In late 2025, HEADSEND were announced as the support for Tool’s Australian arena headline shows. However, when you looked them up online they hadn't even officially released a song.
A few weeks later it was announced that they would also be opening for AC/DC. Who was this mysterious band who earned the coveted slot to open for, not one, but two of the biggest bands in the world?
HEADSEND features brothers – and professional surfers – Rasmus and Kyuss King who are joined by drummer Bon Soric. From home in Byron Bay the three bandmates squeeze together to fit into the video interview over Zoom.
The three-piece are a reincarnation of the ‘90s grunge behemoths such as Silverchair, Nirvana and Soundgarden. Despite not being alive in the decade of their idols, they were born for this.
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“I was coming out of the womb to Green Machine,” Kyuss explains, confirming that his parents did name him after the legendary stoner rock pioneers. Soric, meanwhile, was named after AC/DC’s Bon Scott.
What started out as jam sessions between brothers eventually “clicked” when Soric completed the trio.
This was thanks to the brother’s grandmother overhearing Soric playing drums at his home across the road from her house. “She would hear me playing drums everyday and complain,” Soric laughs.
“But then all of a sudden he's our drummer and then she loves him,” Rasmus adds. “She's like, ‘Oh he's great, I love that noise now.’”
HEADSEND were thrown in the deep end and didn't just keep their head above water, they were effortlessly doing laps. When opening for a sold-out Tool in Adelaide, they felt like a band well beyond their years and by the end of their set they won over a notoriously tough audience.
“That was like the craziest thing ever,” says Rasmus. “We hadn't had any music out and then [Tool] obviously announced that they were coming over and we just basically sent our demos to them.
“They obviously liked them and we somehow got that opportunity. It was crazy. Definitely the craziest experience so far.”
Their two AC/DC stadium shows in front of about 30,000 people were just as surreal.
“It was like weeks after that, it was still like, ‘We actually did that?’” Rasmus continues. “I feel like the two nights that we played, we were in so much shock and so much anxiety. We didn't even realise we had done that until weeks later.”
Fast forward a few months and HEADSEND announced the release of their first EP, Angel Glands, and a number of headlining EP release shows.
News of their first release was also paired with the impressive announcement that they’d signed with EMI/Universal Music Australia, in partnership with American Recordings/Republic Records in the US.
“HEADSEND are one of the most exciting live acts in Australia right now,” EMI Music Australia’s Managing Director, Mark Holland, said at the time. “I’ve been lucky to see them play in clubs, theatres, and arenas, and their performances always draw the audience in completely.”
You would think that this newfound habit of playing in front of tens of thousands of people as a support act would squash any nerves. “We always get nervous every gig,” Soric admits.
“Every show, you get that same feeling before every show, because you obviously want to do a good job,” Rasmus adds. “Even if there's only two people there, you still want to not suck.”
HEADSEND have excruciatingly been sitting on two EPs worth of material for a while now. They also have plans to release their debut album sooner rather than later.
“Even before we started jamming, I just had like 10 or 15 songs that were just kind of down, but I'd never obviously jammed with a full band before,” Rasmus explains.
“We've got our second EP that's pretty much done. We're just going to do some little tweaks and stuff. We've got easily enough songs pretty much all ready right now for an album.”
In an effort to capture their raw, live energy. HEADSEND set up in the studio and recorded seven songs performed live over two days. They worked with producer Nick DiDia who has worked with iconic ‘90s names such as Pearl Jam, Rage Against The Machine, and the Stone Temple Pilots.
“We actually went over to LA and were trying to find someone to work with and somehow we got a meeting with Brendan O'Brien [producer, Pearl Jam, AC/DC, Bruce Springsteen],” Rasmus explains.
“Then he was like, ‘Oh, you guys are from Australia you should record with Nick DiDia.’ We're like, ‘Oh, wow, where's he from?’ Then he told us where he was and we're like, ‘Dude, we literally live like 10 minutes from his house.’”
If their rock star dreams coming true wasn't enough. Rasmus got the part as a young Daniel Johns in the short biopic What If The Future Never Happened?
For someone following in similar footsteps, it would be invaluable to be sitting under the learning tree of an Australian icon. However, it ended up being Rasmus who needed to guide Johns.
“On the first day of shooting we were doing the scene, he obviously hasn't acted in anything either,” Rasmus explains. “He was really freaking out, really nervous and was kind of having a panic attack. It was pretty funny, I had to tell him just to calm down.
“It just was so weird because I'm this little kid and I'm looking at Daniel Johns who I've seen my whole life on the TV and I'm telling him to calm down. And I'm like, ‘What am I doing right now?’ Telling Daniel Jones to just chill. It was a wild experience.
“I still talk to him most weeks. I'm still on the phone and we've become really good friends.”
HEADSEND’s Angel Glands EP is out now, with tickets to their upcoming release tour on sale now.
HEADSEND – Angel Glands EP Release Tour Dates
Friday, March 27th – Howl And Moan, Byron Bay, NSW
Friday, April 3rd – Tracks Party - Torquay Surf Club, Torquay, VIC
Thursday, April 16th – Dead Set, Sydney, NSW
Sunday, April 19th – The Northern, Byron Bay, NSW (With Helmet)
Thursday, April 23rd – The Curtin, Melbourne, VIC
Friday, May 1st – Tracks Party, Coolangatta Hotel, Coolangatta, QLD
Friday, May 15th – The Great Escape, Brighton, UK
This piece of content has been assisted by the Australian Government through Music Australia and Creative Australia, its arts funding and advisory body
