By Alex Kantarelis

Massachusetts has always had one of the best hardcore scenes in the world, and straight-edge bands are no exception. The state has brought some of the most influential straight-edge bands to the hardcore scene, from Slapshot and In My Eyes to Have Heart and the newest addition of great straight edge bands ~ Test of Time.

Featuring famed hardcore photographer and lifelong edgeman, Todd Pollock, on vocals and an all-star cast of dudes who already made their names in good bands, Test of Time is poised to sit at the top of the throne of straight-edge hardcore in Massachusetts. With its recent addition to Bridge 9 Records, Test of Time is surely a band that everyone needs to know.

Pollock has been into hardcore since he was a teenager. The now-34-year-old spent his days on the side of the stage holding a camera and snapping some of the greatest pictures that have been seen all over the world on record sleeves, magazine covers and, of course, the Internet. Always an observer who was never a part of his own band, Pollock finally stepped from the sidelines up to the mic in late 2011. After meeting up with Make or Break’s ex-guitarist, Charles Chaussinand, the two started throwing around ideas and pieced together an authentic old-school band.

“There aren’t too many straight-edge bands left anymore, and that was kind of why we started this. We wanted to re-energize that scene and music, more so just the style of music,” Pollock said. The band added James Christopher from The Effort on second guitar and rounded out the lineup with DJ Butler on bass and Jeff Novak on drums. The guys recorded a demo and were quickly playing shows all over New England.

The hardcore scene has become full of bands copying the New York style of Madball and Sick of it All. The melodic youth crew sounds of Test of Time stood out and grabbed the band instant attention, catching the interest of mega-label Bridge 9. The guys found themselves in the studio, recording 31 songs in one session. The first batch of songs from that recording was just released last month on an EP for Bridge 9 called The Price. The band plans a mini-tour to Central America this month and will play locally in between. The remaining songs the band recorded will be landing on an LP for Bridge 9 next March.

Pollock hasn’t changed his ways and can still be seen with a camera snapping pictures at every show. His expression can now come through both his pictures and his band. “Before I was silent, and the only way I spoke was through pictures, and now, I have a platform to say something,” he said, laughingly adding that that the only downside is, “There’s nobody to take pictures of your band.”

As for being straight-edge, Pollock has no thoughts of changing. “At this point, it’s just the way I live my life. It’s everything to me. When you’re 34 years old, it’s really you made up your mind of how you’re going to live your life. Why would I change that?” he said.

The band’s demo is available for free at its Bandcamp page, along with a few covers it’s recorded, including one amazing version of Youth Gone Wild, the Skid Row song ~ retitled to Youth Crew Gone Wild, naturally.

Check out Test of Time at testoftime.bandcamp.com and bridge9.com.