Over time, perspective cycles back around. No matter how much you see, experience, learn, and live, you can always reidentify and recapture the magic around you. My Epic—Aaron Stone [guitar, vocals], Tanner Morita [guitar], and Nate Washburn [guitar, bass]—tune into this moment of reawakening on their fourth full-length offering and Tooth & Nail Records debut, Loriella. Balancing waves of warm distorted fuzz with lush melodies and cinematic production, the group make the kind of music that rouses the sensesand might just encourage you to open your eyes, mind, and heart a little wider...“The record is about having lived long enough to lose your innocence and still being able to find joy, hope, peace, and faith,” explains Aaron. “I can be a critical person, but there’s a difference between being critical and cynical. I understand why people end up choosing cynicism, because it can be the best way to make sense of all the data in the world. It’s part of my aim to fight cynicism at every turn though. The album is rediscovering what you lost and re-engaging life with purpose on new terms of your own.”Throughout the past two decades, the band have quietly, yet consistently engaged a devout fanbase with a simultaneously anthemic and intricate approach to alternative rock.

They’ve progressed across the likes of I Am Undone[2008], Yet[2010], and Behold[2013]. The latter notably catapulted onto the Billboard Heatseekers Albums Chart. Generating millions of streams, their catalog expanded with fan favorite EPs such as Viscera[2016], Ultraviolet[2018], and Violence[2019]—which HM Magazine hailed as “a blend of indie-alternative enchantments.” Meanwhile, Cory Brandan of Norma Jean lent his voice to “White Noises.”

During 2020, the band signed to Tooth & Nail, turning the page on another chapter as they set their sights on their first full-length since 2013. In between, life happened as band members became dads and moved around personally and professionally. For the first time, Nate assumed the role of primary producer, and Loriella materialized over the course of two years in three different studios. Along the way, they nodded to inspirations such as The Smashing Pumpkins, Foo Fighters, and Third Eye Blind.“It was a different process,” he notes. “In the past, we didn’t necessarily have the time or the resources to perfect certain tracks. We took our time on this one. Naturally, I’m a singer-songwriter, but I have a passion for huge riffs. We drew from a dynamic wide range of influences. I managed to plug in the fuzz pedal though!”On the first single “Northstar,” delicate piano glimmers over a glitchy haze. Teeming with emotion, a thunderous rhythm kicks in as a blast of distortion buoys the chantable chorus, “We don’t fear the light, we face it.”