SeeYouSpaceCowboy haven't abandoned their MySpace scenecore roots, but their new album Coup de Grâce is so much more than that.
The record, released on Friday, April 19 by Pure Noise Records, takes just as much inspiration from jazz, dance punk and emo pop.
All of those influences were filtered through a baroque cinematic lens that's deeply indebted to Panic! at the Disco's 2005 album A Fever You Can't Sweat Out. That makes a lot of sense, since both records were produced by Matt Squire.
Guitarist Ethan Sgarbossa broke down the record that fuses jazz, dance punk and emo pop with the band's signature scene metalcore sound.
"It was really nice to meet your heroes," says SeeYouSpaceCowboy's guitarist Ethan Sgarbossa, who's trying to break into ghostwriting and production in his downtime between tours and recording sessions.
"I've definitely been taking a lot from what he's doing and seeing how I can apply that to what I write," he adds. "I learned a lot about vocal melodies and harmonies… He's so good at that."
The Panic! influences are particularly evident on "Sister With a Gun," which has a vocal riff that sounds strikingly similar to one in "Lying Is the Most Fun a Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off."
There are also clear traces of Fever in the album's vintage cabaret-themed music videos. Vocalist Connie Sgarbossa (who's also Ethan's sister) said the entire album was crafted around this visual concert.
She added that the soft departure from the band's previous sound was intentional.
"We really just wanted to play around with everything that we could," Connie says. "The worst thing you could do is make an album that sounds the same."
The siblings started SeeYouSpaceCowboy in their native San Diego in 2016. The band is named after a phrase that appears in the end title cards of the anime Cowboy Bebop.
The group's early lineups also included bassist/clean vocalist Taylor Allen and guitarist Timmy Moreno, who both returned ahead of Coup de Grâce after several years away from the band. Ethan says Moreno's love for jazz had a big impact on the record.
So did the features from Nothing Nowhere, Kim Dracula and Courtney LaPlante of Spiritbox are also a big part of the record. Connie managed to secure most of those features by reaching out via social media.
None of those artists are quite as integral to Coup de Grâce as Iris.exe, who Ethan describes as the album's "narrator." She's also worked with the Acacia Strain and Vatican.
The singer appears on the strikingly cool and calm piano-centric track intro track "Allow Us to Set the Scene" and a similar mid-album interlude called "Respite for a Tragic Tale."
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SeeYouSpaceCowboy is currently in the middle of its tour with Better Lovers, Foreign Hands and Greyhaven. But when Ethan spoke to Q the band was still preparing the trek. He was a little bit nervous about how these softer tracks would be perceived live.
"It's those soft parts in a set that are the most vulnerable," Ethan says.
The guitarist also remembers how he and Connie were first introduced to punk music by their father. They then branched off in their own directions.
Connie remained focused on punk and also developed a soft spot for indie rock. Ethan was more interested in metalcore and grindcore.
"I kind of skipped my scene phase. I was just in my brutal kid phase," he says.
These days the siblings have very similar tastes in music. The band has also strengthened their brother-sister bond, which Ethan says their parents love.
"Not a lot of siblings have this kind of relationship," he says. "We have our moments where we have our sibling rivalries, but for the most part we have gotten along for the past decade we've been doing music."
Check out the tracklist for Coup de Grâce below:
Allow Us To Set The Scene
Subtle Whispers To Take Your Breath Away
And The Two Slipped Into Shadows
Red Wine And Discontent
Lubricant Like Kerosene (ft. Kim Dracula)
Respite For A Tragic Tale (ft. iRis.EXE)
Silhouettes In Motion
To The Dance Floor For Shelter (ft. Courtney Laplante)
Rhythm And Rapture (ft. nothing,nowhere.)
Sister With A Gun
Chewing The Scenery
Curtain Call
Here's a full list of SeeYouSpaceCowboy's upcoming tour dates below:
Fri, April 19, 2024 Off Broadway St. Louis, MO
Sat, April 20, 2024 Bottleneck Lawrence, KS
Mon, April 22, 2024 Launchpad Albuquerque, NM
Tue, April 23, 2024 191 Toole Tucson, AZ
Wed, April 24, 2024 Brick By Brick San Diego, CA
Sat, April 27, 2024 Sick New World 2024 Las Vegas, NV
Mon, April 29, 2024 Goldfield Trading Post Roseville, CA
Tue, April 30, 2024 Hawthorne Theatre Portland, OR
Thu, May 2, 2024 Knitting Factory Concert House Boise, ID
Fri, May 3, 2024 El Corazon Seattle, WA
Sat, May 4, 2024 Rickshaw Theatre Vancouver, Canada
Mon, May 6, 2024 The Starlite Room Edmonton, Canada
Tue, May 7, 2024 Dickens Calgary, Canada
Thu, May 9, 2024 Exchange Event Centre Winnipeg, Canada
Fri, May 10, 2024 The Aquarium Fargo, ND
Sat, May 11, 2024 Fine Line Minneapolis, MN
Sun, May 12, 2024 Majestic Theatre Madison, WI
Tue, May 14, 2024 Pyramid Scheme Grand Rapids, MI
Wed, May 15, 2024 The KING of CLUBS Columbus, OH
Thu, May 16, 2024 Rum Runners London, Canada
Wed, June 26, 2024 Tons of Rock 2024 Oslo, Norway
Tue, July 9, 2024 Rescue Rooms Nottingham, United Kingdom
Wed, July 10, 2024 Thekla Bristol, United Kingdom
Thu, July 11, 2024 Upcote Farm Cheltenham, United Kingdom
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