EMOlition Derby

EMOlition Derby welcomes its first Scottish guest! Murray Macleod of The Xcerts - the genre bending alternative trio from Aberdeen Scotland. We caught up with Murray to discuss the early days of The Xcerts, their diverse influences (Blink-182, Sleigh Bells, and Slowdive) and their exciting new record,  LEARNING HOW TO LIVE AND LET GO, which will be released August 18th via UNFD. One of the singles, ACHE, features scene titan, Sam C...

Nashville-based singer-songwriter and clothing designer Phangs is our latest guest this week on the EMOlition Derby podcast. Phangs has been a key fixture in the scene for well over 15 years, initially rising to prominence as a member of The Secret Handshake and Relient K, among many others. Now, Phangs, aka Jake Germany is a full-fledged solo artist who fuses everything from nostalgic yet forward-thinking pop-rock to EDM and hip h...

Joining us this week is none other than Trevor Hedges, frontman and guitarist of Phoenix, AZ-based indie/emo outfit Sundressed. Hedges has always spoken candidly about important topics ranging from mental health, therapy, medication and substance misuse yet finds a way to channel it all through vulnerable and infectiously catchy pop songs. Sundressed have been making significant waves in the industry following the release of their ...

The almighty Shane Told of Silverstein joins us for a landmark episode of EMOlition Derby. Shane hardly needs an introduction as Silverstein have been a staple of alternative music for over two decades, selling hundreds of thousands of records to date. Initially part of the Victory Records tidal wave of the early 2000's with the likes of Taking Back Sunday and Hawthorne Heights, they have continued to evolve upon their origina...

Joey Chiaramonte is the vocalist for Koyo, a Long Island melodic hardcore band that has exploded onto the scene in the past few years. During this interview, Joey talks about Koyo’s busy touring schedule and the highlights of playing alongside scene elder statesmen Silverstein and Bayside. We also hear about Koyo’s highly anticipated debut full length, which is slated to come out later this year despite the record being finished fo...

Danny Stevens is a Nashville based singer and songwriter who was also the frontman of The Audition, an underrated and prolific pop-rock band that was active in the early to late 2000's. Danny admittedly hasn't done any long-form interviews about his time with The Audition so we get the most in-depth and honest record to date about Danny first joining the band, their relationship with the controversial Victory Records, to ...

Andre Fili is your new favorite MMA Fighter. Not only is he one of today's most exciting competitors in the UFC, but he is an avid lover of alternative and heavy music. So much so that he started a hardcore band called "Born Breach" who are set to work with legendary producer Will Yip this year. In this interview, we discuss the parallels of coming up as a mixed martial artist and coming up as a musician and how ther...

Nashville-based singer/songwriter Sam Tinnesz has several multi-platinum songs under his belt as well as cowrites with Dashboard Confessional, The All-American Rejects, and many more. If you have not yet heard of Sam Tinnesz, you have definitely heard his songs in your favorite TV shows/movies or on viral TikTok videos. His platinum hits “Play with Fire (feat. Yacht Money)” and “Legends Are Made” have over 500 million combined stre...

Coming to you LIVE from Pasadena, we have our first in-person interview with Kat Leon and Nick Perez from HOLY WARS. If you like dark, poppy, industrial and anthemic tunes then Holy Wars are your new favorite band. They had a monumental year in 2022 with many high points including opening for Coheed and Cambria and Alkaline Trio in huge amphitheaters and releasing their debut album, "Eat It Up, Spit It Out" which was on a...

On today’s episode, we welcome Zac Eisenstein from Man Overboard. In case you’ve been living under a rock, Man Overboard are one of the legendary torchbearers of the 2010’s pop punk revival and made famous the iconic “Defend Pop Punk” hoodies that you and your friends have in your closet. During our conversation today, we learn how Man Overboard’s sound was born from rebellion of the neon pop punk era and how they eventually scored...

Andrew de Torres is a humble titan of the early 2000's emo scene. His most notable contributions include being the singer/songwriter of The Scene Aesthetic and Danger Radio. Did you know that The Scene Aesthetic's breakout hit "Beauty In the Breakdown" was written the first night that de Torres and fellow member, Eric Kimberlin, met after Kimberlin's car broke down? This episode is full of "no sh*t&quo...

Joe Boynton is the singer of legendary pop punk band, Transit. This is a special episode for our host, Alessandro DeCaro, as Boynton is one of his biggest musical influences. In this interview, Boynton walks through the entire Transit discography in detail - outlining the thought process for each record, what was going on in their lives, and what was the dynamic of the band as a whole. 

Boynton is now a part of shoegaze in...

Welcome to EMOlition Derby! A podcast featuring interviews with guests from the alternative, emo and underground music scene as well as weekly "roundtable" discussions where topics range from 'Best Albums of 2003' to 'The Bands That Shouldn't Have Reunited'. The show is hosted by Alessandro DeCaro, a music journalist who has worked with Alternative Press among many other outlets. Have you ever wan...