Emotional, melodic hardcore band NO HOPE emerged from Bendigo, Victoria, sparked by the collective desire of a pack of friends to return to performing live. With members Nicholas and Jacob engaged in another band, Saturnine, it had been over a decade since Sean and Shane had been active musically. Influenced by the mid to late 2000’s hardcore, the band solidified its lineup after a few initial shows didn’t pan out with the original members. Nicholas switched to vocals, and Jacob took over the bass, setting the stage for the current NO HOPE lineup.
Their journey began in earnest at Yeehaa Studios, a regular rehearsal spot that incidentally led to their first live opportunities. Mick, the owner of the local venue Trash Cult, caught one of their sessions and offered them a spot to perform.
This break helped them get their music out there and led to a recording session in January 2024. They later signed with Set The Fire Records, finding a supportive home for their wild mixture of heart and angst. (learn more about their story right after the track by track commentary below)
NO HOPE released their debut demo on May 31st. Today, we’re stoked to give you a special track by track rundown, offered by vocalist Nick Hand and guitarist Sean Coughlin.
In terms of the local hardcore scene, Bendigo doesn’t have a bustling hardcore scene, making NO HOPE a standout.
However, nearby Melbourne boasts a thriving hardcore community, providing a stark contrast and a bigger platform for the band. This blend of isolation and community influences their music and performance ethos.
“The local hardcore scene in Bendigo is virtually non existent besides us and our friends in Abreact, there are other great bands that range in genre in town such as Alarms, saturnine etc, aswell as a great little venue called Trash Cult, without it there would be no alternative / left of centre live shows in Bendigo. They have everything from noise acts to hardcore shows and everything in between so thank you to Mick and Lorelle!” – says the band.
“2 hours south of Bendigo is a completely different story, Melbourne hardcore scene is thriving and has way to many great bands to list. Australia on a whole is killing it in the genre.”
NO HOPE draws heavily from the mid to late 2000s hardcore scene, citing influences from bands like Carry On, Modern Life Is War and Have Heart.
However, their take on melodic hardcore isn’t just a retread of past styles; it’s about capturing the energy of live performances and the camaraderie of sharing their creations with friends and show goers. The essence of their inspiration comes from playing live, an element that fuels their creative process.
No Hope is: Nick Hand – vocals, Sean Coughlin – Guitar, Jacob Harrison – Bass, Shane Byrne-law – Drums
Check out the detailed track by track commentary below:
Shrouded
Nick: This first track is probably my least favourite on the demo, as I completely changed it the night before we recorded because the original version I had felt to punky for what we were going for.
I decided to try and write a little antiwar song because of everything that is happening in the world right now and the fact that we as humans continue to destroy and murder eachother for power and one day it’s just going to destroy the entire world if we keep going this way. I wish I had given myself more time to refine this song but it is what it is and I’m still happy with it I just wish I structured it a bit better and go my message across a bit differently and clearer
Sean: Shrouded started out as that first little intro riff, everytime I would pick up a guitar I kept playing it. so one sunday when I had the time I sat down and slowly pieced the rest together, all in all it was written pretty quickly and is one of my favourite to play live.
Guillotine
Nick: Guillotine is about mental health and substance use to mask your issues. The fact that you know you’re in a bad place and need help but not being able to confront and accept that and it took me to feel like I was losing touch with reality and losing control of my sanity before I finally wanted to seek.
Sean: this one is one that actually started life as bass parts only, that main riff that plays on its own. it sat as that for a little while until I pieced the clean intro into everything then just followed the bass really. for some reason this seems like a bit of a tip of the hat to have heart but that could just be me!
The Breeze
Nick: The breeze is quite a simple track for me because it really just represents how I feel about my life and the fact that I’ve just wasted so much time and never achieved the things I’ve wanted to I’ve just been stuck in my ways in the same two towns my whole life and it’s a love/hate relationship with them and where I am at in life.
Sean: the breeze came around in more of a jam format, I had the main verse riff but was really stuck on it, we pieced the rest of this one together in the rehearsal space then slapped the big intro onto it.
Clean intros seem to be a bit of a thing for us haha, im sure the boys are getting sick of them. As a band we really enjoy playing this one live, just one of those ones that feels good.
Hammer Head
Nick: Hammerhead is about an old friend of mine that was an addict that always dragged me into bullshit and I tried to help them but at the end of the day they just didn’t want help and kept stabbing me and other friends in the back until I finally cut ties with them and realised that they were just toxic and manipulative. Hammerhead just means heroin addict.
Sean: Hammerhead started life as something I would finger pick on my acoustic when I was sitting around home, thats where the big intro comes from. This was a work in progress that we pieced all ended up piecing together in the rehearsal space, was nameless for a long time and reffered to as the tony hawks pro skater song, not to sure why really I guess its bordering a punk rock song in places.
Abhorrence
Nick: Abhorrence is a story of suicide loosely based on some past experience of someone who was never loved the way they should’ve been and just couldn’t cope anymore and yeah I don’t have a whole lot else to say about this track I think it speaks for itself.
Sean: I think this would probably be the oldest song on the demo, we had older that didnt make the cut and which we dont play live. this is another favourite of mine to play, its simple, to the point.
This song came about really quickly as its basically the one riff the whole way through with some palm mutes and drum and bass breaks, and yet another clean intro haha.
More about NO HOPE:
NO HOPE sprang to life in Bendigo, Victoria. Their inception was driven by a yearning from seasoned musicians who wanted to feel the raw energy of live music pulsing through their veins once again. Nicholas and Jacob, who had been playing in their previous band Saturnine, teamed up with Sean and Shane, rekindling their musical pursuits after a decade-long hiatus.
Nicholas, hailing from the small town of Rochester, the same as Shane, was immersed in music from a young age, a passion that remained undimmed as he transitioned from drums to vocals, stepping up as the frontman for NO HOPE. His broad palette of influences includes bands like Defeater and Have Heart.
Sean, who grew up in the neighboring towns of Elmore and Rochester, discovered punk and hardcore through skateboarding culture. Despite an initial desire to drum, his father’s guidance steered him towards the guitar, enriching his musical influences that span genres from blues to metal.
Jacob, a Bendigo native, was drawn into music by his parents and the sounds they played on car rides. A school initiative prompted him to pick up the guitar, an instrument he has not put down since. His musical taste is eclectic, with favorites including The White Stripes and Meshuggah.
Shane’s journey into music was fueled by the needs of his friends and the influence of his older brother, who exposed him to the heavier sounds of Nirvana and Tool.
The formation of NO HOPE was a natural progression for these musicians, coming together with a shared goal to revive their presence on stage. The band’s early days were marked by lineup adjustments after a couple of initial shows.
With Nicholas taking on vocal duties and Jacob stepping in on bass, the band found its rhythm. Their rehearsals at Yeehaa Studios not only solidified their sound but also inadvertently opened the door to their first live gigs, thanks to Mick, the proprietor of Trash Cult, who happened upon one of their sessions.
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This fortuitous break led to more performances and eventually to the recording of their demo in January 2024.
Their music, a cathartic blend of personal and social narratives set against hardcore rhythms, eventually found a fitting home at Set The Fire Records, where they continue to grow as a pivotal part of the Australian hardcore scene.
