Radkey Taps Into The Indomitable Spirit Of Punk Rock On New Album
Kansas City punk band of brothers (Dee, Isaiah and Solomon), Radkey, have independently released their new album Bedroom Sand. Never abandoning the scrappy DIY nature that raised them, they called on the relationships they’ve made throughout their time as a band and connected with a like-minded professor at Syracuse University. During the summer break of 2025, the unlikely group snuck onto campus to record in the School of Music's state-of-the-art studio. The result is eight songs of unyielding defiance — and the story of a band doing whatever it takes to make the music happen
Wasting no time and opening the album with the high-octane track “Victory,” Radkey has created their own walk-out song.
“When we were recording or going on tour, we'd always watch the Foo Fighters 'Back and Forth' documentary to get us pumped up,” the band shares “In that documentary, Dave mentions that he wanted to write an amazing set opener. So we've always wanted to write that ultimate opening song for our sets. We came up with the idea to do a song about the Kansas City Chiefs that's just about kicking ass and winning. It gets you in the perfect headspace for a show.”
Up next, “Falling Out of Grace” comes barrelling in with Hüsker Dü and Squeeze influences throughout the instrumentation and storytelling.
Radkey explains, “After an album release, there can be this scary feeling that you don't know where the next cool song is coming from. It always ends up working out, but this song is about the world that you're afraid to live in. One where you're wondering what your loved ones think about you. Are they disappointed?”
Elsewhere on the record, “Welcome To The Backyard” takes the classic punk rock song formula and runs with it. “Strays” is an ode to the band’s many rescue cats and any outsider looking for their group. The title track’s driving guitar riff was inspired by The Cars, as Radkey mixes in references to the manga series One Piece.
“It's a song about having a made up drug called 'Bedroom Sand', a messy room, a clogged sink and feeling like you may be an embarrassment to your friends. It was one of our favorite songs on this record,” Radkey says.
Radkey kicked off their Midwest tour dates back in May with their 4th annual RadFest in Kansas City. Earlier this week, the band played at Summer Punk Fest in Indianapolis, IN. And this weekend, they will perform at Summer in the Park in Manhattan, KS. Today sees the band announce a few more shows fans can look forward to, including Celebrate AMERI'KANA Music & Arts Festival. Known for their live shows, Radkey has received cosigns from the Foo Fighters, Jack White, and Rise Against to name a few.
