WL//WH Premiere: CHIMES Explores Mortality and Letting Go in “Pile of Parts”

With deep roots in the Gainesville, Florida music scene, Chimes borrows just the smallest bits from their previous members’ work (Against Me!, Averkiou, & Sunshine State) as they veer towards a more synth-driven sound, striking a balance between Post-punk, Synth-Pop, and Dark Wave.

Formed in 2019 by singer/guitarist Mike Magarelli and keyboardist/guitarist Kyle Fick, joined later by Matt Brink (bass, vocals) and Warren Oakes (drums), the four piece band are finally going to release their first full-length “Pile of Parts” on May 23, 2025 via Ashtray Monument Records, whose second single and title track, “Pile of Parts,” WL//WH is pleased to premiere.

Artwork by Noelle Shuck

This is the sound of something unravelling — slow, deliberate, and honest. A record born from the weight of living, where each track leans into the darker corners of the human experience: loss, disconnection, the quiet violence of time. There’s no false uplift here, just an attempt to sit with the ache and translate it into sound. It’s bleak by design — but not without purpose.

A melancholic yet liberating, emotional synth-laden outpouring about mortality and letting go, ignites airy atmospheric, glowing pads to hover and insistently swirl above a restless pace of trotting drum beats and lively bass pulses, while anxious, wistful layered vocals, soar into pain-filled cries, amid intervals of sad trembling and blowing melodies along with hard-pressed sturdy charging piano keys, to bring forth the idea that we are all dying a little-bit every day.

Chimes‘ second single and LP title track, “Pile of Parts,” will be dropped tomorrow, May 8th, on all the major digital platforms. The band’s debut album, “Pile of Parts,” will be released on May 23, 2025, via Ashtray Monument Records.

Keep up with Chimes: