RFB.FM caught up with KAPUT this week for our Sonic Architecture series, where we examine the intersection of sound, space, and environment. Following the release of their record “I,” we discussed the project’s origins, its deep roots in Chicago’s creative landscape, and their collective history in bands like Ganser and Jon Spencer & The Hitmakers.

RFB.FM: The band comes from a history of impactful work on projects like Ganser, Jon Spencer & The Hitmakers, etc. How did this background help set the stage for launching KAPUT?

N: Our histories in those projects helped us identify how we wanted to approach this project. What worked for us creatively, what didn’t. I think it also informed how we decide to interact with the music industry as a whole.

RFB.FM: Tell us about the studio experience - how did tracking at Electrical Audio / Altered States influence the final architecture of the record?

N: I feel so fortunate to have Brian as a co-writer; his resources and knowledge really shape the way we write. The studio is an instrument for us, and that leaves a lot of room for experimentation and play. Sord is based in Kalamazoo, so there’s some file sharing before he records drums. It’s always great to have him in the studio; he is an incredible drummer and brings a lot to the songs.

RFB.FM: We’re fascinated by how music can be a reflection of its environment. Do you hear echoes of Chicago-the streets, venues, weather, culture- in the evolution of your sound or lyrics?

N: My lyrics are definitely influenced by living in Chicago. We are surrounded by different creative communities. Poets, musicians, and visual artists, it’s such a culturally rich city still, which I think is something that’s becoming increasingly rare in this country (world?), unfortunately.

RFB.FM: Who were/are your biggest musical influences? Any major influences outside of music, art, film, media, etc.?

N: I’m very influenced by poetry, I spend a lot of time reading and researching, kind of as a hobby. I think at the moment I’m most influenced by beat poets like Diane Di Prima and Lawrence Ferlinghetti. Musically, we look to more experimental artists such as Kim Gordon, Brian Eno, ESG, This Heat, and Talking Heads.

RFB.FM: What’s one thing you would want listeners to take away from the record?

N: “I” as a record is ultimately about anger and how important it is for us to allow space and listen to our anger. I hope those themes resonate with folks on some level. But mostly, I hope they enjoy listening.

RFB.FM: What are some of your favorite bands right now? Who should we be checking out?

N: Of course, Kim Gordon’s new album ‘Play Me’ has been on rotation for us. We’ve been listening to Mandy, Indiana, Adult., Otoboke Beaver, Dog Faced Hermans and Ti-Tho a bunch lately. Definitely check out local band Yada Yada if you aren’t familiar.

RFB.FM connected with Rainy Park this week for our Sonic Architecture series exploring sound, space, and environment. Following the release of their debut single, “Dumb,” we sat down to talk about the project’s evolution, its home base in Chicago, and the journey from Alive Alone to the current sound.

RFB.FM: Tell us about the evolution of Rainy Park — what has it been like launching a new project in Chicago, and how did your previous work with Alive Alone help shape the approach?

RP: I started working on this project after Alive Alone played our final shows. We were together for 11 years, so it was heavy for such a long chapter of my life to come to an end. Being a musician, an artist trying to “make it” I realized, is a big part of my identity. I wasn’t ready to stop. To me Rainy Park is just as much a continuation of the journey as it is a fresh chapter. I’m taking a different approach in some ways, but it still carries forward the emotionally driven/straightforward songwriting. I think my previous work with Alive Alone showed me which songwriting approach resonates more with people, and i’m embracing that.

RFB.FM: We’re fascinated by how a location and its environment can influence the music. Are there specific aspects of Chicago — the neighborhoods, the local weather, the culture — that find their way into your lyrics or sound? Any favorite local spots or venues?

RP: The band is actually named after the park next to the elementary school I attended. “Rainey Park” on 79th street. The band name is a reminder of my roots and what I came from. The friends I made in elementary school are still my close friends today. Those early years growing up in the south side shaped me in a lot of ways.

I’ve always been a big fan of the Bottom Lounge and there’s a great Mexican restaurant called “La Haciendita” by Midway.

RFB.FM: For the new track, tell us about the recording environment and the video production — how did this help capture the final energy?

RP: Dre who played bass in Alive Alone tracked me in my home studio, so it was a familiar feeling for us to be in the studio together. The video shoot ended up being so much fun. I found ShotByBayo on instagram through hashtags, and his energy was fantastic. He encouraged me & pushed me out of my comfort zone which I definitely needed.

RFB.FM: Who were/are some of your biggest influences?

RP: I’m influenced by a lot of emo and alternative from the 2000s. My Chemical Romances’ “Life On The Murder Scene” tour documentary is what made me decide I want to become a touring rock musician.

RFB.FM: What are some of your favorite bands right now? Who should we be checking out?

RP: “Imperfections” is a post punk band from the south side, they’ve been making some great stuff. “Something Easy” is another band from the south side that makes great music, they’re playing Reggie’s on April 19th.

RFB.FM: What’s next for Rainy Park?

RP: We’re releasing our second single in a month or so. It’s already recorded, so we just have to get the mix back and then record the video for it. I took more artistic risk with this one, I’m excited to see how it’s received. I think it’s my best song. It’s got the catchy pop stuff from “Dumb”, but also some of the darker concepts/weird song structures that were in old Alive Alone tracks.

The first in our new Sonic Architecture series exploring sound, space, and environment, RFB.FM caught up with Chicago-based Demo Division (New Morality Zine label) to talk about their work in the studio, cross-genre collaborations, and how the physical landscape of Chicago finds its way into their sound.

RFB.FM: We’re always interested in how artists are fostering local collaborative ecosystems. How did the collaboration with Si Dios Quiere on "Wasting All My Time" and their track “Streets of Vengeance” come about? Any new collabs in the works?

DEMO: Honestly, it happened super organically. Outside of music, Si Dios Quiere are really our homies. I was working with Ozzy one day and he asked if I wanted to pull up to the studio after work and lay down a quick verse for “Streets of Vengeance.” It wasn’t some big planned thing — it was just one of those “let’s create something tonight” moments.

When it came to him jumping on “Wasting All My Time,” it was the same energy, just reversed. We’re in different lanes musically, but that’s what made it fun. We wanted to blend worlds a little and show love while doing it.

As far as what’s next, I wouldn’t be surprised if we bring a few more homies in on the next release. There’s so much talent in our local scene, and we’re always down to build something raw with people we genuinely rock with.

RFB.FM: Tell us about the studio experience recording Sunken Skin at Word of Mouth. How did working in that environment influence the record, and how does that energy translate into your live performances?

DEMO: Recording at Word of Mouth had a huge impact on the record. Joe at Word of Mouth was a big part of that. We walked in with four “finished” songs, but we made it clear to Joe that we wanted real feedback — no holding back. We wanted him to feel like he was part of the project, and he absolutely was.

In the studio, we spent a lot of time talking about how certain parts should feel — how they could shift the energy for us and for the crowd. We’d get genuinely hyped while recording, and that same energy carries straight into our live shows. Some parts just hit differently on stage, and it’s an unreal feeling knowing I get to experience that with my friends in real time.

RFB.FM: Who were/are your biggest musical influences? Any influences outside of music—art, film, media, etc.?

DEMO: We all share similar roots, but each of us brings slightly different influences. Growing up in that late ’90s/early 2000s era when rock bands were blowing up had a huge impact on us. For me, seeing blink-182 just being friends, rocking out, and having fun made everything feel possible. I think that same feeling is what connects all of us to our own influences — that raw, honest energy.

Sonically, we’re really inspired by bands like Basement, Fiddlehead, and Title Fight. That early Run for Cover Records era especially changed the way we look at songwriting and tone.

Outside of music, it’s less about specific mediums and more about that same DIY, authentic energy — just people creating something real with their friends.

RFB.FM: We’re fascinated by how a location and its built environment can help shape the music. Are there specific aspects of Chicago—the streets, the venues, the weather, the culture—that find their way into your sound or lyrics?

DEMO: Definitely. I’m inspired every day by what’s happening around me, and I’m proud to be from Chicago. The diversity and energy of the city naturally make their way into our music. Living in a Midwest city comes with its own emotional shifts — the cold, short winter days that can feel heavy, and then the bright, alive feeling the city has in the summer. Those contrasts create moods that really influence how we write and how our songs feel.

RFB.FM: What are some of your favorite bands right now? Who should we be checking out?

DEMO: For that last question, we wanted to shout out our homies in Footballhead and Vatos Tristes. Two local Chicago bands that have been releasing some sick music recently. We’ve all been listening to a lot of different stuff. Eric said he’s been listening to a lot of higher power, rosasharin. I’ve been listening to a lot djo and militarie gun. Geo said he’s been listening to royal otis and blood orange. Lou said Mizery and the rival mob.

RFB.FM connected with Best Dressed Ghost this week ahead of their new EP due out March 12th. We sat down with Patti, Chris, Stef, and Joey to talk origins, influences, and their signature punk-surf-doom sound.

RFB.FM: What brought you all together, and how did your sound evolve?

Patti: I met Stef and Chris in the midst of the pandemic. I had decided to buy a bass again after a 10 year hiatus and figured I’d just play along to songs I liked at home. Then Stef told me she wanted to start a band and wanted me to be in it. I thought we would get together and jam once in a while for fun but never could have expected it to become what it has. Our sound has definitely gotten a lot more confident and because of that, angrier and louder too.

Chris: During the pandemic, Stef said “I want to start a band that has a little punk, a little surf, and a sprinkle of… doom.” When she said “doom,” a lightbulb went off. When we met for our first practice, it was purely to hang, make some noise, and have fun, but I instantly saw that it had the potential to be something cool. I have footage from our first rehearsals and it’s funny to look back on. It sounds a lot more like traditional surf. It certainly doesn’t sound like that now.

Stef: I think Patti and Chris about summed it up - we wanted to hang together as friends but started to feel something more in it. I think we were all just looking for an outlet. Once you get on stage a few times and get really comfortable in what you’re doing, you start to push little boundaries here and there, and ones you thought you maybe weren’t even capable of pushing so you evolve in that way. We met Joey and our sound has really come together and evolved around them as well.

Joey: The band has been together for a few years, and I’m the latest edition. Patti and I reside in Jersey City. Chris and Stef had a history of living here and being a part of the scene here. Jersey is a small scene, and we’re all interconnected. I filled in on drums for the band Royal Blush, and we played a show together at the meat locker a year back. Few weeks later, they announced that their drummer was leaving, and we were all hanging at the pet shop in JC one night. We chatted and hung out, and the rest is history.

I’d like to think that Chris brought in some riffs and song ideas they were working on with their previous drummer that were more on the grittier side to their previous release. As we worked through those riffs, we looked at some ideas that were not fully developed that had that BDG flavor of sound which incorporates surf, punk, and storytelling, but adding nuances of classical guitar, salsa, and flamenco. In 5 songs, we really do have a lot to tell you.

RFB.FM How did your roots in New Jersey factor into your evolution, and what are some of your favorite venues in Jersey and beyond (e.g., Philly and DC)?

Patti: For me being from Maryland right outside of DC I grew up going to 930 Club and Black Cat in DC and The Ottobar was my home-base in Baltimore.

Chris: I am indebted to the New Jersey scene. Weekends at Hamilton Street, Bloomfield Ave Cafe, and a multitude of VFWs left an indelible mark on a fertile young mind, for sure. It showed me the value of a musical community, one that I’m truly lucky to be a part of. My favorite Jersey venue is Pet Shop. It’s home!

Stef: The NJ scene we grew up in was legendary and we were extremely lucky to have the community we did back then. Patti and I saw My Chem over the summer and I cried when Thursday was on, like we really feel so close to these bands that shaped our youth. I’m seeing that community take shape again and sort of cradle the kids we once were hoping we could play music forever with our friends.

Joey: I just grew up in Jersey, man lol. It’s hard to ignore the vast arts and culture that surround us. I was very fortunate to grow up here, learn to play/learn about music that’s local to New Jersey, and to be a part of the arts community here. My dad was a musician, my parents are both big into music, and I had three cousins that were involved in the NJHC scene. That one cousin that was on the Warped Tour influenced me to want to do the same thing he was doing.

It was like 2004? My aunt and my mom both got me and my cousin Anthony American Idiot on CD, and I was supposed to get the censored version, and they got them switched by accident lol. I like to think I’m a respectful person, but I’ve been going against the grain ever since.

As a drummer, I didn’t entirely go with what was happening in the scene as much as creating my own sound. I just listened to stuff that I liked and practiced to them as best as I can. New Jersey music can be best described by memorable riffs and poetic storytelling, not so much by distinct drum styling. Gabe Serbian from The Locust and beyond is my favorite drummer but he’s from the San Diego scene, but for local representation, Chris Pennie for sure; brother is a chef’s kiss.

My favorite venue in Jersey has got to be White Eagle Hall. I’ve played in there in previous bands but not with BDG, which needs to change (I’m talking to you, Todd). But outside that, I loved OWL (RIP) and Sultan Room both in BK. Two of my favorites outside of that are The Smell in LA and The Holland Project in Reno.

RFB.FM: For the new EP, tell us about where you tracked it — how did that environment influence the final sound?

Joey: So the band has previously worked with Trevor Reddell at his home studio in Martinsville, NJ, but it was my first time working with him. I’ve had some producers. I’ve worked with those who have been endearing, but also have sat there and pressed the button and yawned and didn’t give a shit about what we were doing.

Trevor was different; he didn’t know me. He didn’t know what he was getting into. I wanted to assure him that I was going to work with him to his and my standard, and that I have many years of experience recording in such a way. But what I love the most was that he was also a fellow drummer, so not only did he express the best moves for the songs to be reflective of the band, but he also pushed me to get the best take I could possibly get. I was very appreciative of him doing that because it left us with a really diverse-sounding album with a punch.

RFB.FM: What’s one thing you would want listeners to take away from the new record?

Patti: I would love for young girls to take away that it’s ok to be loud and take up space, unapologetically.

Chris: A productive use of anger.

Stef: Patti nailed it. As a woman we teach ourselves to be small, unassuming - don’t ruffle any feathers. It’s insanely powerful to be able to yell into a microphone “this is what happened to me, this is what I care about, and now you’re gonna hear about it” and I hope at least one person listens and realizes they don’t have to shrink themselves. I also want people to have fun listening to it! It’s ok to talk about hard shit but shake your ass, too.

Joey: Listen to the lyrics, let them make you happy, let them make you sad, let them make you angry. I said this previously, but I’m so serious I have to say it twice. Stef put a lot of heart into the stories that are in each of these songs, and we got a lot to say.

RFB.FM: Who were/are your biggest influences?

Patti: Bikini Kill, The Breeders, Mannequin Pussy, Amyl and the Sniffers, The Hives. I also love a theatrical band like The Darkness or Foxy Shazam and try to harness that level of showmanship onstage.

Chris: The World/Inferno Friendship Society is a massive influence on me, both in terms of musicality and performance. Seeing them live was like going to school, only I was excited about it, and there was wine on the floor.

Stef: I saw Screaming Females in a New Brunswick basement when I was a kid and the second I saw Marissa perform I was like, I need to do this. When we started this band I was in a real Dick Dale and 5, 6, 7, 8s era of my life and was loving that sound. I would watch live performances of PJ Harvey and Concrete Blonde and Veruca Salt and Kathleen Hanna and idolized the og riot grrrls. I also have a bit of clown blood like Ad-Rock of the Beastie Boys and grew up with a Rage Against the Machine poster above my bed that I bought on the boardwalk so I was like, damn, how do I somehow mix all of these sounds in my head together while saying something, anything.

Joey: Bonham, Dillinger Esc Plan (as a whole), Chris Conley, Jimmy Chamberlin, P Funk, Billy Joel’s drummer who was on Turnstiles, Ummmm whoever the drummer was on Herbie Hancock’s Man-Child, Peter Tosh, King Tubby, Augustus Pablo, Dub Music, Whoever the drummer was on Aaron Goldberg’s Worlds album (man’s crazy), Trent Reznor, David Bowie, Ween, SpongeBob

RFB.FM: What are some of your favorite bands right now? Who should we be checking out?

Patti: Slugwater for sure!

Chris: Check out OFF-KNOWNEOUS. Catchy, killer songs, and they’re sweet fellas.

Stef: Grandma’s House, Commitment, Lambrini Girls. Locally - Shirthole, Young and Doomed, Guack, Más Trauma, Cashmir, there are so many. Honestly go out to any local show in NJ and I promise that you will find your favorite new band.

Joey: Love these local guys LOOSEY out of BK, real killer stuff; Kiss w/o make-up, cooler than White Reaper. Dracu-Las are hometown friends of ours keeping surf classic with a pop making our city proud.

Check out my buds Tony From Bowling out of PGH, check out Dog Lips out of NH, Greaseface from VT just put out a new album, it’s so good my buddy Ari’s band Valley Porno People out of LA killer shoegaze. Also, my buddy Lowell and Eli in Tongues of Fire (love you bbs)

(Photo by Dan Acosta)

RFB.FM sat down with Rivot Magazine’s James Lamb to discuss the magazine’s DIY origins at a Doylestown candy shop, the sonic architecture of the Philly-Bucks corridor, and the emerging artists you need to know.

RFB.FM: From your start with Evolution Candy to founding independent media zine Rivot, what were your biggest moments of inspiration along the way?

From starting a shop in the heart of Doylestown, we quickly connected with the local community. Literally being three doors down from local staple Siren Records and being huge music fans, let’s just say we’re down there often. When Nomad Supply Company started doing backlot DIY punk shows in 2019, plus everything Joe Montone has been doing since as long as we can remember, from Picnics on Pine, Stage United at the Tile Works, and now the Concerts at the Commons shows, we just felt like the music scene in Bucks County deserved something more than just random personal accounts social media tags and shares. Documenting what is happening in print feels like the missing link.

RFB.FM: Who are/were your major musical influences?

We’re 90’s kids at heart - Grunge and Riot Grrrl are our ride and die, but we’re not exclusive to any music, that’s just our personal preference. Right now, as we’re typing this, Ray LaMontagne & The Pariah Dogs “Beg Steal or Borrow” is playing - our playlist is very diverse. What two bands have we seen live the most? L7 and Sleater-Kinney if that tells you anything!

RFB.FM: Bucks County sits in a unique position relative to Philadelphia. How does the built environment around Philly (your favorite venues, the food, the culture) make its way into the sound of the artists you cover?

Bucks County sits in a unique spot - outskirts of Philly with one of our favorite venues Broken Goblet that have amazing shows, but also we love the New Hope scene and everything John & Peter’s is and has been doing. In our opinion, artists are just looking for places to play…and Bucks County has options for sure. In Doylestown, the Tiny Couch Sessions has been doing amazing shows at HopsScotch22.

RFB.FM: What are some of your favorite bands right now? If you were creating the definitive "Rivot Magazine Local Playlist" which artists / tracks would be essential?

An easy one! We’ve connected with so many local acts that we know are not only going places, but deserve more attention:

Predominantly, Oh, Are They? (who we discovered at a Nomad show); their songs are on our shuffle playlist and match right up with everything else we’re listening to, from Tool to Fugazi, Nirvana, Fontaines D.C., you name it, they’re on that level.

Christina Ward - another versatile artist either solo or with her backing band and has a huge following. She’s signed to Bad Catt Records. We were once listening to some streaming station and St. Vincent’s “Flea” was playing - Christina Ward is that vibe, but better!

Sam Ryan (local artist, Lambertville, NJ) - lead singer of Blood, Sweat & Treats, but also local performer; Sweet Pete - straight up rock / garage rock / rockabilly / local talent signed to Nudie Records; and Hyper Violets - a project by Brendan Eckstrom of Circa Survive.

RFB.FM: You’ve mentioned expanding the Rivot Media umbrella. Where is Rivot heading next?

Rivot is here forever. 2026 is predominately focused on expanding the Bucks County Punk Rock Flea Market as a part of Rivot Entertainment as well as starting a Battle of the Bands collaboration with Village Players of Hatboro, plus what we’ve always been trying to do - promote local artists, bands, and venues. A new magazine comes out every month, so we’re always working on interviews, news, and articles. There’s also a few other projects coming down the pipeline that we’re not quite ready to announce just yet, so stay tuned!

RFB.FM connected with Darksoft ahead of his eighth studio album, Everydayness, due Friday, March 6, 2026. Ahead of the digital release, Everydayness is currently available for order on vinyl and CD, on-demand via Elastic Stage, and tape cassette coming soon, self-released under Darksoft’s own imprint Look Up Records. If you’re on Spotify, you can pre-save the album here. Visit darksoft.band for more information, merch, shows, and other updates. Or follow Darksoft on social media at @darks0ft.

RFB.FM: We love the concept of Everydayness, an exploration of themes that can be simultaneously eternally true and yet entirely mundane (e.g., Too Little Too Late, Spend Your Days, etc.). How did this concept evolve for you? Tell us about the common threads between Everydayness and your previous albums.

Thanks! I’m glad the idea is getting across. Everydayness is built from the everyday. It’s more of the same, rooted in physical reality, repetitive, and super day-to-day. I literally got the name from a shampoo bottle.

The album artwork features an analemma — an infinity symbol created by photographing the sun from the same spot over the course of a year. Like the artwork, the album ponders the cyclical nature of life and day-to-day routines. Overall, its goal is to find beauty in the mundane.

While many songs speak to the gears churning of the daily grind, others reflect on a higher state of living day-to-day with more purpose and intention. That’s more in line with a meta theme I want to impart, which is having more agency and taking a “seize the day” approach to everyday life, even if it’s about the simple things.

You asked about how this album fits into my overall discography. Well, I really like songwriting with an overarching theme or concept for each album. And, I’ve been exploring universal truths in my lyrics for a while now.

In the shoegaze style, the idea is often that the vocals are more used as background instrumentation. So some years ago, I thought, what if the lyrics themselves were similarly nonexistent and textural?

For my album Beigeification (2023), I started experimenting with worn-out phrases and colloquialisms like “It Is What It Is” or “Only Time Will Tell.” But the more I did that, I sort of realized that even though they were cliché, they hold a lot of universal truth. These sayings say nothing at all but say everything at the same time. It’s all about context.

So, I leaned into that quite a bit with my writing since then, and it’s been interesting progressing that style into new themes in my last few records.

RFB.FM: Who were/are your biggest musical influences? Beyond music (e.g., art, literature, film, philosophy, etc.), what has inspired or shaped your creative journey the most? Anything that was particularly impactful?

Ah, the dreaded musical influence question! Always tough to pin this down. As far as the stuff I take direct inspiration from for Darksoft, it’s a blend of 80s post-punk, jangle pop and twee, shoegaze revival, and 90s alternative, with a modern dream pop or bedroom pop bent.

As for the classics, in alphabetical order so as to not play favorites: David Byrne, Depeche Mode, Echo and the Bunnymen, Edwyn Collins, Elliott Smith, Felt, Gary Numan, Joy Division, My Bloody Valentine, Nirvana, Orange Juice, Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, Primal Scream, Slowdive, Tears for Fears, the C86 album, The Cure, The Dandy Warhols, The Field Mice, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Ocean Blue, The Ramones, The Smashing Pumpkins, The Strokes, Wire Train.

As far as literature goes, I have a habit of making literary allusions in my songs. My song “So It Goes” from Grayscale (2023) is an intentional nod to Kurt Vonnegut. He used that fatalistic phrase obsessively (106 times — I looked it up) in one of his novels, Slaughterhouse-Five. I think his writing and his dry-yet-leaning-positive nihilistic sort of take on life affected how I see the world.

My song “Spend Your Days,” the opening track of Everydayness, opens with the lyric, “how you spend your days is how you spend your life,” which is a slight rephrase of an Annie Dillard quote. I’ve always been attracted to being intentional with my time and the idea of stoicism. Some of Walt Whitman’s Song of Myself, and the idea that you can contradict yourself and you contain multitudes, is ingrained and has influenced my core beliefs and lyrics.

When preparing Everydayness, I picked up Henri Lefebvre’s Critique of Everyday Life and skimmed it a bit. I also picked up The Everyday and Everydayness, which is a more accessible small journal of short ideas from Lefebvre with really nice textural paintings by Julie Mehretu. That was a nice tone-setter.

Martin Heidegger explored a concept of everydayness he calls “Dasein” in his Being and Time, so I picked that up too. Unfortunately, it was far too dense for me. The guy seems to say absolutely nothing in the most eloquent, roundabout way while constantly name-dropping other ivory tower peers. I don’t get it. Or maybe I don’t have the patience to understand it. Regardless, Heidegger’s back on the shelf.

RFB.FM: We’re always fascinated by how the built or physical environment can help shape a record. You’ve mentioned that you recorded and produced Everydayness in your home studio in Maine. How did Maine and or the home studio environment influence the album? How does this translate into live performances?

Yup! I record all Darksoft parts (guitars, vocals, drums, percussion, synth, sound effects, bass) using real instruments (without MIDI) in my basement home studio. I typically do a lot of direct-in (DI) recording. I first start with demos and progressively add to a playlist over the course of about a year.

Then, once I have ten or so songs I’m happy with, I work with an engineer to help apply effects, re-amp some parts, and mix and master the songs to take it to the final result. Brian Fisher, a talented engineer I’ve worked with on Darksoft a bunch recently, mixed and mastered Everydayness.

The home studio is critical to my process. I’ve built a mostly plug-and-play setup so I can make some coffee, head downstairs, and chip away at ideas whenever I find time outside of work and family life. Music making is literally part of my everydayness. (See what I did there?)

Maine is beautiful and relaxing for me, and I think it’s had a positive effect overall. I love the epic turning of the seasons here. Summer, fall, and winter are much more accentuated and visceral. I live close to a river that I try to visit often to hike, swim, or trudge through the snow.

You also asked about live performances. While recording, I’m always thinking about how the songs might translate on stage, balancing layered studio ideas with what’s realistically playable live without relying on backing tracks. I see the recording as the finished artifact, but I try to walk that line so the music still works in a live setting.

Recently, the live Darksoft lineup has expanded into a five-piece with a synthesizer, which is much closer to how I’ve always envisioned the project sounding on stage. I’ve been lucky to have a core group of friends support Darksoft live through shows in Maine and even on the West Coast, where I’m originally from, throughout a handful of regional tours over the past few years.

RFB.FM: What’s one thing you would want listeners to take away from this record?

I hope Everydayness leaves listeners with more validation that their existence matters, even when they’re in autopilot mode at work or doing mundane household tasks. I hope it can provide more agency for the things you can control in your life, and inspire others to actively shape your day-to-day into whatever you desire it to become over time.

At the same time, I don’t want my music to carry that much weight or be too heady or viewed as self-help. I hope people just like how it sounds.

Also, I’m still a big believer in the album. We’re in this streaming world of single this single that. I say give a record a full spin now and then — you might like the progression and where it takes you.

RFB.FM: What are some of your favorite bands right now? Who should we be checking out?

First, go listen to “Doot Doot” by Freur. Such a unique 1983 gem I just discovered recently. And the outro really hits home. Doot, doot.

Then, go check out, again in alphabetical order: Babe Rainbow, Black Marble, Castlebeat, Cool Heat, Day Wave, Drab Majesty, EVENTYD, Found Space, Ghost Days, Glom, Heels, Hibou, JW Francis, Launder, Lost Film, Lurve, Phantom Youth, Skymender, Swiss Portrait, and Yndling. These are all contemporaries I listen to and respect. Most anything on Spirit Goth is pretty swell, too.

There’s also a dungeon synth label out of Maine called Out of Season that a friend turned me on to. Instrumental, medieval-sounding ambient music inspired by Dungeons & Dragons is basically all I listen to now. Beyond the classics like Fief or Quest Master, I’ve been digging deeper cuts like Deep Gnome and Fogweaver.

RFB.FM caught the first two shows of Cooper Moore’s 2026 East Cost tour (NYC / Mercury Lounge, Boston / Lilypad). What can we say? Indie fire, hello match. Upcoming show dates below, backed by some of the Lower East Side’s finest. Don’t miss your chance. You’ll cry yourself to sleep every night if you do.

We caught up with Trunk this week following the release of their latest album in September.

RFB: In the press release for the album you write “This isn’t about perfection, it’s about power.” How did this mindset influence work in the studio for the record and also live performances?

Trunk: Not overthinking the writing or process. Just put out what we feel is good and if people like it, even better. Doing things for yourself and not worrying about others opinions.

RFB: What’s one thing you would want listeners to take away from this album?

Trunk: It’s real. We’re not trying to write cool or groundbreaking. Just what we like.

RFB: Who were/are your biggest influences?

Trunk: Punk rock and old school death metal. Band wise: Entombed, Acid Bath, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel

RFB: What are some of your favorite bands right now? Who should we be checking out?

Trunk: In Jest and Mutate Capacity from Philly rule. We got our southern homies Silico & Deluseur.

In the recent Budget 2026, Ireland announced it will make its Basic Income for the Arts (BIA) pilot scheme permanent starting next year. The program provides a weekly stipend of €325 to eligible artists.

An independent review of the pilot found that for every €1 of public money invested, the arts returned €1.39 to society through economic and social benefits. Artists also reported improved mental well-being and reduced financial stress.

In the U.S., the Living Wage for Musicians Act has been floated which would reform the economics of music streaming to ensure artists and musicians can earn a sustainable living from their work. But will it ever pass? Read more below...

References / Read More:

https://mixmag.net/amp/irish-government-implement-basic-income-artists-scheme-2026

https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2025/09/02/living-wage-musicians-act-congress/

Photos by RFB