Story of the Year is a platinum-selling American band whose mix of hard rock, punk, post-hardcore helped turn screamo into a mainstream genre during the early 2000s. The group's members initially banded together as "67 North," a short-lived band that formed in 1995 in St. Louis, Missouri. After regrouping as "Big Blue Monkey" and releasing three EPs during that moniker, the band relocated to Orange County, California, and changed its name Story of the Year. Released in 2003, Story of the Year's platinum-certified debut album Page Avenue reached Number 51 on the Billboard 200 and spawned the singles "Until the Day I Die," "Anthem of our Dying Day," and "Sidewalks," all three of which became Top 40 hits on Billboard's Alternative Airplay chart. The group toured heavily throughout 2003 and 2004, then release the gold-selling concert album Live in the Lou/Bassassins in 2005. A new studio record, In the Wake of Determination, was released later that year and debuted at Number 19 on the Billboard 200. The Black Swan hit Number 18 upon its release in 2008, while also reaching Number 4 on both the Alternative Albums and Rock Albums charts. After releasing albums with major labels like Maverick and Epitaph for years, Story of the Year reclaimed its independence for the albums Page Avenue: 10 Years and Counting (2013) and Wolves (2017), then partnered with the indie label SharpTone Records for Tear Me to Pieces in 2023. The album was preceded by "War," a single that hit Number 40 on the Mainstream Rock Songs chart.