Mischievious Sterling smashing Innocent Sterling with a guitar. Life Out of Context by Wasted Heart Cover Art

"Life Out of Context"

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The Story

After spending years living in different cities and coasts, Wasted Heart is the punk amalgamation of West Coast melodies with Midwest heart and East Coast crust mixed in ways you'd never expect.

Read the long boring version.

After taking a step back to focus on other musicians' careers as co-founder of Rad Plaid, Sterling is finally returning to give shape to his drunken stumbling of audible art. The hopeless early aughts pop-punk romantic has dragged his guitar, wife, and doggie across the states long enough. From Miami's crusty streets to the heartfelt Heartland of Chicago and saccharine soaked pop-punk of California, he returned to his first love of East Coast melodic hardcore and pessimism. Cherry-topped with a mixed-race background, he's never really fit within the structures of any particular scene or social circle, so why start now. He's taken the journey all into that sunken red love pump inside his chest and created this project, so aptly named, Wasted Heart.

For better or worse, cheesy skate punk, midwest emo, and moody synth-pop is the life source starting from forever ago and continuing as the thread throughout every strum and vocal crack — even if these days a power chord is rarely found. Having lead projects in San Francisco's outfit, Belle Reve, Miami's Mute Issue, and now, Vice Reversa out of Portland, Maine, Wasted Heart has plenty to avoid growing dull too soon. Many of the songs have been marinating for years alongside ones written at the moment. His debut single being "Life Out of Context," summing up the past several years perfectly. Same name, but somehow things don't feel the same.

While Wasted Heart may be new, Sterling's days paying dues are quite arduous. He's had the privilege of opening up for some of the scenes finest, from The Flatliners to Gaslight Anthem, Off With Their Heads, and The Loved Ones, to name a few. He's even performed on some classic stages such as Churchills in Miami, Revolution in Fort Lauderdale, and Gilman Street out in Oakland. However, don't misconstrue — he's only getting started.

Along with past lives and new friends, this year, the brains behind Wasted Heart are working on a home studio set up to release singles and EP's throughout 2021 regularly. Wasted Heart doesn't do social media, so if you're interested, subscribe here and keep an eye out on your music streaming service of choice.