Alright, so we understand that headline is a bit of a mouthful so let us walk you through this.
First, in case you’ve been sleeping on Jarrod Alonge (yes, the Youtube guy popular for his various scene parodies), he’s been very busy putting together his very serious and very real band CrazyEightyEight alongside fellow Youtuber and Red Handed Denial vocalist Lauren Babic.
Secondly, just announced today with the release of their new single “Shinebox” (which we’ll be getting to next), Alonge and Babic have revealed their newest bassist, As It Is vocalist Patty Walters.
“We’re happy to announce our addition of Patty Walters,” tweeted the band. “No worries, he’s still in As It Is.”
Still confused? We’ll let Alonge clear it up for you then:
“Despite my longstanding reputation as a comedy musician, I spent a good portion of my free time in 2016 writing vaguely-nostalgic instrumentals that I couldn’t necessarily release under the guise of a fictitious parody ‘band’ like Sunrise Skater Kids. I visualized my first non-parody project taking form, and set out with a simple goal - to make fun music and to have fun doing it, in whatever form that would eventually take. I also like movies. And movie references. Deliberate, blatant references.”
Alonge went on to add, “Luckily, the vocalist of Toronto-based progressive metal act Red Handed Denial also had a YouTube presence, and her distinct style caught my ear. I joined forces with Lauren Babic and together we created the No Words Spoken EP along with eight covers. Shortly after, my friend and longtime collaborator Patty Walters reached out in search of a new creative outlet. Although he’s well-known as the frontman for As It Is, Patty’s musical roots are mostly instrumental and we welcomed his addition with open arms. The obvious next step was to write, produce and release a full-length studio album. Right? Right.”
Now that’s all cleared up, let’s get to the band’s stunning new single. Titled as “Shinebox,” CrazyEightyEight’s latest continues where they left off with their sensational No Words Spoken EP. Sounding like something mixed between Underoath and Of Machines, “Shinebox” is a refreshing revival of some of our scenes’ best sounds from the mid-2000 post-hardcore era.
To see exactly what we mean, be sure to check out the band’s new track below. Afterwards, make sure to head to the band’s Kickstarter page to help fund their debut full-length album.
