The Bad Penny (beta)

Some bands break up after it’s discovered that the bassist slept with the guitarist’s girlfriend. Some bands break up because the drummer wants to go in more of a doom director, whereas the lead guitarist is intransigent over the group staying true to its thrash roots.

Season of Melancholy – who hail from Kyiv, Ukraine – aren’t breaking up anytime soon, even though when The Bad Penny caught up with them on Saturday, Russia had rained hellfire on their environs with bombs. The smoke was still clearing when three members of the group, which refers to themselves as “romantic metal,” caught up with us to talk about music, war, brotherhood, unity, strength, courage and survival. We’re not talking any of that Pete Hegseth bullshit about “real men” and “high-T”: The musicians who comprise Season of Melancholy are braver than everyone watching this video put together.