Have Heart

Have Heart were a straight edge hardcore band formed in 2002 around singer Patrick Flynn, guitarist Ryan Hudon, and bassist Ryan Briggs, originally from New Bedford, Massachusetts before relocating to Boston. Part of the resurgent Boston hardcore scene of the early 2000s, the band released a demo in 2003 that caught the attention of Think Fast! Records, leading to the What Counts EP in 2004.

The band's sound combined aggressive, driving hardcore riffs with melodic, anthemic breakdowns and Flynn's impassioned, message-driven vocals. Lyrically, Have Heart moved beyond typical scene topics to address self-image, self-control, perseverance, friendship, and family, giving their songs a broader resonance beyond the straight edge hardcore community they were closely associated with.

Songs such as «Watch Me Rise», «Armed with a Mind», «Pave Paradise», and «The Same Sun» became touchstones of 2000s positive hardcore, and the band is remembered as one of the defining acts of that era's straight edge revival, influencing a generation of hardcore bands that followed.