Friday, August 7th, was a warm day in Buffalo, New York. As the day was winding down, fans were heading down to Outer Harbor at Terminal B for the Camp Screamo Tour featuring emo/screamo legends Silverstein and Story of the Year.
Silverstein formed in 2000 in Burlington, Ontario, Canada and named themselves after famous children’s author Shel Silverstein. In 2002, they signed with Victory Records, releasing their debut, When Broken Is Easily Fixed (2003) and their hit album, Discovering The Waterfront (2005). The band currently consists of vocalist Shane Told, guitarists Josh Bradford and Paul Marc Rousseau, bassist Billy Hamilton and drummer Paul Koehler. As of 2026, the band has released 13 studio albums.
Story of the Year formed in 1995 in St. Louis, Missouri under the name 67 North, later changing it to Big Blue Monkey before settling on the name under which they would find success. In 2002, they signed with Maverick Records and recorded their debut album, Page Avenue. The following summer their first single “Until The Day I Die” hit the airwaves and MTV. Since then the band has released seven studio albums including their latest release, A.R.S.O.N., which dropped this year. Their current lineup consists of vocalist Dan Marsala, guitarist Ryan Phillips, bassist Adam Russell and drummer Josh Wills.
Terminal B, part of the Outer Harbor redevelopment, debuted as a concert and event venue in 2024, becoming home to the Outer Harbor Live concert series. Originally constructed in the 1970s as a 100,000-square-foot warehouse as part of Buffalo’s port and industrial waterfront, the building sat vacant for decades as the Port of Buffalo eventually relocated to Lackawanna. The live concert series features a stage set up by the beach along Lake Erie, where bands perform throughout the summer months.
As the sun began setting over the beach, fans made their way to the stage from the grass, the merch tables, and food vendors. Drummer Josh Wills took his place behind his drum kit while the intro played, anticipating the moment when the first song would begin. Guitarist Ryan Phillips and bassist Adam Russell joined him on the stage, and they began jamming a little. Vocalist Dan Marsala ran out on the stage, greeting the crowd as the band exploded into “And the Hero Will Drown.” Dan’s charisma shines through as he showcases his raw, emotional vocals during the performance. Ryan’s aggressive, riff-heavy guitar, Adam’s rhythmic and grounded bass, and Josh’s powerful and explosive drumming pull their sound together cohesively. They are chaotic, high-energy, and fun to watch perform. Near the end of their set, they had a medley that included Korn’s “Blind,” Deftones’ “Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away),” and Blink-182’s “All the Small Things,” before they closed out the set with their breakthrough hit, “Until the Day I Die.” The audience belted out all the lyrics with the band. “Thank you very much! Silverstein’s up next! Have a great fuckin’ night! We are Story of the Year! Thank you, guys! We love you!” Dan yelled before they left the stage.
There was about a 20-minute intermission as the last light faded over the water before fans made their way back over to the stage. A montage for Camp Screamo featuring clips from classic horror films appeared on the screens at the back of the stage before the stage went dark. When the lights came back on, the band erupted into “Negative Space” to a packed, screaming audience. A video of the old Smokey the Bear cartoon played and then the stage went dark again before the lights came back on and the band jumped right into “I Am the Arsonist.” Each member of the band was wearing a vest, shirt, or jacket covered in patches, reminiscent of summer camp or Boy Scout uniforms. Silverstein’s set is nothing short of intense, energetic and powerful. Shane’s versatile, expressive and controlled vocals gel well with Paul’s melodic, precise and driving guitars, Josh’s riff-heavy, expressive and aggressive guitars, Billy’s heavy, driving and steady basslines and Paul’s hard-hitting, rapid-fire and thunderous drumming. When the final chorus of their biggest hit, “My Heroine,” came in, Shane began the chorus before holding the mic out to the crowd as they belted out the lyrics back to him. Paul held his mic stand out over the crowd for them as someone growled, “Louder!” After the song, Shane complimented Billy’s colorful overalls, and Billy led a chant of “Let’s go Buffalo!” During the banter, Shane told the crowd that his family had come down for the show and that his nephew was studying music. “We want to thank Story of the Year for doing this tour with us. Their entire crew as well. We’re running it back in the fall if you guys like traveling and wanna see it again,” Shane said. “This song is called ‘Smile In Your Sleep,’” he said before they began. Shane told the crowd they had time for one more song and to open the pit up before they burst into “Bleeds No More.” They wrapped up to a cheering crowd and Shane said, \"Peace and love. Get home safe. We'll see you next time.\"
Both bands are still killing it over 20 years later and sound better than ever. Check them out on Leg 2 of the Camp Screamo Tour when it kicks off on November 16th in Seattle, Washington, and wraps up on December 13th in Boston, Massachusetts.