Over the last several years, high-energy rock ‘n’ roll group S8NT ELEKTRIC have carved a name for themselves as one of Los Angeles’ most thrilling rising acts as they refuse to abide by the standards or labels set before them. Adamantly living life by their own rules, S8NT ELEKTRIC are no strangers to death-defying stunts and unrelenting fury, devoting themselves to truly living off the edge. Through their latest single and music video, “TAR,” the band strongly encourages listeners to do the same.
“TAR” is the band’s latest single to arrive ahead of their upcoming debut album OFF THE EDGE, slated for a late 2025 release. Initially released on on June 4, today the band share a revised version of “TAR” featuring contributions from famed guitarist Eric Steckel.
In the song’s music video, S8NT ELEKTRIC perform their gritty new single while high-speed drift cars circle around them. A dangerous stunt in itself, this might be considered nothing compared to the band’s previous single “XTC,” whose music video portrays the band skydiving. With every new project, the L.A. rock group continues to push further and further, unafraid to ride full-speed into the unknown.
Composed of Bri Carbajal (vocals), Niko Tsangaris (lead guitar), Sinner (guitar), Harrison Forsythe (bass) and Trey Baker (drums), S8NT ELEKTRIC keep this adrenaline-fueled attitude throughout all aspects of their artistry, maintaining an upbeat and infectious musicality the band describes as “pop metal.” Hailing from a city known for its historically infamous and influential rock ‘n’ roll scene, S8NT ELEKTRIC are keeping the danger once affluent throughout rock music’s landscape alive, using a rebellious attitude to ignite conversations surrounding mental health and self care.
A song about overcoming your anxiety, “TAR” has been a live show staple for the band, and serves as a visceral glimpse into what S8NT ELEKTRIC has in store for their upcoming debut record and this new era. Following the single’s release, the band’s founders — Bri and Niko — sat down with Melodic Magazine to discuss the turbulent response to their new single, their local music scene and just what it means to live OFF THE EDGE.
I wanted to ask about the response to the new single “TAR.” A bunch of people are really arguing about the genre of the song and the band, which was honestly very unexpected. What your guys’ thoughts on the response to the new single?
Niko: It’s been surprising. It’s kind of interesting. There’s a lot of positive about it too, and there’s people that think it’s cool. But yeah, we don’t fit exactly into a metalcore box or a pop-punk box or a hard rock box or a metal box, you know? The way we approach music is that we both like pop music a lot, and we also both like really heavy stuff. So in an effort to make our new thing and find something that best describes what we’re doing, we called it “pop metal” thinking that that wouldn’t piss anyone off. But it definitely pissed a lot of people off (laughs). And they can’t even all agree on what they think we are. So we just had 20 comments of 20 different genres like, “No, you’re nu-metal. You’re pop-punk. You’re this.” But if we said we’re those genres, then we’re going to piss all those people off. So it’s like, what are we supposed to do?
You can’t win, clearly. I love the song’s music video as well. It’s obviously not your first video where you all are doing extreme stunts, but I was wondering how that idea for the music video came together.
Niko: To be honest, I don’t remember exactly how it came up. I know Bri had brought it up at one point. Then we went to our drummer’s wedding in New Mexico, which is where he’s from, and one of his friends who is with the drift car community kind of brought up the idea as well. So I don’t know exactly where it came from at first, but he’s like, “Why don’t we get all these drift car drivers? I can hit up my drift friends and we can all go around you.” So after that, we’re like, “Okay let’s do it.” And we came back a couple months later and we were able to pull it off. It was so much fun and they’re so good at driving, and they’re just such fun people too. So we had a great time.
How difficult was it to perform the song while all these cars are driving around you? I imagine that’d be a little intense.
Niko: It definitely was intense (laughs). It was a pretty exhilarating, but in a weird way. They were so accurate that it felt very safe. It didn’t feel scary, which is strange.
Bri: Before we even got onto the track, they went on the track and made marks with their tires at the vicinity that we needed to stay in. So it was pretty cool. I think if you watch it from the aerial views you can kind of see there’s only tire marks in certain areas and where we are is the safe zone. So it was really cool and really fun.
In the video before that, “XTC,” you were all skydiving. Clearly you all will do anything for a music video (laughter). Without giving too much away, are there any other extreme stunts in the future? Are there any that are off limits?
Bri: We have done that and then we’ve done smaller stunts. For a reels feed we went bungee jumping. It wasn’t anything for a music video, but we put “XTC” over it. It was something really small for us to do, just to kind of have. So it was really fun. But for our next song that’s not “TAR,” it’s definitely going to be super fun. We’re still going with that theme; I think it’s our most high production video we’ve done yet. We’re super excited because our goals always elevate with what we do. And there will be a lot of physical fighting involved (laughs).
Hopefully not amongst band members (laughter). You mentioned another single coming up, and “TAR” comes ahead of your debut album OFF THE EDGE that’s coming out later this year. Without giving too much away, what’s in store for the album? What’s the overall theme or message?
Bri: OFF THE EDGE and us doing these stunts came from a really interesting time in me and Niko’s life. We had just lost some friends that we thought were friends and really cared about them. It made us take a step back and realize what we need to do that we’ve always wanted to do, instead of just being held back with ideas and no’s and negatives. We want to just keep pushing, and off the edge came from that….A lot of people in life, they’re so afraid to take the next step. They’re living on the edge. And we thought, there’s always living on the edge, but they’re not living off the edge. And maybe living off the edge might sound like a negative, but for us it’s taking that next step and jumping off into the unknown and really learning how to be a better person and take care of yourself. We’re not trying to promote doing crazy stunts to change your life. It’s more of like, “How about you take that one mile walk in your neighborhood that you been wanting to, but you’re too afraid to because it’s all in your head?” So that’s basically what this album is about and what we are.
I was also curious about your local music scene. Los Angeles has such a historically iconic music scene and a currently thriving rock music scene, and I was wondering how Los Angeles has impacted or influenced the band?
Bri: I can’t be speaking on the other band mates’ opinions, maybe we all agree, but at the very beginning of the band, maybe it influenced us. But this past year and a half to two years, I don’t really feel like it’s influenced me, quite honestly. I definitely feel like we’ve strayed away from this ’80s classic rock sound. I’m not saying that’s all of L.A., but for the Sunset Strip, the majority of it, and the people that we used to hang out with, that was the biggest theme. And I think that’s not what we really wanted at the end of the day. Because I listen to EDM, house music, and country — because I’m from Texas. And Niko will listen to alternative music like Young the Giant, Ghost, U2, Smashing Pumpkins, all that type of stuff. And I think that for him, and he could answer this since he grew up here, so obviously it has positively impacted him. But for me, I didn’t grow up here. It was just whatever I found online or what was on the radio back home in Texas.
The band has this overall message of encouraging people to step outside of their comfort zone, as well as this message of rebellion and non-conformity. “TAR” talks about overcoming anxiety and mental health struggles, and I was wondering how you two might view addressing your mental health as something rebellious?
Bri: I’m not saying everyone is like this in L.A., but the people that I ran into or who were around L.A. when I first moved here didn’t understand emotions. And I was really fortunate enough to grow up in a family who’s very emotional. It was a very big culture shock for me and moving to L.A. really messed up my mental health. And I think that in that way of rebellion or non-conformity, I do believe there are people who do talk about mental health. And I think for me and as we go along, because I struggle with a lot of things, I feel like talking about it and being vulnerable about it is definitely a form of being rebellious. I also feel like being a woman in rock, you need to be tough and be hardcore. That’s not who I am. I feel like a lot of bands talk about mental health, but do they really act on it and do they really show that it’s important? We want to be a band that’s not just about music. I want to get to a point where you don’t have to like my music or me as an artist, but you can like what we stand for.
Niko: I think this album and how we view things is kind of a rebellion to. What I’m used to from being in the L.A. music scene is, everyone had mental health issues, but the way to handle it is you take a ton of pills and you get high and you do cocaine all the time and you act like an asshole. That’s how people handled it. And I hated that, and those people did not impact my life in a positive way. It used to be rebellious to say, “Okay, I’m going to go and live this lifestyle of excess.” But that was the norm here. So for me, I’m actually going to be happy and work out and be healthy and enjoy my life. That’s my rebellion against this toxic culture of hiding your feelings and drinking your feelings away.
Going back to what Bri mentioned earlier about being a woman in rock music – as a female artist and as a femme-fronted rock band, how has your experience been in pursuing the music industry?
Bri: I think it really depends on what scene that you’re in. I’m very fortunate enough and I’m very blessed to have this as my first band, but I was kind of going into the fire. I didn’t really think about what I was doing. I’m happy where I am with it, but it’s been a lot. I think since I wasn’t known, no one knew I really sang, and I was really finding my voice at the time. No one would say hi to me first at certain concerts but say hi to everybody else in the band. And then once I was done performing they would come up to me and be like, “Whoa, I didn’t know you could sing like that.” It doesn’t happen as much anymore, but I’ve had a lot of mean people towards me just because I’m a woman. And I’ve gotten some serious hate messages about my body, about my race. I’ve had interviewers before who misconstrue what I’m saying, make this whole yellow journalism thing and then say I don’t deserve being in this band. There are a lot more negatives than positives sometimes, but I would say I’m really trying to navigate through it (laughs), and I know it’s only going to get worse as we continue to grow. I can’t just assume that people are going to be super nice. I definitely feel like it sucks sometimes, but it’s really helped me develop this tough skin and to know it’s not me. It’s other people just forcing their insecurities or jealousies or anger.
Well and what’s more rebellious than having all these people leave these horrible comments and then just doing your thing anyway? That’s really inspiring too. You talk about this growth that you’ve had, and I feel like with the debut album coming it’s kind of symbolizing this growth that the band has had over these past few years and this new era. With all these new exciting things happening, what are some goals that the band has?
Bri: I have a book called the S8nt Bible. It’s all these things that we’ve done since a few months before “XTC” came out. That’s when we really found we live off the edge. And I had this book, and we have the list of all the crazy things, all the stunts, everything I’m going to do and all of our goals too. But I definitely feel like we’ve been fortunate enough to go on tour every year and learn how to sing better. So that was really cool. But I’d say definitely touring more, playing more festivals. For me, I love singing and I love doing music, but I would say one of the goals for us is to really inspire people to live off the edge. It’s inevitable that as you go, you’re going to play more festivals, you’re going to do shows, you’re going to want to have your own headline show, that is obviously the goal that every musician wants to do. But for me, my goal is to do more than just that and, I don’t know, maybe do seminars and talk about what “off the edge” is and really have that be a thing, or do marathons in the name of this band and donate all the money to a charity.
Niko: The cool part I realized with the drifting video is that by doing that, it’s a sick music video, but we also got the opportunity to collaborate with people doing really cool stuff that are not really showcased as much as other things. We realized we do music, and we can collaborate with people who drive monster trucks or are cliff diving, and it’s really fun for both of us. We both get something out of it and we kind of highlight each others’ talent. So that’s one of my goals with the band is to collaborate with more really cool people doing cool stuff that I think is really interesting. We’re really inspired by this YouTube channel Yes Theory. They’ve really inspired a lot of the concept behind this band, and the way their content makes you feel is really magical. And concert wise, Ghost has really inspired us. Because you just leave the concert like, “That was the coolest fucking thing ever.” And it just makes you feel good.
What’s your biggest advice for listeners on how to overcome their own fear?
Niko: I think I would say that knowing that fear is a natural part of it. Even executing these ideas and stuff, I’m scared shitless doing it. I’m always scared of doing the stuff that we end up doing, and it always feels really uncomfortable and very uncertain. For me personally, I’ve learned to take that as a sign that I’m doing something good. That’s a good sign that I’m actually doing something really cool and it’s taking me places. I’m like, “Oh my God, I’m having the best moment in my life right now because I took this leap and I didn’t understand where it would take me.” I guess I would say know that the fear is inevitable, and that’s going to happen. We’re human beings, and as long as you go through with it, it’ll be worth it, no matter where that leads you. Even if it turns into a failure, there’s something to learn from that and there’s a reason that that happened to you.
Bri: I think that for me and my personal experience, it does take time sometimes to feel comfortable to overcome any fear. I listen to a lot of podcasts and really crazy motivational speakers, it just helps me. And I try to really cheer myself on even when it’s hard. Something that’s helped me is saying, “The position that I am right now, if I go for it, how am I going to be in the next five years? What is the future Brianna going to be look like? What is she going to think like?” Four years ago is when I wanted to start this band, and in the four years I’ve become this person, I’ve done so much stuff that I never thought I would do, just because I took that risk. I didn’t even know how to sing at the beginning. I never sang really. But I didn’t let that hold me back. I kept going, and now I’m very happy that I kept going. Something that’s very important that people should realize is a lot of people put fear onto your own dreams when they have never done it or they’re just afraid themselves. So that’s what I would say, is just go for it. Because fear is just another emotion, just like happiness, anxiety, sadness, but we can’t let those emotions hold us back. You just kind of have to roll with it, you know?
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