LYRIC NOEL – AN IN-DEPTH INTERVIEW WITH LYRIC NOEL
By Ralph Beauchamp
Lyric Noel is a hard hitting melodic metal ensemble based out of Texas. The band has just released their new single, “Shades of Black” in collaboration with Judge & Jury Records. Lyric Noel is comprised of Lyric Noel (Lead Vocals), Russel Hollar (Guitar/Producer), Robert Gray (Guitar) and Jerrin Castillo (Drums). Lyric Noel‘s sound blends the raw drive of alternative rock with the cinematic intensity of impassioned metal.
A defining trait of Lyric Noel is the fact that their songwriting has a strong emotional clarity. Their lyric tend to explore mental disorders, longing and self discovery. All discharged through melodies that linger long after the song ends. Vocally, the band favors expressive, slightly haunting intonations that toggle between soft vulnerability and powerful anthemic choruses. This gives their tracks a sense of narrative progression.
Musically, Lyric Noel sits somewhere between modern alternative metal and classic rock influences. Their arrangement are all consuming with bright melodic hooks with darker undertones. The band thrives on their moodier edge. The result is a sound that feels reflective yet energetic. Their music invites listeners to both lose themselves in the atmosphere and connect deeply with their poignant core.
Lyric Noel was kind enough to sit with AMP for this in-depth interview.
AMP: What emotions or atmosphere do you want listeners feel when they hear a Lyric Noel song?
LYRIC: I want them to be able to hear and find themselves in the message we are trying to convey. I try to write introspectively so it can appeal to a wide audience. I’m hoping it resonates with males, females and people experiencing mental issues. I want people to totally relate without us being overbearing. The messaging comes from our real life experiences. I want them to know, we are one of them.
AMP: Which musical element defines your sound the most – lyrics, melody, rhythm or production?
LYRIC: All of it. Lyrics are important to me but my husband (Russel Hollar) is strong on the composition side. Together we fuse our songwriting strengths into a cohesive whole.
AMP: Which artists, genres or eras of music have influenced the sound of Lyric Noel the most?
LYRIC: Sleep Token! Also, Spiritbox. Actually, it all started with Disney movies like The Lion King and Pocahontas when I was five. I’m a child of the early 2000’s. Therefore, I was a fan of NSYNC and Britney Spears. Then I discovered Nirvana which kind of changed the trajectory of the genres I was listening to. So, Nirvana was a huge pivotal moment. From there, I discovered Kittie. I love the fact that they have remerged. If it wasn’t for Kittie, we wouldn’t be here having this conversation. All of these artists have brought me where I am today. Arch Enemy and Parkway Drive led me to Sleep Token and Spiritbox. Its been an interesting journey.
AMP: How has your sound evolved since the band first started?
LYRIC: When we first started, we experimented a little bit with blues music. Blues rock is another genre that motivates me. Initially, that was a direction we were exploring but in all honesty, it just wasn’t taking off. Then we started turning pop songs into metal covers. Metal has always been one of my roots but for some reason I strayed away from it. Metal, at one time, was kind of pushed back in the musical scheme of things but it’s back with a vengeance. When we covered “Carol of the Bells”, we went extremely viral. We felt we found our space. So, we set out to capture that same audience and redirect them to original metal music.
AMP: Your new single is “Shades of Black”. Can you give us a little insight on the track?
LYRIC: That song is about borderline personality disorder and dealing with all the ups and downs associated with it. It’s pretty heavy and serious.
AMP: Staying in the same vein, “Shades of Black” was produced in partnership wit Judge & Jury. How did that come about?
LYRIC: It came to the point where we felt we needed to take our project to another level with some label support. We had been independent for quite some time. In fact, “Shades of Black” was already being packaged up as a independent release. Then I did a collaboration with the Butcher Babies (“Insincerity”) in 2025 which did really well. It was released on Judge & Jury. In addition, our other friends in Stitched Up Heart, who are also on the label, told us that that we should approach them because they knew the label was interested in us. We did and now we have the label backing we were looking for.
AMP: How does the sound of Lyric Noel change wen you perform live compared to studio recordings?
LYRIC: The biggest difference when we play live is that our drummer (Jerrin Castillo) does the backing vocals. On recorded tracks, we have a lot of overlapping vocals. So, my drummer catches me live. In addition, our guitarist, my husband Russel, is left handed. Live we have this interesting symmetry where we have our guitar necks facing each other which creates a cool image. All points lead to a compelling visual.
AMP: Is there a particular song that best represents your sound on stage and why?
LYRIC: No! Yes! Maybe! I think our newer material will provide a better answer since we really haven’t focused much on our live presentation as of yet since we have yet to tour. Actually, “Gravity” would be a good choice since I love singing that song.
AMP: What do you think makes Lyric Noel’s music stand out in today’s music scene?
LYRIC: Oh man, that’s a hard question! I would have to say my personality. Also, our message and how forcefully we convey it. I’m inspired by nature, animals, horror films and a bunch of other subjects and they definitely are expressed in our music.
AMP: IF Lyric Noel’s sound was symbolized by a color palette, what shade would it be?
LYRIC: It would depend on the song because each song will have its own shade. I believe the major hues will run in the black, gold and maybe purple families. We are still working on the tracks, so there may be some cool color surprises.
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