Indecision

Indecision were an American hardcore band formed in the Bay Ridge neighborhood of Brooklyn in 1993.

The band officially ended in the summer of 2000, and later returned for occasional benefit appearances. In 2023, they announced a reunion and played again.

Starting Out in Bay Ridge

Guitarist Justin Brannan, drummer Pat Flynn, bassist Steve Bago, and vocalist Tom Sheehan met while attending Xaverian High School in Bay Ridge.

Early shows were mostly local. As neighborhood venues closed, the band pushed further into the New York City hardcore circuit. In those early years they often traveled to gigs in a single car with gear strapped to the roof.

Growing Into the NYC Circuit

In 1996, Indecision added second guitarist Rachel Rosen after connecting with her through her WNYU radio show, Crucial Chaos.

The band became closely tied to the Sunday matinees at The Wetlands Preserve, where they often opened bills during their early period in the city.

Releases and Label Runs

Indecision’s first recording came out on a 7 inch in 1993 through R.P.P., a Belgian hardcore label. Across the next several years the band released more than a dozen 7 inch singles on multiple labels, including limited pressings and variant covers.

In 1996 they signed with Exit, a Wreck-Age Records subsidiary, and released three albums with the label over the next few years: Unorthodox, Most Precious Blood, and To Live and Die in New York City.

In 1999 they released Release the Cure through M.I.A. Records, with Overcome Records handling the European release.

Vocal Changes and Late Era Material

Tom Sheehan handled vocals through the band’s earlier years. Artie Phillie later took over vocals during the final stretch of the band’s original run.

To Live and Die in New York City was the first album to feature Artie Phillie on vocals while keeping the direct, straight ahead approach heard on earlier releases.

Lyrics That Traveled Further Than the Van

The song “Hallowed Be Thy Name” includes the line “For those I love, I will sacrifice,” which many listeners adopted as a tattoo.

Photographer Laura Rauch photographed that tattoo on the ribs of a 19 year old U.S. Army infantryman, Kyle Hockenberry, while he was being treated in a medevac helicopter after an explosion that took both legs and one arm. The photo was taken for a military newspaper and later received an award from the Society of Professional Journalists. The lyric then became more widely used among members of the armed forces.

Winston McCall of Parkway Drive also has part of the lyric tattooed on each forearm.

Touring, Detours, and Bad Luck Stories

Indecision spent long stretches on the road, including multiple U.S. tours and European runs.

During their first European tour in 1997, the band reported being stopped at the Austrian border while heading toward Zagreb, with members held for hours and the van searched in detail. On a 1999 trip through Quebec, they reported losing money and merchandise after it was seized.

The band also pointed to a desire to play places other touring hardcore bands often skipped. They described being the first American band to play in Zagreb after the Croatian War of Independence ended in 1995.

Plans That Changed and the Breakup

In 2000, Indecision recorded a cover of Metallica’s “Frayed Ends of Sanity” for a planned split 7 inch with Walls of Jericho tied to the Crush ’Em All tribute series. The split was delayed and eventually shelved, and the recording later appeared on the compilation The Old, the New, the Unreleased in January 2005.

A follow-up to Release the Cure was discussed under the working title The Curse, but the band broke up before recording it.

Indecision played their final show of the original run in El Paso, Texas on June 7, 2000, while touring with Kill Your Idols.

Reunions and Later Activity

After the 2000 breakup, the band occasionally returned for charity shows.

In 2023, Indecision announced they would reunite to support the second night of the Blacklisted reunion at the First Unitarian Church in Philadelphia, sharing the bill with Unbroken, Magnitude, and Scarab.

Members

Current members:

• Steven Bago, bass (1993 to 2000, 2023)
• Justin Brannan, guitar (1993 to 2000, 2023)
• Pat Flynn, drums (1993 to 2000, 2023)

Former members:

• Artie Phillie, vocals (1997 to 2000)
• Rachel Susannah Rosen, guitar (1998 to 2000)
• Tom Sheehan, vocals (1993 to 1998)

Discography

Albums:

• Unorthodox (1996, Underestimated Records)
• Most Precious Blood (1998, Exit)
• A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall (1998, Released Power Productions)
• To Live and Die in New York City (1999, Jawk Records)
• Release the Cure (1999, M.I.A. Records)

EPs:

• Indecision (1995, Released Power Productions)
• Believe (1995, Too Damn Hype Records)
• Straighter Than You Crew 1995 (1995, Independent Release)
• Samaritan (1996, Positive Face Records)
• Campaign for Complete Musikal Destruction (1998, The Abolition of Work)
• To Starve and Steal in New York City (release details not provided)