights is an emo, emo pop, pop screamo and post-hardcore group from Dayton, United States. It forms in 2001 and remains active.

Formation and early releases

The band begins as A Day in the Life in Dayton, Ohio, formed by JT Woodruff, Jesse Blair, Andy Saunders, Josh Bethel and Andy Lazier. It takes its original name from the Beatles song “A Day in the Life”. Its first demo, Four Bullets for One Girl, sells its initial 500-copy run in two months and leads to a deal with Confined Records. Under that name, the group releases the album Nine Reasons to Say Goodbye and the EP Paper Chromatography: The Fade from Dark to Light, which is later partly reissued on From Ohio With Love. After the rest of the band leaves, Woodruff continues the project, and bassist Matt Ridenour suggests the name Hawthorne Heights, based on a hotel name with an added “e” and “Heights”.

Key albums and singles

The group’s first album, The Silence in Black and White, is released in 2004 and becomes a breakthrough record after the video for “Ohio Is for Lovers” receives MTV airplay. The album peaks at number 56 on the Billboard charts and becomes Victory Records’ highest-selling debut. Singles from the record include “Niki FM” and “Silver Bullet”.

If Only You Were Lonely follows in 2006 and debuts at number 3 on the Billboard 200, while also reaching number 1 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart. Its lead single, “Saying Sorry”, reaches gold status and peaks at number 7 on Billboard’s Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart. The album also includes a remix of “Where Can I Stab Myself in the Ears?”, retitled “Where Do I Stab Myself in the Ears”, which appears on the Underworld: Evolution soundtrack.

The band’s later albums include Fragile Future (2008), Skeletons (2010), Zero (2013), Bad Frequencies (2018) and The Rain Just Follows Me (2021). It also releases the compilation Midwesterners: The Hits, the acoustic version The Silence in Black and White Acoustic, the B-sides collection Lost Frequencies, and If Only You Were Lonely XV. Its EPs include Rhapsody Originals, Hate, Hope, Hurt and Lost Lights.

Line-up

The current line-up includes JT Woodruff on lead vocals, rhythm guitar, piano and keyboards; Matt Ridenour on bass and backing vocals; Mark McMillon on lead guitar and unclean vocals; Micah Carli; Eron Bucciarelli; and Casey Calvert. Former members include Josh Bethel, Andy Saunders, Jesse Blair, Andy Lazier, Chris “Poppy” Popadak and support drummers Dango Cellan and Connor Denis. Carli leaves the band in 2015, Bucciarelli in 2014, and Popadak in 2024. Calvert, who played rhythm guitar and unclean vocals, dies in 2007.

Style and themes

The band’s music is described as emo, post-hardcore, screamo and pop punk, with lyrics centred on heartbreak, depression and self-harm. Its early material as A Day in the Life is more pop punk-oriented. Hawthorne Heights cites Sunny Day Real Estate, The Get Up Kids and The Promise Ring as influences.

Labels, tours and disputes

Hawthorne Heights releases material through Confined Records, Victory Records, Wind-up Records, Red River Entertainment and Pure Noise Records, and later forms its own label, Cardboard Empire. It appears on the Nintendo Fusion Tour, Projekt Revolution, Vans Warped Tour, the Never Sleep Again Tour, the Summer of Hope Tour, a 10th anniversary tour for The Silence in Black and White, Silverstein’s 15-year anniversary tour, a co-headlining tour with Bayside and Senses Fail, and Chiodos’ 20th anniversary tour.

The band’s dispute with Victory Records becomes a notable industry conflict in the mid-2000s. It involves allegations of breach of contract and fraud, a countersuit, and an out-of-court settlement that allows the group to deliver one more album through the label before parting ways.

Recognition

The Silence in Black and White, If Only You Were Lonely and the single “Saying Sorry” all receive RIAA gold certification. Hawthorne Heights is widely associated with the mid-2000s spread of emo to a broader audience, and “Ohio Is for Lovers” remains one of its best-known songs.