Hot Water Music

Hot Water Music represents the Gainesville punk scene with vengeance. They bring the newer style of pop punk and post-hardcore to the near mainstream with their melodic style and heavy hitting guitars. When front man Chuck Ragan isn't working and touring for his solo side project, he is touring with HWM (Hot Water Music) frequently all over the world.

They play many different venues and festivals, but I saw them most recently in St. Louis at Fubar, a venue known for hosting punk, metal, and hip-hop acts. The venue atmosphere is grimy and stagnant, with a very raw sound stage, and personal feel to the shows. The show was set for glory with opening act Off With Their Heads!, another in the vein of HWM to punch out catchy, emotional songs with fierce enthusiasm.

The crowd is very energetic and constantly in a state of motion, with a vigorous mosh pit and anthemic singing along with the band. The venue was strictly standing room only, with a few seats in the far side of the club near the bar, which was for patrons 21 years and older. The sound in front of the stage was mediocre, but the enthusiasm brought to the show far outweighed the sound.

The show was very exhausting with all the moshing and dancing, and by the end my voice was scratchy from singing with the band. They spanned all of their albums in the set, from Fuel for the Hate Game to Exister, providing a fantastic mix of their discography to the crowd.

Excellent show, I got into Good Riddance long after they'd been going through a good friend of mine whom I've know for best part of 25 years.
I always hoped I'd get a chance to see GR in Cali, but when the news dropped that they'd broken up it was pretty devastating. So a few years later, when I heard they were releasing a new album, and following up with a tour. I hoped I'd be able to make it out to Cali to catch a show, and pay a visit to San Jose to pay tribute to Tony Sly at the same time.
Well, I've not made it to Cali yet... But GR made it to Australia, where I currently reside... And better still, to Perth, my current chosen city of habitation.
Show absolutely rocked, even when a member of the crowd bumped Russ' mic pretty hard into his face - he kept going.
Thanks a lot for coming out to Perth, Australia guys. Hope to see you next time i Califas.

I was SO excited when my friends asked me to go with them to see A Wilhem Scream live. It was amazing. First of all, the guys up on stage had such an enthusiasm and energy it was sure to fill the entire place.

They were so awesome, and good with the crowd. Oh man were they amazing at keeping us entertained and engaged in the show. In between each song they would converse with the audience and ask us questions and even take song requests! I love their music too and I found myself on my feet for the entire show.

My feet were sore the next day. And, my throat was too. I left with no voice from screaming their songs at the top of my lungs. Even the songs I didn't know I was singing to the chorus by the end of them. And the band encouraged us to sing along; at several points giving us the microphone so we could be heard louder. It made me feel like an integral part of the show.

I absolutely enjoyed myself 100 percent that night. Would love to see these guys live again sometime. The only thing I would do differently is get closer seats! I would love to be in the mosh pit area.