My buddy Andrew Kline recently threw on a track on his car's stereo on the way home from a show he thought I would like, and he was correct.
The song was by a band called For Closure I wasn't familiar with yet. In terms of their sound, think the sugary hooks of Doughboys and Samiam with punchy arrangements. The Los Angeles-based quintet began as a studio project comprised of veteran musicians from the local punk scene.
For Closure is fronted vocalist Gizz Lazlo—whose prior contributions include Dr. Know, U.K. Subs, The Freeze and his namesake, Dead Lazlo’s Place. He's joined by Luis Estefania (F.Y.P., Rhythm Collision, Buford), guitarist Marc Maxey (Sloth Fist, The Killing Flame, Justice League), bassist Steve Wilenkin (Life in a Burn Clinic, Dead Man’s Life, IDK), and Wal Rashidi (Jr. Juggernaut, Revolution Mother, Turning Violet).
Working with Rashidi in the Producer role, For Closure began recording sessions in the summer of 2022 that ultimately yieleded their first single, "Carousel," which will appear on their debut release, a 2-track single called Moon at Noon.
With a full-length album coming later this year, I'm pleased to bring you the premiere of the title track to Moon at Noon below to get you acquainted with the LA melodic punk outfit:
For Closure vocalist Gizz Lazlo wrote me the following about the song and its lyrics:
"'Moon at Noon' was written a few days after my dad's first major heart attack in May of 2018. I was sitting on my parent's porch while my dad lay in the hospital in a coma for 6 days. As I sat there confused and worried about what was going to happen, I needed to write something to calm my nerves a bit. Luis had sent me a demo that I'd listened to a few weeks prior.
While I was listening to the music over and over on my headphones, chain-smoking trying to distract myself, certain phrases kept coming back as I was humming melodies over the music. A few hours later I'd finished these lyrics and just left them alone as I went back and forth to the hospital trying to deal with my mother and relatives who started arriving from Mexico to see my dad. When my dad was discharged from the hospital I couldn't sleep thinking that this may happen again. About a week after my dad was home I found myself in my studio wondering what these lyrics would sound like to the music.
"I spent about an hour behind the mic recording the original demo for this song. I sent it to Luis and we instantly knew we had to record this song. It's definitely not something we usually write together. That's the thing I love about writing songs with Luis is that we both don't care what people are going to think about them. If "we" like them then let's record them.
"Everything we've written in the past few years are songs about the dark side of life. Not everything is rainbows and butterflies. As much as we want it to be, it just isn't. My hope is that whoever listens to our songs finds something that they can hold on to if they ever feel down. I grew up with songs that helped me through some tough times. Maybe, just maybe we can help someone through their personal trauma with our songs. I've been close to the end many times, but I'm still here. So I guess the best advice I can give is to. Never Lose Hope!! You are loved!"
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Moon at Noon will hit all streaming outlets tomorrow (January 12th).
Upcoming For Closure shows:
2/3 - San Pedro, CA @ Sardine w/ Cutlass Supreme
2/4 - Downtown Los Angeles @ Redwood Bar w/ Cutlass Surpreme
2/18 - Long Beach, CA @ Supply & Demand
For Closure on social media: Facebook | Instagram
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