Brighton band soul nest blend heavy riffs, massive breakdowns and cyberpunk influences in a modern metalcore sound they describe as “intense, hard, fun.”
The band was started by guitarists Aaron Mckay and Bradley Lineton, who’d previously played in a band together. Aaron met vocalist Ben Carpenter at a gig before onboarding his brother Elisha on drums, while using his laptop to add bass and synth elements and produce the music himself.
On the sound they’ve crafted, Aaron told us: “Originally, the idea behind the sound was to mash together the sort of music you’d hear on the radio for the game Cyberpunk 2077, and turn it into modern metalcore. It’s become that quite cohesively, like metal with EDM production.”
Our first taste of this is soul nest’s debut single eden, which was released at the end of last month. It dives straight into crushing stabs of guitar over an eerie electronic sound, before rolling drums and a big scream lead into a chunky riff with piercing synth sounds. Ben’s intense vocals take over alongside driving drums, and a chunky riff kicks in before driving into a vicious chorus. It drops back into a heavy riff, before a cheeky bassline supports intense vocals with guitars joining in to support vicious screams. The pace slows, before delving into new levels of darkness with guttural screams over low-tuned guitars, before dropping into heavy guitars, synths and rolling drums. Menacing vocals intensify to tee up a powerful conclusion led by thick stabs of guitar.
On the track, Aaron said: “It’s so good to finally have a tune out there! I think the receptions’ been good so far, the streams are looking alright for a few guys who don’t know how to market themselves properly yet. We had some good feedback from our mates too. It’s a fast paced song with a catchy riff, intense chorus and some groovy breakdowns. Cyberpunk influenced sound design, and in-your-face aggression.”
Ben told us: “I feel like there has been a lot of anticipation within the band to finally get that first track out there having played a handful of shows now. To have something out that represents the raw energy we try to tap into live is really satisfying! I’d say this first single is definitely a statement piece, and whilst it is really forceful, I still think it’s very dynamic and showcases a range of different stylistic influences drawn from the four of us individually.
And Bradley added: “Cathartic. This song in particular has had many iterations and is now fully realised. It was also the first song we played at our first rehearsal, so for multiple reasons it feels very satisfying to finally release. As Ben stated, I also think that this song in particular taps into that live energy from our shows, it’s a great entry point to our music.”
The soul nest sound draws on a wide range of influences, including Aaron drawing inspiration from Buster Odeholm (Humanity’s Last Breath, Thrown) and Bring Me The Horizon’s blend of genres. Elisha takes influence from Sleep Token, Slipknot, Stray From The Path and local Brighton bands, Bradley is a big hardcore fan, including bands like Humanity’s Last Breath, Thrown and early Gojira, as well as EDM influences on sound design, and Ben loves “old school” metal like Slipknot, Metallica, Parkway Drive, Chelsea Grin and Whitechapel, as well as the likes of Thrown, Stray from the Path and Bring Me The Horizon.
And on what inspires them to write music, Ben explained: “It’s early days yet, and I think a lot of the lyrics I wrote for these tracks were in quick succession having joined the band last. So far, I’ve written about issues like reliance on substances, more introspective pieces about life after the end of a long term relationship and finding/rebuilding yourself from the fallout, tracks about family dynamics and difficulties growing up, and about consumer culture and life working for corporate companies. A nice range where hopefully some people will relate along the way.”
There’s plenty more to come from soul nest, who do everything DIY, which makes recording “a fun challenge.” The band already has several songs demoed, with a bit of polishing up to do, so expect more new music over the next few months.
And Aaron adds: “We’re completely DIY at the moment and I produce, mix and master everything myself. I wouldn’t be able to do it without the others in the band though, they’re all excellent musicians and tell me off when I’m overdoing something. The whole idea behind the band is taking heavy modern metalcore and blending it with electronic sound design so it feels like something you’d hear on the radio in Cyberpunk 2077. We’re trying to create a new kind of sound that’s intense, emotional and high energy, but still really fun to listen to. Everything we’re putting out right now is just the start, and we’ve got a lot more music coming.”
You can follow soul nest on Instagram and TikTok, and check out their music on Spotify, Bandcamp, Apple Music and YouTube.
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