Little Envy, a brand new rock band hailing from San Francisco, released their debut, self-titled album on Dec. 2. The band consists of multi-instrumentalists and long-time friends Joseph de los Reyes and Koosh Saxena. 

The duo wrote all the songs together and crafted their image for their band. Two years and two more band members later, they have an album and a strong emergence into the rock music scene. 

The band spent three weeks recording the album at Panda Studios in Fremont with producer Sam Pura.

 Most of the songs maintain a similar raw, garage band-esque feel throughout the instrumentation; consisting of feedback-laden guitar, heavy bass lines and loud crashes from the drums. 

The vocals are a mixture of emphatic singing and screaming, usually thrown in to add emphasis to certain lyrical pieces. The STAR had the opportunity to talk to de los Reyes about the new debut.

“The record is about the relationships we create amongst ourselves,” said de los Reyes, “and some of the struggles that follow in regards to maintaining those relationships…being lost inside your head…making decisions. Anyone who has been or is in a serious relationship, struggled with substance abuse and is simply trying to make their way through this game of life that we have to play can relate to these songs.”

The first track of the album, “Colour,” speaks true to de los Reyes’s words on their image of the album as a whole. This track is about being in a difficult place in a relationship and reaching a point in life where one wishes everything was totally different than the way it is. The crashing, moving beat of the song mixes uniquely with the poetic lyrics: “Please bring out the life in me. I’ve been making mistake after mistake by waiting. Rid me of all I see, the black and white, fill me up with color, a new light.” 

Track three, “3am,” had a different, softer intro than the majority of the songs on the album. The song opens with an acoustic guitar strumming out a scale of simple chords repeatedly for a brief moment, and then the drums, bass and screaming all come in together with an abrupt “I’m not sorry for you…” 

This song is about the consuming struggles of a breakup that keep one restlessly awake at night: “I can’t believe it’s 3 a.m., with thoughts of you still dancing in my head.”

“Flow” is an incredibly revealing song, lyrically displaying the singer’s insecurities and tragic past life. The “flowing,” driving beat mixes well with the riveting, truthful lyrics. The song seems to become an anthem that any listener dealing with a tragic occurrence they are withholding from the rest of the world can relate to—whether it be a bad breakup, drug abuse, or parental disputes. 

The song “Boy” is the only track to be accompanied by an official music video so far. The video features shots of the band playing paralleled with dismal, off-putting images like sad, creepy mimes and a corporate business man flipping through a magazine with his face painted like a skull. 

The lyrics of the song demonstrate what Joseph means when he talks about being lost in your head: “There’s a boy in my brain and he’s asking me things, I’m not sure what to say,” Joseph sings as the chorus begins. 

The song unfolds as an in-depth peek into the singer’s mind, and this is highlighted by the uneven sound produced by the instrumentation. 

The guitar is played in a fast-picking style and the crash of the cymbals is offset by the kick of the bass drum, while de los Reyes takes his time delivering the lyrics, enunciating and emphasizing his words. The total effect is a sincere, unique and real rock sound. 

“To say the least we are more than stoked on the support we are getting from people all around,” said de los Reyes. “We’ve had music up for just barely a couple months and seem to be getting people’s attention so that is super humbling. We are so excited to finally be sharing these songs and truly appreciate that people are helping spread the word.”

Little Envy just recently played their first show at Rickshaw Stop, a live music venue in San Francisco, on Nov. 28. 

They plan to start touring in the spring of 2015. Little Envy’s full debut album is available for download via iTunes, and streaming on YouTube and Facebook.