INNOCENCE: A MODERN VERSION OF WHAT MAKES NOCTURNE’s KISS, NOCTURNE’s KISS

WRITTEN BY PAISLEY CASS     -    PHOTOS TAKEN BY HANNA MIDDLETON

Nocturne’s Kiss makes music that bleeds outside of any room it's played in. Even when his production leans ethereal and dreamy, there’s a through line of loud guitars, cinematic pacing and a narrative that leads listeners through a world he’s built with purpose.

He got his first guitar at nine after practicing rockstar as many naughtie’s kids did; through Rock Band 2. When music became serious in his teenage years, it happened through production. Selling beats only and embedding himself in SoundCloud’s underground melodic hip-hop scene taught him speed and texture, how to build atmosphere fast, how to stack emotion into sound, and how to keep momentum. Still, something felt unfinished. “I always felt there was more of a story I wanted to tell,” he says. “Whether that was through performance, visuals, or story telling in general… I felt like I had so much more to offer.”

That tension cracked open with 2023’s release “Where Are You Hiding”, his first declaration. “That was my first real statement,” he explains. “I’m here. I’m me.” From the start, his music balanced dreamlike textures with loud, arena-minded guitars, carrying that Deftones-adjacent haze that would become his signature. Over time, that identity was sharpened through recurring motifs: rock opera structure, dramatic transitions, and the steady emergence of the color blue.

Blue functions less as an aesthetic choice and more as a through line. It’s the color of night walks, the hue that emitted from a streetlamp that eventually became cover art. The name of a beloved cat. It even appears in a fleeting childhood memory of a punk at summer camp with liberty spikes dyed electric blue paired with Sex Pistols shoes. “It kind of always stuck with me… I feel like there were just a lot of signs.” he admits. There was a period in middle school when he wanted blue hair but never followed through. A small desire deferred until adulthood gave him permission to honor it. Dyeing his hair blue became one of the first moments he fully committed himself to the artist he was becoming, honoring the kid who fell in love with music way back when.

“Innocence” his latest single, arrives as a distillation of that identity. He describes it as “a modern version of what makes Nocturne’s Kiss, Nocturne’s Kiss”. Where previous work has explored wide ranges of emotions and overarching concepts, “Innocence” arrives with clarity, heavy, dark, dreamlike and drilled with momentum. It feels less like a pivot than a tightening of focus.

The song’s title isn’t about naivety. It’s about reclamation. “I think of it as the ‘innocent’ version of myself,” he explains, clarifying quickly. “Not innocent like I don't know anything, but the childlike wonder music brings.” In that sense, “Innocence” acts as both a reflection and a reset; a reminder of what called him to music in the first place.

Part of what makes the track hit so hard is the way it bridges his self-sufficiency as a producer with his renewed commitment to collaboration. While the core of “Innocence” was built at home; layered guitars, vocals, subtle synthesis textures, this release marks a shift towards chasing that final 10% of a track with intention.

To get there, he brought the track to Studio One Zero, working with producer Josh Monroy to translate the foundation into something with physical weight. Drummer Colton Clements was brought in to perform the parts live, adding the synergy that elevated the track to its final form. “Really wanted it to be a heavy rock song,” he says. “I wanted real drums.”

If “Innocence” is someone’s first introduction to Nocturne’s Kiss, he doesn’t want to tell you exactly what it means, he wants you to feel what it does. So, play it out loud on full volume. Let it bleed under your door. And accept the invitation into the story he’s building with you.