Rockfest 2005

Life of Agony (pictured) pioneered the high-volume broken-home ballad. These days, many heavy-group singers croon while their compositions burn, but on 1993’s River Runs Red and 1995’s Ugly, Keith Caputo’s operatic anguish made him a total freak in the grunt-dominated hardcore-hybrid scene. This week, LOA returns with Broken Valley, its major-label debut and its first original-lineup release in a decade. Caputo draws upon his father’s 2002 drug-overdose death, bringing emotional authority to his intense delivery. Some old-school types might have moved on, but Broken Valley‘s aggressive, angst-driven anthems should satisfy this eager audience, even if young listeners erroneously see Life of Agony as a train hopper rather than a trailblazer. Also on board with fresh material is Static X, which tones down its death-disco drumbeats on its recent Start a War. However, singer Wayne Static still delivers his lines in choppy bursts and styles his hair like the Tower of Babel. Chevelle boasts the roster’s most recognizable song (rock-radio fixture “The Red,” with its soaring Lay down/The threat is real chorus), and the Sound and the Fury has ridden a similarly stadium-ready sound to regional renown.