Every band has to go through some hurdles on their way to success, but sometimes the hurdles come in the very early stages, leading to a dramatic bumpy start that becomes an indelible scar in the band’s history and sound. Today we’re looking at RedrumSociety and one of their hardest-fought songs to date, a masterpiece over 10 years in the making, but first, some context.
RedrumSociety was founded in 2008 by four friends in South Florida. Dylan Lerner, Esdras Raymond, Esperanzo (Espo) Wilcox, and Zach Cohen became known for hosting jam sessions with friends and girlfriends, but tragedy struck in 2009 when their bassist, Dylan, died. The band decided not to replace him and instead had Zach record both bass and guitar. Despite facing challenges, including Zach's substance abuse and mental health issues, the band continued to pursue their music career. It was in 2015 when the band came to an end as Zach moved back to Florida, but three years later, he relaunched the band with a new lineup.
After an old mentor and friend convinced Zach to relaunch the band after hearing their song "How I Cope." Zach decided to honor his former bandmates, Dylan, Esdras, and Espo, by keeping the original spirit and attitude of RedrumSociety alive. Today, RedrumSociety is made up of Zach on guitar and vocals, Andrew Platt on keyboards and vocals, Sean Chesal on drums and vocals, and Ruddy Simon on bass. The band continues to play in the South Florida music circuit, and their song "All Night" reached number 22 on the Billboard Rock charts in 2021.
This tumultuous, tortured start feels embedded deeply within the band’s DNA. This isn’t just some project and a crazy dream, there’s blood and tears up and down every note and their newest single feels hard-fought in ways very few songs do. And this is not to minimize the effort of others, of course.
‘Run From The Law’ is a song that is biographical and cathartic for RedrumSociety, it’s about a real tragedy, and the wry smirk that its edgy rock sound has feels entirely earned, like if you’re listening to something out of a mutual understanding with the artist that feels of the utmost importance, and this is a story worth reading from the source’s own hand:
“I wrote Run From The Law when I was 18 years old. At the time, one of our former frontmen and co-founder of the band had just been arrested for selling drugs, fleeing the police, and violating parole. He would later serve 9 years for the offense. I was so broken because he and the rest of the band meant everything to me. I was so sad for him and his daughter. I thought he had been doing well but I was wrong. I wrote the chorus and sang it for him while he awaited house arrest. After that, I was too sad to finish the song.” says Zach and adds “Over ten years later, the consequences of my own life began to catch up to me. I was being stalked and harassed, all while my father’s health was deteriorating before my family's eyes. Knowing full well I completely deserved the consequences, I still tried to avoid them with all of my will and my might, rather than face them. I decided to finish the song's verses and alter one line in the chorus from all of those years ago. I wanted to make the song fit a more general theme of not just literally running from the law, which is what it originally was, but also any karma or consequences one creates, knowingly or unknowingly.”
Everything in this song is bittersweet and full of a weary kind of wisdom, the heavy, stuffy beat/bass combo works very well to impose a groovy outlaw vibe, while the hazy guitar riff adds a punk-rock flavor that really drives the point home that we’re getting intimate with an outcast’s personal tragedy. Cohen’s vocals are just the right amount of grimy and sardonic, never allowing the song to dip into the sadness that kept the song from being finished for over a decade.
When the hook comes up you can’t help but fully fall in love with the vibe that these people bring to the table, and singing along is a matter of “how loud?” not if and when. Truly an outstanding track that can easily be considered an instant classic.
FOLLOW REDRUMSOCIETY
.png)
.png)
