







Life Of Agony hit the music scene hard with their debut album River Runs Red on October 12th, 1993 via Roadrunner Records. They left a lasting impact that continues to reverberate today in the music world. Although they came from humble beggings in Brooklyn in the New York Hardcore scene, their release was a sensation that captured fans’ ears from all over the world. As one of the breakout bands from the crop of hugely influential Roadrunner releases that year that included Type O Negative, Sepultura, Fear Factory among others, they grew into an internationally known and loved band.

Owing much to their hardcore roots with lyrics about overcoming adversity and dealing with depression, ruthless grooves and breakdowns and gang vocals with elements of Black Sabbath-ian heavy metal, thrash, hard rock, and even some progressive music moments; the songs on River Runs Red are undeniably original and memorable. Cuts like the heart-stopping title track, ‘This Time, ‘Through and Through’, ‘Underground’, ‘Words And Music’, ‘Method Of Grove’, ‘Bad Seed’, and ‘Respect’ continue to be among the most beloved songs in the bands’ history. Deeper cuts like ‘My Eyes’ and ‘The Stain Remains’ have returned to the set list for the band on the most recent tours, owing to the quality of the album. Beyond just the music, the artwork of the album reflected the realness of the lyrics, including their iconic logo, etched itself into the aura of their brand forever. Go to any LOA show today and you will see dozens of logo tattoos. Their 2017 album A Place Where There’s No More Pain (Napalm) even had a callback to some of this imagery. MTV warmed up to the band and the with tireless touring and PR by the label, they planted the seeds of one of the best fanbases of any band today. The band has even performed the album in its entirety several times and committed it to permanence on live albums and DVD releases.

Life Of Agony has become one of the defining bands of that era with a lasting effect on the heavy music world. While they have several great records, River Runs Red is the one that started it all and still their greatest.

KEITH CHACHKES

Watch as Alan Robert of LOA chats with Ghost Cult about River Runs Red at 25 and more: