Bad Omens Love Songs That Blend Metalcore Aggression With Raw Emotion

While there's no surefire way to achieve long-term success in the music business, being multidimensional often stands out as a key ingredient. Obvious exceptions, such as AC/DC, only strengthen this rule, as the vast majority of bands and artists that were more than one-hit or one-album wonders managed to find ways to keep the audience engaged and guessing what comes next.

The metalcore band Bad Omens adds depth to the genre's musical catalog in its own unique way. Their albums showcase a contrast between aggressive tracks and more tender, emotional ones, or even integrate hard and soft parts within the same song. This polarity between emotions creates a compelling journey that listeners will want to experience repeatedly.

The roots of the band's musical identity are in Richmond, Virginia. Lead singer Noah Sebastian has played in bands since he was 12, and by 16, he was also learning how to write and produce his own music. He began writing lyrics while playing guitar in a band called Immoralist, which he left in 2014 with the clear intention of starting his own. That's when he contacted his old friend Nicholas Ruffilo, and together, they formed a new musical project.

The two then reached out to another of Sebastian's old friends, Vincent Riquier, who became the band's bass player. Riquier introduced the other two to a Swedish friend of his, Joakim "Jolly" Karlsson, who joined the band as a lead guitarist and producer. The four of them still needed a drummer, and they found Nick Folio, who sent them an audition tape in which he added drums to one of the band's demos. They called themselves Bad Omens after one of their early songs, which would later be renamed to "Glass Houses."

Once the lineup was complete, the five members wrote and recorded together. They released a demo EP, which caught the attention of Sumerian Records. They signed onto a record deal, and most of the tracks from that demo were polished, rerecorded, and included on their debut album.

From the beginning, the band had the vision and ability to create songs and albums that alternated between aggressive hardcore and soft emotional moments. The key element of this puzzle was vocalist Noah Sebastian, who has the range to pull it off. His singing alternates between piercing screams and smooth, clean vocals. His background in producing also helped, as his vision was to create songs that resembled cinematic experiences, with atmospheric silence contrasting raw aggression.

The other band members also play their part in creating this special contrast. Lead guitarist Jolly Karlsson uses delay and ambient reverb effects to craft the atmospheric sounds of softer passages, and then down-tunes his guitar to create brutal chugs. Drummer Nick Folio and rhythm and bass player Nicholas Ruffilo work seamlessly together to create sudden rhythmic shifts between the quieter and louder parts of a piece.

This exploration of the full range of human emotions resonated with a wide variety of people, many of whom were completely unfamiliar with metalcore. Their 2022 song "Just Pretend" went viral on TikTok thanks to thousands of user-generated videos that included it, a clear sign that it resonated with people who didn't even know who Bad Omens was. Many of them discovered the band through this song, which the Recording Industry Association of America certified Platinum.

Creating such complex pieces of music is a deliberate process that begins with songwriting, incorporates each band member's unique strengths, and continues onto the production floor. During production, softer parts are intentionally widened and given a more atmospheric sound, while the heavy parts are compressed and made even more aggressive through studio magic. In the songs with both hard and soft sections, the two elements are usually connected via synth-based interludes, such as in "The Death of Peace of Mind," or through variations in the drumming.

As Noah Sebastian says, "That's always been the goal with this band, to expand the musical horizons of people both in and out of rock. I want people that don't listen to rock and metal to get into it because of our band, and I want people that only listen to that to get into other genres because of our band." Their soft-heavy mix enhances their crossover appeal, as their blend of vulnerability and aggression mirrors the delicate balance between human emotions and the conflict between two states of mind.

Their ability to resonate with a wide range of personalities helped them build a vibrant and loyal fanbase in a relatively short time. This is widely reflected on social media, where fans and content creators use the band's music to express a range of feelings and emotions, connecting personal experiences to Bad Omens' songs.

The band's fascinating soundscape has shaped the entire genre, with newer metalcore bands embracing both aggressive and emotional songs and elements. Bands such as Sleep Token, Caskets, Moodring, and others in the metalcore and post-hardcore space have incorporated softer, more atmospheric passages into their songs and, rather than relying on the classic verse-chorus-breakdown song structure, employ the strategy of building tension and then releasing it. Bad Omens found a way to break into the mainstream without compromising on their artistic vision.

Despite being a relatively new band, Bad Omens has made significant progress toward creating a specific niche in their genre. Listen to their discography in order and embark on a journey that will help you understand how their sound evolved from 2015 until today. Their ability to innovate and improve as musicians also makes them one of the hottest metalcore bands to watch in the future.