'68

Playing furious, stripped-to-the-frame rock rooted in metalcore and hardcore, '68 was the creation of guitarist and vocalist Josh Scogin. The group clearly subscribe to the notion that less is more; consisting of just a guitarist and a drummer, they generate a sound that is full and hard hitting. The tunes show a clear blues influence along with their crushing hard rock impact, while the vocals document a search for life's answers expressed with a furious passion. '68's hardcore influences were strongest on their 2014 debut album In Humor and Sadness, while 2017's Two Parts Viper brought their blues accents up in the mix, and 2021's Give One Take One put a renewed emphasis on straightforward hard rock, albeit delivered with their standard level of intensity. Josh Scogin first came to the attention of alternative rock fans as the original singer with the Christian metalcore outfit Norma Jean; he left the group in 2003, just a few months after the release of their first album, Bless the Martyr and Kiss the Child. By the end of 2003, Scogin had formed a new band, the Chariot, which pushed his musical ideals in a new direction that was at once more hardcore and gave greater room for his personal and spiritual views. The Chariot's debut album, Everything Is Alive, Everything Is Breathing, Nothing Is Dead and Nothing Is Bleeding, was released in 2004, and the group recorded and toured steadily until August 2013, when they announced that they had disbanded amicably. In late 2013, Scogin's Twitter account posted a web address, theyare68.com, with a countdown indicating a future announcement. Several days later, Scogin revealed that '68 was the name of his new project, which he was launching with a 7" single, "Three Is a Crowd" b/w "Third Time Is a Charm." A video of the band also revealed that '68 was a two-man band, with Scogin on vocals, guitar, and occasional keyboards, and Michael McClellan (formerly with Becoming the Archetype) on drums and percussion. After selling out its initial pressing in a matter of hours, No Sleep reissued the single in April 2014, and three months later, '68 issued a ten-song LP, In Humor and Sadness, through Entertainment One Music. 2017 saw the duo ink a deal with Cooking Vinyl and release their second studio long-player, Two Parts Viper. Following the release of their sophomore album, Michael McClellan left the duo, and by the end of 2017, Nikko Yamada had taken over '68's drummer. Yamada made his recording debut with the act on the four-song EP Love Is Ain't Dead, released in September 2020, and they were back with a full-length LP, Give One Take One, in March 2021.
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