Ethereal Metal

Ryan Murray | Co-Owner | Chief Editor | Contributor | Photographer

r.m.music84@gmail.com

There are bands whose legacy lives comfortably in the past, preserved in the memories of the fans who were there the first time around. Then there are bands that manage to take everything that made them matter in the first place and drag it unapologetically into the present.

Saosin has always belonged in the second category.

More than two decades after emerging from Orange County’s post-hardcore scene, the band has entered a new chapter with the return of vocalist Cove Reber, a new partnership with Sumerian Records, and their first new music in more than a decade. Their comeback began with Starting Over Again, but if that title suggested a clean slate, their explosive new single Just Be Honest makes it clear that Saosin aren’t interested in pretending the past never happened. They’re interested in what comes after it.

Just Be Honest arrived September 10th as a darker, more confrontational follow-up to the band’s return, transforming betrayal and the search for closure into something considerably heavier. Brooding melodies give the song an immediate sense of tension before Saosin’s signature combination of intricate guitar work, massive dynamics, and emotional urgency takes over.

And at the center of it all is Cove Reber.

His return to the band has been one of the most significant pieces of Saosin’s resurgence, and “Just Be Honest” offers another reminder of why that reunion carries so much weight. His voice brings familiarity without making the song feel trapped in another era. There’s history in the performance, but there’s also a sense that this version of Saosin has unfinished business.

That distinction matters.

When a band reunites with a beloved former vocalist, the easiest route is to recreate the past. Saosin appears far more interested in rebuilding it.

Guitarist Beau Burchell says the song immediately felt different when it first came together.

“We knew there was something special about ‘Just Be Honest’ from the moment of its inception,” Burchell explains. “It had that rare feeling early on where you just know a song is going to matter on an album.”

That feeling only intensified once Reber’s vocals entered the equation.

“Hearing Cove’s vocals on it for the first time confirmed it, and then Phil’s leads gave it that extra push,” Burchell adds. “The whole thing blossomed into something bigger than we imagined.”

That chemistry is arguably the most exciting part of Saosin’s current era.

Burchell and guitarist Phil Sgrosso handled production and mixing on “Starting Over Again,” establishing a creative foundation for the band’s next phase. With bassist Chris Sorenson and drummer Alex Rodriguez completing the lineup, Saosin have assembled a version of the band that can acknowledge its history while refusing to simply live inside it.

And apparently, they weren’t even planning on letting fans hear “Just Be Honest” this soon.

“This is really just the beginning of a much bigger body of work for us, a whole new era,” Burchell says. “We weren’t planning to share anything this soon, but we got so excited about where the music was heading that we couldn’t sit on it any longer.”

That last sentiment may be the biggest takeaway from the new single.

Saosin aren’t acting like a band cautiously testing the waters.

They sound hungry.

That hunger has already carried them well beyond the studio. Earlier this year, the band began bringing their renewed live show to audiences around the world, with performances across New Zealand, Australia, Southeast Asia, and the United Kingdom, including an appearance at Slam Dunk Festival.

The next phase brings the celebration home.

Saosin will launch their U.S. SELF-TITLED 20th Anniversary Tour on October 23 at the House of Blues in Anaheim, with the opening night already sold out. From there, the band will cross the country for a massive run that includes stops in Tempe, Albuquerque, San Antonio, Dallas, Houston, New Orleans, Nashville, Raleigh, Sayreville, New York, Worcester, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Buffalo, Detroit, Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Denver, Salt Lake City, Boise, Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, and San Diego.

Several dates have already reached capacity, including Orlando, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Denver, while New York’s November 7 appearance at Webster Hall is down to low tickets.

And for a band celebrating a 20-year-old self-titled album, the timing could hardly be more appropriate.

Saosin’s self-titled full-length became one of the defining releases of its era, building on the momentum of the band’s early work and cementing a sound that balanced soaring melody with technical precision and an almost volatile emotional intensity.

That combination became a calling card.

Saosin could be delicate without becoming fragile and crushing without sacrificing melody. Their songs could move from atmospheric restraint to explosive guitar-driven chaos in seconds, creating the kind of emotional whiplash that made their music resonate far beyond the confines of post-hardcore.

The Cove Reber era became particularly important to that identity, producing some of the band’s most enduring material, including the gold-certified “You’re Not Alone.”

But nostalgia alone doesn’t explain why this return feels significant.

There’s a difference between celebrating what a band once was and discovering that the chemistry that made it special can still exist years later.

“Starting Over Again” established that possibility.

“Just Be Honest” pushes it further.

The new single carries the weight of everything that has happened since Saosin last released new music, while simultaneously sounding like a band that has no interest in making excuses for the time away. There’s something appropriately cathartic about that. A song born from betrayal and a desire for closure becomes a fitting soundtrack for a band reopening a chapter that many fans probably assumed was permanently closed.

Except this time, the story is being written with the benefit of everything that came before.

That is what makes Saosin’s current return more compelling than a simple anniversary celebration.

They have the history. They have the songs. They have a fanbase that has spent years keeping that history alive.

Now they have new material.

And based on what Burchell is saying, “Just Be Honest” may only be the beginning.

Saosin have occupied a singular space in post-hardcore for years, building a legacy around musicianship, emotional immediacy, and songwriting capable of connecting with listeners across generations. Their influence has remained remarkably visible even as the band stepped away from releasing new material.

Now, with Reber back behind the microphone and a revitalized lineup moving forward under the Sumerian Records banner, that influence is being turned into momentum.

The result is a band that doesn’t sound content to simply recreate the soundtrack of someone’s youth.

They sound like they’re adding another chapter to it.

“Just Be Honest” is bruising, melodic, emotionally charged, and unmistakably Saosin. More importantly, it leaves the door wide open for whatever comes next.

And judging by Burchell’s comments, there is plenty more coming.

For a band that has already spent more than 20 years proving that unfinished business can become something powerful, Saosin’s next era may be their most interesting one yet.

The anniversary tour may be celebrating where they’ve been.

The new music is making a pretty convincing argument for where they’re going.

Saosin SELF-TITLED 20th Anniversary Tour

10/23 – Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues SOLD OUT
10/24 – Tempe, AZ @ The Marquee
10/25 – Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theater
10/27 – San Antonio, TX @ Vibes Event Center
10/28 – Dallas, TX @ House of Blues
10/29 – Houston, TX @ House of Blues
10/30 – New Orleans, LA @ House of Blues
10/31 – Pensacola, FL @ Vinyl Music Hall
11/1 – Orlando, FL @ House of Blues SOLD OUT
11/3 – Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl
11/4 – Raleigh, NC @ The Ritz
11/6 – Sayreville, NJ @ Starland Ballroom
11/7 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall LOW TICKETS
11/8 – Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
11/10 – Philadelphia, PA @ Brooklyn Bowl SOLD OUT
11/11 – Baltimore, MD @ Nevermore Hall
11/13 – Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom
11/14 – Detroit, MI @ The Majestic
11/15 – Chicago, IL @ House of Blues SOLD OUT
11/17 – Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave II
11/18 – Minneapolis, MN @ The Fillmore
11/20 – Denver, CO @ Summit Music Hall SOLD OUT
11/21 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Complex
11/22 – Boise, ID @ Knitting Factory
11/24 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo
11/25 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
11/27 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Novo
11/28 – San Diego, CA @ SOMA