“Straight up, no one is having more fun than me when we’re up there!” beams DRAIN frontman Sammy Ciaramitaro, whose face is perpetually glued in a grin. For anyone that’s seen the Santa Cruz hardcore firebrands live, there’s no mistaking that fact. Drain isn’t just a good time as Sammy presides over the chaos of stagediving bodies and mic-grabbing frontline; it’s a party—and everyone is invited. (Dolphin shorts and boogie boards are optional but encouraged.) “The vibe of it is, enthusiastic, hectic,” says the vocalist. “Five people deep singing and stagediving, then kids going berserk behind that. It’s a great vibe and I think people pick up on that.” That, in a nutshell is DRAIN. The quartet inject a serious dose of relatability—not to mention catchiness—into hardcore’s penchant for toughness and brutality on their Epitaph debut Living Proof. Ciaramitaro’s desperate, snotty howl rides roughshod over thrash-leaning riffage as rhythms bounce in a big way. If you’re picturing the Pacific Ocean waves that rise and fall along the coastal town, occasionally violently so, you’re not far off.
Acclaimed by Alternative Press as “reinventing indie rock”, late night drive home are bringing their roots of growing up in a small town outside of El Paso around the world. Starting in 2019, singer Andre Portillo and guitarist Juan “Ockz” Vargas learned how to play their instruments while simultaneously learning how to produce music. When 2020 hit, the two best friends spent their time together uploading their work on SoundCloud. As they started to gain momentum online, Ockz recruited his cousin Freddy Baca on the bass (who learned how to play the bass in order to join the band) and their long time friend, Brian Dolan on drums. On one fateful day in 2021, they released their hit song “Stress Relief” on all streaming platforms, their lives were forever changed.