Generally regarded as the progenitors of the modern, post-hardcore rock sound, At The Drive-In was formed in the summer of 1993 at the height of the grunge and emo boom in El Paso, Texas. What started as a punk-rock band, by guitarist Jim Ward and vocalist Cedric Bixler, slowly evolved over the course of their nearly eight year career into a progressive rock sound that blends what can only be described as everything but the kitchen sink. Math-rock, punk-rock, metal, hardcore, emo, and even pop music can be seen in the wild—but intelligible—sound, with many artists in those genres citing major influence from the band’s music and stage performance.

After the release of Relationship of Command in 2000, seen as their seminal work, At The Drive-In called it quits soonafter in 2001 citing “creative differences” as the device for the band’s scattering to other projects, such as The Mars Volta, Sparta, and Antemasque. They reformed in 2016, largely from members of Sparta, embarking on a world tour early in the year and releasing a single, “Governed by Contagions”, later on December 8. A full-length is expected to be coming in 2017 at some point; Rodriguez touched on this in a Rolling Stone interview after the single’s release:

We’ve been writing since we let that information out. We wouldn’t let that information out without having – we’re not that type of band. When we announced new music, it was because we were already in that process, and we’ve definitely continued it.

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