CHEMICAL-X
PHOTO CREDIT: KEVIN CHICA
1. Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions! Before we dive in, if you wouldn’t mind introducing yourself and what you do in the band, that would be great!
Of course! It’s no problem at all, here are the names of the members and what we do:
Adam Avila - vocals
J.C. Baltodano - bass
Jaden Mangino - guitar
Scott Mangino - drums
2. Where in New Jersey are you based, and could you give us a little backstory on the band: when you formed, how you knew each other, what the vision was for the band, etc.?
We’re based out of Bergen County, New Jersey—towns like Wood-Ridge, Little Ferry, and Elmwood Park. Chemical-X formed in late 2020 after me (Scott) and my brother’s previous band SICK broke up, although we announced ourselves as a band in April of 2021. Adam had always been a close friend of ours, and he grew up in Little Ferry, although we didn’t meet until our teenage years. The three of us knew we wanted to form a band. We had a drummer, a guitarist, and a vocalist, which left us in a position of trying out multiple bass players. J.C. had gone to the same high school as us, although we didn’t really know each other too well. As soon as he played with us at his audition, we knew he was the guy (he was actually only 16 at the time). We have always aimed to keep the band’s musical identity as close to the original vision as possible: to play hard and fast, and wear our influences on our sleeves
3. Who are some of the band’s primary influences?
Speaking of our influences…[here’s] a list: The Ramones, The Misfits, Black Flag, Descendents, ALL, New York Dolls, T.S.O.L., Cro-Mags, Plasmatics, Circle Jerks, Blondie, Zero Boys, Minor Threat, Government Warning, KISS, Poison Idea, Sex Pistols, The Heartbreakers, MDC, Urban Waste.
4. What about you personally—what got you into and drew you to punk and hardcore in the first place? Take us down the iceberg.
My brother Jaden and I were constantly surrounded by music as kids. Our dad put us on the bands like KISS, The Ramones, The Dead Boys, The Plasmatics—he pretty much planted the seeds for us to start liking rock and roll, and eventually punk rock. As previously mentioned, we played in a punk band called SICK before starting Chemical-X, and those years (2016-2020) were definitely formative years for me in terms of getting into all the different classic hardcore punk bands. Once I heard the Descendents for the first time when I was about 14, it all changed for me. Since that point I knew that I wanted to drum like Bill Stevenson and Robo. I pretty much spent the last 6 years (after the dissolution of SICK) trying to practice and perfect that style of playing, and it’s the way I chose to style my drumming in Chemical-X.
5. Who are the bands, people, and venues in your area (and beyond if you like) who are really doing it right? Who should we be paying attention to and supporting?
The north Jersey scene has a lot of great stuff happening right now. Bands like Eyelid, Belligerent, Hosticide, Revenge Ritual, Scasm, and 3 Dollars have all been popping off pulling crowds in different spots. The Meat Locker in Montclair is definitely the premier spot for pretty much all local music in north Jersey. Some other cool spots are the Sevencrest, the Williams Center, the Rock Shack, and the Sanctuary—they all provide a place for bands like us to play and we’re really grateful for that.
6. What have been the major highlights for the band thus far?
In our five-plus years as a band, some major highlights have been our releases:
Chemical-X EP - June 2021
Highly Volatile EP - February 2022
No High Hopes, No Reserves EP - May 2023
“Mawkish” single - April 2024
DAZE OF HATE LP - February 2025
Is This Tomorrow? LP - June 2026
All of our tours so far:
12-date “East Coast Tour” Dec 2023-Jan 2024
15-date “Going Postal Tour” Aug 2024
8-date “Takes the Midwest Tour” Nov 2024
27-date “DAZE OF HATE U.S. Tour” May-June 2025
40-date “U.S. Tour ‘26” Jan-Mar 2026
28-date “Is This Tomorrow? U.S. Tour” Jul-Aug 2026
In our time as a band, we’ve played with The Nightbirds, D.R.I., The Queers, The Casualties, Urban Waste, M.D.C., Chainwhip, The Stitches, The Drowns, Off with their Heads!, and got to meet the Descendents (I got to play “Myage” with them on drums for the 8/2/25 Montclair, NJ tour date).
We’ve had the opportunity to meet wonderful people all across the country, who have helped us in so many different ways, whether it be helping us a book a show, giving us a place to stay, or just showing us around the area.
7. Let’s dig into your recently-released full-length Is This Tomorrow? What was the writing and recording process like and what themes do you explore on the record?
The writing sessions for Is This Tomorrow? had taken place in between U.S tours. We returned from the “DAZE OF HATE” tour in June of 2025; we spent six months writing it, and recorded it in Philly with Creep Records in January of this year. When writing for this new album, we knew exactly what we wanted. The title was taken from a post-World War II graphic novel that we found in a comic book store in East Greenville, PA. The songs are written about most of the challenges and changes that people in their mid-20s face, although we try to keep the lyrics as relatable as possible for anyone that is listening. The songs touch on topics such as interpersonal relationship troubles, work frustration, personal dissatisfaction, political frustration, and a personal interest in the current state of the local music scene.
The songs are extremely quick, though they are very musically rich, with melodies that are sure to get stuck in your head. It’ll definitely leave you wanting to listen to the record again and again.
8. What are some of your upcoming plans we should be keeping an eye out for?
We’ve got a live LP releasing in October of this year. It’s a collaboration between Phameless Records and DCxPC, and had been recorded in Orlando, FL on our previous tour. We’re also planning to go on one final tour this year, in support of this live record. It will most likely take place in November. When speaking about 2027 and beyond, we definitely intend to book some tours out of the United States.
9. Is there anything you’d like to accomplish with the band that you haven’t yet?
We’d like to be able to tour internationally, and hopefully be able to continue to grow our fan base, in the United States and beyond. Support bigger acts, play more places, gain more listeners. There is still so much we’d like to accomplish, and we are determined to make it happen, all in time.
10. Last question: New Jersey has long been unbelievably fertile ground for punk, hardcore, and other heavy and alternative music—what’s in the water down there that makes it so do you think?
Us Jersey heads are raised to be tough, by tough people. It only makes sense that it seeps into the writing of bands coming out of the state. There’s a lot of culture to be learned about and experienced.