Bad Omens

Bad Omens are a metal band formed in 2015 in Richmond, Virginia, by vocalist and producer Noah Sebastian, guitarist Nicholas Ruffilo and bassist Vincent Riquier. The band’s lineup later includes Noah Sebastian on lead vocals and programming, Nicholas Ruffilo on bass and backing vocals, Joakim Karlsson on lead guitar, rhythm guitar, programming and backing vocals, and Nick Folio on drums and percussion.

Formation and early releases

The project begins in 2013 when Noah Sebastian starts writing lyrics while he is the guitarist in Washington, D.C.-based band Immoralist. He leaves that group in 2014 and then contacts Nicholas Ruffilo the following year to form a new band, later bringing in Vincent Riquier, who introduces Joakim Karlsson. The band first uses the name CHLDRN, with “Bad Omens” originally intended as the title of one of its songs. Sumerian Records founder Ash Avildsen suggests the band adopt Bad Omens as the group name, and the song title is changed to “Glass Houses”.

The band releases an untitled demo EP with rough versions of songs later used on its debut album, and this leads to a recording deal with Sumerian Records. Bad Omens then issues its self-titled EP, Bad Omens, in 2016 on Sumerian Records.

Albums and touring

Bad Omens plays Warped Tour in 2017, which brings the band to wider attention among pop punk and metal audiences. In the same year, Noah Sebastian works with deathcore band Winds of Plague on their fifth studio album, Blood of My Enemy. The band supports Parkway Drive on the Reverence tour in 2018 with Stick to Your Guns.

Bassist Vincent Riquier leaves the band in July 2018. Bad Omens releases its second full-length album, Finding God Before God Finds Me, in 2019. A deluxe edition follows in 2020 and adds the tracks “Limits” and “Never Know”, both of which chart on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Songs list, along with a cover of Duran Duran’s “Come Undone”.

The band’s first US headlining tour begins in 2020, with support from Oh, Sleeper, Thousand Below and Bloodline, but the remainder is postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Later releases and collaborations

In 2022, Bad Omens tours with A Day to Remember, The Ghost Inside and Beartooth, and also fills in for Every Time I Die on the Voyeurist tour with Underoath. That year the band releases The Death of Peace of Mind, which becomes its best-known album. The songs “Just Pretend” and “The Death of Peace of Mind” are certified Gold by the RIAA in the United States. Noah Sebastian describes the album as the band’s most experimental work and as the one that best reflects the group’s identity.

In 2023, Bad Omens tours on the “Concrete Forever US Tour” with ERRA and I See Stars, then appears as a guest on Bring Me The Horizon’s “Nx_Gn Wrld Tour” alongside Cassyette and Static Dress. The band also releases “V.A.N” featuring Poppy. In 2024, it releases the single “THE DRAIN”, a collaboration with HEALTH and SWARM, and “THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND (SO WYLIE PATCH)”. The soundtrack release CONCRETE JUNGLE (THE OST) follows, featuring collaborations with ERRA, iRis.EXE, WE ARE FURY, Poppy, Wargasm and A Thousand Below, along with live tracks and reworked versions of earlier songs.

Discography

Studio albums: Bad Omens (2016), Finding God Before God Finds Me (2019), The Death of Peace of Mind (2022)

Soundtrack: CONCRETE JUNGLE (THE OST) (2024)