HELLO FRIENDS! Here at The Vinyl we are beginning to roll out a new segment each month giving back to our local music scene by introducing local artists/musicians in the greater Maryland/Virginia area and giving them the well deserved love they deserve. To kick off the new segment we are introducing a hardcore band hailing from Frederick Maryland called Fear Agent HC.
The Vinyl: For our audience, please introduce yourself and what you do with the band
Sam Romesburg: Yooo! I’m Sam, I play guitar!
TV: How did Fear Agent HC form? And what is the meaning behind the band name?
SR: So right out of high school in 2010-2011, our drummer Matt, bassist Connor, vocalist Adam and I all started playing music together. I met those guys through going to shows/playing shows around the DMV. The four of us played in a different band called DISTANCES from 2011-2014. It was a ton of fun, but at the end of our run I ended up leaving to join the army and the rest of us moved out of state to pursue other goals both musically and personally. Time passed, but by 2024 we all were back living in and around the Frederick area and were toying with the idea of jamming again/starting a band one more time before we’re too old (we’re all in our 30s). While it was still the same core group as our previous band (with the addition of our other guitarist Michael), we didn’t want it to feel like a continuation of that thing. It was a new idea and it needed a new name.
Outside of music, I am fairly involved in comic books (as silly as that feels to say here). I’ve been writing for over 10 years now and love to blend the two mediums any chance I get – the venn diagram describing the ethos behind creating comics and creating music is practically a circle. FEAR AGENT is actually a comic written by one of my favorite writers Rick Remender (check him out). Rick himself came up through the punk/hardcore music scene, and repurposing his title for a hardcore band felt like a fun homage to him and that collective ethos.
TV: If you had to describe your sound to someone looking for new music to listen to how would you describe/compare your sound?
SR: I’d say for our first demo, we were definitely shooting for a very aggressive, punchy and hard vibe. We love it and are very proud of what we put out as our initial release, but it does feel very broad-stroke punk/harcore. We’re actually getting ready to record our next release here in a month or so and we’re trying to really define our specific and focused sound with this next thing. With the addition of Michael, we’ve unlocked a new perspective and we’re really excited to add his vision into our already slightly shifting sound and I can’t wait for people to hear it. If you listen to our demo and think “I like it, but it could be a little harder” I think we’ve got you covered.
TV: If there is any artist/band/musician out there deceased or living, who would you love to be able to work with?
SR: I feel like in punk/hardcore the message of the music comes from what you, as a group, are trying to say. I think our band has a very defined, focused message behind it and I don’t really know how working with another musician would influence that message.
That said – personally, just me, I’d love to give anything my band ever made to James Hetfield and just be like, “here. I exist and this exists because you exist” and then walk away. I love the guy. I think you’ll be able to tell that in the new stuff as well.
TV: What is the normal writing/recording process for you all? Which usually comes first, the music or lyrics?
SR: I feel like we have a pretty standard writing process. Michael or I will come to the group with a riff or a vibe, Matt (our drummer) may come to us with a rhythm, and we all just jam on it. See where it goes. We have a rule: you try every idea once. Even if you’re sure it’ll be weird in your head, you run it once as a band case you’re wrong. Then once the songs are structured out, Adam writes lyrics and does his thing to them to really tie it all together.
For recording, we record with our very good friend Travis McKenrick based out of Pittsburgh. We met Travis and his band BLACK MASK (a band Matt also plays drums in) back in our original band days and we’ve loved being able to reconnect with him through this new band. He’s absolutely incredible at making us sound not as bad as we are.
TV: How do you differentiate yourselves from other bands in the hardcore community? I know the hardcore community is somewhat a smaller genre of music compared to others out there so how does one band try to stand amongst others in the community?
SR: Well, first and foremost I’d say it’s our age. We’re old. We all started going to shows when we were 15-16 years old and we’ve since doubled our time on the planet. That said, however, there is nothing more encouraging than seeing the kids today embracing the music and the scene in the same way, but cranked to an entirely new level. The accessibility these kids have to punk and hardcore now is absolutely out of control and it’s incredible. More and more kids are seeing clips or videos from shows and connecting with it, and then seeking it out to be a part of it. Again, there’s nothing more encouraging.
TV: What does the local music scene mean to you all?
SR: This sort of echoes what I said in the last answer, but I think the state the local punk/hardcore scene is in is the best I’ve ever seen in my lifetime. Kids really care – they show up and hear the message. For us personally, I think it’s especially incredible that we can stop playing in a hardcore band for 10 years, then show back up in unfamiliar territory and be embraced again. Every show we’ve played, every band has rocked. Every person who showed up has rocked. The people that organize these shows rock. It’s in such a good place.
TV: If there is anything we missed that you would like to say to conclude this interview?
SR: If you’re in the DMV area and want to get involved/get to a show/get your band booked on something – follow @nailbecomesthehammer , @goomba.productions , @pointandlaughzine and @spite_lee on Instagram. These people are constantly organizing, promoting and documenting shows from VA beach, northern VA, Baltimore, and wherever else in the area. Follow them, find the shows, and get to the gig.
Listen to Out to Destroy and Black Mask.
Thank you!