Son of Deni never stays in one place for too long. What started as an emo/screamo math-rock project has stretched into jazz, hip-hop, fusion, and whatever else they feel like pulling into the mix.
Their new single Family Care, dropping today, is another shift—melancholic, intricate, and built on restless guitar patterns and jazz-influenced harmonies. It carries that weight of longing for home, of distance that never really closes, wrapped in math-rock precision and atmospheric textures.
That same push for change runs through their last album, for Friends & Family, a record that came together in phases—some tracks dating back to before Sporty, others reshaping the band’s entire approach.
There was a clear break from screamo roots, an obsession with layering and rhythm, and a drive to see how far they could stretch their sound without losing themselves.
It’s an album where jungle-inspired drum loops collide with anime-style choruses, where Lil Peep-influenced production experiments sit next to intricate live arrangements.
There were moments of creative breakthroughs, like working with DyoN Joo on clean vocals or building a song from a TikTok snare reference, but also internal struggles—half-finished demos, a drummer stepping away mid-process, a scramble to reconstruct what was left.
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What emerged was their most varied release yet, one that both challenges and defines where they’re headed next. A full track-by-track breakdown of the album is available below. Check it out and see how it all came together.
Sea Sick (feat. DyoN Joo)
The initial ideas for the album came about even before Sporty was released. We wanted to experiment with clean vocals. Thanks to @gizzmoix, we managed to get in touch with DyoN Joo, who recorded guest vocals for us.
The track itself was written using our old method: I brought a few riffs to rehearsal, we worked out some variations, played it live, tweaked it a bit, performed it again, and kept adjusting until it felt right.
We finished recording it entirely back in February. Initially, we planned to release it in early spring alongside Snowly, but the recording of the second track got held up. In a way, you could say this is the last song by the „old” son of deni
Snowly (feat. Eli’s Ladder)
The instrumental part of the song was written alongside Sea Sick. We really wanted to create a catchy chorus, and it was around this time that I made the final decision to move away from screamo music and lean even further into a more instrumental direction.
As a result, we spent a long time searching for the right vocals to create a true anime opening. There were many options—we have at least 3–4 different versions of the chorus—but in the end, Veta helped us record the final vocals.
Tokyo Drift
Starting with this track, we completely reworked our approach to songwriting. The main focus was to create a solid song without worrying about how we’d perform it live.
The biggest challenge was with the drums. For the demo, we used a set of samples—something totally out of character for us—but we wanted to maintain the jungle vibe in the rhythm section, like you’ve just launched Mario Kart and got stuck on the main menu screen.
Californication
Around this time, we started facing some internal difficulties within the band. While our intense focus on the material led to much closer collaboration with Roma, our drummer Vlad was becoming less and less interested in the process.
As a result, we found ourselves in the middle of recording the album, with a bunch of demos but no recorded drum tracks.
Thankfully, we got the chance to work with @nemahaianton, who completely reworked our drum parts and showed us an entirely new perspective on what the drums could be.
Broken cats Leg (feat. Miłosz Pieczonka)
The main hook for this track had been in my head for quite some time, but I could never find a place for it—it felt too “metal,” so to speak. Then, at one point, we attended a show by the band USO 9001, and the very next day, I put together the first demo of this song.
I wanted to replicate their approach, where you have a straightforward, single-layer guitar loop with lots of things happening in the background. However, we needed a different instrument for the solo. Instead of trying to come up with something, I reached out to Milosh (a member of USO 9001), and he agreed to contribute.
The drums became a separate inside joke. Jan, also from uso, helped us with them, using this TikTok as a main reference. (We wanted the snare to be truly unpredictable.)
Space Hunters + Ending (feat. Burial Etiquette)
On the recording, this was originally one track, but we split it so Spotify would log the release as an album.
This track was the last one we worked on, and the first part reflects the sound and approach we ended up with by the finish line: live, intricate, catchy drums (also written by Anton), lots of movement in the guitars, and an attempt to create a chorus without vocals—something that would stick in your head.
The second part, on the other hand, is pure experimentation. We pitched the idea to Jacob to record a song in the style of Lil Peep, where the “guitar” is actually an up-pitched bass, and the “bass” is a down-pitched guitar.
