Slamming the speakers from Austin, Texas, is the 4-piece femme and queer-charged punk/heavy rock band Naga Brujo, with their anticipated 4-track EP entitled Canceled.
Fueled by unfiltered grit and raw emotion, Naga Brujo is your newest arrival to the punk rock music scene and one that won't go unnoticed. The four artists made waves with their debut album in 2020, and are ready to keep the ball rolling with more stellar releases like the recent EP, Canceled.
The new EP starts with the introductory track, "Sick Sad World," which pummels our speakers with heavy and angsty rock and roll. The lead vocalists bring this dynamic and ear-ringing back and forth that keeps us on our toes, not knowing where Naga Brujo will take us next. All in all, it's one hell of a way to open a project; this song makes it clear that Naga Brujo means business.
Onto another gripping rock anthem in track number two, "Black Magick," Naga Brujo pumps out their scorching hot rock instrumentals. At the same time, the lead vocalist commands our attention with her wickedly intriguing performance and dark, conceptual lyrics. This song is thrilling, to say the least, and Naga Brujo has no problem grabbing the listener's undivided attention with their fierce instrumentals and engaging performance stylings. The song's many transitions are bound to keep you hooked, buckled, and ready for the ride.
Onto the EP's second half with track number three, "Slug," the quick and biting snare drum pounces through the speakers while Naga Brujo ramps up the energy to unleash their fiery instrumentals. While the lead vocalists express how they don't give a damn about being a squirmy, slimy slug, they expand on being something that someone else doesn't want, and quite frankly, they don't give a shit. We love the badass feel of this track; it's contagious.
Landing on the EP's fourth and outro track, "Fever Dreamer," Naga Brujo waited for the last track to absolutely smoke our speakers. Their riveting introduction leads into the blazing verse, where we're greeted with soothing transitions to emphasize the dynamic ways of a fever dream. Again, Naga Brujo leaves us in a sweat once they catapult us into the scorching fires of their punk rock instrumentals, letting us lose ourselves in their fierce sounds that keep the listener hooked from top to bottom.
When you're craving some hot rock and roll with a dash of angsty punk, look no further than Naga Brujo's newest 4-track EP, Canceled, now available on all digital streaming platforms.
Welcome to BuzzMusic, Naga Brujo. You've left us shaking with your heavy-hitting 4-track EP, Canceled. What inspired your group to create a unique and conceptual project like this?
We have always strived to create songs we truly love playing while pushing the boundaries and rigidity of the mono-genre music of the mainstream.
Could you introduce us to your band members and your creative process when making Canceled? What was that process like?
We have Jake Mumps on lead guitar/vox, Asia Reign Gonzalez on lead vox, Jacob Lyons on bass, and Dylan Barnett on drums. Ryan Woessner, our original drummer, played on all of the “Canceled” EP recordings. Our creative process has always been pretty fluid. With the exception of very few prewritten songs, most of our songs start as an idea, a riff, or even something improvised during practice. Over time the ideas and riffs become harnessed, molded, rewritten, sometimes scrapped/picked back up again later, and eventually, the select good ones become songs. This process boosts creativity and originality and enhances a sense of inclusivity and community within the band, which is essential to all of us.
What was your band's favorite part about creating Canceled? What moments or experiences did you enjoy most?
Although recording in the studio can be stressful and tedious, it was the most gratifying experience to watch all of our combined hours of writing and practicing come to fruition when we heard the tracks back for the first time. It might sound cliché, but there’s no other experience I can compare it to.
What impact do you hope to make on listeners with the Canceled EP? What did you want your audience to learn or take away from the project?
We wanted each song to possess its own unique style musically and thematically but remain loosely related to one another via current issues we can and are,e unfortunately, sometimes forced to relate to. For instance, “Sick Sad World” surmises the overwhelming burnout we all experience surviving in modern-day capitalist society, “Slug” confronts the grotesque nature of the male gaze and rape culture all too common today, “Black Magick” is an offering of respect to the natural practices and beliefs of our ancestors and past civilizations while simultaneously rejecting modern indoctrinations that feed said capitalist society, and “Fever Dreamer” takes you through a literal fever dream, which I am sure all of us experienced one way or another throughout the pandemic.
What's next for you?
After the “Canceled” releases on January 6th, 2023, we are returning to the studio with the next round of songs. We also have plans to film and release a music video in early spring for a single off of “Canceled.”