In a Daze: LSD and the Search for God at the Catalyst
By DJ Ratz There are moments of bliss, brief flashes when I am consumed by the sound of music. My sense of my body dissolves and the pain in my heels dissipates and nothing is on my mind; it is…
Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Silence: A 25-Year Retrospective
By Mariela Fritz I love post-hardcore. Bands like At The Drive-In, Title Fight, and The Mars Volta rule every single one of my Spotify playlists. The genre itself originated in the mid-1980s after hardcore punk’s explosion in popularity a decade…
Revereberations from the 90s: Built To Spill at The Rio Theater
By Maddox Conrady The nineties gave birth to a whole lot of things, from aggressive and angsty nu metal to big beat electronic music sweeping through the UK. As time has passed, we have seen certain influences, sounds, and aesthetics…
“The Only Band That Matters”: The Hellp & Riviera Album Review
By Peyton K. When people describe their musical project as "the worst thing [they've] ever done in [their] life", it doesn't allow much hope that their music will be worthwhile to listen to. The Hellp, however, is a special case,…
Inside the Ultrasound: Lorde at the Moda Center
By DJ Ratz An icy blue laser hits center stage as smoke machines cloud the air. Lorde, in all her holiness, appears as “Hammer”, the first track off her latest album, Virgin, blasts through the speakers. The reverbed vocal…
Geese Shreds to a Sold-Out Crowd at The Fillmore
By Serafina Holzer and Amelia Foster PRE SHOW On October 28th, DJ Foz and DJ Key were killed by the power of rock. The up and coming Brooklyn-based band Geese performed to a sold-out crowd at The Fillmore this past…
The Song is Over: A Farewell to The Who
By: Ashley Watrin On Wednesday, October 1, at Acrisure Arena in Thousand Palms, California, iconic English band, The Who, bid a final farewell to their North American audience on the last stop of “The…
First Day Back Sells Out Hometown Show @ The Catalyst Atrium 9/24
Since their debut album in June 2025, First Day Back has shot into emo stardom. Pulling from 1990s second-wave emo influences (think of Braid, Algernon Caldawalder, Jejune, and Cap’n Jazz) reveals First Day Back’s revival of—and listeners’ interest in—this specific…
Rain-Soaked Flyers and Backyard Goodbyes: An Interview with First Day Back
Written by Claudia Aguilera Santa Cruz band First Day Back released their debut album Forward on June 1, 2025, earning support from listeners drawn to their distinct sound, which nods to the 90s emo bands that shape their influences. With raw,…
A Deep Dive Into the 2025 2nd Wave Emo Revival, Ft. Talks with Stitching and Milkcrate Merch
By Peyton K. Every so often, a subgenre will seem to be revived out of nowhere, with new bands creating music that brings you right back to tunes from the genre’s conception. Over the past few years, I’ve seen…
Straying From The Expected: An Interview With Abbeys Garden
By Amahli Vivian Back in June this year, I interviewed Abbeys Garden, an alternative emo band based in Las Vegas. As they prepare for an upcoming record release, we talked about preparing for live shows, skateboarding, music influences and more! Abbeys…
The Beauty of So Long Little Miss Sunshine by Molly Tuttle
By Kyler Salameda With the release of Molly Tuttle's lastest album on August 15, 2025, she begins an exciting new musical journey. The genre of the songs in "So Long Little Miss Sunshine" is labeled as Singer-Songwriter, and when listening…
Chico Tunecrafters: An interview with Caught in a Flood
By Amahli Vivian and Peyton K. On June 5th, Caught in a Flood played at Subrosa in Santa Cruz during their mini-West Coast tour with Dahlia Cross. During their brief time in town Peyton K. and Amahli Vivian were lucky…
An Evening in Seattle with Kaitlin Butts and Sierra Ferrell: Interview and Review
By: Alex Lund On Sunday, July 20th, I attended the magical opening show of Tacoma/Seattle's newest outdoor music venue, Dune Peninsula at Point Defiance Park. Headlining was the always whimsical Sierra Ferrell with the support of alt-country singer-songwriter Kaitlin Butts…
Alex G, The Real Thing
by Bugs On Friday, July 18, 2025 we the people earned a reprise in the form of Alex G's new record release, Headlights. As I'm sure his other longtime fans can agree, this album perfectly balances his iconic sound that…
Why You Should Listen to Moisterizer by Wet Leg
By Josie Katz The first time I heard Wet Leg’s “Wet Dream”, I couldn’t help but think I had just heard the perfect intro to a song with a drum fill. When Rhain Teasdale’s vocals came in, I realized it…
Like, You Know: An Interview with Destroy Boys 4/5/25
Earlier this year on April 5th, hours before the last show of their west coast tour, Destroy Boys singer Alexia Roditis sat down with KZSC behind The Catalyst. They talked about the power of a platform and various song tidbits…
“We’re repurposing it for our own sake”: An Interview with Sex Ed
By Amahli Vivian About a week before their show at SubRosa Community Space on June 5, I interviewed Sex Ed, an electroskramz band based in the North Bay Area. Sex Ed creates a sound entirely their own, pulling influences from…
KZSC on the Phone With Tropa Magica
KZSC's Lady Deed interviews psychedelic-cumbia-punk band Tropa Magica about their new album and ongoing tour for Para Bailar y Tripiar, what they like about Santa Cruz, and more ♫
The Sound of San Francisco Emocore: An Interview with Junipero
By Amahli Vivian Last week, I interviewed the San Francisco based emocore band Junipero. We chatted about music influences, band name origins, upcoming music plans, the live music scene in the Bay Area + San Francisco, and what defines emo…
2025 Alternative Music Releases: What’s Stood Out So Far
By Peyton K. 2025 Alternative Music Releases 5 months into 2025, I want to reflect on all the exceptional music released this year. From the first day of this year, new and old bands have dropped singles, EPs, splits, albums,…