Just over half a decade ago, Matt Kelly began a spark that would soon set fire to the American rock scene. It was a fire that took a few attempts to start, but with each failed attempt his dedication and passion grew, and in 2017, with the help of Michael Wallis and Dan Stefl, Kelly was able to turn that passion into the almighty blaze that is Echoes From Ashes.
While the band as it stands might only be just over a year old, the ground they’ve covered since their inception is incredible. Born of a combined vision and unwavering commitment to their sound, the band took their name from a series of events that brought them all together – “Everything turns to ashes and we will be the voices that echo in the end”.
After honing their craft as a band and knocking over their first shows on the St. Louis scene, Echoes From Ashes recorded their first self-titled EP with engineer/producer Michael Bivens at Redwood Studio. It was a bold step forward for the band, a self-titled release that put forward five tracks of heavy, driven, rock, including two of our absolute favourite anthems, the piercingly emotive ‘Down’, and the immutable ‘Cold Surrender’, which went on to become our ‘Song of The Year’ for 2018 with over five hundred votes.
With the full EP now available on Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Amazon, and CD Baby, it’s become one of the most exciting debuts of the last few years and a definitive ‘must hear’ release.
Although the band recentlyparted ways with Dan Thorne, replacing him with the brilliant Derek Keller on drums, Echoes From Ashes are determined not to slow down. In fact, the band have already set their sights on the future, and in the next week they’ll be releasing a brand new track, ‘Letting Go’. The first new single since their EP, the track is set to be an emotional journey through the very hearts of the band, capturing their powerful rock sound and blending it seamlessly with an emotional maturity that everyone will be able to connect with.
While not available until the 28th of December this year, the band are currently donating all the pre-sale proceeds from the track to a local police officer in their hometown of St. Louis, Missouri who is currently having some devastating health issues. It’s a moving and brilliant act of charity, and another fantastic reason why you need to hear the band right now. Head on over to their official Bandcamp page now to pre-order the track.
It’s all too easy to wax lyrical about Echoes From Ashes, and they’re without a doubt one of favourite discoveries this year. Rather than getting too carried away through, we’re simply going to let the band’s work speak for itself, because after all, Echoes From Ashes are a band whose sound can’t just be read about, it needs to be heard, felt, and truly experienced. Stream their debut EP in full below on Spotify and find out just what we mean.
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