Portland indie outfit Bonus Room returns with ‘Use 2,’ a brooding and emotionally bare single that marks another leap forward in the band’s evolution.

At once nostalgic and biting, the track channels the ache of old friendships fraying with time… a theme that songwriter Derrin Brice captures with haunting precision: “You don’t know me like you used to,” he cries over a minimalist beat that wouldn’t feel out of place in an ‘80s psychological thriller.

Bonus Room formed in the early pandemic days, a collision of creative forces led by frontman Chris Lee and Brice, joined by guitarist/producer Wes Phillips, bassist Erik Brownfield, and drummer Ben Dorothy. With roots stretching from Oregon to Alaska and sonic influences ranging from Talking Heads to Gorillaz, the five-piece thrives on contrast — light and dark, melody and noise, dance and doom.

“Use 2” is the second glimpse into their debut EP ‘Bunk,’ due out this fall. Tracked entirely in the band’s DIY basement studio and affectionately dubbed at the Starlight Underground, the EP captures Bonus Room at their best.

When asked about this particular track, Derrin Brice replied, “I wrote this song when I was really butting heads with one of my oldest friends. I guess I was sort of mourning the relationship we used to have with one another and just struggling with all the stuff that comes with two people growing apart. I was feeling equal parts bitter and nostalgic and I just leaned into the moody nature of the beat. It was the first song where it was more of a collective effort and arrangement, including everyone. And maybe our first with Ben as the new drummer. It started as this post-hardcore, emo thing on guitar and then somehow evolved into the Gorrilaz-inspired beat you hear at the beginning. That groove became the heart of the song and we ended up with this danceable, brooding track. The song pulls from a lot of influences, which makes it hard for any of us (the band) to pinpoint what it sounds like. That’s kind of our favorite thing about Use 2.”

Headline photo: Justin Kent

Bonus Room Instagram / Bandcamp