If you happened to come of age at the turn of the century in Orange County, Calif., then you likely felt the buzz that was generating around Irvine’s up-and-coming rock outfit, Thrice .

The fourpiece — through their 1999 EP known as First Impressions , as well as their 2000 LP, Identity Crisis — had already developed a ravenous local following for their genre fusion of punk and metal that’s most commonly regarded as post-hardcore. I witnessed this devotion firsthand at the Virgin Megastore-hosted release show for their second LP, The Illusion of Safety (2002). Seeing 500-plus teenagers and young adults sing, scream and mosh against the backdrop of an upscale outdoor shopping center in Costa Mesa, Calif. is an image that’s forever seared into my brain.

If you happened to come of a

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