As the first month of the new year comes to an end it is more than apparent that many of our local bands are planning to take the year by storm. Among them is the Christian deathcore/metal band, Toarn who released a new video for their song ‘Jonah’ on January 26th. This is the first song off of their upcoming album The Dying Flame.

One thing that is true about the human experience as a whole is that we all struggle. We struggle with depression. We struggle with acceptance. We struggle with confidence, with love, hate, anxiety, sin. Identity is such a huge part of who we are because, well…it identifies us, doesn’t it? On the surface that seems so vague, really. But identity goes deeper because what we show on the outside isn’t always what we are on the inside. Then there are times when those lines get muddied and we can’t remember anymore; Are we the King or the pauper? Do we really love, or are we actually hateful? Are we good? Or are we really the monster in the shadow?

Not all of us struggle with our identity, but for those that do, ‘Jonah’ is a song we can grasp onto like an anthem for the days when confusion leads. Those times when we feel like a little kid caught trying on their parents’ grown-up clothes, like we don’t belong in this place that we somehow find ourselves in. Mikey Smile’s lyrics bring us into the dark struggle while his guttural tone and soft whispered voice lead us through the contradictory emotions that swirl inside us at our weakest moment.

Even if we can’t see it in the moment, we have hope.  You see, “there’s a mind in the darkness, that only light can ignite. So ignite the flames in my soul. Get me out of this endless hole. I am Jonah. Take me home.”

Toarn’s Redemption Tour with Deathbreaker kicks February First at 10:05 in Olympia at Le Voyeur. If you can’t make that, they’ll be tearing down the coast, hitting Nevada and Utah before shooting through Idaho and back to Everett. Seriously, if you can’t make anything, make the Everett show. They’ll be closing out their tour at Tony V’s with AVOID and with those three bands in one venue, that’s not a show you want to fucking miss (Unless you’re me and sadly stuck in the hellhole of Texas).

The Dying Flame – Available February 23
PREORDER HERE