By Mike Musilli |
New Jersey’s Chemical-X is gearing up for the release of its second LP, Is This Tomorrow?, due out June 20 via Creep Records. The band will hit the road in July for a full U.S. tour in support of the release, continuing a DIY work ethic that has already taken them across the country multiple times over the past five years.
Today, No Echo is premiering “Going Through the Motions,” one of the standout tracks from the forthcoming album. The song captures Chemical-X’s high-energy approach to punk while delivering a pointed critique of the expectations placed on young people entering adulthood. Blending breakneck tempos, memorable melodies, and a relentless sense of urgency, “Going Through the Motions” showcases a band that has spent years refining its sound while remaining firmly rooted in punk’s tradition of social commentary.
According to guitarist Jaden Mangino, Is This Tomorrow? reflects both the band’s musical growth and the frustrations that inspired the record’s lyrical themes.
“The album is, more or less, just a representation of the evolution of our sound from our last release to the current day,” Mangino tells No Echo. “We play fast, tight hardcore punk that wears the influence of our heroes on its metaphorical sleeve. We grew up listening to bands many consider classics, and we try to offer a fresh take on the punk style they blazed.”
Beyond the music itself, the album serves as an outlet for the band’s observations about modern life and the pressures that come with it.
“Is This Tomorrow? is our vocalization of the frustration we deal with in our everyday lives,” Mangino says. “The conversational points in each song’s lyrics are meant to be as relatable and relevant to the listener as they are to us in the band.”
That perspective is especially evident on “Going Through the Motions.” Drummer Scott Mangino says the song was inspired by the rigid expectations that many people his age grew up with and the disappointment that often followed.
“‘Going Through the Motions’ is a song about my disenchantment with the idea of following a set path in life, which was drilled into so many children’s heads when we were growing up in the early 2000s,” he explains.
“The idea that we each needed to have our futures figured out by the time we’d graduated high school: college figured out, career plan in motion, degree on the way, and a job lined up waiting for us.”
Mangino believes many people from his generation were sold a vision of success that failed to match reality.
“I always thought it was absolutely ludicrous to ask so much of someone who still has absolutely no real-world experience whatsoever,” he says. “The after-effects of that idea falling through can still be felt by me and millions of other people my age who did what they thought they were supposed to do and now feel like they were scammed as a result.”
The song’s message ultimately comes down to rejecting a life that feels predetermined.
“I don’t want to live my life feeling like I’m just another cog in the machine when I feel like I’ve got something to say.”
Musically, Chemical-X aims to deliver those themes through songs that are immediate, energetic, and packed with details that reveal themselves over repeated listens.
“We try to present our songs in a way that kind of involves you, as the listener, in just turning off your brain and letting the nuances of each song wash over you,” Jaden says. “The riffs are heavy, the bass lines carry the main melodies, and the songs themselves move by you so quickly that there’s a need to just listen to them over and over again.”
That commitment to intensity extends beyond the studio. Since forming, Chemical-X have built a reputation through constant touring and a determination to do things on their own terms.
“We’ve been at this for five years,” Jaden says. “We’ve booked three month-long U.S. tours and at least six or seven separate smaller two- or three-week runs entirely independently in the effort of trying to spread our message and show people that the art of putting on a great show doesn’t need to rely on specific tropes. We try to be the best musicians we possibly can be and put on as energetic a show as possible.”
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Is This Tomorrow? will be out on June 20 via Creep Records.
Chemical-X on social media: Instagram
Tour dates:
07/08- Newport, KY
07/09 – Milwaukee, WI
07/010 – Minneapolis, MN
07/11 – Chicago, IL
07/12 – St. Louis, MO
07/13 – New Orleans, LA
07/14 – Houston, TX
07/15 – Austin, TX
07/16 – Denton, TX
07/17 – El Paso, TX
07/18 – Albuquerque, NM
07/19 – Shiprock, NM
07/21 – Flagstaff, AZ
07/22 – Phoenix, AZ
07/23 – Anaheim, CA
07/24 – Los Ángeles, CA
07/25 – San Jose, CA
07/26 – Oakland, CA
07/28 – Portland, OR
07/29 – Tacoma, WA
07/30 – Spokane, WA
07/31 – Pocatello, ID
08/01 – Idaho Falls, ID
08/02 – Grand Junction, CO
08/04 – Ossian, IN
08/05 – Akron, OH
08/06 – Detroit, MI
08/07 – Philly, PA
08/08 – Rutherford, NJ
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