What would a Halloween mixtape be without a sequel? Breakout Epitaph Records genre-benders Magnolia Park have heard your cries, and they are prepared to deliver. The hard-charging, prolific five-piece act from Orlando—vocalist Joshua Roberts, guitarists Tristan Torres and Freddie Criales, drummer Joe Horsham, and keyboardist Vincent Ernst—are set to follow up their 2022 debut LP Baku's Revenge with a brand-new project, Halloween Mixtape II, out on October 27, and their kaleidoscopic fusion of sound is more innovative than ever. The spiritual sequel to their 2021 Halloween Mixtape, Halloween Mixtape II expands on the narrative around Magnolia Park’s fictional universe and its characters Baku, Heart Eater, SoulEater, Dream Eater, MoonEater, Pumpkin Eater, and the Reaper. "We just want to create soundtracks for our characters," says guitarist/songwriter Tristan Torres. “That's why we have the Eater EP series — they're all introducing individual characters. Then they come together for this Halloween mixtape moment."
“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.