Meet Broken Lungs, a band based out of the heavy metal birthplace of Birmingham, England. Though they don't play full-on metal, the quartet does inject heaps of it into their sonic approach, which also includes everything from hardcore to death metal to mathcore.
"We'd all been in various bands previously, but apart from our drummer Dan and our original guitarist Nik, we met through the band and through ads in local band Facebook groups, based on the influences that we mutually loved," vocalist Joe Jones says of Broken Lungs' origins.
"There wasn't anyone else playing the same style of heavy music as us in Birmingham at the time, so it felt pretty refreshing to be connected by our love of bands like The Ghost Of A Thousand in a local scene dominated by beatdown and metalcore. Since our first shows in 2018, we've hit stages across the UK, including two hometown headline shows at the O2 Academy in Birmingham, and have shared stages with Palm Reader, Ithaca, Polar, and Graphic Nature, to name a few."
Broken Lungs' latest release is a 5-song EP called Love Is Temporary and So Are We:
"Love Is Temporary and So Are We is about the journey taken in the aftermath of heartbreak and loss through grief, anger, depression, acceptance, self-reflection, and identity. Through the exploration of the link between loss ('Love Is Temporary') and our mortality, the greatest of all losses ('And So Are We'), the EP’s main message is one of self-reliance, self-love, and independence in that you are your one consistent and no-one else should define you and your inevitable path towards the grave.
"We recorded it during the summer of 2023 with Myroslav Borys at Jigsaw Audio in Derby, who we also recorded our previous couple of EPs, Cultural Decay and The Price of Decadence, with as he's brilliant to work with and we always completely trust to understand what we're trying to do with each release.
"From a personal point of view, it was the toughest one to record to date, but it proved to be incredibly cathartic, helping me come to terms with and put to bed the darkest period of my life to date, like the loudest, most intense therapy session I could've asked for."
Since their hometown has such a rich musical history, I asked Joe for his take on its current state: "Birmingham is always spoilt for choice for bands and shows across all spectrums of heavy music. Flesh Creep are absolutely killing it right now and need to be on your radar if you're yet to come across them, fast and pissed off, cutting out the bullshit hardcore punk. Ill Vision are another very underrated Second City Hardcore band, full of grooves and two-step rhythms.
"Our boys in Last Hounds are a load of fun, nice and in your face, straight to the point punk. I could go on forever waxing lyrical about Birmingham, but honourable mentions go to Brookehorse, Dead Slow, Wither and Johanna Rey, all individually offering something brilliantly different to the local scene."
Love Is Temporary and So Are We is available now across all digital streaming outlets.
Broken Lungs on social media: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Tagged: broken lungs
