LSF: Built from Shadows, Volume, and Relentless Will

By Young N’ Loud Magazine

Humble Beginnings

Every band carries a moment where noise starts to mean something bigger, and where dreams settle into tangible direction. For LSF, that moment traces back to a high school music class in 2014, where Frontman Blake Lauricella and Drummer Caleb McKinnnery first crossed paths.

At the time, Blake was immersing himself in punk and grunge, drawn to music as a refuge from his teenage years. Caleb, a year older and already experienced behind a drum kit, had played in bands before. Blake was collaborating acoustically with close friend Harry O’Brien who would go on to front Pacific Avenue. As they began to write songs, Blake decided he wanted to make a three piece grungy surf rock band called ‘The Traks’ after Tracks Surfing Magazine, a nod to coastal culture and youthful fixation.

As Blake explains, “We played whilst in high school at a local bar in Wollongong called ‘Rad Bar’. I was 15 at the time, and they were nice enough to let us in and keep an eye on us so we didn’t steal anyone’s drinks.” He goes on to reminisce how it was a golden time for music in Wollongong, “we played almost every week, supporting so many bands that went on to be pretty big successes. We played house parties, events, support slots, whatever it took to get our music in front of people.” He remembers giving out CDs to bars to see if they could secure a slot playing, “Crazy to think of now really, pretty sure streaming and emails were a thing at that time but it still felt like that type of world.” It was around then that they started recording their music and “making it all happen.” After that, Blake and Caleb went to Europe and made a music video for their song ‘Figure Out’, which didn’t end up coming out till much later when they wanted a re-brand for improved search ability without getting auto-corrected to ‘The Tracks’.

A Wollongong State of Mind

To understand LSF, it helps to understand the energy of Wollongong in the mid-2010s. Blake explains, ‘It was a very punk orientated place, and all the bands were super heavy or fast and relied on crazy stage presence and theatrics. I’d head out to Rad Bar to watch bands 3 or 4 nights of the week.”

Both Blake and Caleb grew up in Shellharbour, NSW, but because of the punk scene in Wollongong, that’s where they found their footing. Blake recounts, “It’s just where we would end up since it felt more like a home than the housing estates of Shellharbour where Caleb and I were from. It was more raw and had places to play, and people who wanted to listen to music.” They looked up to local bands like ‘White Blanks’ who played around Wollongong at the time. “We played with them at a UOW Uni Bar competition to play at the 2016 Yours and Owls festival. We lost.”

The Wollongong music scene was built on the DIY aesthetic: Playing shows, having fun, and recording your own music. With production costs starting to climb, the DIY approach has only become more deeply embedded in the foundation of LSF. Nowhere is that more evident than on Haunted, LSF’s sophomore record written, recorded, mixed and produced entirely by Blake Lauricella. For this record, the band lineup featured Blake on vocals and guitar, Sam Allen on rhythm guitar and backing vocals, Dylan Rodgers on lead guitar, and Caleb McKinnery on drums.

When asked about their first show, Blake remembers, “Our first show was at Rad Bar and it was an opening slot for a band that was touring.” He continues, “We had Caleb’s Dad, our old bass player Jarvis’s dad, and my dad in the audience. I was just so happy to be able to play live and had heaps of fun, moshing around and head banging like I was playing to people that weren’t our parents.”

Those early LSF shows confirmed what instinct had already suggested, that this was a path worth committing to. As Blake explains, “the moment we sort of realised that we want to keep doing it was when we played our first sold out show at the same place shortly after.”

Left Side Filter

The name LSF carries a personal meaning that mirrors the band’s emotional weight. The band was originally called ‘Left Side Filter’, a homage to frontman Blake’s poor vision. He shares, “I’m pretty blind in my left eye due to Amblyopia, so I thought it was a cool play on that and having the creative side of your brain do all the work, which is how I have sort of based my entire life since.” They ended up changing the name to ‘LSF’ because it looks and sounds a bit more niche and is easier to remember. Just like their music itself, suggesting rather than explaining.

LSF’s sound can be described as moody and brooding, often unfolding slowly before giving way to explosive endings. When asked what emotion the band wants people to feel when they hear their music, Blake answers “I would not say it would be ‘happy’ as it is probably more directed to those with depressive attitudes. I’d say possibly ‘otherworldly’ in parts when listening with headphones, and then ‘head-banging’ when it comes to the more riff-based stuff.”

Their songs tend to resonate with listeners who carry weight of their own, people drawn to music that acknowledges darkness in a personal way. On headphones, LSF feels layered and internal, and in live settings, it becomes physical and explosive, a show typically ending with Blake screaming and destroying a guitar, made for the big stage.

As frontman, writer, recorder, and producer, Blake handles most of the orchestration and vision for LSF. His creative process typically begins alone, recording a voice memo on his phone. He writes riffs or melodies, from which he can hear it all play out in his head. He elaborates, “A lot of the time I go to record a demo, and the lyrics and melody just happen on the spot, like grabbing them out of thin air, which is cool.” He then takes it to Caleb, and they practice until they have every fill and section down. From there, Blake makes a tempo map, records a guide for him, and gets him into the studio to lay down the drums. Once that’s done, Blake can take his time crafting guitar parts, vocals, and adding in little layers.

When it comes to influences, though they avoid leading too heavily on homage, LSF are heavily inspired by Radiohead, Nirvana, and Alice in Chains. Radiohead’s intricate layers are carefully orchestrated, and paired with a clear willingness to evolve and lean into discomfort. Nirvana brings a raw grunge energy where vulnerability and aggression coexist, while Alice in Chains inspires some of LSF’s vocal harmonies.

Though LSF is inspired by the 90s icons that precede them, they change it up a lot musically but their defining sound is a big bright snare drum combined with Blake’s grounding voice connecting it all together. Blake shares, “The lyrical content and theme seem to remain pretty similar whether I write a ‘normal’ poppy song or a heavy riff-oriented screaming song with completely different instrumentation, mixing, or sounds.”

Milestones Earned the Hard Way

One of the defining moments in LSF’s journey came with their sunset slot at Yours and Owls Festival in 2021. It was their first festival appearance, but it felt earned after a lifetime of creating music and 7 years of collaborating with each other. Blake remembers the festival, expressing, “That felt euphoric to me, felt like everything was coming together. We had heavy songs, uplifting songs. I spent the month before isolating and getting healthy, actually I don’t think I have been that healthy since.” At 22, he could scream on the mic for as long as he wanted, unburdened by doubt or fatigue.

LSF’s progress since hasn’t followed a straight line. When asked about any setbacks that have become an important turning point, Blake confides, “Our entire journey has been setbacks, really. I’ve released about 27 songs with another 12 being released on January 23, 2026 in a second album, Haunted.”

Low-income budget music videos, hundreds of unanswered emails, and countless pitches that led nowhere have become part of the story. Blake has stopped waiting for approval from record labels and focused on creating his own art. “It just got to the point where I was like f*ck this, I’m making the music I want, whenever I want to, without anyone’s opinion. And here we are: two albums, an EP, and a string of singles in.”

LSF’s Unapologetic Evolution

Early LSF material carried surf-rock verses and grunge-leaning choruses, with vocal styles shaped by the era. Blake notes about the music they released under the name ‘The Traks’, “On these songs I sang like Dylan Frost from Sticky Fingers because that was ‘in’ at the time. Now I sound American when I sing. I think the big turning point stylistically was getting into Radiohead for me, personally.” Discovering Radiohead marked a turning point, leading to stranger, more layered music, less concerned with fitting expectations.

Certain moments from their experience stand out, as Blake recounts, “I remember when we were recording the song ‘DMT’ off the Halloween Night album, I was watching Caleb drum the breakdown and had goosebumps from it. It just felt so raw and climactic to watch happen live.” Moments like these make the persistence worth it, unanswered emails and all.

Life Between Gigs

Offstage, Blake is driven by an existential need to create and release art into the world, inspired by artists who push him to fully commit to a self-produced approach in order to give his vision life.

“I’m mainly inspired by good albums or songs and wanting to create things I am proud of. I see  other bands and artists playing festivals or big shows and just want that for us, so I keep  pushing to try to get us there.”

Over time, it has become clear that the main force holding them back has always been financial. Blake explains, “I’m a freelance Audio Engineer and Videographer, so I have the ability to keep creating LSF content in my time off, but it comes at a cost of being able to afford most touring expenses.”

LSF embarked on their first national tour on January 24th, 2026, kicking off in their home city of Sydney to celebrate Haunted’s release and Triple J’s Hottest 100 day. Even while they’re on the road, Blake is also creating music videos, making and pushing social content, and communicating with distributors. For a band this hard-working, there’s no such thing as a day off.

When asked about pre-show rituals, Blake confesses, “We don’t really do much before we perform.” He goes on to say, “A lot of bands have little brotherly rituals. I usually just try to find Dylan, our guitarist, who is typically having a cig outside, and we just walk up and play. I feel a bit uncomfortable doing a whole ritualistic handshake or something, but I feel like we just let our emotions flow out once we get on stage and start jamming.”

The Future for LSF

In true rock and roll form, LSF doesn’t dictate interpretation for their listeners. The band wants everyone to own an understanding of the music. While Blake maintains that each song is thematically subjective to the listener, he occasionally shares his own relation to the lyrics. “If it sounds like a love song, it usually isn’t. There’s always a darker or deeper undertone which is what I try to piece together thematically.”

After a decade of gigging, enduring online hate, and being passed over in opportunities for which they were made, LSF accepts that the feeling of defeat is inevitable (and all part of the game). While they continue on with a fire in their belly, the goals are clear: sharing stages with bands like Wunderhorse and playing major festivals.

LSF’s DIY ethos is born from the understanding that if they don’t make something happen themselves, it won’t happen at all. There’s always another idea sitting in the voice memos, ready to come to life in a jam session between Blake and Caleb.

In an industry driven by immediacy and social media virality, LSF embraces an analog approach, moving deliberately and maintaining their own voice. They are persistently forging their own path, which takes time and infinite perseverance. For the next generation of artists who feel the world is against them, LSF is a reminder that adversity can become the fuel to defy expectations and keep creating.

Looking ahead, the future remains fluid for LSF. After Haunted, Blake shares that he’d like to try some new sounds. “Something more electronic or beat based that is still a bit spooky or ‘riffy.’ Like a dark version of ‘Beck’ would be cool.” He already has two tracks he wants to record immediately, a reminder that momentum is constant even between releases and touring. Self-described as “a band to chuck some headphones on and drift away to,” LSF’s music will forever exist as a reliable companion for moments when the world feels lonely.

Check out Haunted and the rest of LSF’s catalogue HERE.