Written by @bryce
Intro
For the first time, I’m writing about a band that’s not just a favorite of mine. This time, it’s a band that was actually recommended to me by the band themselves. On February 16th of 2024 I was reached out to through my contact page by Passioncat. They’re a brand-new punk rock band out of the Chicago suburbs formed in May of 2023. The core members are guitarist / singer Ryan Holsman, bassist Mira Georgieva, along with recent the recent addition of drummer Jon Shannon.
Ryan told me this about Mira. “She came from a background comprised almost entirely of heavy metal music. We were friends in high school, but reconnected last May. With her at my side, I feel so driven, and she’s given me the confidence to pursue music harder than ever. Sometimes it feels like the universe granted her to me in some supernatural way. She couldn’t have come into my life at a better time. She appeared when I needed a friend, when I needed a new musical partner, and in some ways a new outlook, and she’s been all three of those things for me.” Just two weeks after she had joined Passioncat they recorded their Debut EP “Green“.
Jon Shannon joined Passioncat in perhaps the most cinematic way possible. Ryan told me, “We had some friends record the drums for Green & our upcoming album, but they weren’t interested in being full time members, so we set out to find ourselves a drummer. We put fliers all over Chicago, had plenty of bites but no real luck. Finally, as we were putting up our final flier, a woman approached and before we could even finish taping it to the pole, she mentioned that her husband was a drummer, and that he was looking to join a band. A few weeks later, he reached up, and he’s been a joy to have around” It really happened when they put up the very last flier. Isn’t that crazy?
Passioncat found me after I had been posting on reddit looking for bands that would want to work together. They were the first, and only ones to respond. And I’m here to say that I’m very pleased to say that I’m very glad they did. I contacted them on their Instagram and spent some time chatting, now I’m finally writing about them.
A Love/Hate Relationship With Performing
We started when member Ryan Holsman brought up his love/hate relationship with performing live in front of people. I asked what causes that and he said, “It’s a couple things. The passion comes from writing songs that move people the same way I was moved as a kid. I was moved by music from the comfort of my bedroom and an iPod touch. Live concerts were never a part of the equation really. The second thing is a weird social quirk, I think. I can’t help but feel plastic when shamelessly promoting our Spotify or some merchandise. I can’t shake the feeling that the game is about who’s the best, most effective beggar. So when we play live, it’s second nature to try and act as cringe as possible, and not pretend to be some hotshot, because it’s inauthentic, and so far it seems like it’s actually working out better than the whole “Hey guys, new single is on Spotify, follow us!” shtick everyone seems to be doing. We give our t-shirts out for free at shows, because unless we’ve really, really moved you, why should you give us your money? Have we seriously earned it at this point? Doubtful!”
Ryan’s take on this has kind of resonated with me ever since he shared it with me. I’m sure it actually resonates with all artists in some way. It’s very easy to feel fake, and like you’re pretending to be something you’re not. Promoting yourself can feel really weird and unnatural! Because of that I really respect what Ryan shared and how he goes about promoting Passioncat. I can even relate to it myself when I think about promoting this blog.
Passioncat’s Influences
After Reading where Ryan’s love for songwriting came from, there was one clear question on my mind. What kind of music moved and influenced you? He shared, “It changed over time. It started with a love for the Beatles and other 60’s rock, since I was raised mostly by my grandparents. Also the staples like Green Day and Nirvana. By my late teens, I’d moved heavily toward punk rock, and bands like Against Me!, NOFX, and The Menzingers. The most important thing to me wasn’t (and isn’t) getting really good at guitar, but writing lyrics and melodies that other people find relatable.”
I then asked if he felt any influence from other bands local to the Chicago area. Or, any influence from just living in Chicago in general. “Chicago has been had an absolutely massive influence on us. The Chicago punk scene of the mid-to-late 90s and into the 2000s was huge for me growing up in the 2010s. Bands like The Alkaline Trio, The Lawrence Arms, and even Rise Against came up around each other, all Chicago bands, and paved the way for bands like us all these years later. The Menzingers are from Scranton, PA, but when they signed with Red Scare, they became synonymous with Chicago Punk. Same goes for Laura Jane Grace, originally from Gainesville, FL, who moved to Chicago fairly recently and now it’s like she was always here.”
I knew very little of the Chicago punk scene, and punk music in general. It was really interesting to hear what Ryan shared. There were so many names that I didn’t recognize were being thrown around. It opened my eyes, and I realized that I don’t know as much about music as I think I do. There’s always more to learn about and listen to. I’m very grateful that chatting with Passioncat helped me to get a glimpse of their music, but also encouraged me to explore the Chicago punk scene.
The Green EP
Unless you’re lucky enough to live close enough to go to one of Passioncat’s shows, the only way you can experience them right now is with their EP “Green” on Spotify and Apple Music. It was released on December 20th of 2023. It’s a pretty short project, only 4 tracks standing at 8 minutes and 41 seconds of total length, but in that short time I think you get a perfect introduction to them as a band. They open with the song “Flower Eater” which is honestly one of my favorite songs I’ve heard this year so far. They even made a wonderful music video. It’s honestly just a banger. It establishes a sound we’ll be hearing for a majority of the project, with heavy and hard-hitting guitar accompanied by heavy and hard-hitting drums.
This style can be heard in the next two songs as well which are also very good, and then we close with “Go Join A Wedding Band“. This song is a quick little song with only the singer and an acoustic guitar, and it seems to be making fun of pop music and how generic it can be. There’s only one verse that’s repeated two times and a chorus, and a little outro.
In the song they sing “Oh girl I love you, we’re so in love, party party party party let’s go do some drugs. My little heart is broken and I need a hug, party party party party let’s go do some drugs. Go join a wedding band, if you only wanna play the hits. Go join a wedding band if you wanna play Michael Jackson. Go join a wedding band if you don’t wanna be a real artist. Go join a wedding band if all you care about is cash.” This is repeated two times followed by a bit of an outro about getting your ego hurt. It’s kind of hilarious, and honestly still a pretty good song.
You can very much hear the influence that they talked about, in almost every aspect. Everything from the instrumentals, down to the vocals all sounds like a love letter to the bands that influenced them and punk music as a whole. You can tell when you listen to it that it comes from the heart. If you’re a fan of punk music, specifically the bands mentioned above, I highly recommend you give Passioncat a listen.
Passioncat’s Future
I ended my chat with Passioncat by asking what they had coming next. Ryan told me “We’ve got a 10-song LP in the works called “Sally”, which we’ll be dropping sometime in the late-spring!” I for one am excited to hear this and I hope you are too. When it releases I will update this post with a link to the album. If you want to get future updates on their work make sure to check out their Instagram, and check their Linktree to find where you can listen to them. If you live in the Chicago area, go support them in any way you can! Tell them I sent you.
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