It’s one thing to start a new band in this day and age and wonder what, if anything, to anticipate from record labels in terms of interest, recording budgets, promotion, tour support, etc. Add a pandemic on top, and the entire industry, much like the rest of the world, is clearly in uncharted territory. Even for the DIY crew out there, releasing new material during a pandemic is fraught with uncertainty, especially knowing that, at the time of this interview, performing the material in front of a live audience was off the table. For James LoMenzo and his cohorts in Firstborne—Chris Adler (drums), Girish Pradhan (vocals), and Myrone (guitar)—that’s exactly the environment they found themselves in when they decided to launch headfirst into the ring and debut their new project, independently releasing their self-titled debut EP in 2020. “It