zero trust’s debut is an epic hardcore rallying cry

“there has been no time
more obvious than now
there has been no cause
greater than this.”

While many of us have struggled to be creative during the pandemic, a whose who of veteran NYHC and NJHC bands has spent the down time assembling into a super-group. The newly minted Zero Trust boasts members from Coheed and Cambria, Bulldoze, and Full Scale Riot, with a sound as deep as their resume. On Zero Trust’s debut EP, firebrand vocalist BJ Allen leads the charge, delivering vocals that are sharp and dynamic. Over the space of a single measure, he jumps from metal virtuosity to a bone-rattling death growl to anthemic and melodic. In true NYHC style, Allen’s lyrics are all about unity. On “Birch,” his vocals seek to unite the oppressed in solidarity against the system, reminding us in the track’s epic breakdown that there is far more that unites us than that divides us. With clips of last summer’s Black Lives Matter actions interspersed with the band’s powerful performance, the video captures the summer’s spirit of revolution: rage, passion, and possibility.

BJ Allen describes lead single “Birch” as being “about exploring the part of your mind that knows the whole system is against you, while also knowing that if humanity were to be unified, civil and just we would be in a much better position.”

Follow Zero Trust on Instagram at @zero__trust