Hello Rockstars! Today’s Artist of the Week is Alternative Rock band Newslang!
Here’s their story in their own words, enjoy! 🙂
All Photos by: Fair Shot Media.
VMS:
“When did you start writing and performing your music.
What’s your backstory and current lineup.”
Newslang:
Our lineup is:
Phillip Seaton – Vocals/Guitar
Justin Truitt – Drums
Drew Morris – Guitar
Matt Graham – Bass
“The first song that I (Phillip) wrote for what ended up being Newslang was “So Long” in 2022. That ended up turning in to quite a few more songs which ended up becoming the album “More or Less” plus some unreleased songs.
Justin (drums) and I have known each other for a long time and have been in multiple original projects together. This came up from us reconnecting and sparking some creativity.
Worked together for about 2 years before Drew (guitar) and Matt (bass) in 2024.”
VMS:
“What artist or bands inspire you and your sound.”
Newslang:
“Difficult but great question… in my opinion – the newest thing we (songwriter/writers in general) write – is a culmination of everything we’ve ever listened to and resonated with. For instance, some people have said we remind them of Smashing Pumpkins… I never grew up listening to them, other than what was on the radio or popular as I was growing up.
To answer your question, everything from Queen to Zeppelin, Deftones to Tchaikovsky, Talking Heads to Prince, Radiohead to the Cure and lots in between.”
VMS:
“What’s your writing process and inspiration for your lyrics.”
Newslang:
“Usually it’s a musical inspiration – written on the guitar typically – starts with a melody for me then I try and find the lyric that sounds best phonetically (lol).”
VMS:
“I love your songs “Devil in Me”, “So Long”, “Hatespeech” and “More or Less”. What is the inspiration or story behind these songs.”
Newslang:
“Thank you for the kind words! “Devil In Me” was written in multiple stages. Originally the opening chords and that melody and lyric were the first thing. And separately I had the riff idea and then thought maybe they’d sound cool put together, so I tried it and it worked! One thing led to the other and the song was finished. Fairly unconventional format – which I like about it. It’s fun to play live too.
Listen to “Devil In Me” on Spotify:
“So Long” was, like I mentioned earlier, the starting point for what became the band. I bought a used guitar from someone local, and the verse was really the first thing I played. Went and recorded it – wrote the chorus a few days later.
Listen to “So Long” on Spotify:
“Hatespeech” is just a fun silly song about self-deprecation. Hopefully in a light way. But also has a spirit of – you’ll always be the bad guy to someone when you’re doing what’s best for you – and that resonates with me. This song was written fairly early in the bands music life.
Listen to “Hatespeech” on Spotify:
“More or Less” combines heavy guitar tones and drums with classical’ like chords. I wanted the guitars to sound like tremolo violins. The subject matter is kind of layered but the main idea is sometimes we can be too close to see what’s good for us. Sometimes it’s hard to see the forest through the trees. Whether it be from our own lack of mental acuity or outside things – sometimes it’s best to take a step back and take a breath.”
Listen to “More or Less” on Spotify:
VMS:
“Tell me about your Album: “More or Less”. What was the inspiration and process of writing it.”
Newslang:
“Honestly it was more so because I just felt like we needed to release it.”
Listen to Newslang on Spotify:
VMS:
“Which local artist would you like to work with and why.”
Newslang:
“There’s a local group called “Cloudchaser”* they have a super cool sound. Never met them and I don’t know them other than through Instagram. But I dig their vibe and hopefully we can book a show with them at some point – I think we would have an overlap of fans.
Vegas is full of great talent and we are honestly excited to work with all of the artists who are in vegas and vibe with our music.”
*These questions were done in April, and Newslang just did a show with Cloudchaser on June 7th at Area 15. 🙂
VMS:
“What’s your overall theme or message of your music.”
Newslang:
“Great question… I think mainly a sense of self-awareness. Being genuine to how you feel, right here – right now.”
VMS:
“Do you have a favorite song that you like to perform.”
Newslang:
“Hmmm, a brand new one called “Breathe” and another new one called “Maybe”… from the album, “Matter ‘19” and “Tragedy”.”
Listen to Newslang on Spotify:
VMS:
“Do you have any crazy or interesting stories from working in the music scene.”
Newslang:
“Nothing too crazy. Life is full of crazy people. I’ve played music – essentially my whole life. At one point it’s what I did for a living – now I do it because I feel like I need to for me.”
VMS:
“What does the future hold for Newslang.”
Newslang:
“Hopefully bigger and better shows! We’ll be releasing singles throughout the rest of 2025 that we’re preparing for.”
VMS:
“What do you want your audience to feel and experience at one of your live shows.”
Newslang:
“A sense of familiarity and newness. Seeing a cool band play live songs and if the band resonates with the songs, the right people will resonate with the songs as well.”
VMS:
“What have been your personal pros and cons of being a band here in Las Vegas. What do you think the scene could improve on and what are your hopes for the future of the Vegas Music Scene.”
Newslang:
“Mostly pro’s. Many great people in vegas. I think one thing it could use is way more all-age, free shows. I think the younger generation is really yearning for real music, not just music created in laptops or played from laptops.
I hope the vegas music scene creates a real culture and sound. I don’t think vegas has a real sound yet. It’s still finding its voice. Vegas has been a transient town for a long time, I think that’s slowly changing, but we’ll see.”
VMS Thoughts:
What I appreciate about Newslang is that wonderful 90’s Alternative rock vibe I get from their sound, but they still manage to make it fresh and stay true to themselves as a band in the process. With lyrics about love, loss, self-reflection and self-deprecation, I feel they have a little bit of something for everyone. Musically, you can tell they have been playing for awhile, between being incredibly solid musicians, with every one bringing something unique and fresh to the table, you can tell that they are not afraid to play with their musical influences in their songs to create a more unique, real and ethereal sound sometimes.
It’s easier to explain when I write these by simply how their music made me feel, since that is I feel more an honest analysis of an artist’s music. Personally, I love that one song can make me feel so much joy and hope, then jump right into longing and sadness in the next song. They truly take me on a beautifully complex ride and I truly feel you need to listen to their Album “More or Less” to fully understand them as a band. But I feel that way about all these artists, so I hope I can encourage you to listen to this truly unique and amazing band.
I am excited to see where the future will take Newslang, I know they are hard at work right now in the studio and will be releasing new music in August, so stay tuned for that! I’m genuinely excited to see the musical evolution of this band. I feel they have already started so incredibly strong, and I cannot wait to hear the next layer of their journey.
For More Information about Newslang, follow them on Instagram!
—-VMS 🙂