The Rebirth of Aethereal: Las Ve-gaze Metal Band Talks About EP Release
- Lauren Juillerat
- 12 minutes ago
- 4 min read
By Caydie Tampac
Photos by Stefan Jasić
Edited by Malory Shaw
At a Las Vegas backyard show, a doe-eyed girl with side-swept bangs and blonde hair tied into soft pigtails steps out onto the platform. She has her dusty rose bass guitar hanging from a leopard print strap. Backed by rapid shredding and explosive drumming, she approaches the mic with a delicate demeanor. Her euphoric voice washes over the audience, then soars into a guttural death metal scream. Who could it be other than Aethereal?
Cheyenne Lizotte (vocalist and bassist) and Brenden Suslow (drummer) began playing together by reaching out to fellow musicians on Instagram to jam together. Once Gabriel Garcia (guitarist) joined, that’s when Aethereal came to be in November 2024.
Aethereal defines their sound as heavy shoegaze, but they don’t limit themselves to a single genre. A consistent element of Aethereal’s music is the versatility of Lizotte’s vocal range.
A year after their debut, they released two singles and now two EPs.
The heavy shoegaze band’s July 2025 EP, “An Offering of Silence,” was centered around the experience of being constrained amidst a dull life.
On Jan. 3, 2026, Aethereal released their newest EP, “Rebirth.” Symbolizing metamorphosis, “Rebirth” is where you are born anew.
“Each song captures a different emotional perspective, but the overall theme is about change and renewal,” Lizotte said.
The first two songs of the album portray the internal conflict of Aethereal’s members, who shared that they experienced mental health issues, relationships and burnout while recording.
The first song, “Pink Chapel,” evokes a feeling of being trapped and suppressing your emotions. Afraid to acknowledge the pain inside, you conceal it and pretend as though everything is fine:
“I can’t say what I wanna say / The pink chapel keeps me safe.”
“Cellar” describes the weight of life’s trials and inner misery as it consumes you. There’s nowhere but a dead end. The lyrics depict the aggravated bitterness of feeling unfulfilled:
“Get me out of this cellar / Can’t go anywhere after.”
While facing their emotional well-being and personal issues, they also balanced that with having to record the album within one month. Even through the hardships that the members endured, Lizotte views it as worth it in the end.
“A lot of the writing came from working through things we were dealing with at the time,” she said, “and we used that as fuel for the music.”
Their third song, “Easy Way Out,” differs from the first two tracks of Rebirth as it is filled with desperate longing and intense melancholy. Garcia considers “Easy Way Out” one of their best songs due to the composition he created. The song is a lament of suffering from depression as you grapple with thoughts of hopelessness:
“You’re sticking to your heart that feels anguish and despair / Don’t know if you will still be here / But you are already near.”
Lizotte explained the lyrics, “You’re realizing, ‘Why am I stuck here? Why? I could get out myself, but I’m not trying hard enough.’”
“Born As The Moon”, the fourth track of the EP, reflects the experience of self-realization after a confusing, depressive period of self-doubt:
“Take back what you said / I know that is not really you / It always ends to this / You were born as the moon.”
The final track, titled “Heart Locket,” details immense agony and inner torment from someone close to you. It is the conclusion to “Rebirth” that leaves you undeniably captivated and wistful as you flourish into your true essence. The deep scars of trauma and misery are now healed as you leave those who hurt you in the past and move forward:
“Thrown back into the world that gave me / Peace and hope, and I’m not complaining / You found me somewhere that I belonged / And I ran long.”
For Aethereal, “Rebirth” does not imply the ceasing of their struggles. “[We’re] still learning how to balance life, creativity and the expectations that come with being in a band,” Lizotte said.
“Growth doesn’t stop once a project is finished,” she continued, “We’re continuing to develop as people and as artists, and that comes with its own challenges, but also a lot of motivation.”
Along with their members, Aethereal wishes for those who listen to “Rebirth” to embark on their own healing journey, discovering their self-worth even if they’ve been swayed to believe otherwise. Despite the abuse or manipulation inflicted upon them by others, Aethereal hopes for their music to be a solace to recover and grow from past trauma.
“I wanted to write something that people can feel inspired to ‘move forward’ and become a better version of themselves, too,” Lizotte said.
“Rebirth” and Aethereal’s other works are available to listen to on Apple Music, Spotify, and YouTube.
