On Saturday, Sept. 20, Hampshire College-based screamo quartet I Have No Mouth released its first, eponymous, EP.

The album opens to “And I Must Scream,” with Ben Becker’s drums almost convulsing with energy. Guitarist Levi Ebnit’s guitar soars down with an icy wail, almost operatically. Lead vocalist Jay Sugden’s banshee-like vocals fill the track, overwhelming the listener in the best possible way. The EP oscillates between breakneck fury, including in “Everything for Nothing,” and comparatively slower, almost ethereal moments, like in “This is My Vice”.

I Have No Mouth has been teasing music since March of 2024, but a variety of factors kept pushing back an official release. The recording was delayed after Ebnit dislocated a bone.

“I was lifting weights, being stupid and my shoulder came out,” Ebnit said. He was back to practicing guitar in two weeks, but something still seemed off.

“We really didn’t like some of those songs that we originally wrote,”  Becker said.

I Have No Mouth felt pressured to box themselves into a certain genre; according to Becker, their aesthetic shifted. “We just had songs that … we think didn’t represent the band anymore. I feel like we’re going into more of an emotional, melodic type of zone.”

Once they got into the studio this time around, whatever doubts they had about their sound had washed away. The recording session flowed seamlessly with the help of Will Killingsworth, a member of the cult-classic Hampshire College band Orchid. In addition to pioneering screamo music with his band, Killingsworth has been producing western Massachusetts alternative types since 2000.

After coming to Hampshire themselves, Sugden and Ebnit formed I Have No Mouth in earnest. Shortly after they began playing shows, the band was given an offer: play Orchid’s first show after more than 20 years of hiatus.

The band long viewed Orchid as a source of inspiration. “The summer before I went up to college … I was taking two-hour walks and listening to their whole entire discography over and over,” Sugden said. Ebnit also had strong high school memories attached to the band. Furious at the idea of taking the SAT, he recalled playing Orchid’s songs before doing “so bad” on the test.

I Have No Mouth’s bassist Nathaniel Baron has a background in music production and made some minor changes during the mixing process. Becker said that Baron’s input contributed to the final sound, but Baron wasn’t so sure.“I don’t think I did anything … maybe in terms of mixes, but I think I used the amp that [Killingsworth] set up,” Becker remembered.

Regardless, the production was a hit among the band members. “Honestly, it worked out fantastic,” Sugden said.

As the lights came on before Orchid’s reunion, Sugden and Ebnit recalled a cocktail of emotions.

“I’m going to throw up, or I’m the happiest I’ve ever been in my entire life,” Sugden said. A new generation of hardcore enjoyers, her friends, were all at the venue; the anxiety seemed impossible. As soon as the band’s set began, though, their triumph was palpable. “I was like, you know what? F*** the SAT,”

“At the time, I felt like that was one of the strongest sets we played,” Sugden added. She remembered crying during the performance out of pure joy. There’s a whole new generation of hardcore in western Mass, and her band was at the forefront. “I think this area really cultivates art very well,” Sugden explained.

Just a few years ago, Sugden didn’t think it was possible for her to be on stage; to flail her body around in a sea of pure emotion. Her band has since made a name for itself in the western Mass. hardcore scene. Now, they’ve come full circle, having recorded their debut EP with a personal idol.

Seamus Kelley can be reached at [email protected].