Posessed by the Moment: An Interview with Ephemera

By Maya Bishop | August 24, 2026

Photo Credit: Aaron Patrick Steen @aaronthepossumraccoon

If I’m being honest, I’ve wanted to do this interview since joining knifetwister records. Ephemera is a band I came across during the Crabcore Cover Tour show by Otterhouse Sudios in February of ‘25. On first impressions they were young, super talented, and an absolute delight off the stage as well. Since then I’ve caught them at Otterfest and kept up with the bits of band news here and there. Since then it’s been amazing seeing how well they’ve grown, so thanks a ton to the band for doing this interview. If you’re looking for meaning in your deathcore then I cannot vouch for Ephemera enough.

Hi, for the fans, can everyone introduce themselves and tell me how you got started in music.

Niya: Hi everyone, my name is Niya. I am 23 years old, of Haitian and Greek descent from Queens, New York. I am the vocalist and visual artist for Ephemera. I’ve always had a love for art, singing and songwriting for as long as I can remember. When I was a child I joined my middle school’s chorus and when I got to high school I started taking singing more seriously, practicing by myself to expand my vocal range. I’ve always had an inclination towards writing and in high school I transitioned from just writing poetry to solidifying melodies.

Justin: Helloooo I’m Justin! 29 years old, Puerto Rican Taíno from Jersey and I play bass! I’m the one that comes crawling out of the dark slappin strings! For a long time I wanted to involve myself in the music industry but where I’m from it’s not simple. The town I grew up in was pretty discriminating during my years there so sadly I was on my own with nothing but a dream. That was until of course 2 years ago I met my friend Jimmy and he gifted me my first 4 string bass to learn. I’ve since taught myself by ear until I could get picked up by a group or mentor, which ended up being this beautiful band we know and love. Back in September ‘25 I was recruited by Ephemera to try out for a permanent spot. Although I was very nervous and new to everything, everyone made me feel comfortable and confident enough to bring what I’ve been holding in all these years out to the table. Ever since, I’ve been happily bending strings for this amazing band I can proudly call home.

Angel: Hi I’m Angel, I’m the drummer for the band Ephemera and how I started on the kit was simply just in high school with simple jazz. I loved and hated it but what can ya do, it helped me start in some way to where I am now!

Was metalcore/deathcore always your genre of choice or have any of you been more into other genres?

Niya: When I was a younger child I used to write raps as I had a heavy hip-hop influence from my mom growing up. This influence can still be seen in my songwriting style today, as I am influenced a lot by rap when I craft my flows. When I started song writing in high school, I wrote songs exclusively designed to be sung in an indie/bedroom pop fashion. I also got into hyperpop and fell in love with artists blending rap, pop and electronic sounds in songs. In addition, I always appreciated trap metal and hip hop that blends heavy vocals with intricate flows and sinister beats. In terms of personal taste, I’ve always had a love for heavy music in addition to genres that would be considered more mainstream. It wasn’t until my adulthood that I started writing heavy songs.

Justin: As wild as this may sound, I never really listened to deathcore before. Outside of a few songs from a few very good bands at least. I’ve always been more of an alternative metal/nu metal fan. Biggest SOAD fan on the planet!(this is factual..) Aside from that, everyone else might find it “soft” of me but I absolutely love indie folk type music and I do write my own separately now for fun! Don’t like it too bad, meet me outside and we’ll see who’s really soft. Angel: Before I got into that I went through a few different genres that I still enjoy today like rock then heavy metal and slowly started leaning towards metalcore in 2013 with funny enough Bring me the horizon was the first metalcore/deathcore band I heard.

What sparked the beginning of Ephemera as a band? How did you get your name, and what influences the blended metalcore/deathcore sound that you have?

Niya: In 2023, I was given the opportunity to join Ephemera by our former guitarist when we met through a mutual friend. I was asked by Angel to send audition videos of me doing vocals. At the time, I did not know how to scream. I’d been a clean singer my whole life, but I'd never so much as attempted to do harsh vocals. These audition videos sound like shit y’all. I still have them on my phone. They will never see the light of day. Angel was like “she has potential” and thankfully gave me the passing vote to join. We struggled a bit at first, but Angel ended up re-joining us after life got in the way of our first go around. Justin joined us after our original bassist stepped down in 2025, playing his first show with us at the sanctuary in New Jersey on my birthday! :) The word ‘Ephemera’ derived from the Greek word ephemereros, meaning “lasting only a day” is now used to describe items that are meant to be used for a short time, and then you throw them away. It’s usually used in its plural form Ephemeral, describing something that fades quickly. When we perform, I feel like I go somewhere else for a short period of time, like I leave my body and something else takes over to allow the music to come out of me. But only for that short period of time. There’s something so beautiful about the temporary things in life and often those things give us the best memories. We all felt that the word was a really cool word that not many people have seen before, and it’s used to describe an aspect of life people don’t often think about. In terms of musical influence, my personal taste is a blend of true deathcore, metalcore, some slam, nu-metal, and emo music, just to name a few. My roots listening to music like panic! At the disco and my chemical romance as a child paired with heavier bands like Motionless in White blend with some of my favorite deathcore/ metalcore bands. I would say some of my top picks when it comes to influence for me include Dying Wish, Agoraphobic Nosebleed, Jesus Piece, Kaonashi, Peeling Flesh, Filth, and Attack Attack!. It’s hard to name only a few but you get the idea. Angel: The beginning of Ephemera was sparked by the fact me and my friends wanted to still do a band, even though initially I wasn’t part of this original vision of Ephemera I wound up stepping in after a few shows just because at the end of the day these people are my friends and I care deeply about them and the vision they have.

Photo Credit: Natalie @natiluvr

When we were looking into bands to interview you were highly requested (to my personal delight) how do you think you've built such a strong fanbase and community?

Justin: Yeah so the many tags we received on the post for this interview is kind of my fault ^_^”. In a good way! As I said before I’ve always wanted to make music and be a part of the community so once it happened, all of my real supporters from back home went all in. My friends and family have supported me and the band since the moment I joined and I couldn’t be more grateful! We of course also have many other wonderful friends and supporters who keep us confident and dedicated to what we do. Also I feel like the way everyone interacts with one another on stage mainly while setting up grabs peoples attention. I’ve seen people watching us while we get ready to perform, something must catch their eye. Like seriously, come to an Ephemera show and just watch us set up. We’re basically like those stereotypical band memes.

Niya: i think a lot of the reason why people fuck with us is because I and the rest of the band are putting our true selves on display with the music. I think (or at least hope) that people can feel the authenticity behind our art. It’s an outlet for us to safely release what we’re all feeling and it’s an opportunity for us to do that with people we care about. I’m not holding anything back and I try my best to convey that in my performance. The fact that people really like it is a huge amazing bonus. I actually wasn’t expecting us to have such amazing reception right off the bat, so I am grateful beyond words that people resonate with my music and genuinely enjoy it.

You've also done some benefit shows for your friend Morty, members of the scene, the National Organization for Women, and holiday drives, would you say that giving back to the community is a core part of your identity as a band?

Niya: Giving back to the community is the whole reason why I want to make music in the first place. I’ve always felt a pull inside me to want to help people, but I’ve never known how. As I got older I learned through experience that I am helping people through helping their animals, as I work in emergency veterinary medicine, but I’ve always wanted to do something more. Something outside of my traditional career. I realized that I could use my music as a form of activism because when I perform I get like 25 minutes to say whatever I want and people have to listen. So, I want my message to be a positive one. There can be so much misogyny, racism, and violence in the scene. Even my family had reservations when I first told them about the genre that I play because of that fact. But at the same time, there can be so much community. I want to create a space where when people listen to our music, they know that none of that shit is gonna fly if we’re in the building. I want people to be safe. When my friend Morty went missing in November, I literally could not believe it at first. Devastated is not a strong enough word to describe how I felt. I started putting up flyers, but I felt I needed to do more. I got the idea to put together a show and I saw that others were doing shows for Morty already, which made me feel more confident that it would be a good way to help. Angel helped me find a venue that would be willing to do a fundraiser show. We raised money and a lot of people came so we raised a lot of awareness as well. It was the only way I knew how to try and help my friend and I know if the roles were reversed Morty would have done the same for any of his friends. I just want to try and help people as best as I can, and my art is a big part of me, so I feel like it’s a privilege to be able to use it to make some sort of difference.

Justin: Oh a million percent! Giving back to the community IS the identity of the band. We look to create safe spaces(not the pit) that includes absolutely everyone! To create more fundraisers for people in need. To spread awareness of the several injustices we all face in America every single day of our lives while most others try to bury it or simply look the other way. We fight for those who can’t and lend a hand to those in need! And trust me.. ain’t nobody stopping us!

Your first single "Product of my Environment" came out in December, what is the story behind that song?

CONTENT WARNING: THEMES OF VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT

Niya: In 2020, I recovered a memory that my brain had buried. I was sexually assaulted at the age of 10 by my very close cousin. We were raised side by side as brother and sister essentially so the realization was a complete shock to me and it took very long to process. In January of 2021 I confronted him in the parking lot of his apartment building. He didn’t even try to deny it, he just said “I’m sorry”. My mom and my uncle had to pull me off of him. My relationship with multiple members of my family deteriorated shortly after, because I made the decision to step away. The sample in the beginning of the song is a clip from the confession that he willingly recorded. I went to the police, with said recording. Because of the statute of limitations, the fact that the assault happened 8 years ago at the time of reporting, it was not eligible for prosecution, even with an admission of guilt. I sat and listened to him describe assaulting me in graphic detail for the first time in the detective’s office, only for him to tell me there was nothing he could do. It felt like everything I went through after coming forward was all for nothing. During my time diving deeper into listening to various subgenres of heavy metal I started to notice a pattern. Lyrically and artistically many artists choose to incorporate themes displaying violence, particularly of a sexual nature and usually targeted towards women. Samples of women screaming in pain, fear or distress were quite common. Graphic descriptions of rape and torture were often the subject material. All things considered, the vocals are very distorted as a stylistic choice so usually A typical listener can’t understand what they’re saying anyway but I always dive deep into what I listen to because if a song has lyrics, understanding them is part of my personal listening experience. People always say “Oh, deathcore is supposed to be scary” and of course people have freedom to create however they want and explore whatever themes they choose but I just started to feel like it all got a little bit repetitive and I started to wonder why it seemed like rape was always at the forefront. I know some people will definitely disagree with me and honestly that’s fine. But personally If I’m getting violence, I want violence with substance. I felt like I was going crazy after I went to the police station and I needed an outlet for myself to get my feelings about the situation out. I needed to keep myself sane. My mindset was “you want scary? Let me show you the scariest thing that ever happened to me. Because y’all talk about it, but I lived it, and I’m not the only one who did either.” And to be clear, I’m not looking for pity, I’m just telling it like it is. For me, and so many other people in the world. Not even just women, but anyone who has been a victim of sexual violence or any kind of abuse.

END OF CONTENT WARNING: THEMES OF VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL ASSAULT

This song also has a fascinating combination of childlike nostalgia and brutal violence, how did you navigate blending those two concepts?

Niya: The first half of the sample before the confession is actually from a video of me in 6th grade (I think) getting ready for school singing the duck song. My mom was begging me to sing it because she thought it was funny. I sent that video in the band groupchat not thinking anything of it but our guitarist at the time had the idea to mix it into the sample of the confession that I wanted in there and it came out really fucking cool. I think it’s a good contrast because the whole song is about something horrible that happened to me as a child and it gives you a glimpse of the spirit of who I used to be compared to who I’ve become. The violence I describe in the song comes from a very dark place but I just felt like if other people can write like that, then so can I, because it’s how I feel and I’m being honest. The last verse of the song describes a step in the procedure of a castration. People seem to really enjoy content that displays brutal violence and I think that a lot of people have a morbid fascination, which is part of human nature to a certain extent. So I felt I had an opportunity to tell a story that although being a display of violence, had real emotion attached to it. It’s supposed to make you a little uncomfortable. Even as a child I always had a love for horror movies and creepy stuff like the goosebumps books. So in a way it felt like tapping into my inner child to make such a violent story come to life. I was able to take my pain and turn it into something cathartic by exploring artistic themes that have always interested me in the first place.

Would you consider "Product of my Environment" a standalone release or should we expect future songs from Ephemera to have a similar style?

Niya: Some of our other songs are similar. I’m trying to tell a story with each song being different aspects, so a few of the songs pull from other parts of my life and similar subject matter. There is another song that accompanies this one that we perform live that also has little bits and pieces of the confession sample in there. But we definitely have songs that stand alone in terms of subject material. I love a good sample though, because it’s fun to throw little Easter eggs and references in, especially if it has to do with the topic of the song. It’s even more fun when someone catches a reference when they hear it while you’re playing. Right now, all of our songs are heavy. I’ve been experimenting with some clean vocals because I do want to branch out and make some songs that have a more metalcore vibe, so I can showcase a blend of clean and distorted vocals. I never want to put myself or the band in a box. I love our heavy style and I’m excited to keep it up and even go heavier, I’d love to incorporate some slamming elements and really throw down some caveman shit. At the same time, I’m also ready to branch out and show how dynamic we can be, and I think the guys are ready for that too.

You're also pulling from some deeply personal places in your music, exploring trauma and a desire for justice, how does it feel putting your emotions on display like that?

Niya: In all honesty, when I went to play my first show, I was terrified. I thought the samples would freak people out and I would get booed or something. But it was the opposite. There was a surprisingly great turnout and everyone was moving. After that first show, I only wanted to do more. My music comes from a very vulnerable place, and though it may come across as extremely shocking at first, I don’t care if I scare people away, because I’m being authentic. What I’ve learned is that no matter how scary it may be at first, once I put myself out there to tell my story, so many people can resonate with it and maybe find some comfort. That possibility takes away any fear that I have. Sometimes I think about what people might say and it does start to scare me. I know that certain people would probably have a lot of criticism towards my art and what I'm saying, and that’s valid because when you put art out there for consumption people are going to have opinions. That’s the whole point! But I’m not particularly focused on the possibility of people who might dislike the music for whatever reason because what I’m sharing just is. This is who I am, these are the people that believe in me and we did this together. Take it or leave it, it’s up to you. But if someone out there is able to resonate with the message and the story or even just fuck with the music and the community, it feels like an honor to me that we’re able to facilitate that.

Photo Credit: Aaron Patrick Steen @aaronthepossumraccoon

When crafting the melodies around the vocals what would you say is the hardest part? Is it matching the energy, trying to find a unique sound, or something else?

Niya: Actually, the instrumentals were usually all written before the lyrics. A track will be sent to me and I’ll look at my lyrics and see if I have anything written that I can flow with that instrumental. I usually don’t actually sit down and write a song, but sometimes I will come up with new lyrics if they come to me while listening to the track. It’s situational. When we would jam in practice, I would need the instrumental to start before I could join in. Lowkey, I also kinda suck at free styling on the spot. I’ve gotten slightly better with practice over time, but sometimes I freeze up. Lyrics tend to come to me at random times. Sometimes I’ll be trying to sleep and a line will just replay over and over in my head, I won’t be able to sleep until I write it down. The most challenging part for me in terms of crafting my lyrics around instrumentals I’ve been given is honestly finding the flow. Once I can get a solid flow for my lyrics and it sounds clear and I’m not stumbling over the beat, everything else kinda falls into place. Our most lyrically complex song is ‘Do you have a daughter?’. I have lyrics back to back to back. When I first wrote that song, I’ll admit, I even struggled to perform it because it flows so rapidly. But it’s definitely one of our most fun songs. Writing the various flows for that song was challenging because they change to fit the various parts of the instrumental. I think as you write songs over time you end up getting better at overcoming those parts of the process that felt daunting at the start.

Can we expect more music from the band sometime soon?

Niya: Absolutely. We have been working on recording some stuff that we hope to release in the near future and I’m excited with the direction it’s taking. We will probably start with a single, but we have enough songs for an EP, and I’ve had the concept planned out for quite some time. We’re anticipating starting the process of putting it together.

Is there anything else that you would like to mention?

Justin: We are currently looking for a new guitarist so please don’t hesitate to reach out to us or send us someone you know!

Niya: To add to that, if you fuck with our art and what we have to say and wanna help us be apart of that and contribute your own, that’s the biggest thing we are looking for. Fuck ICE and Fuck MAGA. We do not associate with any of that bullshit. And Nazis have no place in our scene, or our communities, period.

Photo Credit: Gabe @_gabevc

Anyone you would like to shout out?

Niya: First I wanna give a shout out to my mom, because she’s always supported me not only throughout school and my journey to have the career in veterinary medicine that I always planned for, but she’s supported me in my artistic passions and encouraged me to do both things I want to do, I never had to limit myself. She’s my biggest supporter in all things and I’m so grateful. I want to say thank you to my best friends from home as well as the ones I’ve made in college for always supporting me and listening to my demo tracks, giving me their opinions, and reposting our stuff. I also want to give a huge shout out to Otter House Studios, specifically Derek and Andrew. Otter House was our first practice studio and they’ve believed in us ever since we started, seen us practice and work, and offered us beautiful shows. They truly believed in us and without them we wouldn’t be where we are today, being able to start out with such a great community. Lastly, like I mentioned before, my friend Mortimer Wortman, who is currently missing. For more information you can follow @bringmortyhome on instagram.

Justin: My friends and family for supporting me every step of the way, my mom specifically for helping me get to rehearsals last minute and supporting me when I bought my new 5 string bass since these guys play in Drop G tuning! XD! My dad, for always reminding me to keep going. My nieces and nephews for inspiring me to always be better and better. And again my boy Jimmy for gifting me my first bass! Finally, all three of us want to thank Maya (@thecactusclique) for seeing us from the start, taking the time to listen, appreciate, and even write about us on their personal page. We greatly appreciate the constant support and encouragement!

And of course the final question, everyone's favorite kind of birthday cake.

Justin: TRES LECHES GIMMEEEEE

Angel: My favorite kind of cake is tres leches and my birthday coming soon so have cake ready please :3

Niya: Funnily enough I was also going to say Tres Leches before I found out the other two answers. That’s TRES tres leches! An honorable mention would be my aunt’s chocolate coffee cake recipe.

Maya: I understand because if we’re honest tres leches is the correct answer to this question.

To find more Ephemera check out the links below:

Ephemera Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ephemera_.official/

Niya (vocals): https://www.instagram.com/p1tpr1nc3ss/

Justin (bass): https://www.instagram.com/justindica__/

Angel (drums): https://www.instagram.com/lazy_boy16/