The Twilight Sad

Brooding Scots The Twilight Sad creates whirlpools of guitar distortion and pounding beats, but the five-piece band conceals emotionally rich lyrics that can connect—even when intensely personal. The group formed in 2003 after vocalist James Graham and guitarist Andy MacFarlane met in school. They quickly developed a reputation for their deafening live shows, wherein they created a wall of noise pummeling audiences. Their first full-length album, 2007’s Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters, however, revealed the heart underneath the harshness, with songs such as “That Summer, At Home I Had Become the Invisible Boy” spotlighting adolescent angst-fueled lyrics full of diary-worthy details. While they would go on to dabble more with drum machines and synthesizers on releases such as 2012’s No One Can Ever Know, their penchant for lamentation never left them. The Twilight Sad continues to mix guitars with electronic elements while holding on to the internal drama on songs such as 2018’s “I/m Not Here [missing face].”