Artists You Should Know: Raue

Although they might just be a two-piece that doesn’t stop Santa Cruz rockers Raue from summoning an entire band’s worth of visceral sonic energy. Comprised of just Paige Kalenian and Jax Huckle, the pair recently shredded their way through an appearance at The Smell, though you can catch them at Volcom HQ in Costa Mesa on January 26th and again in a few months at The Echo in Los Angeles on March 23rd.

Initially, Raue was a solo project created by Kalenian to navigate and foster a long-held fascination with making music. While still a preteen she took her first step toward doing just that: playing guitar and recording original songs at a friend’s home studio. By 2021 a self-titled debut album Raue was released, bringing with it an intimate and raw portrait painted with poignant pressure. From the driving thrill of “Heart Attack” to the paced conflagration of riffs on “Her Final Words” — the LP is rife with jaunty eruptions of somber emotion made fiercely melodic.

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Not long after Huckle joined Kalenian and the duo hit it off quickly to dive headfirst into pushing out their shared Erase & Rewind EP a year later. Now backed by a concussively hypnotic array of drums Raue started to flirt more heavily with the perceived borders between genres of rock. Their heavy but glistening romantic rager “K!NG a buoyant outburst of frayed guitars and surging percussion that — like the punchy “Rewind” — teases an undercurrent of pop punk exhilaration.

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Their indiscriminate mashing of grunge with punk slingshots their sound between frenetic cacophony and stirring anthemics. Both the sheer number of bands they’ve been compared to and the ones that impacted them in their adolescence are a testament to their electrifying music.

Similarities have been drawn to everyone from the Pixies and Garbage to Nirvana, while Kalenian herself has named Foo Fighters and Green Day (especially the music video for “Jesus of Suburbia”) as potent influences. One of last year’s singles “Ruby Glow,” with its layered vocals and intoxicating chaos, echoes Billie Joe Armstrong like no other.

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With the onset of 2024, the duo has continued to hammer out new tracks like the newly minted “Weak Blood” — a rollicking and roaring headbanger that roils to the eviscerating drones uttered by Kalenian between grinding riffs. It’s exactly the kind of tumultuous crescendo that’s become synonymous with Raue’s volcanic live sets. So if you’re looking for a show to lose yourself in a blaze of earnest and volatile rock by two impassioned newcomers you’re not going to want to miss out on their upcoming dates.

Words: Steven Ward

See Raue at Volcom HQ in Costa Mesa on Friday, January 26th, and The Echo in Los Angeles on Saturday, March 23rd.

Visit Raue on their website and Instagram to stay updated on new releases and tour announcements.

Listen to “Weak Blood” the new single from Raue below!