US / UK cybergrind-meets-hyperpop band Thotcrime are set to return this summer with their third full-length, Connection Anxiety, due out on August 16 via Prosthetic Records (pre-order here). Closing old wounds and opening the dancefloor, Connection Anxiety is a defiant act of jubilation and self-celebration in a world that can oftentimes feel at odds with joy.
The band’s penchant for genre-fluidity is very much still intact on Connection Anxiety, with Thotcrime’s collaborative approach to production and writing pulling in influences as far reaching as 90s warehouse rave, J-rock and J-metal, electronicore and pop. The full-length follows the members’ debut US touring throughout 2022/2023, which also saw the first time they actually met as a four-piece in person, and a newfound confidence in the group.
We asked the band about some releases that have influenced them and Thotcrime…
Photo credit: Crimebird Creative
Electric Callboy – Tekkno
Les Beaux Plastiques (producer):
For me, it’s always very refreshing to find a band that makes the electronics part of the sound and use them as part of a unique identity, not as a metal band with synths or an electronic group with guitars, but really make them part of a whole. Tekkno really shows how to do it. Breakdowns seamlessly moving into drops, riffs giving way to euphoric breakouts, and polished pop vocals alongside layers of screams. It’s a large part of how I decided to approach writing the new album and it influenced a lot of the mix and production ideas we ended up using.
Bring Me The Horizon – POST HUMAN: NeX GEn
Hayley Elizabeth (vocals):
When I started writing my lyrics for the new record, the album was almost pretty much finished. I had a hard time trying to figure out what to write, because Connection Anxiety was finished at a time where a lot of change happened to me all at once. I ended up listening to the singles for Bring Me The Horizon’s new record on repeat, specifically LoST and Kool-Aid at my old dead-end job, trying to hold onto hope. I loved how Oli sounded, continuing all the vocal trends he was doing on Amo and That’s The Spirit. It is kind of weird the record was finished right before this album, but It ended up being the biggest influence for me.
Fear, and Loathing in Las Vegas – All That We Have Now
Melody Jane (guitar):
I think this album was, for me, one of the biggest reference points for what I wanted to do with Connection Anxiety. The way the band blends huge breakdowns and guitar riffs with dance beats and big supersaw synth lines won me over immediately on my first listen, and they’ve become one of my favorite J-rock bands. I remember sitting down to write the piano melody that became ‘Behind the Cracks’ right after listening to this record.
