Bionic Buzz® interviewed Mike Newman from the “fake emo” band Summerbruise for a Zoom interview. We discussed his passion for music, signing to SideOne Dummy Records, their new single Van, their upcoming album, collaborations with Tades Sansville (Hot Mulligan) and Stoph Colasanto (Carpool), and much more!
Stream VAN: https://summerbruise.lnk.to/van
Blending self-deprecating humor with raw vulnerability, “Van” captures the quiet chaos of social burnout and emotional retreat. With lyrics that toggle between isolation and ironic self-awareness, it paints a vivid portrait of a protagonist lost in their own head, ditching parties, dodging friends, and avoiding accountability.
Summerbruise started as a smaller project from lead vocalist and lyricist Mike Newman (he/him) back in 2015 and has since grown into a full band made up of Stanli Fryman (she/her) on drums, John Parkison (them/he) on bass, and guitarists Mitch Gulish (he/him) and Cora Kunda (she/her). They now affectionately refer to themselves as Summerbruise 2.0, and under that guise this new record is their first official release as a collaborative unit.
Mike Newman shared his thoughts on the new record below:
“This was our first time in the studio since officially expanding from two members to five, and our first time ever writing together as a full band. Having so many more hands on the ball was exciting on it’s own, but the fact that some of those hands were fresh off of recording two of my unbiased favorite releases of the last few years (Arcadia Grey’s Casually Crashing and S@YP’s always cloudy) meant I got to watch what I would humbly consider a dream team of four of the most talented musicians I’ve ever known take these little stems and snippets of my ideas and develop them into songs I never could have dreamed of.”
Summerbruise isn’t just another emo band – it’s a collective of close friends who are navigating the tribulations of adulthood and commiserating over some of the more mundane tasks that life entails. Their writing consistently finds the bittersweet space between humor and heartbreak.
Since the beginning, their music has been both haunted and propelled by death, most notably by two separate and significant occurrences. The first was the death of Mike’s dad in January 2017 and the second was the death of his close friend some eight months later. Both occurring just after the release of Summerbruise’s first release, the seven-track Bummer Vacation. Following that album was 2022’s The View Never Changes and 2024’s Better Vacation which garnered an outpouring of support from fans.
Newman’s deep, personal fear of death is very much present within the fabric of this album. Recorded at producer Nick Starrantino’s Deadend Studio on Long Island, these 12 tracks play tug-of-war between Newman’s own quirky vulnerability and the steady guiding hand of his musical co-conspirators. The full track list can be found below.
- Making It Worse
- What Do You Mean ‘Guise’?
- Raptured Trax, pt. IV
- Meet Hell Halfway
- Never Bothered
- VAN (feat. Carpool)
- Rusev Day (Say Hi To Kate)
- Man! I Feel Like A Dumbass!
- Cookie Monster Snapback (feat. Tades Sanville of Hot Mulligan)
- Bottle Episode
- Sad Gimmick
- Was The Grink There?
Most recently, Summerbruise was on tour with friends Equipment, Kerosene Heights, and Tiny Voices. Earlier this year they joined the midwest emo band TRSH on their headliner tour with dear Maryanne, and doan. To stay up to date on all things Summerbruise, follow them at @summerbruise69.
Follow Summerbruise
Instagram: @summerbruise69
TikTok: @summerbruise69
Interview & video edited by Steve Sievers of Bionic Buzz.
