Boston-based hardcore band MY FICTIONS — Bryan Carifio (vocals), Tyler Bradley (guitar), Seamus Menihane (drums), and newcomer Michael Russo (bass) — have signed to 1126 Records. To celebrate this exciting new partnership, the band has released the lyric video for the new single “DREAMS OF ESACPE,” which is its first offering from the label.
Recorded with Chris Teti at Silver Bullet Studios in Connecticut, “Dreams of Escape” is the most aggressive My Fictions song ever written, kicking off with a blistering blast beat and never letting up the frantic pace over its three minute run-time.
“‘Dreams of Escape’ is a song about worrying, one of my least favorite pastimes,” says Carifio. “It’s particularly about feeling anxious over wasted time and how that anxiety poisons my everyday outlook, and more importantly, how I treat the people around me. When the band sent over a demo of the song, the first 15 seconds sounded like a panic attack —in a good way, and musically— so I chased that feeling when writing the lyrics. It’s as intense a song as we’ve ever made in every way. We tracked it last year with Chris Teti at Silver Bullet and he really unlocked the song’s urgency with the production.”
Bradley concurs, saying, “‘Dreams of Escape’ feels like the perfect encapsulation of current My Fictions — as dark, intense, and chaotic as we’ve ever been but with a new sense of heaviness and groove without abandoning all signs of melody. It obviously pulls from existing influences like Converge, Tragedy, and The Carrier while borrowing touches of inspiration from bands like Misery Signals and Cult Leader. It feels good to be making music that authentically represents us and our combined interests. I’d like to think that the sonic evolution of our sound is clear but that it is an evolution and not a complete reinvention. There’s a My Fictions DNA ingrained deep in there but we’re excited to be pushing things further and not just regurgitating what we’ve done before.”
About their new label home, Carifio shares, “1126 feels like the perfect partner for the version of My Fictions we’ve been building over the past few years. Joining a roster with some of the most intense bands going right now is quite a privilege for this band. We’re excited to get to work on showing you all what we’ve been working on together.”
My Fictions began what feels like a lifetime ago — in the distant memory of the early 2010s. The band cut its teeth making noise in basement venues with ridiculous names that have been long since shut down and rented to more responsible tenants. A handful of EPs and split releases honing in the band’s aggressive and atmospheric sound preceded their 2014 full-length Stranger Songs. Their debut album served as the best summation-to-date of what has become the My Fictions formula: songs must be lyrically dense, sonically pummeling, and emotionally devastating.
Post LP 1, My Fictions played less often and faded into memory. This might have been due to the blogging site Tumblr becoming a less present force in everyday life, or possibly more related to drummer Menihane’s other duties playing in bands like Vanna and Vattnet Viskar — who’s to say. But just like processed foods or Matt Damon in Rounders, My Fictions kept, to quote Teddy KGB, “Hanging around… hanging around” — and a revitalized version of the band returned in 2021 with a six-song comeback EP. Time Immemorial brought new, heavier elements into the My Fictions sound while retaining the strange and suffocating undercurrent of earlier offerings.
This new iteration of the band followed suit by hitting the road with Massachusetts metalcore legends Overcast, Providence newcomers (and split partners) Dreamwell and New Jersey’s Hundreds of Au on separate runs. They also added bass player and former Aviator guitarist Michael Russo into the mix as a new member for the writing sessions that followed.
Depending on who you ask, the answer may vary on whether or not there was ever supposed to be a second My Fictions album. But the future’s as bright as it ever has been for the band, who have joined the ranks of metalcore tastemaker label 1126 Records to deliver a new full-length follow-up this year. Taking “Dreams of Escape” as a taste of what’s to come, expect the most intense, driven and potentially distressing iteration of My Fictions yet — they’ve got alligator blood, can’t get rid of ’em.
