Meet Town Destroyer

Today we’d like to introduce you to Town Destroyer.

Town Destroyer, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Town Destroyer is a collective of sad souls searching for a place to vent. We began as a 3-piece back in October of 2015, consisting of Angelo, Arturo, and Mark.

At the time, we had two songs – “Transient” and “Dismantle” – and we entered the local music scene headstrong. The humble beginnings always make me smile. We recorded our first two singles in Mark’s apartment closet.

Honestly, those are some of my favorite songs, tonally speaking. Arturo mixed and mastered our first single, “Transient,” in a 48-hour window, and we released it on May 10, 2016. Our response was loud enough to notice that we were doing something right.

Amongst the community, one individual noticed we were in need of a drummer. Insert Matthew: the most rambunctious, spontaneous, member at the time. He really put a spin on our songs and made them his own. I enjoy our recordings, but his live performance is one of the integral cogs that pulled our fan base closer. Fast forward to July of 2016.

Our second single, “The Terrible Nothing,” was released and we performed in Dallas, Texas for the first time. To this day, I do not know how to properly express the feeling of being known in a place you have never been. The community eased our anxious selves as the night exploded. People were understanding the passion we put into our art. They knew our music, and we will always be grateful for that first night out of our hometown bubble.

The rest of the year was spent playing shows and networking. We were introduced to a guy named Pablo, who put us on the first annual No Sleep Fest – two days packed with local love. The venue was simply a room called The Clinic. To a lot of us local acts, this residence was dubbed a second home.

February of 2017 rolled in, and we decided to release our debut EP, “Petrichor,” along with a music video for our song “Afterthoughts.” We were notorious for doing everything at the last minute but always completing the task. Our deadline for the EP was no different.

2018 was a quiet year for Town Destroyer. A lot of time was spent deciding if the band was able to continue after hurricane Harvey. Despite the hardship, we released one single, “For Your Eyes Only.” This song was unexpected by the general public due to its change of pace. However, every time we play that song the room becomes still. The song is almost completely spoken-word, and I feel like our message is truly received.

Currently, we are a new, strong, fully-membered lineup. Angelo does vocals, Arturo plays guitar, Cassidy slaps the bass, and Christian keeps us together with the drums. Thank you for anyone and everyone who has ever supported Town Destroyer in any way. We are here because of you.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The Curse:
Town Destroyer’s major challenge to recover from was hurricane, Harvey. What a disaster! Houston is no stranger to hurricanes, but none of us expected it to hit as hard as it did, as individuals and as a whole. Arturo lost his house and could no longer continue with the band. A chunk of our new merchandise was also lost due to the flood and neglect. A lot of people lost everything, and it has taken this long for us to finally find our footing again. Recently, Arturo rejoined the band as he also found stability. That familiarity is welcomed and appreciated.

Natural occurrences happened over time, and we have had our fair share of member & management turnover. Dubbed by Matt, this was the Town Destroyer Curse. So much potential with no one to consistently help deliver. The future for the band was dim. Still, the music persevered, and new members found their way to keep things in movement. At the end of it all, I would much rather have the team I have currently – that understands the vision for Town Destroyer – than a team that simply mimics the genuine emotion expressed in each song.

We’d love to hear more about what you do.
The band is specified into a genre of rock and roll called melodic hardcore. It is not about how heavy the music is, but about how dynamic we can be. These songs have meaning, and the message is received from each city we have played in. The contrast is black and white. Town Destroyer definitely has heavy songs, but we also have more easy-going tunes.

Overall, this creates an atmosphere. Typically, you do not feel a single emotion throughout the day – feelings fluctuate. That expression of ebb and flow is what we strive to capture instrumentally. That is what sets Town Destroyer’s dynamic apart from the rest.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
Oh, yeah! We have a lot of future plans in the works:

Contact Info:

• Website: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3o1hmFvcloaqOVjcz9YxPJ
• Email: TownDestroyerBand@gmail.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/TownDestroyerTX
• Twitter: twitter.com/TownDestroyerTX
• Facebook: facebook.com/TownDestroyerTX

Image Credit:
Kevin Phan, Chase Jackson, Lisandro Sanchez, Chris Burgess, Darnell Frazier Jr.

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