Long Island upstarts Koyo are gearing up for the release of their debut full-length, ‘Would You Miss It?,’ at the end of this month, and today they’re back with one more early single, ‘Life’s A Pill.’
Due out September 29th from Pure Noise Records, ‘Would You Miss It?’ is an unabashedly heart-on-sleeve blend of punk, hardcore, and emo, that makes for a modern coming-of-age classic fit for any generation of listeners. The album’s previous singles ‘Message Like A Bomb,’ ‘Anthem’ and ‘You’re On The List (Minus One)’ garnered praise from the likes of Stereogum, BrooklynVegan, Uproxx, Revolver, and more, and now ‘Life’s A Pill’ provides another jolt of Koyo‘s singalong-ready punk. The accompanying blue-tinged music video is the perfect compliment to the crunchy guitars and big choruses, and further highlights the band’s ability to draw on familiar influences to make something fresh.
Vocalist Joey Chiaramonte discussed the new song and video: “‘Life’s A Pill’ is a model Koyo song. TJ had written that song around the Drives Out East era of the band. I remember recording vocals for a demo version of the song with the help of Marissa from Fleshwater when I was staying in Lowell, MA for a bit, and just feeling something unexplainably cathartic when I had finished laying it out. This song was written about the passing of a family member while I was on my first full US tour, and the ways in which I struggled with that. Because of the heavy subject matter, I was a little intimidated in terms of how to approach the video. The incredibly talented Eric Richter would be the perfect fit to help create a video that looks how I felt. Narrative took a bit of a back seat as we just wanted to create something abstract. Something visually stunning, yet hard to look at. Haunting, but not scary, and I think he absolutely aced it. Grateful for his talent and friendship, Eric is an inspiring individual.”
Emerging from the Long Island underground with members of Typecaste, Hangman, and Rain of Salvation, Koyo hit the ground running with a sonic style that fully embraces the sound of their legendary scene. Drawing on elements like the widescreen melodies of Taking Back Sunday or the tuneful grit of Silent Majority, the band have managed to wear their influences proudly while cultivating songwriting chops that speak for themselves. ‘Would You Miss It?’ was recorded by Markson (Drug Church, Taking Meds, One Step Closer) and his deft production sounds gigantic without sacrificing the basement show rawness of Koyo‘s sound. It’s an album that figuratively and literally brings together the past and present of East Coast punk, with appearances from Glassjaw/Head Automatica‘s Daryl Palumbo, The Movielife/I Am The Avalanche‘s Vinnie Caruana, and Vein.FM‘s Anthony DiDio.
‘Would You Miss It?’ tracklist:
01. 51st State
02. You’re On The List (Minus One)
03. Life’s A Pill
04. I Might Not
05. Flatline Afternoon (feat. Anthony DiDio)
06. Anthem
07. Sayonara Motel
8. Message Like A Bomb (feat. Daryl Palumbo)
9. What’s Left To Say (feat. Vinnie Caruana)
10. Postcards
11. Crushed
Upcoming Shows:
w/ Four Year Strong
September 15th – The Liberty Bell – New York, New York
w/ Thursday
September 18th – Bogarts – Cincinnati, OH
September 20th – Toad’s Place – New Haven, CT
September 21st – The Broadberry – Richmond, VA
September 24th – Furnace Fest – Birmingham, AL *no support
September 30th – Starland Ballroom – Sayreville, NJ
w/ Superheaven, Prize Horse
October 12th – Tangent – Detroit, MI
October 13th – Bottom Lounge – Chicago, IL
October 14th – Mahall’s – Lakewood, OH
October 15th – Velvet – Toronto, ON
w/ Stick To Your Guns, Get The Shot, End It
December 01st – Felsenkeller – Leipzig, Germany
December 02nd – Columbia Theater – Berlin, Germany
December 03rd – Grosse Freiheit 36 – Hamburg, Germany
December 04th – Tivoli – Utrecht, Netherlands
December 05th – Glazart – Paris, France
December 06th – Vooruit – Ghent, Belgium
December 07th – Lowensaal – Nurnberg, Germany
December 08th – Aarau Kiff – Aarau, Switzerland
December 09th – Schlachthof – Wiesbaden, Germany
December 10th – Carlswerm Victoria – Koln, Germany