B-Side Guys

From Denver’s neon-lit venues to Fort Collins’ basement shows, Colorado’s underground music scene has always thrived on collaboration rather than competition. The New Year Split 2025, featuring Summer of Peril alongside Overhang and Creek, exemplifies this spirit, with “Poison” emerging as a standout track that bridges post-hardcore intensity with shoegaze textural depth.

Recorded at Swadley Studios under Jared Barnes’ guidance, the production perfectly captures the duality of Summer of Peril’s sound. The mix achieves remarkable clarity without sacrificing the wall-of-sound dynamics essential to both shoegaze and post-hardcore genres. Barnes’ understanding of these seemingly contradictory requirements results in a track that feels both massive and intimate.

The arrangement demonstrates why genre boundaries mean less in Colorado’s current scene than they did a decade ago. “Poison” moves fluidly between crushing intensity and ethereal passages, creating dramatic tension without feeling forced or formulaic. This natural flow suggests a band more interested in emotional authenticity than genre conventions.

What’s particularly striking is how the track maintains its identity within the context of a split release. While sharing sonic DNA with its compilation companions, “Poison” carves out its own space through distinctive dynamic choices and textural elements that set Summer of Peril apart from their peers.

The band’s decision to participate in this three-way split speaks to the collaborative nature of Colorado’s current musical moment. Rather than rushing out a solo EP, they’ve chosen to position their work alongside other local innovators, creating a snapshot of a scene in constant evolution.

“Poison” suggests that Summer of Peril, like many of their Front Range contemporaries, understands that innovation often comes from synthesis rather than revolution. They’ve taken familiar elements and reconfigured them into something that feels both grounded in tradition and refreshingly current.