New Music

Sydney's Headstrong Inject A Healthy Dose Of Pop Punk Into Your System With 'Distant'

Jun 10, 2019

7 min read

The resurgence of pop punk bands in Australia gives hope that the genre will be back to its old self in no time and with bands popping up all the time, especially like Headstrong, you know you're in good hands. The five-piece have just dropped their new song/video for 'Distant' so we had to grab them (yes, all of them), to find out a bit more about the band and what makes them tick.

Get to know them below then check out their smashing new song...

Congrats on the new song 'Distant', what's this one all about?

Joshua: Distant is about falling into a cycle of shitty dating habits that fall apart due to a fear of commitment, being too scared to let down your guard in case you get hurt. The video shows that through the two main characters being tied together, both feeling held back by one another until eventually one of them breaks away.

For those not in the know, give us a rundown of who makes up Headstrong?

Morgan: Josh O’Loughlin (the baby of the band) on vocals, James Venites as our Lead Guitarist/Songwriter, Thomas Flood as our Rhythm Guitarist/Backing vocalist (and unofficial tech), Brooke Harley as our bassist and finally Morgan Cato as our Drummer.

I'm sensing some blink/Wonder Years/Trophy Eyes vibes from it, were they influences in the writing process or am I off the mark? Haha

James: There is definitely influence from old Trophy Eyes tracks, as well as other bands such as Citizen and Knuckle Puck. Most of the writing happens when I wake up from naps

You're self-described as an emo-pop punk band... what would you say are the top 3 songs to cry whilst listening to in a moshpit?

James & Joshua: We argued about this for about 30 minutes and we decided on The Night I Drove Alone by Citizen, No Halo by Sorority Noise and Adam’s Song by Blink 182

Sydney is producing some exceptionally talented pop-punk bands of late. Would you say there's been a resurgence of popularity for the genre or has it always been there?

James & Joshua: We think that it has always been there, but has risen in popularity lately due to the emo/goth rap scene becoming more ‘mainstream’. There’s also definitely been a resurgence in new-wave pop-punk, bands like Knuckle Puck, Neck Deep and The Story So Far have been putting out insane records and getting kids out to shows, I think that has definitely inspired people to start their own bands and get into the pop-punk scene.

You've got a show coming up on June 15th supporting Bloom, if fans haven't caught you live yet, what can they expect setlist wise?

Thomas: Female pop stars of the 2000’s or bad Knocked Loose covers probably, but in all seriousness a handful of alternative pop punk along with some spicy melodic riffs.

What's next for the band?

Brooke: We’re aiming for an EP to be tracked before the end of the year and in the meantime we’ll be playing a few shows here and there!

All the best, stay in tough meow!

Interview by Browny @brownypaul

Catch Headstrong supporting Bloom on Saturday