On Aug. 30, three bands play the Comox Valley Curling Centre upstairs while downstairs, the club has its monthly roller skating party.
Dead Soft, one of the three bands on the bill, is a grunge-punk band known for their fuzzed-out, intense rock sound infused with melodic sensibility and introspective lyrics. The band’s current lineup features Nathaniel Epp (vocals/guitar), Alex Smith (drummer) and Brendan Manning (bass guitar).
“We often describe ourselves as grunge-punk, something like that grunge, pop punk (sound) that kind of oscillates between those two vibes. There is a strong grunge current running through our music,” said Nathaniel Epp.
Listening to any of Dead Soft’s songs makes the listener reminiscent of the grunge of the 90s and bands like Nirvana can be heard in their sound. But as Epp clarifies, it is hard to nail down exactly what grunge is.
“Grunge is hard to define. It was more defined by fashion than actual music because people will say band X is grunge and band Y is grunge, but the two bands don’t even sound really that similar. I think it’s pretty safe to say that we’re all pretty obsessed with Nirvana and I still think they’re an amazing band,” shared Epp.
To round out their sound, Dead Soft has taken bits of punk music, spanning from the 70s all the way to modern punk. With their lyrics running the gauntlet of personal emotions, exploration and sometimes even the dark sides of things, one may even put them under the emo label as well.
“It’s probably pretty safe to say that Dead Soft has a good number of songs that have a theme of personal emotion. Sometimes we are sort of dipping into the dark side of things a bit. It’s almost like a stream-of-consciousness, sort of poetry. There’s not a lot of literal or narrative stuff,” he said.
While Epp has a hard time deciding between loving big shows over smaller ones, the experience of a live show is powerful and Dead Soft thrives on them and finding a stand out moment can be hard.
“It is really hard to say. With touring all of the shows can almost blend together in a certain way. We played a sold-out show (with the Dirty Nil) at the Opera House in Toronto which was pretty magical. It’s a big beautiful venue and it’s always fun to play in rooms like that. By the same token, we played a house show in Saskatoon that was just a packed, sweaty basement full of crazy rambunctious energy. Those are very, very special to me,” reminisced Epp.
Smaller shows and venues make the Comox Valley Curling Centre show appealing to Epp and Dead Soft.
“I really do love a small, packed venue where the energy is so concentrated and it’s bouncing off the walls. You feel so connected to the audience. That’s a really special thing.”
There is a pull to play in Courtenay and Epp can’t believe that Dead Soft haven’t had the chance before the upcoming show.
“We’ve never played up there before, which is kind of a crime in some ways? I know that Courtenay’s had a healthy music scene for ages and for generations so we really are hoping to tap into these smaller cities on the island and throughout Canada. We’re really looking forward to playing some new places like that. A new community and meeting new people.”
The Dead Soft set promises to deliver a heavy vibe despite their songs being melody-driven.
“Be prepared for some loud and heavy but catchy and fun rock and roll music,” says Epp.
Dead Soft has a new album coming out soon; it will be their third full-length album and with all the chaos in their personal lives, it is ready to roll out.
“It’s completely finished at this point. The preparations for the release have been a little bit slower, as I mentioned, having a baby recently. It’s hard to do it all but we’re trying. We just shot a music video a couple of weeks ago and we are in the process of preparing to release this thing. It is definitely my favourite.”
Epp says that Dead Soft is hoping for a Spring 2026 release date for the album.
“I feel really proud of it and I’m really excited to share it.”
Dead Soft are joined by Electric Brains (Powell River) and KCAR (Vancouver) for this triple bill of summer cool.
The show is all-ages, licensed with ID. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased here: . Doors are at 6 p.m.
