Sometimes it’s hard not to feel like modern life gets stranger by the day, but fortunately Lurk are here to help us all lean into the absurdity. The Chicago band’s debut full-length, “Around The Sun”, is about trying to make the most of your time in a weird new world, all through a whirlwind amalgam of proto-punk eccentricity, new wave swagger, and hardcore ferocity that’s as unique as it is catchy. Lurk —comprised of vocalist Kevin Kiley, drummer Pedro Unzueta, bassist Dan Durley, and guitarists Alex Rackow and Kevin Maida—got their start in 2017 when the members decided to scrap their previous musical project in favor of something more unrestrained. “We were all playing together in this other band, but we were starting to feel burnt out and limited,” recalls Kiley. Lurk’s willingness to merge disparate influences into something distinctive might be their greatest strength, and “Around The Sun” bursts with the energy and confidence of a band that have truly come into their own. “There isn’t really anything else in Chicago that sounds like us,” Kiley says. “We’re kind of the oddball but we like it that way.” Produced and engineered by Andy Nelson (Jesus Piece, Harms Way, Weekend Nachos) at Bricktop Recording, “Around The Sun” careens through sounds and styles with reckless abandon, but Lurk will an impressive sense of cohesion into the 10 songs through sheer force of daring creativity. “We have such a wide array of interests that it can be hard to incorporate all those elements, but we never want to take one influence too far,” Kiley says. “If something sounds super poppy we try to fuck it up, if something sounds really harsh then we try to make it sound catchy as well.” Opener “Chromosome” catapults the listener into “Around The Sun’s” roller-coaster dynamics, starting with a synth swell and a few seconds of subdued guitar before a blast of distortion and drums sends the song flying. Kiley’s vocals are part-shouted, part-sung, and all energy as he laments the pressure to set aside your passions or dreams as y