Canadian duo NOXATRA have crafted an engaging and diverse nu-metal sound that fuses impressive vocals with powerful metal elements and they describe as “emotional, unpredictable and catchy.”
The duo first met when Francis Ciroi (aka KVLTURE), from Montreal, was hanging out with Lukas from the band Veil of Maya at one of their shows and Victor Borba, from Ottawa, came up and started chatting with them. A few months later, Francis discovered Victor’s cover of Mayday by Coldrain and was blown away by his mixed vocals, at this point unaware they’d met at the show. Francis looked him up on Facebook, realised they had a lot of mutual friends from the Montreal prog metal scene and sent him a friend request.
While neither was overly interested in starting a music project initially, Francis soon connected Victor with Lauren Babic (CrazyEightyEight), for whom he produced her debut EP, for a Periphery cover song. But eventually, one of Francis’s friends convinced him to start a band using guest vocalists, and Victor agreed to feature on their second single CIRCLES. Francis went to Ottawa to record Victor’s vocals, and it became clear they had chemistry and a shared love for nu-metal, which saw Victor become a permanent member while the original friend left the project.
On the sound they’ve crafted since, Francis told us: “When people ask what NOXATRA sounds like, I usually point to ISSUES as the closest comparison. Interestingly, ISSUES is not a direct influence on the band, but we are clearly inspired by many of the same things, and the overall blend is similar. NOXATRA feels like early 2000s R&B colliding with Linkin Park–era nu metal, with a bit of boy band harmony thrown in for good measure.
“People have probably noticed that Victor sounds very different in NOXATRA compared to his other original material. That is because I write all the vocals and direct the stylistic choices from section to section in every song. Victor naturally wants to belt most of his parts, since that is what feels most comfortable for his voice and what he is best known for. I am more drawn to pop-inspired vocal dynamics. I like using falsetto on higher notes, adding vibrato to the ends of certain phrases, switching registers between verses and choruses, and generally letting the voice evolve throughout the song.
“Bands like Bring Me The Horizon and Bad Omens approach vocals in a similar way, and I think a big reason they have reached such a wide audience is the emphasis they place on vocal performance and the story it tells from section to section. I also love pushing vocal effects in this project. Artificial layers, exaggerated tuning, and doubling aggressive vocals with cleaner layers are all part of our sound, much like what Chester and Mike did on the first two Linkin Park records.”
Our latest taste of this is ANTIDOTE, which was released last month. It starts out with twinkling synth sounds over light vocals, before exploding into a thick guitar riff as the backing vocals continue. That gives way to a mellow first verse that gradually builds into a big chorus “When you’re all alone with your memories, When the night is cold, You’ll remember me, One day when you’re low and somebody leaves, One day you will know how it felt for me, All that glitters isn’t gold, So why can’t I let you go? Poisoned by a rose, Toxic green ivy, Now I need a remedy,” that’s driven forward by the chunky guitar riff.
The guitars drop out for another verse led by high-pitched vocals, which feeds straight into the catchy chorus. That ends with echoey repeats of “the antidote” over light guitars, before more intense vocals set up a final blast of the chorus.
On the track, Francis said: “The reception has been genuinely great. This was our first release after a three-year hiatus, so we had no idea what to expect or whether people still cared about the project. Coming back to that level of anticipation was a huge relief. The song itself is unlike anything we have done before, but that has always been part of our identity. We never repeat ourselves, and I think people have come to expect that from us. What ultimately ties our releases together is my approach to melody and Victor’s vocal performance.
“This track is an emotional metal ballad at its core, and I think it resonates because almost everyone has been through at least one really difficult breakup. There is a clear Linkin Park influence in the electronic elements, and Victor’s performance on this song is honestly unreal. We spent months recording the vocals when he was living at my place a couple of years ago, taking the time to get every detail right. The vocals lean heavily into R&B influences, but Victor still does what he does best in the choruses and bridge, delivering his signature mixed voice belt.”
As Francis alludes to, that ended a three-year gap between tracks, following on from the slightly sinister but very nu-metal THE NIGHT, the excellent HOLD IT DOWN, the generally more mellow OCEAN EYES, the aforementioned CIRCLES and their debut single BREAK.
The NOXATRA sound draws on a wide range of influences, with Francis telling us he listens to everything. But the band’s biggest influences include everything from Linkin Park and Limp Bizkit to Gorillaz, Michael Jackson, Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and The Backstreet Boys.
And on what inspires their music, Francis explains: “I am the sole writer for NOXATRA. Victor is primarily focused on writing music centred around his faith and spreading the gospel, which I fully respect and support. Because of that, the themes and subject matter in NOXATRA vary widely from song to song. Some tracks are fictional in nature, such as CIRCLES, HOLD IT DOWN, and THE NIGHT. I approach those songs as if I am writing a film or narrative. I enjoy that process a lot because it keeps the concepts fresh and allows me to explore more dramatic themes and ideas without limitations.
“Other songs are rooted in real life and personal experience. ANTIDOTE, BREAK, and OCEAN EYES all draw directly from my own story. ANTIDOTE is about a difficult breakup with someone I genuinely saw a future with, but whose unresolved issues ultimately caused the relationship to end suddenly. BREAK reflects on my early life, including a strained relationship with my father and the trauma I experienced after moving across the world to Canada. OCEAN EYES is a deeply personal song written for my mother, who I lost to lung cancer when I was twelve.”
Fingers crossed, we won’t have to wait three more years for the next NOXATRA release, with the duo hoping to have another single out in early 2026. They also plan to continue recording new music this year, with two more tracks in the work – one a classic nu-metal sound, the other a cover of a well-known 90s song that’s “notoriously difficult to sing.”
And Francis added: “We just want to say how much we appreciate anyone who takes the time to check out the music. An enormous amount of work goes into every release, from the initial demo to the recording process, artwork, visuals, and music videos.
“There is no large team behind this project. On the music side, it is just me and Victor. On the visual side, it is me and Anthony Jamie, a very talented artist from Montreal who has become something of a secret third member of NOXATRA at this point, since I edit all of our videos with him. Huge shoutout to him, because without his work, the vision behind each release simply would not come to life.”
You can follow NOXATRA on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok, and check out their music on Spotify, Deezer and Apple Music.
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