Sheer Terror Vocalist Catches Flak for Asking Promoters to Stop Booking Them with Beatdown Bands

Paul Bearer, vocalist for long-running tough-guy hardcore act Sheer Terror, caught some flack on social media yesterday for what many perceived as him insulting beatdown hardcore.

Yesterday, Bearer posted two reels on Instagram airing some grievances about concert promoters, which makes me wonder if perhaps Bearer celebrates Festivus. It is that time of year to decorate the pole after all. The first video was Bearer complaining about promoters who pull band photos off the Internet to use on concert flyers, particularly those who pull band photos with people who are no longer in the band. That one was pretty tame, but the second reel he posted caused such a stir that it has since been deleted, but not before Lambgoat transcribed the most controversial part of his statement where he begged promoters to stop pairing Sheer Terror with beatdown bands, saying:

“We’re not a beatdown band, and beatdown fans don’t enjoy Sheer Terror.”

Now, technically, that’s not really a slight against beatdown hardcore bands, it’s just a statement that they’re different kinds of music. But apparently enough people took offense to it that Bearer had to delete the video. Considering that beatdown bands like Knocked Loose, Kublai Khan, and Speed are all the rage right now, perhaps some people were feeling protective of the genre.

Meanwhile, Sheer Terror are heading out on their “Snowbirdin’ 2025” U.S. tour next month which has a tour flyer with Bearer alone on it, so you can be sure that he has no complaints about that flyer. The complete list of dates is below.

1/9 – Richmond, VA
1/10 – Charleston, SC
1/11 – Wilmington, NC
1/12 – Columbia, SC
1/13 – Atlanta, GA
1/14 – Gainesville, FL
1/15 – Tampa, FL
1/16 – Pensacola, FL
1/17 – Birmingham, AL
1/18 – Nashville, TN
1/19 – Memphis, TN
1/21 – Raleigh, NC
1/22 – Knoxville, TN
1/23 – Chesapeake, VA
1/24 – Philadelphia, PA
1/25 – Albany, NY