Story by Maddy Howell

There are records that arrive as a next step, and then there are records that arrive sounding like they had to happen.

For Varials, Where The Light Leaves feels unmistakably like the latter.

On paper, it marks a new era in obvious ways: the Philadelphia heavyweights’ first new music since 2022, a new frontman in Skyler Conder, and a band reintroducing itself at a point where major changes can either reenergise your identity or shatter it.

Despite the changes their project has undergone, album four isn’t simply about marking the beginning of a new era. It’s the sound of a band fighting to keep the whole thing alive, and coming out the other side with something sharper, nastier and more definitive because of it.

That tension is all over Where The Light Leaves, a record forged in stress, frustration, uncertainty and sheer force of will. For guitarist Shane Lyons, the goal was never to reinvent Varials for the sake of it - it was to get back to the core of what made the band hit in the first place.

“As far as the music goes, it was just a case of getting back to basics,” he says. “We started peeling it all back, and it was really about the fundamentals for us. What are we good at, and how can we sound the best we possibly can?”

That idea — fundamentals, no bullshit, no overthinking what Varials “should” be — runs through every moment on Where The Light Leaves. It’s a record that sounds huge, but its strength comes from clarity: knowing what this band does best and committing to that with absolute conviction.

Stepping into the vocalist spot, Skyler Conder’s arrival undoubtedly sharpened that focus even further. On his first full outing with Varials, he was already putting the work in before things became official, tracking demos on existing songs to test out how best to utilise his voice in the role. Knowing that he didn’t want to simply lean on his usual approach, his commitment to pushing his abilities has shaped the band’s evolution exponentially.

“I wanted to remind people why they loved Varials to begin with. At the same time though, I wanted to introduce a fresh sound to the band,” Conder explains. “I knew that it wasn’t going to be in my normal low, guttural tone, just because that doesn’t really fit this band. Eventually, I found the tone which was set for the entirety of the record… and everybody was like, keep doing that!”

From there, the album clicked into place.

“Once we got into that zone, it was ‘game on’,” Conder smiles. “I think we definitely are doing what we’re meant to be doing.”

If that makes the process sound smooth, the rest of the band are quick to correct the record. The making of Where The Light Leaves was defined by stress as much as chemistry.

“Honestly, insanely stressful,” comes one response when the band are asked how it felt to lock this line-up in and define what Varials is now. Then drummer Sean Rauchut sums it up perfectly: “It was a lot of mental turmoil, but all of that led us to an amazing album.”

That tension is baked into these songs, and there’s an urgency here that goes far beyond aggression. Well aware of exactly how much was riding on this next chapter, you can feel the pressure surging through Where The Light Leaves.

“The desperation and the stress that went into making this ended up being our saving grace,” Conder says. “All of that anger and frustration went straight into these songs, and that’s what made it what it is.”

“Going into this, we were barely hanging on to the idea of Varials as a band,” Lyons adds. “There’s definitely some desperation in the music, because we want to keep this thing going. We had to give it everything we’ve got. Honestly… this has to be the definitive Varials record. Or else, we’re cooked.”

That sentiment bleeds into the blisteringly raw feel of these songs, too. Distinctly human in every way, there’s a roughness to Where The Light Leaves that’s impossible to ignore — little cracks and imperfections intentionally speckled throughout.

“These songs are meant to be consumed live,” Conder says, talking about the way Lyons structured the songs and how he approached the vocals. “I think that’s why we left a lot of those voice cracks in, as well as those parts where the guitar rings out when it’s not supposed to.”

Bassist Mike Foley cuts in with the key word: “It’s the authenticness of it.”

Going through a fair amount of mental turmoil — not just in their professional lives, but while battling their own personal stresses — that gritty candor came directly from what the band were carrying while making the album. Responsibility for ensuring that feeling was preserved in the final mixes came down to producer Josh Schroeder.

“I remember specifically a line in ‘Blissful End’, where my voice sounds so hoarse,” Conder recalls. “It sounds worn the fuck out, but Josh told us to keep it in there because it makes it more human. He told us that people will notice that, and they’ll realise that I am giving my all to this.”

That instinct to protect the emotion is central to understanding Where The Light Leaves, and lyrically it’s a collection of songs steeped in pain, grief, anger and mental strain.

Just days before flying out to record, Conder’s older brother passed away — a devastating loss that the vocalist was still trying to process while entering one of the most important studio sessions of his career. That grief, naturally, found its way into the material. But, perhaps more importantly, over time those lyrics became bigger than one person.

“I’m talking a lot about my own personal things, but all of us had a say in the lyrical content,” he says.

He describes the process as genuinely collective, his bandmates moving in and out of the writing room, contributing lines, ideas and perspectives, and shaping how the songs expressed what they were all carrying.

“This isn’t just me talking about what I was going through,” he continues. “All of these songs are a concoction of things that we’re all going through. This is Varials talking about all of our shit.”

With an emotional register that feels so heightened without losing its grounding in real experience, an album like this could only be made by a band functioning as a unit rather than four separate people.

After the recording was complete, a pact was made not to listen to the album until the final mix came back. Returning to it with fresh ears a few months down the line, Varials knew that they had absolutely nailed it.

Shaped by grief, frustration and survival, there’s no denying the suffocation and violence that soar through Where The Light Leaves, but for all its brutality, this is not a record about glamorising collapse. It’s about enduring it. About finding a way through.

“When people listen to these songs, I hope they find a sense of knowing that they can make it out of whatever they’re going through,” Conder nods. “Right now, you’re going through all this crazy shit, but there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.”

“I would also hope that people understand that this is our best record, and that this is the best that we’ve ever sounded,” Lyons says. “We have this renewed momentum now, and I want people to understand that this is what Varials is now. This is our future.”

That’s what Where The Light Leaves ultimately sounds like: a band that knows exactly what this moment means. Not a reset for the sake of appearances, nor a nostalgic throwback to what once worked, it’s the product of a band with their backs against the wall, cutting the bullshit, trusting the chemistry, and making the record they needed to make.

Raw, pissed off, and deeply human, it’s built from the kind of pressure that either breaks you or makes you undeniable. And one thing’s for sure: Varials have chosen the second option.

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Where the Light Leaves, the new album from varials arrives February 27th via Fearless Records. Get the album - HERE

Catch Varials live on their North American headlining tour with support from UnityTX, Heavy//Hitter and Boltcutter. A current list of dates and cities can be found below.