Sometimes, the damage lingers long after the bruises heal. “I wrote the book on disconnecting from the world when I’m afraid / I camouflage all my emotions like you taught me yesterday,” sings LYLVC‘s Alyse Zavala at the start of “Heirloom,” the new song from the Raleigh, NC six-piece, premiering here on HollywoodLife. The band – Alyse, Oscar Romero (rap vocals), Cam Gillette (keyboard & synths), Kenny Kaval (bass), Seth Morgan (guitar), and Ryan Powell (drums) – delivers an emotionally-fueled anthem for those who are doing their best to keep it together despite all the demons living behind their eyes.
“Heirloom” sees LYLVC (pronounced “lilac”) weave together elements of metal, emo, hard rock, and nu-metal to create an electric experience. One doesn’t need to have gone through similar experiences to realize that LYLVC is bearing their soul on the track, making a song that is both hard-hitting and intimate at the same time.
“Writing my lyrics for ‘Heirloom’ pushed me into a vulnerable place where I was forced to face my trauma. I wanted to embody the full sensory experience in the lyrics of what it is to be afraid of someone you love,” Oscar Romero tells HollywoodLife. “When we recorded at West Valley Studios, Mike Plotnikoff did a great job of creating a space for us to fill with the energy of this song and really bring those emotions into our recording. I confronted my demons with ‘Heirloom,’ hoping to create something others could connect to.”
“This song was really hard to write,” adds Alyse Zavala. “I grew up in a really abusive home and tried running away multiple times, got thrown in detention homes, etc. The people that we love and trust the most sometimes can be the worst monsters behind closed doors, so as kids, we build up these imaginary walls to protect ourselves. But when we grow up, we find that our walls are so high that we aren’t even afraid of humans anymore.”
“What messes us up the most now is the voices in our heads,” she continues, “the personal demons and insecurities we have to fight every day. Music helped me stay alive. I fought death because lyrics made me not feel so alone in my pain. I hope ‘Heirloom’ can help someone else with personal childhood trauma not feel so alone too.”
“Heirloom” follows “Perfect Drug,” the title track of the band’s new EP. “Perfect Drug” finds LYLVC’s audience wanting more, as the Scott Hansen-directed video for the song has already surpassed a million views in the first month of its release. The band will take these songs on the road in late June, hitting stops in Illinois and the Mid-Atlantic reason. Check here for dates and details.