Scene · 1995–2010
As Cities Burn
As Cities Burn came out of Mandeville, Louisiana, in 2002. The Solid State band traded TJ Bonnette's screams for his brother Cody's clean singing.
As Cities Burn is a post-hardcore band from Mandeville, Louisiana, formed in 2002. The Bonnette brothers were at the center of it. TJ Bonnette screamed, and his younger brother Cody sang the clean parts and played guitar, with Aaron Lunsford on drums. Before they had a label, they caught the attention of Solid State Records, which signed them in 2004.
Son, I Loved You at Your Darkest
Their debut, Son, I Loved You at Your Darkest, came out on 21 June 2005. It was mostly post-hardcore, dark and dramatic, and TJ's screaming drove it. The band went out on Solid State's Young Bloods Tour with The Chariot, Showbread and He Is Legend. "The Widow," which Cody sang, was a hint of where they'd go next.
In June 2006 the band announced it was finishing up, then changed its mind after a flood of support from fans. TJ left in early 2007 to be nearer his wife. Cody took over all the vocals, and Come Now Sleep (14 August 2007) had no screaming at all.
Goodbyes that didn't stick
Hell or High Water followed in April 2009. Cody and their friend Tyler Orr made it almost entirely by themselves. Three months later the band split, saying "our lives and our wives have called us in different directions." That was only the first goodbye. They reunited in 2011 to play the debut in full with TJ, joined Underoath's farewell tour with mewithoutYou in 2013, broke up again in 2016, and came back in 2017 to tour with Emery.
The band signed to Equal Vision Records in 2018 and released "2020 AD" and "Chains." After another farewell at Furnace Fest in 2023, they were back in 2025, opening for Emery on The Question anniversary tour. brain matter(s), produced by Aaron Sprinkle, came out free in August 2026.
Faith between the lines
AllMusic filed As Cities Burn as a Christian screamo band. It said they promoted their faith quietly, like other Solid State and Tooth & Nail bands, with lyrics that look inward and don't push a message.
Loud, then quiet
As Cities Burn grew up in the same Solid State and Tooth & Nail world as Underoath and Emery, swinging between heavy and soft. AllMusic said fans of Underoath, Emery and Showbread should keep an eye on them. Haste the Day's Stephen Keech later played bass with them, and Emery have brought them on tour more than once.
