Over the last year, members of Connecticut-based Bury Your Dead have watched their band went go from unknown to a band on its way to the top of hardcore.

“We actually started in 2001 as a side project — it was people taking a break from more tech bands. It started as a joke per say but we started progressing,” bassist Rich Casey says.

The band’s progression into a full time band included signing a deal with Eulogy/Alveran records in April 2002 and embarking on tour to support their five song EP.

“We met up with bands like Bleeding Through and Avenged Sevenfold,” Casey says.

In addition, Bury Your Dead played at Hellfest in New York over the summer, a large three-day hardcore and heavy metal festival showcasing both popular and unknown bands to a large audience.

Signing with Eulogy/Alveran also gave the band the opportunity to spend more time in a studio recording their album, “You Had Me at Hello.”

Because many of their members came from technical bands such as Blood Has Been Shed and Hamartia, the band decided to keep its music and sound simple, but heavy.

“In the music direction right now, there’s heavy progression, we’re not staying the same writing block,” Casey says. “We want to play to different crowds and open up the heavy music to more people.”

Bury Your Dead plays fast paced, straightforward metal- influenced hardcore woven with breakdowns ripe for spin kicks and windmills. Lyrically, the songs cover topics such as relationships, living life to the fullest and the hardcore scene.

Similarities in musical styling and lyrics frequently have led the band to be compared to the likes of hardcore heavyweights Throwdown and fellow Connecticut band Hatebreed.

Even though the band may compare to similar acts on stage, off stage they may not act as tough as they may seem.

“As far as music, it’s in that ball park; as far as attitude, we’re not the tough guys,” Casey says. “Instead of calling ourselves thugs we like to call ourselves ‘the hug squad.’ After a show we may all get into the van and sing Dashboard Confessional.”

Being an underground band building a considerable buzz has given Bury Your Dead the opportunity to have new experiences such as an upcoming European tour.

“It’s nerve-wracking — it’s a whole other animal,” Casey says. “I’ve only ever been to Canada, and you can drive there.”

Touring has certainly helped the band get their name to audiences. The band tours six to seven months out of the year and has already completed full tours of the U.S. and Canada.

After their December shows, members of Bury Your Dead plan to return home and begin to write for the next album on an undecided label.

“It’s great to be able to go visit places, see historical places, and come back and tell your parents about them,” Casey says.

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Who: Bury Your Dead, Nodes of Ravier, The Judas Cradle, Too Pure to Die

Where: Archie Brooks Community Center, 2100 SE 5th St., Des Moines

When: 7 p.m., Saturday

Cost: $8