ANNALYNN - 'We Want To End On Our Own Terms'

Tumultuous is a word that encapsulates the journey that Thai metalcore band ANNALYNN have been through over the past year. Facing a situation that typically would be an issue that a band would want to sweep under the rug- the four current members of ANNALYNN have been facing their controversy head on.

Australian audiences were introduced to one of latest Greyscale Records signees out of Asia back in 2023, when they toured the country with Void of Vision. After dropping a well-received EP - their first with the Aussie label - in May 2024 it seemed they were on the up and up. 

But that momentum was slowly ground to a halt.

In November 2024, after falsely and publicly raising funds for a sickness that he has since admitted was false, the band swiftly decided to part ways with their original singer. Dragged into the controversy unknowingly and tarnished with a reputation that they did not deserve- what followed was a media storm.

Fresh with the sting of betrayal from somebody that they loved and trust, the four remaining members of ANNALYNN - vocalist/guitarist Nuttapop ‘Pob’ Cheunsuktananun, guitarist Supatchaya ‘Boss’ Sompong, drummer Nattbhol ‘Mong’ Larp-ar-parat and bassist Eakaratch ‘Eak’ Kaewsomdej - were left to pick the pieces. 

For many acts, this would spell the end. Nobody would blame them for doing so. Instead of calling it quits, these resilient musicians decided that their story was not yet finished.

At the end of this April, they released their new single ‘White Flags’ (you can read more about it here) and played a comeback show in their home of Bangkok, Thailand - proving that a band is much more than just the vocalist. While they still are yet to replace the former frontman, they were able to put on killer show. Making it a celebration of community, they invited members of the Thai metal community to take it in turns to perform songs from their almost 20 year discography.

Fans came out in droves to show love to a band that not just impacted the community in Bangkok, but have pioneered and inspired musicians across the wider South East Asian Scene. With a comeback this special, we knew couldn’t miss it.

So our Asia-core correspondent Kayla Hamilton flew to Thailand to chat to the band (along with their manager Somprasong ‘Jino’ Makkhasakul and lyric writer Sakulchat ‘Kang’ Chatrakul Na Ayuddhaya) ahead of their return to the stage.

‍Thank you so much for inviting Wall of Sound for an interview. So let’s start with the new single. ‘White Flags’ has been out for a few days now, how has the feedback been?‍

‍Pob: The feedback…it’s been okay! Everybody seems to be coming back to our band and maybe were surprised about me. [Laughs] But I’m thankful for everyone who always support us.

‍Has it been received how you expected?‍

‍Pob: Actually I didn't expect it to be something big or successful. I just want for us to be happy right now. 

‍Going through a situation like you guys have, where you have had to restart, can you talk us through the thoughts and process about making a return?‍

‍Boss: I can answer this one. So after everything happened, we just started to talk again and then we discussed on what the next step we were going to make because we didn't want to be stopped by that situation yet. So we just turned to face to each other and then we just started talking about the next step. 'What are we going to do?' So first thing for every band that when you're going to continue the band, you have to do a new song. That's it. You have to do a song, right? We are band, but now we don't have the new singer yet. And we talk a lot about how are we going to do this. Because we realised we don't need a new singer yet because we need to represent our sound. 'What is our song? What is our voice?' That's it. So that's why we decided for Pob to do the vocals for this song. And that was steps we took to start the comeback.

‍Pob: Actually why we have to come back again because our band had set a goal for ending the band, but it was not like this. So we talked together and we just want to continue to that goal.

We want to end on our own terms. Even if it’s only us four left or maybe in the future we find a new singer, we will welcome him.

But if don't have one, maybe just us going forward to that goal.

‍Obviously, the biggest discussion when you announced your comeback was ‘who is going to sing’- how did you decide on having Pob take over for now?‍

‍Boss: Actually he arranges all the songs already and he always sings the vocal line. So that's it. Why not?

‍Pob: Yeah, like Boss said. Actually, I make the demos. I arrange the songs and all the singing parts, except the lyrics, for the old singer. Every part. Every song. And I would send it to him to put together his own lyrics. 

‍Oh, so you are responsible for the rest?‍

‍Pob: I recorded it all. So I think it's not too hard for me to do some vocals, but I just have to find some confidence. Some confidence and for the band to trust me. Actually I know that these guys deep in their heart they trust me and I trust them too.

‍The message in ‘White Flags’ is an overall positive message- and off recording, we talked about your songs being a bit more positive going forward. What do you hope listeners take away from the song?‍

‍Pob: Yeah, actually the old singer lyrics were all about negativity. Singing about no religion, no God, blaming everything on everyone. But for me- I don't think like that. I just don't want to blame anyone. I just like to live in the real life. We just are human. Live and learn. Stay positive and being with the truth. Stay strong.

‍It’s only a few hours before you play your first show since August. How are you all feeling?

‍[Laughs and looking around at who was going to answer first]

‍Boss: Yeah, so for me, this is our first show in almost nine months. So last night I couldn't sleep and this morning, I feel like I’m going to have a panic attack.

‍Pob: Nah party, party! [Laughs all round] He’s the party guy.

‍Boss: It's really exciting to be back again and for sure I will do my best. And I think it's going to be a good time again after having almost one year stopped. 

‍Eak: Yeah, so excited and I hope everything is good for everyone to come to the show tonight.

‍The 'One Song, One Guest' is a really smart concept. Can you tell us about putting this show together?‍

‍Pob: The idea come from Eak. He wanted to a give hope for our band again and he wanted to have a show, but we don't have a singer yet. So he said why don’t we just invite our friends to join.

‍A good celebration of the scene too.‍

‍Boss: Yeah. I think we didn’t want to make this concert to be too serious, like a real concert. So we thought might do something more like a celebration. So that’s why we thought the idea about inviting our friends to join the show would be a good idea.

‍What are the goals for ANNALYNN going forward? ‍

‍Eak: Just step by step.

‍Pob: Yeah, just taking it step by step. And we have a deal with Greyscale for the next EP. We just want to do that EP first. 

‍I have to ask, since we are an Aussie publication, can we expect ANNALYNN to make their return to Australia, perhaps in 2026?‍

‍Pob: Ask Jino (the bands tour manager/translator for this interview)

[Laughs]

‍Boss: Do we have a chance to go back to Australia again?

‍Jino: Yes. I would say. Basically we were supposed to break the contract after all of this happened and Greyscale gave us a chance, so we decide to put on a show with the band again. So actually we were all ready to break the contract, since we had one more EP with the label, but they said to us, why not? Just keep on going and they will keep supporting us. That's made us feel powerful. And when I come back (to Australia) with others bands, why would we (ANNALYNN) not follow them? Because they give us the biggest support.

That's why the one of reasons, because of the label support, we could have a big tour in the future.

‍Lastly, is there anything else you all want to say?‍

‍Pob: For me? Me first, back to him. I just want to say thank you to Jino because if we didn't have him, the band could not come back. He helped us talk to Greyscale. He helped us move forward. He's like my father. And back to the question that about the ‘White Flags’ lyrics, this guy Kang (points to Kang from fellow Thai band The Rocket Whale who is sitting in the room). He's the man who wrote those lyrics. It was my first time (writing lyrics) so I wrote a little bit but he’s the main writer.

‍Boss: Actually he helped us a lot in the past with our previous singer. 

‍Pob: Every song before ‘White Flags’.

‍Kang: I was like his consultant. He would always ask me about grammar or if the story telling made sense. Things like that.

‍Pob: We have been lucky to have many people support us.

‍Eak: I want to say thank you everyone to support us.

‍Boss: I would like to say thank you again to everyone who keep supporting us and keep texting us, wanting good things to happen. So we just need you to know that you are like fuel for our next step. Thank you.

‍Mong: Thank you to family. Everyone in the band, family and friends, brothers sister that support us. For the money, for the support they give to us. Thank you.

Interview by Kayla Hamilton @kaylazomboid

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