“I think in this EP, as opposed to the last one, you can hear a bit more of that anger, especially within my vocals and my lyrics. I showed the lyrics to one of my friends and they told me that’s probably the meanest thing I’ve ever written.”
The state of the world is hardcore. And with their newest EP Slowly Conditioned, Orlando’s Watts is rising to the occasion. Released by Armageddon Records last week, the record erupts with a primal roar before locking into a rhythm that is both punishing and meditative. In short, the record rips, and is a natural progression for the band whose Retribution was chosen as Orlando Weekly’s Best Debut Album of 2024.
When we talked with Watts, vocalist Brielle Sandrine, bassist Chrissy McKeever, drummer Dakotah Walker and guitarists Nickolai Rushka and Ash were gathered outside creative dive Audubon Park’s Stardust Video & Coffee. All members of Generation Z, Watts is born from an underground scene their band is actively shaping.
Watts’ origin story is interwoven with another fast-rising (and OW-featured) local band, 0 Miles Per Hour. Though distinct sounding, the two bands share members, and a community of young artists putting Orlando on the map.
Sandrine shares the details, “I met them in high school, going to 0 Miles Per Hour shows, and being a fan … I was bored in college, wanted to do something and I was really getting into punk and hardcore, and so I said, ‘Might as well start a band.’”
“We were supposed to be more of a straight-up punk band when Brielle hit us up,” says McKeever. Walker acknowledges the evolution towards hardcore was a collective one: “We all kind of got into heavier music together.”
That evolution seems to be the state of the nation, too. Hardcore continues to be driven by the underground, but increasingly storming the mainstream, with bands like Turnstile and Knocked Loose playing bigger and bigger stages. But for Watts, it all starts at home.
“Heavier music has been becoming more mainstream in general, but I think Orlando has really made a name for itself,” says Walker.
Gearing up for their release show and a tour alongside daily obligations and the heaviness of the world is no easy feat. Watts are wholeheartedly DIY, a practice rooted in both principle and necessity that Sandrine knows well. “I’ve just been screen printing and making buttons,” says Sandrine, “renting a van, figuring out where we’re staying.”
In addition to their release show at Will’s Pub, Watts will be criss-crossing the south with stops in Georgia, Louisiana, Alabama, Tennessee and Texas. McKeever notes their stress, but adds, “This is the first one we’ve booked ourselves … and we’re playing in a lot of cities we’ve never been to, which is really exciting.”
A sentiment shared by all bandmates was deep admiration for their peers. Throughout our conversation, they named several bands in the hardcore scene as sources of inspiration.
“I don’t think if we hadn’t gone on that tour with Gasket that our last song on the EP ‘Tether’ would exist,” says Rushka. “That song is so Gasket-coded … I take a lot of inspiration from my friends and it’s a very inspiring thing to see
other people thrive in music.”
With their music, the band veers from the personal to the universal.
“Cathartic, meaning like, therapeutic, almost,” Sandrine says. “My lyrics come mostly from a very personal place, like how I’m feeling in a specific moment, how somebody’s made me feel, how the world around me is kind of evolving or changing.”
“I think there’s a lot of things to be angry about right now, in this country and in this state,” McKeever concludes. “So, I think it could be a reflection of that.”
Get with the new sound Wednesday.
7 p.m. Wednesday, June 18, Will’s Pub, $15-$22.
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Young Orlando hardcore band Watts release thrilling new album ‘Retribution’
This article appears in Jun 18-24, 2025.