Band: Out to Destroy
From: Washington, D.C.
Their formation story:
(Ezequiel Cohle, vocals): "Over the course of the last 3 years, I have been writing and recording the entirety of the record. I play in Choking Sands (formerly drums, currently second guitar) and I was writing music intended for what we intended to follow up with, but that writing process all but fell off. And impatience inspired me to start something new.
"As we moved closer to its release I've recruited some of the heaviest hitters in the DMV (DC, MD, VA Tri-state area) to perform the songs live. Paul from Tomb Warden on drums, Jeretic from Heretic Effects, and Sohrob "The Master" on the bass.
"And after months of practicing and jamming we're locked in tightly, and ready to Destroy."
Their sound in their own words:
"Well, musically, the sound is born from worship at the altar of Cleveland Hardcore. It's a love letter to Integrity, In Cold Blood, and Ringworm. Pure Holy Terror with nods to Pulling Teeth and A389 Records as a whole."
"Lyrically, I delved into the process of grief, suffering, and pain. All the while I was confronting my own personal battle with mortality, grief, and sadness, I was binge watching True Detective Season 1. So a lot of the lyrical vision is inspired by the existential crisis I have when watching that."
Latest release info:
"When the Lights Went Out is our debut release, not a demo, not an album, somewhere in between.
"Around the time the music was completed and lyric writing commenced (Jan 2022), I had to say goodbye to Shirley, the senior Pitbull my fiancé and I adopted in July 2020. Losing her awakened a devastation in me that I hadn't confronted in years, and I was reminded of the last time I had to deal with loss and grief, when my Grandfather passed from a long battle with Cancer when I was 14.
"The record title, When the Lights Went Out, refers to both Lights, Shirley, and my Grandfather, whereas the song 'When the Light Went Out' is about the loss of my grandfather and when I lost all faith in the existence of a god. 'Nothing Matters' is where I processed my grief with Shirley. The songs erupted into existence suddenly and worked as a cohesive piece of music, so rather than break it up I felt it best to release it all together.
"One of my favorite surprises on any record is definitely vocal guest spots. And I recruited some of the DMVs best to be featured. 'Chasing Dreams' features Orion St. Peter from Ilsa. 'Rise From the Apocalypse' features Matt Scott from Goetia. 'Justice Never Served' features Adam Meadors from Touched by Fire. 'Set to Fail' features Jonah Thorne of Immersed in Pain. 'When the Light Went Out' features Ben Hageage from Ninth Realm."
Future plans:
"To play as much as possible, to destroy everything and everyone, and to fill you with anger, dread, fear, and sorrow."
What other bands from the region should we check out?
"All of the bands featured on the record are some of my favorite current DMV bands (minus Immersed in Pain, and I say that only because I play guitar in that band) and I believe they should get to take turns being the biggest bands of all time.
"But here's a few bands not featured on the record that certainly deserve attention:
Sinister Feeling (Bandcamp)
Putricine (Bandcamp)
Infernal Gaze (Bandcamp)
Erode (Bandcamp)
Morbideity (Bandcamp)"
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Out to Destroy on social media: Instagram
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Tagged: out to destroy
