For many artists, success is measured by chart positions, sold-out shows, or streaming milestones. While those accomplishments certainly hold weight, they rarely tell the full story. Some musicians find themselves at the center of an online movement before ever becoming a household name, quietly building devoted communities that connect with their music on a deeply personal level.
Novulent is one of those artists. Although their name may still be unfamiliar to casual listeners, the numbers tell a different story. With hundreds of millions of streams across digital platforms, a viral presence that continues to grow, and a catalog that has resonated with an entire generation navigating love, loss, identity, and growing up, Novulent has established themselves as one of alternative music’s most intriguing emerging voices. That momentum has since led them to Capitol Records, marking the next chapter for an artist whose rise has been anything but conventional.
Long before millions of listeners discovered songs like “Scars” or “Unknown Feelings,” Novulent was simply a teenager experimenting with music from a bedroom studio. At just 17 years old, they began recording through BandLab, teaching themselves how to translate emotion into sound without the luxury of expensive equipment or industry connections. What started as creative exploration gradually evolved into a deeply personal outlet, one where vulnerability became the foundation rather than the exception. Instead of chasing trends or writing music designed for playlists, Novulent focused on creating songs that reflected exactly what they were feeling in the moment — an approach that would ultimately become one of the defining characteristics of the project.
That authenticity has remained at the center of Novulent’s music ever since. Drawing inspiration from hard rock, shoegaze, Midwest emo, post-punk, and dream pop, their catalog resists easy categorization. While listeners often associate the project with shoegaze, Novulent has never seemed interested in limiting themselves to a single genre. Distorted guitars, atmospheric production, “feel it in your gut” lyricism, and moments of surprising restraint all coexist throughout their work — creating songs that feel confidently focused on capturing specific emotional experiences.
That philosophy has resonated with an audience searching for exactly that kind of honesty. Songs like “Scars” quickly found an audience far beyond niche alternative circles, eventually surpassing 210 million streams on Spotify alone, while other releases continued to gain momentum through online communities and social media. Rather than arriving through a traditional label rollout, Novulent’s rise was largely fueled by listeners sharing the music organically, introducing friends to songs that seemed to articulate emotions many struggled to put into words themselves. The project’s growing popularity eventually landed Novulent on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart, further solidifying what fans had already recognized years earlier.
Despite that rapid growth, Novulent has remained committed to an independent creative mindset. Over the past several years, they steadily expanded their catalog through releases including My Story, My Story 2, Dear Diary, VOL. 1, VOL. 2 and most recently VOL. 3. Rather than existing as isolated projects, these releases document different stages of both artistic and personal growth, each one building upon the last while exploring increasingly nuanced emotions. It’s an approach that reflects the way Novulent views songwriting — not as a collection of disconnected singles, but as chapters within a much larger story.
That narrative-driven mindset extends beyond the music itself. Every visual, every creative decision, and every release exists within a broader world that Novulent continues to shape. Drawing inspiration from horror films, anime, video games, and alternative fashion, their artistic identity feels remarkably cohesive. The same emotional weight found throughout the music carries into the project’s imagery, creating an experience that feels meant-to-be from beginning to end. Rather than separating music from visual storytelling, Novulent approaches both as different expressions of the same creative vision.
Now, with VOL. 3 serving as the conclusion to a trilogy that has followed them from adolescence into adulthood, Novulent finds themselves standing at an important creative crossroads. The project closes one chapter while hinting at another, reflecting not only how their music has evolved over the past five years, but also how they have grown as both a songwriter and storyteller. As more listeners continue discovering the world Novulent has built, it’s becoming increasingly clear that this isn’t simply another artist riding the momentum of a viral hit — it’s someone carefully constructing a body of work that invites audiences to experience every chapter alongside them.
We recently caught up with Novulent to discuss the evolution of VOL. 3 — a forthcoming deluxe edition — the influence that continues to shape their music and visual identity, why storytelling remains at the heart of everything they create, and where the next chapter begins after bringing the VOL. trilogy to a close.
One of the more striking aspects of Novulent’s career is how organically it has unfolded. While streaming milestones and viral moments have introduced millions of listeners to their music, the foundation of the project has remained remarkably unchanged. Rather than creating songs with a specific audience or trend in mind, Novulent continues to approach songwriting from a deeply personal perspective, allowing emotion to dictate every decision. That philosophy has become one of the defining reasons listeners continue to connect with the music, regardless of where they discover it.
For anyone encountering Novulent’s work for the first time, however, the artist has a much simpler way of describing what they create:
“The best way to describe my music is comfort music that’s oddly specific.”
They elaborate further by adding,“Whether you’re in the gym and need something energetic, you’re grieving the loss of a friend, or you simply want a song that makes you feel understood, my music is perfect for you.” While their catalog has often been associated with alternative rock and shoegaze, Novulent doesn’t approach songwriting with genre labels in mind. Instead, the music is guided by emotion first, allowing different influences to naturally find their place within each release. That mindset has resulted in a sound that continuously evolves while remaining unmistakably their own.
Some of those influences come from artists who have helped shape Novulent’s musical identity over the years. Bands like Whirr, Deftones, Plastic Tree, and Sleeping With Sirens, along with OLIVIA, each contributed to the foundation that would eventually become the project listeners know today. Rather than attempting to emulate any one sound, those inspirations have blended together over time, allowing Novulent to create music that reflects both familiar influences and an unmistakably personal perspective.
That same individuality extends far beyond the music itself. Fans have become just as familiar with Novulent’s visual identity as they have with the songs, whether through carefully assembled outfits, layered accessories, or imagery that feels lifted from another world entirely. The aesthetic isn’t simply about fashion — it’s another extension of the storytelling that defines the project.
Many of those visual inspirations trace back to the media that left a lasting impression long before music became a career. Horror films, anime, and video games all continue to influence Novulent’s creative lens, with titles like Hellsing Ultimate, Thirteen, Hellraiser, Nana, Devil May Cry, Bayonetta, Kingdom Hearts, and more recently The First Berserker: Khazan serving as creative touchstones. Together, they’ve helped shape an artistic identity that feels instantly recognizable while remaining deeply personal.
Even the smallest details carry meaning. When asked whether there was a favorite accessory that had become especially sentimental, Novulent immediately pointed to their signature chokers before laughing about a newer addition that has quietly become a tour tradition.
“My chokers, for sure… Recently on tour I’ve been wearing Torchic. My band and I call it Tour-chic.”
While playful moments like that offer a glimpse behind the scenes, they also reinforce something that’s become increasingly apparent throughout Novulent’s career: every element of the project, whether it’s the music, visuals, or even an inside joke shared with the band, contributes to a creative identity that feels genuine rather than manufactured.
For many artists, an album represents a snapshot in time — a collection of songs written during a particular chapter of life. For Novulent, however, each release serves a much larger purpose. Their projects are designed to build upon one another, forming an interconnected narrative that unfolds over multiple records rather than a single listening experience. That long-term vision became especially apparent throughout the VOL. trilogy, with each installment documenting a different stage of both personal and creative growth.
While listeners have often categorized Novulent’s music under the shoegaze umbrella, they don’t necessarily see it the same way. As their songwriting has evolved, so has their relationship with genre itself, becoming less about fitting within established definitions and more about expressing whatever emotions felt most authentic in the moment.
“Every VOL. album continues after the one before it,” Novulent explained. “‘VOL. 3’ perfectly combines the sound of ‘VOL. 1,’ which was more aggressive and rough, with the sadness and calmness of ‘VOL. 2.’ Honestly, I don’t even consider ‘VOL. 3’ a shoegaze album. There’s maybe one song I’d describe that way, but even then it pulls from so many different influences. I’d say it’s closer to nu-gaze than anything else.”
That refusal to be confined by genre has become one of Novulent’s defining characteristics. While traces of shoegaze, alternative rock, post-punk, and dream pop continue to surface throughout their music, those influences are never treated as creative boundaries. Instead, they exist as tools that help communicate a specific feeling, allowing each song to evolve naturally rather than adhering to expectations surrounding any one style.
“At the end of the day, I just make music that resonates with my emotions.”
The same philosophy extends into the structure of the trilogy itself. Rather than viewing VOL. 3 as simply the latest installment, Novulent sees it as the conclusion to a story that has been unfolding since they first introduced the series. Every song contributes to a larger emotional arc, reflecting not only changing relationships but also the personal growth that accompanied those experiences over the years:
“I think that growth is reflected in the lyrics. From start to finish, I’m telling one complete story. “Peering Thought” carries this feeling of freedom mixed with resentment, and by the end, I’m falling back in love — this time more healed than ever. I think it’s beautiful.”
That emphasis on storytelling has become one of the defining elements separating Novulent from many of their contemporaries. Rather than prioritizing individual singles, they approach songwriting with the same intentionality often found in film, where every scene exists to move the narrative forward. Listeners who experience an album from beginning to end are rewarded with a story that unfolds gradually, revealing new emotional layers with each successive track.
It’s a creative philosophy that has guided the VOL. trilogy from the very beginning and one that ultimately shaped its conclusion. Even as Novulent’s audience continues to grow, their focus has remained on crafting projects that invite listeners to become immersed in a complete experience rather than simply consuming songs one at a time.
Although VOL. 3 brought the trilogy to its conclusion, the story isn’t over just yet. VOL. 3 (Deluxe) gives Novulent one final opportunity to revisit the project before officially closing the door on the era. Rather than simply adding bonus material, the release serves as a farewell to the body of work that has defined the past several years of their career.
“The features on the deluxe were actually intended to be on the album originally, but I decided to save them for the deluxe because it’s my final goodbye to the VOL. albums.”
That decision reflects the same intentionality that shaped the trilogy from the very beginning. Every release was planned as part of a larger story, making VOL. 3 (Deluxe) feel less like an extension and more like the final chapter before turning the page. Even as they prepare to move forward creatively, Novulent sees the release as the proper sendoff for the music that introduced millions of listeners to their world.
Looking back, that growth is evident throughout the project itself: “It’s reflected in the lyrics, as the whole album tells a complete story. Starting from “Scars” to “Peering Thought,” the ending is me falling back in love and accepting everything that’s happened in my life. Looking back now, I realize how much I’ve healed over the years.”
With VOL. 3 (Deluxe) marking the definitive close of one chapter, Novulent is already looking toward what’s next. While the emotional storytelling that has become synonymous with their music remains at the core of their songwriting, future releases are expected to lean into a noticeably heavier direction, with tracks like “Sweet Revenge,” “Death Wish,” and “Cursed” offering listeners an early glimpse of what’s ahead.
After spending years building the world of the VOL. trilogy one release at a time, Novulent is ready to close out this chapter — VOL. 3 (Deluxe) is an epilogue that will forever remain vital to listeners for years to come.