Militarie Gun
Militarie Gun Credit: Nolan Knight

“Do I sound distorted to you?” Ian Shelton, lead vocalist and songwriter of punk band Militarie Gun, is in his home in Los Angeles. He’s relishing the last few days before another tour, spending time with the people he’ll miss while on the road and writing songs. This morning, he’s hoping to finish a new Militarie Gun track.

“I’m always writing music, every interview starts almost identical to this,” he tells Orlando Weekly. “If I’m home, I am sitting in this exact position. This is the only thing I care about, really in the world, so this is what I do every day.”  

The band — Shelton, guitarists William Acuña and Kevin Kiley, bassist Waylon Trim and drummer David Stalsworth — are touring cross-country, this time supporting punk stalwarts Joyce Manor. Founded in 2020, Militarie Gun have two albums under their belts: Life Under the Gun from 2023, and last year’s God Save the Gun. Both are standouts, with the band claiming their space in the hearts of fans across the world, captivating listeners with a blend of hardcore, punk and pop — not to mention raucous live shows and lyrics that blend sincerity and cynicism. 

Shelton is, in his own words, a chronic oversharer. In using songwriting to dissect his life, he taps into universal truths that resonate with listeners of all walks of life.

“I couldn’t make impersonal songs. I’ve tried,” he says. “I’m more cynical even about my own position in life and whether or not any of that actually matters, because your actions are really all that matters. At the time of making God Save the Gun, I feel like my actions were not great. … It’s a tough balance of constantly trying to unpack why I feel something or why I did something, and then also just being like, ‘Yeah, you’re an idiot.’” 

Shelton has seemingly lived many lives, with gigs in screenprinting, truck-driving and delivery driving, to name a few. It’s not been an easy journey, though he credits all these episodes to shaping the artist he is today: practicing by singing along to Strokes records while doing deliveries; having a friend shepherd him through the entire Beatles discography; growing up with his stepdad lovingly teaching him the backstory behind every one of his beloved 1980s hair metal bands.

“He loves, like the worst shit,” jokes Shelton. “I’m the product of so many people. I’m just a sponge, and I’m very influenceable. And I think about so many people in my life who showed me important bands that then I took and ran with.” 

It’s that wide range of influence paired with a punk ethos that explains Militarie Gun’s draw. They offer a compelling sound that is hard to define and an attitude fit for misfits of all stripes.

For Shelton, music is just as much about how it makes you feel as how it sounds: “In high school, getting to go to Ceremony shows and scream, ‘I’ve got problems, I’m a fucked-up kid,’ is probably one of the most meaningful things that I’ve ever experienced. That communal rage, that communal hurt, being channeled all together. That’s what I think this is at its finest.” 

On community-building, Shelton emphasizes the harms of divide-and-conquer tactics and the necessity for class solidarity. “I try to approach the world open-heartedly,” he says.
“I think our biggest problem is that communication has been broken down between all normal people, and that is a tool of the rich. I think that it’s about loving your neighbor.” 

Despite his West Coast roots, the songwriter has more Florida stories than you would think. 

“My earliest memories … I lived outside of Tampa, and I know that I stepped in a pile of fire ants and they engulfed my entire body.” Shelton laughs about one of the many things that almost maimed or killed him as a child in Florida. 

And then he introduces a new one. “I really want to do ‘B A D I D E A’  in a police station, and I feel like a Florida police station could be a great place to get an insane interaction … or a good way to get my ass beat on camera.”

Welcome (back) to Florida. 

Joyce Manor, Militarie Gun, Teen Mortgage, Combat: 6 p.m. Monday, March 16, House of Blues, Disney Springs, Lake Buena Vista, orlando.houseofblues.com, $47.

Orlando’s daily dose of what matters. Subscribe to The Daily Weekly.

This article appears in March 11-17, 2026.