From the heart of the Americas comes a big riffing powerhouse of a band in heavy metal quartet Komodo, who describe their sound as “dynamic, groovy and fierce.” The Panamanian band sees us tick a 60th country off the GigRadar world map.
Komodo started out when long-time schoolfriends Juan Manuel (bass) and Miguel (drums) decided to play a live tribute to their favourite band Megadeth. They soon recruited lead guitarist Carlos and vocalist Hugo, and Komodo was born, bringing roots from as far afield as Ireland, Hong Kong, Chile, Peru and Dominican Republic. And, having established themselves at the top of Panama’s metal scene, the band is now intent on spreading the Komodo fanbase globally.
On the sound they’ve crafted since, the band told us: “We bring a little bit of everything that influenced us. Thrash metal, progressive metal, from classic and modern metal to even grunge, yet we have always and will always prioritize catchy vocals, groovy riffs and solid songwriting above all. There’s no point if you can’t sing it or move to it.”
To give us a taste for this, they sent us their latest single Perception of Things, which was released this time last year. It opens up with a lively synth sound that continues under a delicious guitar solo, which drops into gruff vocals answered by stabbing guitar notes. The atmosphere builds with engaging vocals, flowing into a big chorus “You looking at me differently, Judging me for my perception of things, Maybe this is much bigger than us, But you won’t dare to trust in me.” Fun dual vocals follow in an atmospheric verse supported by lively instrumentals, which build up to an extended chorus. The pace suddenly slows with light guitars, before a little drum roll ushers in moody chugging guitars as it gradually builds towards a delicious guitar solo that brings the track to a melodic conclusion.
On the track, the band told us: “Perception of Things is a full-length story in a single song. It follows the mind of a person losing their sanity and trying to find help, while their own brain sabotages it all. You can expect high highs: Fast beats, complex riffs, soaring vocals and low lows, with introspective atmospheric and symphonic interludes. It represents the most out of the past and future Komodo yet. The reception has been fantastic, fans go wild live and many tell us it’s their favorite song.”
That follows on from a series of singles over the previous two years, including the lively Masochist, the deliciously thrashy Beneath Your Race and the more anthemic The Lingering, and Komodo’s debut album, Fear The Komodo, which was released in 2018.
The Komodo sound draws on a wide range of influences, with Hugo only listening to grunge like Stone Temple Pilots and funk-rock like Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Carlos being more into nu-metal like Slipknot and metalcore like Avenged Sevenfold. Juan Manuel is big into thrash like Megadeth and power metal like Stratovarius and Miguel grew up on prog bands like Dream Theater before getting into modern metal like Gojira.
And on what inspires them to write music, they told us: “There is no single theme. We write what we feel needs attention, ranging from politics, corruption and oppression, to our own struggles with mental disorders, parasocial issues, and giving strength for the weak to fighting back to the strong.”
As mentioned, Komodo are the first band we’ve discovered from Panama, so we asked the guys to give us some insight into the country’s music scene. “Panama is so uniquely full of talent,” they told us. “As a hodge-podge of ethnicities and nationalities, and as the bridge connecting the Americas, we are so heavily influenced and inspired from everywhere. No band sounds the same and, for our population, there are so many of them. That also means, as a country of only 4 million people, you’ll put on a badass show and your audience will all be musicians as well. The support is there, but to make it big in Panama, you know you have to go abroad. This is our current objective.”
Komodo are gearing up to release their second album in November, which is the next step towards achieving their big objective. In their words: “We knew when we came back from playing in Wacken that we can make it if we put our heart and soul to it. We aimed to be the #1 band in Panama and we did it. Now we’re looking outside and currently planning a ‘local’ launch tour first in Central America and Mexico, so that we can come back to Europe stronger than ever in 2026.
“We have great stuff coming in 2025 and 2026. Hopefully, you find something unique from where we are, and we can come to you soon as well. We are now 100% sure we want to do this full-time and take our music as far as we can.”
You can follow Komodo on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.
GigRadar 
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