Aussie-based pop-punk quartet, Waxflower, released their latest EP ‘We Might Be Alright’. Masking the album with “playlist-ready” songs, the band did not shy away from pouring out their feelings bottled up from the past year.
Listen to ‘We Might Be Alright’ here
PULP: Firstly, was there a specific place or influence from which the conception of ‘We Might Be Alright’ came from?
‘We Might Be Alright’ became a representation of hope, within darkness. Tristan was dealing with a crippling anxiety and panic disorder when we wrote the EP and a number of the songs focus on the steps he took to overcome this and push onwards. “We Might Be Alright” is about finding hope and light, even when things feel tough and often negative. Whilst he was dealing with really difficult emotions, it was leading to all the amazing experiences we all shared through music; writing, recording, touring, hanging out – they were all the positives within the dark.
PULP: For the most part, it seems like a nice feel-good EP, can you talk about the different inspirations that you had in songwriting?
Musically we’re all inspired by a diverse range of artists. From newer acts like Nothing, Nowhere, Oso Oso & Knuckle Puck, to the bands and artists that we grew up listening to – The Maine, The Summer Set, A Rocket To The Moon & Underoath. With ‘We Might Be Alright’ I feel we blended both to create our sounds. Taking hooks, good vibes and melodies from the pop-rock acts we grew up listening to & then blending them with the darker, more nuanced & emo edge of the artists that we’re drawn to now. Lyrically and thematically we focused on always accentuating the optimism within difficult times – I really hope people can resonate with that.
PULP: Following with the single ‘Soak’, it’s been said that it “steps forward into the embrace of layered synthesisers, and a darker, heavier sonic direction” How did the band transition into more compelling elements in particular with this release?
It was a really natural progression. We’ve always been into acts that incorporate heavier parts & synthesizer layers; Enter Shikari, You Me at Six & Bring Me The Horizon to name a few. With this release we wanted to explore that and see if we could make a song that was still hooky & catchy – yet had a darker side to it. Working with our producer Stevie Knight was awesome, he’s always so eager to experiment and is great at pushing us to try different sounds, ideas & thoughts within the songwriting process.
PULP: Watching the ‘Soak’ music video, there’s something very 90s about it in some way. But hearing just the lyrics, it’s tough to tell whether this sort of vibe is just on an aesthetic level. Is this something that the band is really going for? Why or why not?
With the ‘Soak’ music video we really wanted to push our boundaries with what we could achieve – visually. Nick Hargans our guitarist produces, shoots & edits all our music videos, super talented guy! He worked with our friend Giles Higginson to come up with some really cool concepts that we then pushed to execute. We were definitely inspired by older music videos that you’d see on MTV or late-night TV. Our goal was to really be able to share the story of the lyrical content in a compelling and visually exciting way.
PULP: Did the band find it easy to write songs around a darker idea, or is it always more of what you just feel at the present in such a way that your tracks thread to them?
Tristan is the predominant songwriter in the band & has always pulled inspiration from tough times or struggles that he is going through. For all of us, music is such a positive outlet when we’re not feeling our best. We’ve all always resonated with bands who sing about difficulties within their own mental health, or about issues that they’re dealing with – we’ve found it such a positive way to vent & feel a little less alone in tough times. If we can provide a similar outlet to the people who find our band – then that is extremely rewarding and keeps us writing songs.
PULP: Is there something new that you did this time around that you maybe haven’t done before in the process of ‘Soak? What’s something new that you learned from working on this song, and will we hear more tracks that may be similar to it?
Honestly – we said, “how can we add a breakdown to a pop-rock song”? We joked around about it for a bit & then one day Tristan sent through a demo, with a breakdown in the middle of the track. We all grew up loving heavier bands and this felt like the perfect combination. When we were in the studio, we weren’t sure how to finish the song & Stevie loved the breakdown – so we just added it to the end of the song too.
PULP:: The world may seem like it’s recovering from the pain of experience in it’s last two years, what piece of advice can you share to anyone somehow still stuck at hopelessness right now?
It’s corny to say “stay hopeful, things will be okay” – because sometimes it just doesn’t feel like that at all. If you are still stuck in a place of hopelessness, try to find something that brings you joy; whether that’s time with your friends, exercise, music, food or art. We’ve all found that having an outlet that you’re passionate about, when things feel tough and being able to focus on that, can really be such a positive way of dealing with adversity.
Modern Error have released their long-awaited debut album, ‘Victim Of A Modern Age’ via Rude Records. To celebrate, the band have released a music video for lead single “Only One”. Fans can watch the video for “Only One” here and stream the album here: music.ruderecords.com/voama
“I get caught in cycles thinking if I’m ever in the place I should be, who I should be, if I’m doing right by life or if anyone is at all,” says Zak Pinchin. “I think that kind of existential dread might fill a lot of people’s minds in this modern way of living. ‘Only One’ was written around the idea of reflection, seeing yourself and the world for what it truly is and becoming one with it, in order to evoke a positive change. Conceptually as part of ‘Victim Of A Modern Age’, its reflection and realisation of the state of the world.”
It is a truth universally acknowledged: life is about balance. The duality of light and shade; the interior and the exterior; the social and the personal. Thesis, anthesis and, perhaps, eventual synthesis.
For twin brothers and creative foils Zak and Kel Pinchin, the understanding of that polarity is a lifetime in the making, which they explore on their debut album ‘Victim Of A Modern Age’ – both a powerful provocation and the heart of a central question about the way in which we live our lives. “We’ve always had this idea about Modern Error, this desire to make a statement through the band about how we view the state of the world,” offers vocalist Zak.
To that end ‘Victim Of A Modern Age’ is a profoundly conceptual record, one divided into mirroring halves; each executed with an ambition and precision that so often eludes bands many albums deep into their careers, let alone those self-producing their first significant body of work.
The first half of ‘Victim Of A Modern Age’ represents a bold Icarian flight into the tempting light of the digital life which we now all live, then its second chapter marks the inevitable crash into the sea. Our narrators’ meditation on the essential hollowness many of us suffer under in our current cultural and social set ups. “The second half of the record is about being in a space that doesn’t feel quite like reality, about questioning what reality means to you and what you live for,” notes Zak. “It’s almost a between life and death existence, like a biblical reincarnation, a state of evolution.”
“We want you to have to listen to the record all the way through,” says Kel. “That’s getting lost in a single-based age, but I love listening to albums as bodies of work and if we can have some hand in bringing that back then f*ck it, why not. It’s a debut record. You only get that one chance to make that first impression.”
And with ‘Victim Of A Modern Age’, an impression is certainly what they have made. Combining the idea that art can stand for something bigger than itself with a superlative blend of stadium-bothering rock and post-punk abrasiveness, it is clear that Modern Error are a band tailor-made for our times.
Stream ‘Victim Of A Modern Age’ here: music.ruderecords.
While the rest of the country was busy letting-loose with much-deserved merrymaking during the final days of 2021, Cagayan De Oro’s premiere metalcore act LILITH – comprised of vocalist Nicole Pestolante, guitarists Michael Cosare and Mark Glazer Niderost, bassist Jovy Pestolante and drummer Allen Xerxes Mariveles – proved their moniker as one of the local scene’s most hardworking bands to be on-point, with the release of not one, but TWO explosive new singles on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day respectively.
At the stroke of midnight on December 25th, the band released the single “Voices,” an intensely groove-laden track that highlights their collective penchant for bounce-y rhythms, hardcore breakdowns and relentless drum-work, combined with an almost-gothic melodicism.
A week later, on the first day of the new year, they released a second single called “Grave of Your Own Misery,” which harkens back to vintage early millennium metalcore (very much in the style of bands like Killswitch Engage…) and still showcases the group’s trademark ground n’ pound riffage and love for huge, anthemic choruses.
“The two tracks are – lyrically – very varied from each other,” vocalist Pestolante explains, when asked about the inspiration for the two tracks’ themes. “’Voices’ is a song about frustration, guilt, remorse and other messed-up feelings people have a hard time addressing, and the aim of the song is to help exorcise those demons…” she shares. “Meanwhile, ‘Grave…’ is an angrier tune: about an old friend who refuses to give up his vices, mainly due to ego and stubbornness; it’s a wake-up call for those who want to turn things around, and for us, it’s sort of our way of predicting the inevitable… so both tracks pretty much cover a lot of ground, theme-wise.”
Both tracks will serve as bonus singles to the band’s 2018 full-length debut release Life and Death.
Formed originally in 2013 in CDO as a symphonic goth metal band, LILITH caught the attention of many when they emerged as the grand champion of The Red Horse Beer Muziklaban amateur band competition. Recently, they joined the roster of the re-established independent metal label Deadstring Records, and promise that the year 2022 will be riddled with more, all-new releases. (Joey Dizon)
