South Of Eden / ‘The Talk’ EP released as taster for debut album

Based in Columbus, Ohio, South Of Eden have just released their superb debut EP ‘The Talk’, via LAVA/Republic Records. The disc features four original songs and it is an excellent taster for the album to follow.

The band have also separately performed a cover of the Audioslave hit ‘Show Me How to Live’.

Touring extensively in 2019, their vintage Hard Rock style caught the ears of Lava Records and a deal soon followed.

“We want to sound the way we hear Rock in our heads—vintage with a sprinkle of today” is how they describe their sound.

The band then headed to Los Angeles to record with legendary Grammy Award-winning producer Greg Wells, who told us: “When I first heard the band, it had its own original identity. That was something I had waited years to find.

“I emailed them back saying, ‘I want to be your Mutt Lang’.”

And the results are pretty stunning.

Hella Rock Festival

The four track EP is a taster for the album to come. The band told us: “This EP we have out now, is really a snapshot into the album as a whole.

“Obviously we wanted to release the entire record at once, so the entire piece could be enjoyed as we wrote and recorded it, but because of the world situation we knew we had to get some music out to the fans and people who needed it.

But every song on there represents a different corner of the album, and there’s lots in between!”

The EP works very well and you can feel the energy in the recordings. Indeed the band told us that they honoured the traditional methods of recording to “..tape in a vintage way, with no click track, pitch correction, copy-paste, or any of that nonsense.”

As for where the band take their influences, Tom McCullough told us: “Really in terms of influences we are quite broad. Myself and Justin tend to lean towards the more Classic Rock 60’s, 70’s and 80’s stuff.

“Nick and Ehab both like all of that, but also are influenced by a lot of pop and funk music as well.

“Plus we all have a pretty deep love for any era Heavy Metal, so that kind of pops up every once in awhile too.”

Album cover of The Talk, from Columbus band South Of Eden.

A particular highlight is the track ‘Dancing With Fire’, which features on our MetalTalk Tracks of the Week Soundcloud playlist. Is an uptempo rocking stomper and certainly worth a listen.

You can experience the live feel of the band by watching the Live From Sonic Lounge Studios version of ‘Dancing With Fire’ on YouTube.

But, given the pandemic situation, it is going to be a while before we experience that in the flesh.

“I wouldn’t say we’ve adapted to Covid, no one really has, the whole worlds a mess right now, but we’ve taken this shut-in time to really try and hone our live show to a fine point,” Tom McCullough says.

“We’ve started discussing different light shows and how we’re gonna get on and off the stage and of course we’re always writing, so there’s plenty of that.

“I think that’s the stuff I’m most excited to show the world, the new live show.”


Alongside the EP, the band have also released a cover of Audioslave’s ‘Show Me How To Live’.

The band says: “We fell in love with ‘Show Me How To Live’ instantly. It’s a very heavy riff, but it grooves at the same time and that’s why we think Tom Morello is a god for doing all the things he does on the electric guitar.

“And obviously Chris Cornell is nothing to pass over at all, may he rest in peace.”

South of Eden are:

Ehab Omran [lead vocals, acoustic guitar]

Justin Young [lead guitar, vocals]

Tom McCullough [drums]

Nick Frantianne [bass].

Sleeve Notes

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