How a band that's been around for over a decade made its mark on deathcore, metal, and the hearts of thousands.
Lorna Shore is in no way a new band. Formed in 2009 during a time we fondly look back on as the scene heyday, it would be unfair to say they were ever unpopular; on the contrary, they were a household name if you were part of a very specific type of household.
In short, they were popular enough in a not-so-popular scene. Deathcore was never intended for the masses; rather, it's proudly touted as the antithesis of what the masses should crave. Brutal metal thrives in the heady fug of smoke-laced bars and sweaty underground mosh pits, all flying limbs and hair and bands scrawled on half-smudged flyers, each logo resembling some sort of Rorshach test.
This is why it's so astounding that Lorna Shore went where no deathcore band has gone before: the Billboard Top 200.
When frontman Will Ramos joined the band in 2021, their three-track EP And I Return To Nothingness caused enough of a stir online – especially their single, To The Hellfire.
The short collection of tracks gave us a taste of 28 year old Ramos's unique vocals, the harsh gutturals and pig squeals rumbling from the depths of this sweet young dude sounding unlike anything anyone, deathcore fan or not, is likely to have heard before.
Whilst Lorna fans of yore have been extolling the virtues of the band for over a decade, new fans were drawn in by the new frontman's talent, personality, and stage presence. It seems to have been the perfect storm, with Ramos finding his footing quickly alongside his equally-talented bandmates Adam DeMicco, Austin Archey, Andrew O'Connor, and Michael Yager.
Since the reformation of Lorna Shore with Will at the forefront, the band has seen nothing but stark success. They recently embarked on an international tour with Aussie metalcore kingpins Parkway Drive, and are set to return to stages later this year as part of a stacked lineup with Carnifex and Chelsea Grin.
But what about the record, and more specifically the Pain Remains trilogy, sets them apart?
Simply put, the band found a way excavate something many deathcore bands haven't had the stones to even approach: emotion.
Sure, metal is no stranger to emotion in the form of venom-spitting anger and societally-fuelled frustration. Ballads are even a common offering for melodic metalcore or hard rock outfits, so it's not to say that no metalhead has ever had a heart before hearing the Pain Remains trilogy.
That being said, it's not every day that a blackened deathcore record brings you to tears, complete with the characteristic brutal, distorted vocals and rapidfire drum kicks that make the genre so divisive even among fans of the wider metal scene.
It's not only us who got all feelsy watching the tragic three-part symphonic deathcore epic. Reaction videos in their droves have amassed on YouTube, with total metal newbies sharing their experience of watching the music videos for Dancing Like Flames, After All I've Done I'll Disappear, and In A Sea Of Fire for the first time.
In a scene historically tilted more towards men rather than women (though these numbers have rebalanced over time) and with the long, ugly history of the vilification of male emotion in male-centric spaces, Pain Remains has given a lot of older members of the heavy music community some very important moments for catharsis and reflection.
The trilogy is a prime example of the transcendent power of music. It isn't just a feat of the genre; it's a total game-changer, proving that there is space in the scene for true emotionality and an unexpected space in the world for deathcore.
Listen to Lorna Shore's latest album Pain Remains on Apple Music, Spotify, and Amazon Music.