Past Five is a five-piece post-punk/alt-metal band from Borås, Sweden. Since forming in 2015, the band has solidified themselves as a unique and exciting force to be reckoned with! As a project started by band members in their teen years as an after-school hobby, the band has evolved into a serious career path with a focus on songwriting and delivering loud energic live shows. With the band growing up in small suburban towns, they often found themselves with little or nothing to do, so it was only natural for creativity to become the dominant way of coping with their bleak surroundings. Naturally, this has proven useful for their musical and creative endeavors.
When the band replaced their former lead singer with Jonathan Wallin in 2016 things started to become really clear in terms of the direction they wanted to go creatively. Highly influenced by the early 2000’s alternative rock and metal scene, Past Five started incorporating several genre-crossing elements to their sound while still staying true to their musical roots. During that year the band performed a handful of live shows, and they also released their debut EP Somewhere Between Serenity & Rage, which was produced and mixed by the band themselves.
The following year (2017) was devoted to more songwriting, exhaustive rehearsals and live performances which allowed Past Five to relentlessly chase the sound they were looking for. The hectic pace however did start to take a toll on some members of the band and the long rehearsals, high standards, and difficulty making time for family almost proved catastrophic if not for their sheer determination, support for one another, and love of their craft. After getting back on track, the band evolved even more in 2018 as they added another guitarist Simon Hellgren to the band.
In 2019, all their hard work started paying off when they found success in the Swedish division of the Emergenza European music festival, receiving a top 10 ranking in Sweden. Meanwhile, the band had written a bunch of fiery new material, so they connected with producer Christian Silver (Dragonforce, Arch Enemy, Soilwork) who took up the helm and shortly thereafter they entered the infamous StudioMega in Varberg, Sweden to record their next release…
The resulting EP entitled Detox. is (as the name suggests) a musical cleansing of a period of turmoil, despair, and self-destruction, which almost prevented the band from evolving in 2018. The songs address different subjects ranging from addiction to suicide, and ultimately a conquering of these toxic destructive situations and relationships. These songs are by far the darkest and most experimental the band has ever written, and with a wide variety of musical influences this EP is a large step away from their previously more pop-punk oriented efforts. With hard hitting grooves, dystopian lyrics, and heart-breaking melodies, Detox. is bound to leave few unmoved. The band quickly shopped it to a few of their favorite record labels, and within just a couple of months had lined up a deal with US-based label Eclipse Records for a worldwide release. Detox. was released worldwide on May 8, 2020 via Eclipse Records and received high accolades from press & radio alike, receiving 9/10 from Metal Temple saying ““brimming and overfilling with talent and heart” while The Metal Gods Meltdown called the album “a perfect cure to cleanse your soul” with 5/5.
It was difficult to tour during the lockdowns of 2020 though, so the band kept busy on social media by engaging with their fans and in the background, they quietly wrote new material. On February 19, 2021 they released a new single and music video, Dop(e)amine. The song is a soaring rock anthem about the will to change the world, and the consequences thereof. For now, it doesn’t seem like anything can stop this band so stick around and expect more from these guys soon!
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