Not Enough Space vocalists Liv Mitchell and Lizzie Raatmatalk us through their debut LP ‘Weaponize Your Rage’, out September 12.
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To understand how a band like Not Enough Space functions, you first must consider their origins, upbringing, and the scene in which they found their footing.
Because to them, Florida isn’t just the state that they call home.
It’s a complete state of mind.
That statement can be best explained via the phenomenon that is Florida Man, a little game where you type those two words in a search engine alongside a sentimental date for yourself – birthday, anniversary, etc – and see the absolutely bat shit news story that is returned. From mistaking alligators for dogs when going in for a pet to trying to travel across the Atlantic Ocean in a homemade hamster wheel, the list is endless, baffling and bonkers.
For the band, the meme holds a bit more sentimentality, in that it’s a reminder to live life the way that you want to. Nobody can and should be able to tell you what you should or shouldn’t be. You have to be a little crazy to get the most out of life, but the rewards are there for the taking.
“We have definitely stuck true to our core values and beliefs as a band when it comes to writing, and a lot of that comes from being a Florida band,” vocalist Liv Mitchell beams. “Nobody in Florida gives a shit about anything. I feel like even being in this scene is a bit like Florida Man, in the sense of doing what you want, not abiding by any sort of rules and having fun whilst you’re doing it. I also feel that Florida bands, such as A Day To Remember or Wage War, are always very fun and chaotic with their music, too. And that’s the energy that we wanted to bring with this album.”
And bring it they have, because ‘Weaponize Your Rage’ is the epitome of carving out your own lane and then driving 120mph down it. A diverse, destructive and devilishly fresh collection of tracks that span the full spectrum of the scene, from shades of bubblegum-crusted melody to smatterings of brimstone-stained heaviness, it is as much a celebration of this wondrously varied community as it is a reminder that the only thing stopping you from doing precisely what you want is yourself.
“It’s been awesome to genre blend in the way we have and have so much fun along the way,” vocalist Lizzie Raatma adds. “It’s nice to show people that we didn’t just want to be put into a box. And it’s funny because we get some comments online saying stuff like, They went soft,’ but others going, ‘No, they didn’t, listen to this one.’ It’s really funny seeing both sides and getting to sit in the middle.”
To find out more about how this fearless record came to be, Rock Sound caught up with Liv and Lizzie and discovered what it means to not let anyone diminish your flame.
THE SOUND
Though many have come to know Not Enough Space over the last year, thanks to the viral success of “moancore” blueprint ‘Primitive’ last October, the band have already lived many a life before now. From their beginnings as a lo-fi post-hardcore outfit playing in coffee shops in 2018, heard best on 2021’s debut EP ‘End This Way’ to the throwback metalcore that found its way in on 2023’s ‘No Way Out’ and ‘Nightmares’, variety is literally sewn into their fabric. So when it came to figuring out what they wanted their full-length debut to represent, absolutely nothing was off the table.
Recorded in three separate studio stints throughout 2024, each one focused on a different sort of song sound, structure and substance, the band were able to pinpoint, consider and execute every shade of alternative noise that they fancied. ‘Primitive’ was crafted during the first session, a love letter to the 2010-era crabcore, setting the precedent as well as a benchmark for what was to come. The second saw even more heaviness added to the fire, with the deathcore intensity of ‘The Devil Left Me On Read’ and nu-metalcore brute force of ‘Kill Eat Repeat’ materialising. And finally, the third session was dedicated to the softer passions of the band, with the pop-punk of ‘Waiting For You’ and the atmospheric ‘Don’t Let Go’ getting their chance to shine.
In not letting any one sound become the focus, the band were able to not just live out every fantasy they had ever wanted from band life, but also keep fun at the forefront, an element of this that gets lost in the static more than you may realise.
“It was always a case of staying true to what we all like,” Liv remarks. “We all have a common love for metalcore, obviously. I’m a deathcore kid through and through, but I also love Paramore, too. Being able to step out of that comfort zone to do other things that we still like was so important. Getting out of that comfort zone was hard at first, but the more that we tested ourselves, the more fun it felt and the more we settled in.”
That feeling of comfort was made all the more possible thanks to the production duties of Chris Linck and Kalan Blehm. Renowned for their guitar and bass work in metalcore party starters Attila, they know a thing or two about obliterating convention and pissing off purists. So when it came to helping the band open up and not hold back on what their hearts truly desired, it felt like second nature.
“The first writing session was the scariest because we didn’t know what to expect,” Lizzie admits. “We were proud but still a little shaky because being so open and vulnerable is a lot. However, by the second session, we had both Chris and Kalan in the studio, whereas in the first, it was only Chris. That’s around when we started to pick up on each other’s humour and really get to know each other. We could walk into the booth, sharing inside jokes and stuff that could keep the ball rolling and keep it goofy and light-hearted. Chris would even give me my own advice, like, ‘Remember when you said to do it like this?’ It was a very non-judgmental space. Be stupid, make mistakes, just do you.”
Light-heartedness is a vital part of all of this, especially when you consider the source material that Not Enough Space first bonded over. From Asking Alexandria to Attack Attack!, being silly is part and parcel of what makes this scene what it is, and if they wanted to continue that hot streak, they needed to keep those exact same elements flowing through.
THE LYRICS
Now, as much as fun and freedom were big focuses within the creation of ‘Weaponize Your Rage’, lyrically, it served as an exorcism for Liv and Lizzie. Emotion always takes precedent when it comes to crafting a sound, and when guitarist Tristan Kaos Green asked the duo what feeling they wanted him to focus his riff writing around, the idea of rage kept on cropping up.
“Rage is a secondary emotion,” Liv explains. “When you think of all of the other emotions that come with it, there are so many different. It’s like the stages of grief. You have sadness, anger, acceptance. Rage is very similar. Being able to put that spectrum on paper, coming from the angle of not giving a fuck what anyone had to say about what was coming out, wasn’t as hard as it was comforting. I was always going to speak the truth.”
That truth comes out in many different forms here. There’s ‘Solace In Silence’, a song written about the turmoil left in the wake of the passing of a loved one, which is as heavy and warts-and-all look at mental health and suicide awareness as you will hear all year. Then there’s ‘The Devil Left Me On Read’, which started out as a silly little look at the seven deadly sins, but turned into a musing on how even Hell wouldn’t let the band in because of the weight of the depression-based baggage they carry. There are unashamed call-outs via ‘New Age Cannibal’, the frustrations of female voices having to fight to be heard in this male-dominated space billowing out, and there are trauma-based admissions through ‘Kill Eat Repeat’, a damning recollection of what a childhood spent in the church does to you as you grow older and wiser.
Such variety in clenched fist expression goes hand in hand with the depths that the quintet strived to dive into musically, too. But much like how the sonic exploration came naturally, speaking from the heart and soul was just as easy.
“Writing like this, it felt like a very natural process,” Lizzie comments. “We didn’t force anything. That second session was when everything came together, when we got comfortable with throwing things to the wall and seeing what sticks. That’s when we knew we wanted to have several different topics, even if we thought they were taboo. It was just the same with the genres. We wanted to have fun with it.”
“New Age Cannibal’ really speaks to that,” Liv adds. “It was initially intended to be super goofy, but I feel like it’s become a defining statement for us. That there are two women in this band, and we do not give a fuck what you think. We are going to do what is going to make us happy. It’s a true coming-of-age song, but in terms of us being in such a cutthroat scene and this being our way to push forward and say that we are going to keep on fighting for our spot.”
It’s that juxtaposition that really sums up why Not Enough Space has struck such a chord. In a scene where so many can get by on doing the bare minimum whilst still prospering, both from how willing they are to dive musically and emotionally, in not settling to just be a part of the pile and instead make the most of every aspect of this opportunity, they have tapped into the energy that every band should absolutely be striving to harness.
THE COLLABORATORS
There is only one guest feature on ‘Weaponize Your Rage’, but it holds enormous sentimental value. It is delivered by Dark Divine’s Anthony Martinez on the pulsating punishment of ‘Eye 4 An Eye’. Not just a chance to showcase the vast talent found within the Orlando heavy scene, it was also Anthony returning to his roots, considering he was an original member of the band alongside Lizzie, the two of them being in a relationship as well. Initially providing harmonies and screams on their post-hardcore output before handing over the reins to Liv on her recruitment, the song allows him to take things full circle, and it’s a nod that means a lot to both vocalists.
“We’re all really good friends with Anthony and are all really close as a group, too,” Liv beams. “When I was taking over Anthony’s spot, it spiralled into this big friendship between everybody. They are all such amazing people. It was just really cool that we got to bring him back for such a different sound, too. If you listen to the older EPs, you can hear such a difference. Dark Divine is also known as a spooky Halloween band, while we are just our goofy metalcore selves. We were really inspired by Poppy for that song, and once we mentioned it to him, he was all in. I’m pleased with how it turned out. Really fun and really cool, just how it should be.”
THE TITLE
The idea of harnessing the rage that we feel so strongly as a superpower, rather than something to be ashamed of, is reflected throughout this record, so it was only fitting that the title reflected that sensibility too. The song that has been granted the title ‘Weaponize Your Rage’ is also one of the album’s highlights, a crashing together of tight breakdowns and motivational refrains.
In their most significant statement of their career so far, the band are reminding people that it is okay to express the things that make your chest feel like it’s on fire. They are also showing how much they consider the fanbase that has sprouted around them. That they aren’t in this alone anymore and have a responsibility to show support and offer guidance to those who have put so much faith in them. It’s a noble position to take, but one that is also so natural. Because not long ago, the band are on the other side of the barricade, searching for the same solace in the bands they looked up to. Paying it forward comes naturally.
“I am a firm believer in rage being a strength rather than a weakness,” Liv comments proudly. “Being able to recognise that rage isn’t a crutch, and you shouldn’t be afraid or cower away from or back away from being angry is so important. Be angry. Get your emotions out. Tell people how you really feel. Be forceful about it. So many people have said that we couldn’t feel this way, so we are here to show that we can. It’s been really cool to show how big that is and to coach our fans to not back down, genuinely being who you are. That’s the true message. Be true to who you are and don’t back down from something that you believe in.”
She smiles for a second, taking in the weight of what this all means, especially off the back of speaking about the band’s goofiness so much throughout this chat.
“We’re able to preach the kind of messages that allow us to be our authentic selves, because it then allows our fans the chance to see that it is okay to be themselves as well,” she continues. “It’s definitely a surreal feeling, I genuinely can’t put into words how cool it is to be able to do that and share it with our fan base.”
THE FUTURE
The rise and rise of Not Enough Space is one of the most significant victories that metalcore has had in quite some time. But now that they are here, at the precipice of graduating from local legends to worldwide heroes, the weight of what that represents feels even more prominent than ever before.
For Lizzie, it comes down to the things she has heard at the merchandise table after the band’s sets. Firstly, there’s the number of people who have told her that they have been inspired to start their own band. But the other, and more vital, revelation is that many people have said Not Enough Space is the sort of band they have wanted since they were teenagers. On one hand, that could be viewed through the lens of their musical flexibility, but the most prominent hand points towards the fact that it is being delivered by two women, unapologetic in every scream, croon and action.
“I can see where they are coming from when they tell me that,” Lizzie comments. “Because I remember when I was growing up and not seeing what we are in the scene, it really wasn’t as common. I remember being excited to see PVRIS or Paramore, but I don’t remember there being other bands where I could see or hear something like what we are. That feels really important.”
It is important, and it’s only going to become increasingly important with every new milestone the band chalks up. Seeing a band that looks like this, sounds like this, and embodies everything that Not Enough Space does is a win for all of us. And it’s a reminder, perfectly encapsulated in their name, that this scene is always going to have a place for, no matter what anybody else tells you.
“There is space in this for you, for me and for everybody,” Liv concludes proudly.
“Our music is everybody’s safe space, and always will be.”
