ADARNA MAY EXIST Frontman Teej Talks New Track 'Heroine': "All It Takes Is Just A Quick Message"
Heavy music is frequently regarded as a safe space for mental health support, with lyrics focused on advocacy, a helping hand during tough times. September also marks Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and so the significance of ADARNA MAY EXIST releasing their latest offering during this month is not lost on me. The post-hardcore band's new release, 'Heroine', tackles themes of mental health and feeling lost, but also emphasises how important it is to feel empathy towards moments like this.
When I meet up with vocalist Teej, I can already tell just how much this track means to him and the band. This is the track they've pushed the most on socials, this is the track that already feels like one of their most special ones.
But first, I'm intrigued to know how Teej became involved with the band, and how his involvement led to where things are today.
"I write my songs like stories, we want to make it a production"
"I literally just saw a post on Facebook when I was at work one day," Teej says. "The band was formed in 2025 by a group of [expats] from the Philippines, and they were trying to write music and get gigs. I think they weren't happy with the direction it was going in, it didn't quite work out. And so [they put a post out]. I think they wanted somebody to grab the band by the reins and try and drive it rather than navigating a music scene in a foreign country."
Teej's first release with the band, 'Flames', was also his audition song. "[The band] have a catalogue of songs that they've been writing music for for the last two, three years - before they even started the band. So 'Flames' came about [from there]. Ken [rhythm guitars and backup vocals] sent me over the music and he was like 'Right, I want you to write a song to this. Record it and send it to me'.
"I was like no, because the only thing I have to record with is a £60 Chinese phone that I keep dropping, so the microphone sounds like it's in the toilet. So I went away, we arranged a practice, and I said 'I promise I've written something, I think you'll like it'. It was my audition, and it went really, really well."
WIth Teej in the fold, he notes that the band shifted towards a heavier, post-hardcore style, "Started to write more what they wanted to write as well."
"It's not about trying to commit suicide. It's to bring awareness"
This has lead to the band's latest release, 'Heroine', a particularly poignant and personal release for Teej. Similar to 'Flames', it started life in the band's vault, but with Teej now on board in a full capacity, it took shape a bit differently. "The music was already written," Teej notes, "Jed [bassist] had already written a version of the clean lyrics, and I heard it. It was just in passing, because I don't think we had any intention to actually use it, but I heard it and listened to the lyrics. I asked Jed to write them down so I could read through them.
"I realised it was about trying to give something up that you know is bad for you. And as I'm listening, I hear this. I listen to a lot of things like We Are The Ocean, a lot of clean calls with angry responses. And I heard the angry lyrics as I'm listening. I realised I've been in that situation before."
"It's the one that I will jump the barrier for"
Teej pauses, chooses his words, takes a moment to disclose that he is a suicide survivor himself. The raw screams and the feeling within the song resonates even stronger knowing this, the choice to release this track in September an even more deliberate choice.
"I was able to use my experiences from what Jed had written," Teej continues. "I think 'Heroine' is a duality. The clean lyrics to me are how somebody presents to the outside world. They say all the right things - 'Yeah, I know I've got a problem, I know I'm on a bad road'. But the screams in that are like what you actually hear."
Again, a pause, Teej reflecting and describing the thoughts behind the song.
"It's not anger. It's sort of like frustration of not really seeing a way out.
"It's not about trying to commit suicide. It's to bring awareness that somebody who says all the right things still has all these things going through their heads and might still do something."
In the run up to the release, the band launched a campaign on social media, #callyourfriends. "All it takes is just a quick message, and everyone's so connected now online.
"But to stress on that as well, suicide prevention, I prefer to say suicide awareness. Because I don't think... yeah, call your friends, but it's not on other people if somebody makes that decision. There's no blame associated with it, it's just more like check in."
This idea and motif that runs through the message of the song links right to the opening, a voice message left on a phone after dialling. "I got one of my friends, Danni Wood, who's an actor in the Cheltenham/Gloucester sort of area, I got her to do the introduction over the phone.
"The whole idea of the song is the person calling is calling a little too little too late. I [originally] wanted that phone call content to be in the breakdown. I told Ken my idea, and he came back with whatever we have now, which I think actually works better, I have to admit. It's a lot better, and it's giving us something we can push to the pre-marketing of the song."
"All it takes is just a quick message, and everyone's so connected now online"
The track release was tied off with the single artwork, a monochrome photo of a young woman lying fully clothed in a bathtub. The initial concept for this was inspired by the song's lyrics, and the photo itself was found on Unsplash, credited to US photographer @isthatbrock. "We just found this image and the girl's expression was perfect. The original image is in like a cobalt blue sort of lighting, but Ken decided to just take all the colour of it, take the depth away."
"There's still talk of a [music] video," Teej reflects as we wrap up and I ask what might be next for the track. "But videos cost a lot. We want to make it special and we don't want it to be just lyrics on a sheet. I write my songs like stories, we want to make it a production."
'Heroine' still remains a live favourite too, Teej notes, despite listening to it for two solid months for mixing. "It's the one that I will jump the barrier for, the one I get to get into the pit for. And it's the one I get to be a performer for the most."
'Heroine' is available now on streaming services
If you or someone you know needs help or support, call the Samaritans on 116 123
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