Musically, the track strikes a careful balance between vulnerability and optimism. Atmospheric guitars drift beneath Ryan’s understated vocal performance, gradually building towards an emotional release that never feels forced. Rather than overwhelming the listener, Lapse allow the song’s emotion to breathe, creating something that feels both expansive and deeply intimate. It’s a debut that feels remarkably assured, not because it has all the answers, but because it isn’t afraid to ask difficult questions. Speaking with MAESI, vocalist Ryan and drummer Bri reflected on the experiences behind “October”, the formation of Lapse and the unexpected journey of watching their deeply personal song become something that belongs to other people.

For Ryan, “October” emerged during one of the most challenging periods of his life. At its core, the song explores the difficult reality that sometimes the healthiest decision is also the one that hurts the most.

“It’s still something I’m learning to understand,” he says.

“The overall sentiment of “October”, in my experience, is about understanding where certain relationships may not be beneficial to your life and potentially holding you back, and acknowledging your own feelings, which can lead to having to make some difficult decisions.”

That emotional honesty is what gives “October” its weight. Rather than framing personal growth as something triumphant or straightforward, the song recognises that moving forward often requires sitting with uncomfortable emotions before finding any sense of peace. Yet one of the most striking aspects of “October” is its openness. While the song is rooted in Ryan’s own experiences, the lyrics never feel restrictive or overly specific. Instead, they leave enough space for listeners to project their own stories onto them, allowing the song to evolve beyond its original meaning.

“When I’m writing it’s always related to a personal experience,” Ryan explains. “But I’ve always wanted to write songs people can find their own meaning in.”

That hope has become reality far sooner than the band expected.

Since releasing “October”, Lapse have watched audiences sing the lyrics back to them, seen fans create TikToks using the song and heard countless personal interpretations of its meaning. Those moments have fundamentally changed Ryan’s relationship with the track itself.

“It wasn’t really until “October” was released that I could separate myself a bit more from the song,” he says. “Having it go from something written in my bedroom to being available for everyone to listen to has definitely supported me in moving forward from the period it was written about.”

It’s a reminder that once music leaves the studio, it rarely belongs solely to the artist anymore. The desire to create that kind of connection is something both Ryan and Bri trace back to the records that shaped them growing up. Ryan credits Spacey Jane’s Sunlight as the album that inspired him to begin writing songs, describing it as the first record that truly articulated emotions he struggled to express himself. Bri, meanwhile, finds herself continually returning to The Killers’ Hot Fuss, drawn to its lasting sense of nostalgia and emotional familiarity.

Those influences are easy to understand when listening to “October”. While the band clearly wear their inspirations proudly, the song never feels derivative. Instead, Lapse have found a way to channel those influences into something distinctly their own.

That individuality hasn’t come without its challenges.

“There’s definitely a pressure to ‘reinvent the wheel’ at times,” Ryan says. “But I think it’s also important to lean on your inspirations… and understand our own sound.”

Bri sees the challenge slightly differently, pointing to modern listening habits as another pressure facing emerging artists.

“I think it’s an attention span issue causing people to need familiarity in order to care about something, but not too much that it bores them,” She explains. “We have a lot of varied influences among us and allow them to be part of our process, but we also work on creating a unique experience with each song that sounds distinctly Lapse.”

That confidence in their own identity feels especially impressive considering “October” is only the band’s debut release.

Lapse themselves came together in an unconventional way, and while the chemistry between the four members may seem effortless now, both Ryan and Bri remember the moments everything began to click.

For Ryan, it was their first headline show, where songwriting, friendships and family all collided into one unforgettable night. “It felt like all of our personal worlds were overlapping,” he recalls. “It felt like we were really clicking with one another as musicians and friends.”

For Bri, it happened earlier, listening back to the band’s first recordings after an initial recording weekend.

“It was the first time we had felt like we’d created something really special together,” She says. “It was so nice to experience that process as a band and see how everyone collaborated and brought something special to the recording.”

Perhaps that’s why “October” feels so convincing. It’s a song about uncertainty, but it’s performed by a band that already seem remarkably certain of who they are together. When asked what they hope “October” represents years from now, neither Ryan nor Bri mention streaming numbers or career milestones. Instead, they speak about friendship, gratitude and remembering this chapter as the beginning of something meaningful.

Ryan hopes it serves as a reminder of “what an awesome opportunity we’ve had as a band,” while Bri sees it as the starting point of something much bigger, a marker of how far Lapse have already come together, even as their ambitions continue to grow.

For a debut single, “October” carries an unexpected sense of maturity. It understands that healing isn’t linear, that relationships can be both beautiful and painful, and that the hardest conversations we have are often the ones we have with ourselves. More importantly, it suggests that Lapse are a band unafraid to sit with those uncomfortable truths, and if “October” is any indication of what’s to come, they’re only just getting started.