SWFL thrash punk band, Except You, releases EP on exclusive, recycled vinyl

Except You, a Southwest Florida-based thrash punk band, has released their new EP “Crushable” on recycled vinyl.

The band is fronted by vocalist Angela Page. Flanking Page are guitarist Arlo Simonds and bassist Shawn Ayotte. Pete Flower plays drums.

The band debuted in 2020, and during the pandemic, they continued to write and record music.

They played their first show in September of 2021 and released their first EP “Never Relax” in May of 2022. The debut EP opens with “So Smol,” a quick, gritty song that sets the EP’s tone.

Recycled vinyl release

Following “Never Relax,” the band released their second EP, “Crushable,” on Feb. 4. Both sides of the record were recorded at Farmadelica Sound on Pine Island.

It debuted at a headbanging, moshpit-filled rager at Ollie’s Pub on Feb. 24, a Saturday night. At the show, the band sold the EPs back to back on a two-in-one vinyl that was uniquely pressed using recycled vinyl records.

Roach and Roll Records, based in Fort Myers, is an independent punk label that helped with the vinyl’s release. The company they worked with, Gotta Groove Records, melts down old records to make new records out of them. The color is not derived from a mold or different dyes and is simply the result is whatever comes out of the old records.

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Each is their own “individual surprise,” as Page puts it. Some are see-through, but some are solid. It can be green, brown, blue, red and pink.

“It is oil-based, and so when it ends up in a landfill, it takes a really long time to biodegrade, and it is really toxic,” Page said about the material used to make vinyl records. “The benefit of using recycled vinyl means that none of that vinyl will end up in a landfill. It will be melted all down and repressed into our record, so not only do we get these rad colors, but we also reduce waste overall. We reduce the environmental impact of record waste, which, lots of records get thrown out.”

As a band very concerned with environmental activism, pressing their vinyl in this way was right up their alley.

“It’s a dream come true,” Ayotte said. “We’ve been waiting our whole life to be on vinyl, and here we finally are, and we were able to do it in front of people we love at a venue that we love, and it was a very good time.”

Vinyl has seen a resurgence with the emergence of streaming and downloadable music. With their durability, they are a permanent physical format that many collect.

“We find that, in the underground community, it’s a pretty well-respected format. Lots of underground bands like to release their stuff on vinyl and sell it at their gigs. It’s a great merchandising item. There’s so much about it,” Page said.

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“To be immortalized on wax is the term that people use, and it’s cool to finally have that happen,” Ayotte said.

Being a local original band

Except You’s music is recorded, written and performed locally.

“A lot of bands don’t get hometown support. They find their support outside of their city, but we find that we get a lot of hometown support, so it feels really good to be loved like that,” Page said.

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The band undoubtedly has a passion for their music, but it’s the passion the community reciprocates that motivates them to keep picking up their instruments.

Page said that nothing is like the scene here in Southwest Florida.

“I think we have this middle-class, working-class group of musicians. We’re not in New York; we’re not in Philadelphia; we’re not in Los Angeles, but we know that our community shows up for each other. It’s just really great,” Page said.

The band doesn’t have plans to move anywhere else because of the support they receive here in Southwest Florida, but they plan to play regional shows and are even planning on embarking on a northeastern seaboard tour while making connections and building their brand.

Except You is working on a live vinyl. The 7-inch split will be released with a band from Orlando called Trash World.

If you are interested in buying the vinyl, order it at Roach and Roll Records or buy it physically at Stellar Records in Fort Myers.

To learn more about Except You, click here.

Page also runs Love Your Rebellion, a local organization whose mission is to empower marginalized groups through the arts. Click here to learn more.