Formation and One with the Underdogs (2001-2005) In 2001,
Scott Vogel previously of
Buried Alive was offered to be the lead vocalist of
100 Demons, however he turned down the offer and moved from
Buffalo, New York to
Los Angeles, California. While in Los Angeles he was contacted by members of a hardcore band called Carry On who had recently broken up. They informed Vogel that they were starting a new band and wanted him to be their lead singer. Terror was then formed in February 2002, by vocalist Scott Vogel, guitarist Todd Jones, drummer Nick Jett, and bass guitarist Matt Smith; the group remained a four-piece until September 2002. The band only came up with its name in April 2002, after its first shows were booked, opening for Death Threat,
American Nightmare, and Striking Distance on four of the bands' West Coast tour dates, spanning May 15–19, 2002. Before playing those shows, Terror played a warm-up show, opening for Diehard Youth at Pat's Warehouse in Ventura, California on April 26, 2002. In September of that year bass player
Richard Thurston joined the band. Terror then toured alongside
Eighteen Visions in the Fall of that year. The following year in 2003 they released an EP
Lowest of the Low, along with their first live album titled
Life & Death, Thruston then left the band in February of that year and replaced by Carl Schwartz. In April and May of 2003 Terror toured Europe with
Biohazard and
Caliban. During the Summer they supported
Most Precious Blood on a U.S. tour, they then toured with
Every Time I Die into Fall of that year. In 2004 their debut album
One with the Underdogs was released and has sold over 40,000 copies. From May to June they supported
Stretch Arm Strong on a U.S. tour, In July and August of that year they toured alongside
Sick of It All and
Time In Malta. Following the tour Terror had to cancel multiple shows due Vogel suffering neck and back disc issues. They returned to touring in November and December with a co-headlining US tour with
Hatebreed. In 2005 they took part in that years Sounds of the Underground tour alongside bands such as
Lamb of God,
Unearth and
Madball. From May into June they headlined a North American tour with Comeback Kid serving as support, they also supported
Converge on their Fall Canadian tour. In October Terror began fishing the writing process for their second studio album. At the end of the year bassist Carl Schwartz left the band to join
First Blood.
Always the Hard Way and The Damned, the Shamed (2006-2009) To begin 2006 Terror went on a European tour alongside Donnybrook from January to February. In March of that year they announced they had finished recording their next album and also announced Jonathan Buske as their new bass player. In July of that year their sophomore album,
Always the Hard Way was released. It reached No. 10 on
Billboard Heatseekers and No. 19 on the Top Independent Records chart. Ben of Punknews game the album a positive review stating " What makes Terror stand out from the pack -- besides the clear conviction and honesty in what they do -- is that if you don't take the few negative aspects of them too seriously, you can have a lot of fun with
Always the Hard Way." They began touring in support of the album alongside
Death Before Dishonor in June and of July. Terror once again took part in the Sounds of the Underground tour this time as one of the featured acts alongside
As I Lay Dying,
In Flames and
Trivium. They also made their first appearance on the Persistence tour with other hardcore acts like
Sick of it All. Before Terror, vocalist
Scott Vogel sang for Slugfest, Despair, and for
Buffalo, New York-based
metalcore act
Buried Alive in the mid-1990s. Drummer Nick Jett and ex-lead guitarist Todd Jones were members of the well-known hardcore band Carry On (who had releases on Bridge Nine and Teamwork Records). Richmond, Virginia's David Wood is well known as the vocalist of his hometown hardcore band
Down to Nothing. Carl Schwartz, formerly of
Sworn Vengeance, recorded much of
Always the Hard Way after quitting the band to front
First Blood full-time. 2006 also seen them release their second live album
The Living Proof. In early 2007, Terror went on a headlining tour, with
The Warriors and
All Shall Perish serving as support. From April to March of that year they toured Europe extensively with
Full Blown Chaos. In November and December of 2007 they toured the U.S. alongside
Chimaira. In of 2008 Terror released their third live album titled
CBGB OMFUG Masters: Live June 10, 2004, The Bowery Collection. In February the band announced they had finished recording their third studio album.
The Damned, the Shamed was then released May 26, Alex Henderson of
AllMusic wrote "The Damned, The Shamed is a solid example of a CD that isn't big on originality but definitely comes through in terms of quality." They began touring in support of the album with in April with Ignite in Europe and also once again took part in that years Persistence tour. In September bass player Johnathan Burke left the group, he was later replaced by David Wood in 2009. In January of 2009, guitarist Doug Weber left the band and was temporarily replaced by Jordan Posner who would stay on as an official member. In Spring of that year Terror toured alongside
Emmure and
Winds Of Plague. During the Fall they played multiple shows in Asia and Australia. In December they began the writing process for their fourth studio album.
Keepers of the Faith, Live by the Code and The 25th Hour (2010-2015) The group then signed with
Century Media to release their 4th album
Keepers of the Faith in 2010 and sold around 2,500 copies in its first week. The album was met with positive reception, Gregg Harrington of Scenepoint blank wrote "Terror has again reclaimed the crown of modern hardcore with Keepers Of The Faith. The quality of the production offered by Chad Gilbert of New Found Glory gives the record the dynamics it needs to be heavy in all the right places." The group then headlined the 2010 Hell on Earth tour, with support of
Every Time I Die and All Shall Perish. They also headlined alongside Madball and Death Before Dishonor in the Rebellion tour. 2010 also seen them release their fourth live album
No Regrets, No Shame: The Bridge Nine Days, which was filmed during a show at the Showcase Theater in Corona, California in 2003. Terror started 2011 with a European headlining tour with First Blood and
Lionheart serving as support. In the Spring of 2011 Terror held a North American headlining tour with
Trapped Under Ice and
Close Your Eyes as support. They then began working on new material in December of 2011. The touring continued into 2012 including a Summer North American with Bane,
Naysayer, and
Rotting Out, along with UK and Ireland dates in the Fall, they also once again joined that years Persistence Tour. However group canceled their show in Czech Republic in support of Lamb of God vocalist
Randy Blythe during his on going
manslaughter case. Their 5th studio album
Live by the Code, originally due out in 2012, was pushed back to April 2013, released by
Victory Records on CD and by Reaper Records on vinyl. It was the band's first time charting on the
Billboard 200, peaking at No. 121, selling 3,177 copies in its first week. It was also No. 1 on the
Heatseekers chart and No. 28 on
Independent Albums. It also made the mainstream charts in both
Germany and
Belgium. A total of six music videos for tracks off of
Live by the Code have been released: "Live by the Code", "The Most High", "I'm Only Stronger", "Hard Lessons", "Shot of Reality", and "Cold Truth". The album was met with mostly positive reception, widely considered a standout hardcore album by Terror, praised for its aggressive, uncompromising sound and catchy, singalong anthems
AllMusic wrote "With Live by the Code, the L.A. hardcore act crushes 11 songs in under 30 minutes. Their furious lyrics and chunky guitar lines are standard moshing and stage-diving material, but fans will be satisfied nonetheless. Yet another in a long list of quality outings. They then toured in support of the album while also taking part in the 2013 All Star tour alongside other acts such as Every Time I Die, and
Chelsea Grin, also joining that years Rebellion tour. In 2014 they co headlined the Persistence tour alongside
Suicidal Tendencies, and also took part in that years
Warped tour. During Spring they toured alongside Stick To Your Guns and
Hundredth. They also released their fourth live album
Live in Seattle in March of that year. They also re released three of their previous albums on their own label Defiant Music
Lowest of the Low, One With The Underdogs, and
Always the Hard Way. On January 3, 2015, Terror were in the studio recording their sixth full-length album,
The 25th Hour, set to be released on
Victory Records. Pre-orders for
The 25th Hour were announced on June 30, 2015, along with the albums August 7 release date and a stream for the single "The Solution" which premiered exclusively on
Noisey. The album debuted at number 8 on the US Top Hard Rock charts and 17 on the
Independent Albums Charts, and received positive reviews, Ray Van Horn of
Blabbermouth.net gave the album an 8.5/10 stating "The 25th Hour" makes no bones by venomously turning away outsiders, but it rewards hardcore's true with a half hour of pit-pumping empowerment." Prior to the albums release Vogel had to leave a June tour after suffering a disc injury in his back, this resulted in the band canceling their immediate tour plans. They then returned to touring in Fall of that year with a North American headlining
Code Orange, Take Offense and Malfunction served as support.
Total Retaliation and Pain into Power (2016-2024) In 2016, the group headlined The Life & Death Tour with
Power Trip and
Harms Way serving as the main supporting acts. However during the tour Vogel once aging suffered another injury resulting in the band dropping off the tour and canceling all upcoming tours dates as Vogel got surgery. In 2017 they released a Ep titled
The Walls Will Fall, which Blabbermouth.net called "a notable return to form". In April of that year
Cruel Hand‘s Chris Linkovich began filling in for bassist David Wood on tours. Wood then officially left the band in June of that year and Linkovich officially joined the band. In early 2018 the band embarked on a co headlining tour with
Knocked Loose. They then began recording a new album in May, then on August 9, 2018 Terror released a single "Total Demolition" and announced a new album.
Total Retaliation, was then released on September 28, 2018, via
Pure Noise Records. The album debuted at number 25 on the
Top Hard Rock Albums and 12 on the Independent Billboard. Blabbermouth.net added "Total Retaliation" finds TERROR once again at the top of its game and at the top of the pack." In 2019, Terror played multiple shows including the Pure Noise Records Tour in North America with Stick To Your Guns, Counterparts, and others, an Australian tour with Stick To Your Guns, and a European tour with Cro-Mags JM, Lions Law, and Jesus Piece. On December 2, 2020 Terror surprise released a four song Ep titled Sink to the Hell which consisted of the bands lost and unreleased material from their recording archives. During a 2021 show in California Terror had
UFC fighter
Khalil Rountree come up on stage to sing their song 'Out of My Face,' Rountree has stated Terror as one of his favorite bands and thanked Vogel for the lyrics he writes and the messages he has stood by all these years. Stating "That shit got us all through a lot and still does. Terror is a Hall of Fame hardcore band." In March 2021, they released a compilation album titled
Trapped in a World, which saw the band re-record several songs from across their career live in-studio as part of what were billed the "Trapped in a World Sessions". These sessions saw the band reunite with founding lead guitarist Todd Jones, who oversaw production and contributed guitar parts. Jones retained this role for the band's eighth album
Pain Into Power, which was released on May 6, 2022. Terror then embarked on a U.S. headlining tour with
Kublai Khan,
Sanguisugabogg and
Pain Of Truth all serving as support. During the Summer of 2022 they played toured Europe, and went on a mini Fall tour with
Knocked Loose and
Dying Fetus. In 2023 Terror mainly played US shows and few European shows then also took part in Hatebreed 20th anniversary tour for their album
The Rise of Brutality. Terror then went on a world tour in 2024, making stops in the US, a winter Australia tour with Kublai Khan, a Spring and Summer Europe tour along with a mini Japan tour.
Still Suffer (2025-present) In 2025, the band announced that their new album,
Still Suffer, will be released sometime in 2026 trought Flatspot Records. In October of that year, Terror went on a North American tour with Spaced and Combust. They then toured Europe with
Gorilla Biscuits and Death Before Dishonor to end the year. In February and March of 2026 Terror embarked on a East Coast tour with Mongrel. The band’s album
Still Suffer, was released on April 24, they released the album’s title track on February 26. A day prior to the albums release Terror released a 20 minute documentary titled
A Deeper Struggle which was directed by Derek Rathbun and was recorded during the bands Latin America tour the prior year. The band also announced a North American headlining tour in support of the album alongside Pain of Truth from April to early June. == Artistry ==