Sober hardcore act One Step Closer releases surprise new EP ahead of Underground Arts gig

A melodic hardcore punk band from Wilkes-Barre is living the rock and roll dream, minus the drugs and alcohol.

One Step Closer released a new three-track EP, Songs for the Willow, last week ahead of their show at Underground Arts on Sunday, Jan. 22 at 7 p.m.

The band carries on hardcore punk’s “straight edge” tradition, which means all the members abstain from alcohol, tobacco, and drugs.

Influenced by older punk rockers he met at his local skatepark, the band’s lead vocalist, Ryan Savitski, has subscribed to the lifestyle since he was just 14. When he started One Step Closer two years later, in 2016, older members of the local punk scene took the young band under their wing, helping them gain traction.

Although Songs for the Willow isn’t a huge departure from the band’s earlier sound, which is similar to acts like Title Fight and Defeater, Savitski said it’s a bit more melodic and accessible than their past work.

The EP was released Jan. 10 without any promotion ahead of time, so it caught the scene by surprise.

Given the EP’s brevity, Run for Cover Records wanted to do something more creative than a traditional advertising campaign. The band also believed that the songs were strong and would resonate with fans.

It comes a little more than a year after the band released their first full-length album, This Place You Know, in Sept. 2021.

Songs for the Willow is centered on the lead single “Turn to Me,” which combines the gruffness of traditional hardcore with a more spacious alternative rock-influenced writing approach and an energetic pop sensibility.

The new release was recorded with producer Jon Markson over the course of 10 days on a farm in New Jersey, where the band was surrounded by animals like chickens and cows.

One Step Closer may be best known for their intense concert performances.

“Their passion when they play live is really exciting,” said Cen Blind, the lead singer and bassist of Soul Blind, which is opening for One Step Closer alongside hardcore act Life’s Question. “They’ve toured relentlessly and never really taken a break.”

The concert in Philly will be a homecoming of sorts for One Step Closer, with friends and family coming down from Wilkes-Barre to see them.

The band came about at the tail end of a wave of successful punk acts from Northeast Pennsylvania, which included Tigers Jaw and the Menzingers. However, the group’s biggest influence may be Title Fight, a beloved melodic hardcore act from across the Susquehanna River in Kingston, which has been on hiatus since 2013.

Although Savitski and his bandmates are friendly with members of Title Fight and see the group’s work as a loose blueprint for One Step Closer’s sound, they’re not a carbon copy.

“I definitely want us to write our own story,” said One Step Closer’s guitarist Ross Thompson.

He and Savitski have a lot of love for their native Wilkes-Barre, and are a part of the Northeast Pennsylvania punk act wave, but they don’t think they’ll stay there long term. The original lineup was from the area, but new members hail from North Carolina.

Thompson said the band is their top priority right now, so he and Savitski are willing to move wherever makes the most sense.

In addition to their rigorous touring schedule, One Step Closer plans to go back into the studio next winter to record their second full-length album.

The new album will likely continue the band’s more melodic trajectory, but One Step Closer doesn’t plan to give up their hardcore roots.

“It’s definitely not going to be a complete departure,” Savitski said.

One Step Up performs at Underground Arts on Sunday, Jan. 22, at 7 p.m. Tickets for the concert start at $20. They will also play a show at the Sherman Theater in Stroudsburg, Pa., on April 2. Visit undergroundarts.org/ or shermantheater.com/.