After landing in Gainesville three years ago, 24-year-old Christian “Cloud” Casey quickly discovered two things: the collaborative community of musicians in Gainesville and the opportunity to grow the city’s goth metal music scene.
After meeting one of his future band members one late night in a McDonald’s, the band Issue of Destiny was created.
“We do grunge-y metal,” said Cloud, lead singer and guitarist of Issue of Destiny. “It’s kind of ‘90s but new-age at the same time.”
Cloud referenced Tool and Alice In Chains as some of their inspirations for sound.
In Cloud’s endeavor to build awareness of the local gothic metal scene, the band has performed a number of shows in Gainesville over the last two years at locations like High Dive, Fox Lounge and Hardback Cafe.
“I saw the community, the scene and the actual genuine, human spirit that you don’t quite see nowadays in most places anymore,” Cloud said.
Cloud said Billy Rohan of Samurai Skateshop has “unofficially sponsored” his band and him, allowing them to play shows at the shop as part of Cloud’s attempt to grow the local alternative metal scene.
Cloud’s collective effort also includes periodically hosting events featuring bands of similar genres, like July 19’s show which featured two other nearby bands, Violent Affection and Skunkape.
“Gainesville in and of itself is very grassroots,” Cloud said. “When I first came to Gainesville three years ago, that’s exactly why I stayed.”
The show, which advertised a “bring your boards” skate jam and live music from the three bands, was originally scheduled to be held outside Samurai Skateshop. However, due to weather concerns before show time, the event was relocated.
Lead singer and guitarist of Violent Affection, Joseph Ignacio Zaragoza, traveled from Inverness, Florida, along with his band, to perform at the show. Zaragoza regularly visits Gainesville and is allured by the more lively music scene than his hometown, he said.
“We settled with Violent Affection because our music started taking a more emo, pop-punk, rock turn,” Zaragoza said. “We wanted to portray both the aggression of rock and then the emotional aspect of our prettier ballad songs.”
After over two months of planning, these performers decided they weren’t about to give up for a little rain. Zaragoza said the band was 40 minutes away from Gainesville when it received the call that the outdoor show was facing cancellation.
Relief for these rockers was found at How Bazar which provided the bands an eclectic, dry venue on short notice to spend the night jamming out.
“We are Violent Affection!” Zaragoza said as the crowd erupted into cheers followed by a frenzy of electric headbanging and the band began the show with Addicted To a Good Time.
Taking pride in the performance aspect of emo rock, the band’s signature skeleton mascot made an appearance on stage during the show.
Despite the rain, the concert was a success for Gainesville’s goth metal scene for both the musicians and the crowd-goers, like 21-year-old Micah O’Neal, a self-proclaimed goth “hobbyist.”
“It’s such a great scene out here,” O’Neal said. “It’s so hospitable, there’s always good bands, prices are good.”
Contact Sabrina Castro at scastro@alligator.org. Follow her on X @sabs_wurld
Sabrina Castro is a rising senior studying journalism at the University of Florida and a Summer 2024 reporter for The Avenue. In her free time you can find her scrolling TikTok or searching for hidden gems at local thrift stores.
