The Fall of Troy

The Fall of Troy formed in Mukilteo, Washington in 2002, built around the guitar work and vocals of Thomas Erak, whose playing style — technical, dissonant, and rhythmically unpredictable — became the band's defining characteristic. Alongside bassist Tim Ward and drummer Andrew Forsman, the trio developed a sound that drew from math rock, post-hardcore, and experimental music without fully belonging to any of those categories. Their 2006 album Doppelgänger remains a touchstone of the genre, its opening track "F.C.P.R.E.M.I.X." a frequent reference point for any discussion of technically ambitious guitar-driven music from that era.

The band broke up in 2009 following lineup changes and creative exhaustion, but reunited in 2015 to a reception that made clear their absence had only increased their cult standing. They have continued to tour and record since the reunion, with their live sets drawing heavily from the catalog that built their reputation. Sharing a stage with Dance Gavin Dance brings together two bands who, in different ways, helped define what ambitious post-hardcore could sound like in the 2000s — and both have audiences who have been following them long enough to remember exactly where they were when they first heard these songs.