Speed On Grief, Global Success, And Why Hardcore Matters More Than Ever

For most bands, going from playing in front of a hundred people to performing for tens of thousands would feel like the realization of a dream.

For Australian hardcore powerhouse Speed, it has become something much more complicated.

Speaking with Billboard Philippines while traveling through Asia ahead of the band’s Manila stop, which was held on June 9 at Aster Events Place in Mandaluyong City and produced by local punk label Still Ill Records, vocalist Jem Siow reflected on Speed’s remarkable journey from Sydney’s underground hardcore scene to becoming one of the most important voices in modern heavy music. Yet despite the scale of the band’s rise, Siow remains grounded in the same principles that shaped Speed from the very beginning.

Sydney Hardcore Roots, Global Stage

“We started as a group of friends who met through hardcore,” he says. “No matter how big this whole thing gets, we’re just a hardcore band.”

Since forming in 2019, Speed have emerged as one of the genre’s defining acts. Their debut album ONLY ONE MODE propelled them onto some of the world’s biggest stages, introducing a new generation of listeners to hardcore’s ethos of community, authenticity, and self-expression.

For Siow, however, the band’s success isn’t simply a story about Speed.

“It’s not just about what Speed can become,” he explains. “It’s more about what hardcore can become for people.”

Growing up in Sydney’s relatively small hardcore scene, the members of Speed developed a relationship with music that existed far removed from ideas of fame, status, or commercial ambition.

“When you come from a small hardcore scene, hardcore means what it means to you and your friends,” Siow says. “Whatever that connection is, whatever that experience is, that’s the meaning of hardcore.”

That perspective continues to guide the band today, even as they find themselves playing venues they once could never have imagined.

“We never had a rulebook for this,” he admits. “So we’re constantly asking ourselves how to navigate all of this while staying true to what hardcore means.”

That question has become increasingly important as Speed’s audience has expanded far beyond traditional hardcore circles.

Hardcore’s Rise: Community, Reality, and the Post-Pandemic Shift

According to Siow, the genre’s current surge in popularity reflects a deeper cultural shift taking place in the wake of the pandemic.

“We came out of COVID and people realized what was actually important in life,” he says. “Being part of a community. Having experiences in real time. Things that can’t be replicated through a digital lens.”

In an era increasingly defined by algorithms, social media, and artificial intelligence, Siow believes hardcore offers something many people feel is missing.

“It’s one of the few things that feels truly real.”

For that reason, he sees hardcore’s growth not as a trend, but as a reaction to modern life itself.

“Hardcore is almost an antidote to the way the world is going.”

Speed, Identity, and What Representation Means in Hardcore

The band’s rise has also positioned Speed as one of hardcore’s most visible Asian-led acts on the global stage. While representation was never an explicit goal, Siow acknowledges the significance of seeing listeners from similar backgrounds connect with the band’s story.

“We’re not trying to wave a flag or start a political movement,” he says. “We’re just speaking from our own experiences and being who we are.”

Still, the impact has become impossible to ignore.

Growing up as a minority in Australia, Siow often found himself navigating multiple identities at once. Hardcore gave him a space where those experiences could coexist naturally, and seeing younger fans find the same confidence through Speed has become one of the most meaningful aspects of the band’s journey.

“If seeing us gives someone permission to express themselves and find themselves, that’s incredibly powerful,” he says.

That spirit of authenticity lies at the heart of Speed’s latest project, ALL MY ANGELS.

Released after a period marked by both extraordinary success and devastating personal loss, the EP finds the band confronting grief more directly than ever before.

The contrast between those experiences was often overwhelming.

“One day you’re playing in front of thousands of people and then the next day you’re at your best friend’s funeral,” Siow says.

While ONLY ONE MODE served as a declaration of who Speed were as a band, ALL MY ANGELS explores what happens when certainty gives way to questions.

“On ONLY ONE MODE we had answers,” he explains. “On ALL MY ANGELS it’s all questions.”

The project became a way for the band to process loss while honoring the friends who helped shape their lives.

Through that process, Siow says the members of Speed found themselves returning to the same values they have always championed: love, loyalty, community, acceptance, and living fully in the present.

“It showed us that everything we believe in isn’t just words,” he says. “It’s real.”

For a band that has spent years preaching those ideals, ALL MY ANGELS serves as proof that they extend far beyond lyrics or slogans.

As Speed continue their ascent from Sydney’s DIY venues to some of the world’s largest stages, their mission remains unchanged.

Every opportunity, whether it’s a club show, a festival appearance, or a sold-out international tour, is still measured against the same question they have asked themselves since day one: what does this mean for hardcore?

And for Speed, the answer continues to be the same.

Stay real. Stay connected. Never forget where you came from.

Listen to Speed’s latest EP, ALL MY ANGELS, below:

Special thanks to Kara Angan.