VIAL - "Or Die" | New Music

(Cover by Téa McLawhorn)

VIAL are a special band. That much is apparent to literally anyone that has listened to their infectious debut album "Grow Up" or who made it to a show before everyone was stuck inside. Their combination of gloriously in-your-face politics and stellar songwriting has made it abundantly apparent clear that their rising star can is only destined to go higher. And higher it has gone.

For a momentous new holiday, the band has re-recorded the punkest song in their current discography, "DIY," to reflect how it has been played live. Bassist Kate Kanfield takes center stage with a vitriolic vocal performance that completely takes the piss out of the posers and jerks that inevitably seem to fill every DIY space. The track was an obvious highlight from the album, but it comes to life even more in the context of a single.

VIAL combines genuine punk ferocity with always-relevant criticism of a scene that to this day still favors groups of white dudes, instead of reflecting reality. "Or Die" is a call to arms, a defiant rejection of a cis punk establishment, a summoning of the righteous fury that so many marginalized individuals have felt. If your scene won't include femme and non-binary folks or any people of color, VIAL (rightfully) doesn't want to be a part of it. The re-recorded version, again produced by Abe Anderson, lights a glorious fire that was previously only experienced at VIAL shows. Since there won't be any of those shows for the time being (heartbreaking), this new version will sufficiently give us life until then. "Or Die" realizes VIAL's core message of supporting and vehemently demanding an inclusive scene, one that actually includes those that aren't cishet bros and includes the powerful, beautiful, and diverse bands that are making some of the most vital music that anyone can hear.

The video for "Or Die" was directed by Slo Martin, who has quickly proven themselves to be one of the premiere videographers in the Twin Cities. If you haven't seen one of their live show videos yet, you've been living under a rock. Now, they take a fantastic leap into the realm of music videos and bring VIAL's anti-establishment vision to life with tattoos, mirror-smashing, and a cameo from Khad, the band's resident Styrofoam-headed avatar for white idiots. Watch the perpetually fantastic video below.