An Interview With camisado!

The new EP release from camisado! brings out some fiery elements of alternative rock, punk, grunge, and even a little hardcore flowing through its veins, all wrapped up into this four-track banger that really doesn't let up energy-wise and gives you a ton to work with.

The BRAND NEW DESIGN record doesn't waste a lot of time coming in with some massive and invasive sonic drive, with its title track introducing you to the record and opening the door to what you were about to dive into.

This track works wonders as an introduction to the actual EP itself, simply because you're getting some of the great staples that you're going to hear throughout the full release right here on this first track.

The guitar tone alone is blistering. This whole approach and soundscape make me think of underground '90s alternative rock bands that you would hear on Late Night MTV or you would find in a magazine, and then grab a track off of Napster or LimeWire, and then fall in love with the entire band.

It just has that aesthetic, and to me, that speaks volumes.

There is a lot of punk rock going on here. It's deeper-toned, but it thrashes really hard, and it does so with layers of guitars and bass guitar, so that you have a thick and full-bodied rock record that hits like a sucker punch to the gut right from this first single.

You have destructive drums that are not just in the pocket or super tight, but more aggressive. They give a liveliness to the songs, and it feels like everyone else in the band is sort of jumping off that drummer and using that intensity to just hit you with a fierceness that matches the percussion.

That's not an easy thing to do because this drummer is absolutely slamming these things, and he's doing it with such drive that you can't turn away.

You also have these keys or synths that are pretty far in the background on this particular track, but they do add another layer of texture and depth to the song, and it makes it kind of cinematic in a strange way.

What really grabs you about this whole release is the energy levels. It feels like they recorded this entire thing live on the floor, and everyone was just feeding off of each other's energy the entire time.

These tracks are alive and breathing, and they come at you with an impactful, heavy-rock soundscape right from the get-go.

"Pain Is Pleasure", the second track in line, gives me more of that sort of emo metal feel. The vocals and even guitar work on this one remind me of different kinds of bands from that era and genre.

It's still aggressive, but it's got a different approach vocally and guitar-wise as well, so right off the bat, you're starting to get some different influences coming into play just by the second track alone.

As I mentioned earlier, you can hear plenty of hardcore influence coming through, and as someone who grew up listening to screamo, hardcore, thrash metal, alternative rock, and all that stuff, these guys managed to create a bit of their own feel by combining those things.

The riffs are usually a combination of single note deepness that feels maybe like the guitars are in drop B, and thrashing chords that are performed with a heavy hand.

Vocals are always belting out loud and match the intensity the band gives off as well.

The next track, "Gravity", is an absolute banger. This goes back to the punk rock style with gigantic crew vocals and some incredibly fun and addictive riffs.

You can tell everyone here has a real love for their craft in the genres that influence them. This band performs with heart, and that's why it comes through with such a loud and boisterous, robust, and punchy feel.

They definitely love what they're doing, and it's amazing how they can capture that kind of energy on record.

Listening to this EP makes you want to go see them perform it live, in your face. If they can capture that kind of aesthetic on record that well, then seeing them live would be a real face-melter, which is exactly what I would expect from a band like this in a live show.

"24" is the closing track, and it does a great job of doing exactly that as well. This one hits, and the vocals also have a different approach, giving you a little bit more melody at certain places and reminding you more of the emo side of things as well.

The whole record has tons to offer, loads of layers, massive intensity, and incredible energy levels that are just completely infectious from start to finish.

Upon listening to the record, we absolutely had to talk to the band about this.

I wanted to know more about where this all came from and what might be coming up next for them, so while you listen to the EP, which is what you should be doing right now, take a read through of the interview with the band below.

Remember where you heard it first.

Let's talk about Brand New Design! This record brought elements of alternative and punk, post-hardcore, and all with this massive sonic drive!  Where did this record come from? 

Brand New Design came from a few years back, me(lewis) and jimi were living together up in Sharrow, we were both working jobs that sucked and I was going through back to back rough situationships. Then I started with a bass riff that would turn into that middle section/breakdown part and I took it to the band and Brand New Design was born. With the lyrics I think i was coming from a place of yeah im unhappy now but its a form of painful transformation into something better, like a shift to a better mind set and i think thats what the record carries all the way through it. At its core it’s a reminder to ourselves that things get better and sometimes you just need a change of perspective.

I'm hearing a few different approaches to this EP! Who are some of your biggest musical influences?

yeah we’ve never been a band to shy away from drawing from multiple wells of inspiration, I think when we were working on this EP our main inspirations were bands like Title Fight and Basement with maybe some Pantera, Linkin Park and maybe a little bit of Muse thrown in the mix.

Did you record this at a home setup, or at a big studio?

We recorded this record with Alistair Wain, he’s currently drumming for a local band called PowerDrill and for Shields with Sam Kubrick, quick shout out to him, he’s a super talented and down to earth guy who was super easy to work with and we gelled with him instantly.

How did this all start for you as a band?

We actually started out as a blues-y rock band with a different line up back in the 2022 but our guitarist Callum jumped from the stage and onto Lewis at a Rosehill show and since then he’s brought killer riffs and a heavier tone to our music and Lewis going from the frontman to lead singer and bassist has helped us dial in our sound.

Are you performing live right now? 

We actually have our release show at Sidney and Matilda Saturday 15th which is a gonna be a big one, the last one we had there was crazy and was definitely one of our most memorable ones and we hope to top that.

Now that this is out, what's next for you?

We’ve got lots of work following on from Brand New, we’ve been working on lots of new material and honing in the new direction we want to take our band, some of it we’ll be playing at our release show so were all stoked to see what people think but more will be coming next year for sure.

Who's in your headphones right now?

Lewis: Panchiko, Turnstile, Angel Du$t, Macseal and Ween

Callum: Kiss, Van Halen, Pantera, Rush, A7X and Thin Lizzy

Jimi: Boston Manor, The Plot In You, Thornhill, Sleep Token, Queens of The Stone Age and Turnstile

What would you tell people they can expect on this release?

The new release is what it says on the tin, its a brand new design, its us showing or changes as people and our change musically. It’s a fat shift from what we made a few years back and its a taste of what else is on the way.

Before we go, what would you like to express to fans of the music? 

We just want to say if you’re a fan of our tunes then maybe you’re a little weird and we love you for that, we’re glad to have you on our little weird journey through this confusing music shit.

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