It seems like the year is closing out strong with some great releases from both established and up and coming bands. Low Tide from Boston has certainly made a splash in my recent listening with their debut EP.
Once I heard that Jimmy (guitar) and Garrett (bass) of Sick Minds were making hardcore again, I knew it had to be good stuff. Drawing from big names from the previous decade like Trapped Under Ice, Expire, and Incendiary, while also throwing in the ocean-centric vibe akin to Drain, Low Tide began from a jam session between their other bandm High and Dry in which they play an indie-hard rock style.
“We’d play heavy stuff for fun before and after practicing our songs and eventually started actually writing hardcore songs; and I really wanted to get out from behind the drumset for once in my life,” vocalist Swindy explained. Playing with the same members seems to have helped them really lock in the direction they wanted to go in with Low Tide.
Low Tide's debut track, “Barnacle," was released a few days ahead of the EP’s release and set a great expectation for what was to come for the band. Elaborating on the track Jimmy stated, “For me, [“Barnacle”] means the start of something new, but still familiar. We found out a while ago that we love playing music together, so being able to expand that into another genre is a really cool experience.”
As soon as “Barnacle” begins you’re hit with a barrage of thick hardcore riffs that get right down to business. They ensure that there’s lots of opportunity for two stepping and build up all the fury to a vicious breakdown which Jimmy and Garrett specialized in with their previous band, Sick Minds.
Upon my first listen my mind immediately jumped to Backtrack’s Darker Half when I heard the tuning of the guitars and the warmth of my early years in the hardcore scene returned to me. Sure, there’s plenty of bands taking the influence of such bands but even with the cold weather coming in this song made me want to throw my Volcom shorts back on, slap a snapback on my head and two step in the summer heat again.
You could get a good read on where Low Tide’s influences come from if you’ve spent enough time listening to hardcore but they still whip out a few surprises when talking about what pushed their sound forward. “I listen to a lot of Sunami, Bent Life, Expire, Harm's Way, and Incendiary so probably a mix of all of them,” Swindy explained.
When talking about the guitar work on the EP Jimmy stated, “The big ones are Trapped Under Ice, God’s Hate, Dead Swans, and Advent.” The mix of heavy mosh riffs from bands like God’s Hate and the nimble work of Dead Swans and Trapped Under Ice bring out
The EP released last month and features “Four tracks and the hardest intro we’ve ever come up with,” as Jimmy put it. The “Intro” in question features a classic blueprint of slow fade ins, start and stop riffs and the tried and true band name mosh call right before the drop. Already the dancefloor has been parted like the Red Sea, arms are swinging, people on the sidelines are shielding their faces from fists and someones probably practicing capoeira in the pit.
“I love how TUI has mosh calls with their own band name so that was mandatory. Other than that I just tried to write ignorant shit with references to the ocean. We’re all pretty nice dudes, so it was cathartic to write some violent lyrics,” Garrett explained on the makeup of their songs and the influences behind them.
The nautical references aren’t just found within the song titles but also used as a metaphor within Swindy’s lyrics. The first track, “Riptide,” Swindy explained is “about a sea turtle wanting to go back to the sea after observing how fucking ridiculous most of the things humanity is concerned with and how it wants nothing to do with people and their shitty ways.” The track brings out a pretty relatable feeling as I’m sure we’d all rather abandon what we know as society and mix amongst the ocean depths rather than toil away everyday with the crushing reality of human life.
With the release of the EP, Low Tide looks forward to utilizing what the songs are made for: live performance. To start 2025 off, the group will be on a bill alongside Latch, Cooked Alive, False Grip, and Glorious Wounds on January 11th at the Warship in Fall River, Massachusetts. “We have a few other shows in the works that we can’t announce right now but we’ll be making announcements about those soon,” Swindy stated.
Low Tide would like to shout out: "Chris Cesarini from Old Salt Recording Studio for recording vocals and also giving us some ideas and direction when we were in the early stages. Let’s Sea podcast (like & subscribe) and Shoutout to the BHC community for all the positive feedback so far!"
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Low Tide on social media: Instagram
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