After Thoughts: Matt of Twist of Cain on California Hardcore and Upcoming Tour!
Dominating SoCal, from the Bay to San Diego, the 5-piece metallic hardcore band known as Twist of Cain offers a loathsome manipulation of classic hardcore comparable to obvious influences of Merauder or Dying Breed. Sitting down with vox/guitarist, Matt, we talked about inspiration for the rising band, face value of the scene, and the upcoming tour with Death Before Dishonor and Outta Pocket.
To start off if you could introduce yourself and your role in the band.
Matt: My name is Matt and I play guitar in the band.
I also am really interested in what your first hardcore show experience was like, that brought you into the culture of wanting to pursue music!
Matt: So, my first hardcore show when I was in high school was a bunch of local bands. I remember one of the bands was called Nightcrawler, and it was in this small dance studio. Because it was a dance studio there were a bunch of mirrors everywhere, I’ll never forget this dude was trying to mosh and he fell on the mirror with his hands and just shattered it. But as far as what inspired me to play music, I’ve been playing since I was 13 or 14, but Guns N’ Roses actually inspired me to pick up an instrument. I was already used to playing music, and going to shows I would always tell my friends, ‘hey we need to start a hardcore band,’ but ironically my first band was a pop-punk band.
Can you tell us about the current state of California hardcore? How long have you been a part of the scene and how has it changed since you started getting involved?
Matt: I’ve been going to shows since I was thirteen. As far as how the scene is right now, it’s definitely boomin. I think after Covid things changed and you see a lot more kids now.I think TikTok has a lot to do with it since it’s been providing a lot of exposure for different bands, that maybe wouldn’t have gotten as much exposure. It is crazy because I’m 30 now, and the kids you see at shows are like 15 year olds, and they’re the driving boards of the scene right now. It’s cool, you can almost see the torch being passed down. My old heads, they’re still there, but they’re kind of in the background, and then looking at all my friends now– we were once those kids in the crowd too looking up to the guys that came before us. It’s cool, it’s growing.
What is the inspiration for Twist of Cain, either musical or nonmusical?
Matt: So, Josh and I had started talking about this band back in 2015. When you start playing music you realize that not everybody has the same sound as you, so I went to Josh specifically because I knew he had the sound I was trying to go for. Unfortunately we never started the band because I moved to Santa Barbara, started working, and stopped going to shows as often, and he hit me up a few years later to start the band. We were talking like ‘okay, what sound do we want to go for, and do you want to do vocals or play guitar.’ The sound that we were going for, my vocals would have been ideal but I suck at writing lyrics, so I stuck with guitar. When we were writing the demo out, I wanted to do it very Dying Breed, Stigmata influenced. Listening to the album there’s a very obvious Hatebreed influence, but believe it or not a hint of Crowbar too. It’s just like all our favorite bands, we just kind of mixed them up in there.
California has a rich history of punk and hardcore. How do you see Twist of Cain contributing to or diverging from that tradition?
Matt: I feel like we have our own sound; we don’t sound like every other hardcore band that’s come out. I also feel like SoCal hardcore in general, there’s something for everybody, and as far as the scene goes out here, we cater to more of the East Coast style that maybe not a lot of bands out here are doing. [...] It took us 9 months to write a 4-song demo for that reason. We’re currently writing a new EP, and it’s been two years since we released the demo. We released a single last year because we needed to put something out, but aside from our busy schedules, we’ll take our time. Sometimes it takes us one month to work on one song. We’ll write it and then circle back.
I wanted to spend some time talking about the EP you guys have out: your “Demo” from 22’. what was the writing/recording process like? What’s your favorite track? Or a track you would recommend for new listeners to stream, to get into the real culture of twist of Cain? What are some of your favorite things off the album— gnarly riffs, favorite lyrics, etc. and what, if anything, would you want to do differently on future releases?
Matt: Alright so the writing process for that was just Josh and I. I would drive up to Josh’s house because we don’t like writing in the recording studio, it’s like too many cooks are in the kitchen. It’s too many opinions at once, and we tried it before but never got anything done. So our way of writing the demo was a little different than writing the new EP now. When Josh and I wrote the demo just he and I, we would write the guitar parts, and he would program drums on the computer. Once we would finish a song we’d send it to the group chat and be like, “what do you guys think? Any changes?” Any suggestions anyone made we would talk about it and make any changes that needed to be made. Once we got the music like the guitar, bass, and drums dialed in we would start writing lyrics for it. Our bass player Adrian, is actually the one who writes all the lyrics. That was the writing process for the demo. Now for our EP, it’s Josh, Adam and I. Adrian had written a few riffs and he’ll send it to the group chat, and Josh and I will build upon whatever he wrote. So we’re including the whole band a little more this time around, and I think you’ll be able to hear it in the new EP. It’s obviously us, but you’re getting different flavors and styles now as opposed to just me and Josh.
What are the upcoming plans for Twist of Cain, and are there any goals you want to accomplish with your band in the next year? Maybe an album on the way coming after the latest “Built to Last” single from last year?
Matt: So we are still finishing the EP. Technically we have enough material, but Josh and I are going to work on 1 or 2 more songs and pick the best ones out of the bunch and we’ll be recording with Taylor Young– we don’t have a date yet. We haven’t written all the lyrics for the songs, we have to go back and adjust some things. I don’t have the exact date as far as when that release will be, but what I do know is that we want to record as soon as possible. As far as goals go for the band: we want to tour more. We haven’t hit the East Coast, so we’re hoping to be able to do that soon. [...] We don’t want to make any plans without getting the EP done.
How has the band evolved since its formation, both musically and personally?
Matt: As far as the sound goes, I feel like we’ve definitely dialed in, and we’ve all grown individually as musicians. I’m not the best song writer.. Josh I feel like has better music theory etc. and writing with him has been my favorite thing as it’s helped me grow as a musician. All around as a band, I really don’t know. I’ll tell you that we look back on our old pictures and are like ‘damn we were babies.’ It’s only been 2 years but we can see the difference.
Are there any specific artists or bands that have significantly influenced Twist of Cain's sound and style?
Matt: Dying Breed is definitely one of the main blueprints of the sound. It’s them, Stigmata– even though you can’t really hear it, we’ll add a few notes here and there. Crowbar definitely is a big influence, and Merauder. In the new EP there’s also a little bit of Neglect in there. Those are some of our top favorite bands.
Any final thoughts or shout-outs or even advice for people in the scene? Something to say to fans/readers?
Matt: Just shoutout LA hardcore, all the homies; as far as advice goes to anyone younger– if you want to start a band, just do it. Keep trying, and do your research. Look into the bands that came before you. [...] Respect the history and dig deeper because you might find your favorite band. If you just look at what’s in front of you in that moment, you won’t know about what came before.
By the time this is published, the tour will be nearly over! Don’t skip out on the next one. Follow Twist of Cain’s socials and on streaming platforms for more information on the band to be the next Merauder.
Written by: Allie Payne (@alliepaynex_)
Published on: March 7th, 2024