MX LONELY Confront the Shadows on All Monsters
From Brooklyn, New York, MX LONELY arrive with All Monsters, released February 20, 2026, a debut full-length that distils heavy alternative rock, shoegaze density, and punk urgency into something bruised, cathartic, and unflinchingly personal.
Formed officially in 2022 after its members met through mutual support spaces connected to their personal journeys, MX LONELY are a band shaped as much by lived experience as by sound. What began as earlier, evolving projects eventually coalesced under a name that speaks directly to their core themes: confrontation, isolation, and the work of facing what lurks beneath the surface.
The lineup brings together Rae Haas on synth and vocals, Jake Harms on guitar and vocals, Gabriel Garman on bass, and Andrew Rapp on drums. Together, they craft what has often been described as “heavy gaze” — a saturated, emotionally charged strain of alt-rock that blends shoegaze atmospherics with the physical punch of punk.
All Monsters captures that identity in full force. Guitars crash in waves of distortion, rhythms strike with urgency, and synth textures thicken the atmosphere without softening the blow. The sound is immersive and dense, yet never directionless. There is structure beneath the noise, intention behind the weight.
The album’s title frames its emotional terrain. Across its tracks, MX LONELY explore addiction, dysphoria, buried emotions, and the ongoing internal struggle against personal demons. Rather than offering neat resolution, the songs sit within that struggle. The “monsters” are not metaphorical abstractions but lived experiences, rendered through volume and vulnerability.
Recent singles laid the groundwork. Return To Sender dissected emotional indifference and detachment, pairing its intensity with a visually striking video. Anesthetic confronted pain and the desire to escape oneself, translating emotional numbness into sonic force. On the album, these impulses deepen and expand, creating a cohesive arc that moves between abrasion and introspection.
What makes All Monsters compelling is its balance between noise and clarity. Shoegaze textures swirl and blur, but the emotional core remains sharp. Vocals often cut through the distortion with urgency, sometimes layered, sometimes raw, never detached. The interplay between Rae Haas and Jake Harms adds contrast, reinforcing the record’s push and pull between fragility and defiance.
MX LONELY have already built a reputation for visceral live performances across the United States. Onstage, the music becomes physical, immersive, almost confrontational. That same energy is embedded in the album. It feels less like a studio-polished artefact and more like a document of shared release, as though the songs were forged in real rooms before being captured on record.
Within the broader heavy alternative and shoegaze revival, All Monsters stands out for its emotional honesty. It does not hide behind aesthetic haze. The distortion amplifies vulnerability rather than masking it.
With All Monsters, MX LONELY do not simply introduce themselves; they open the door to the darker corners and invite listeners inside. It is a record that embraces noise as catharsis, heaviness as healing, and confrontation as growth.
© Thusblog
