Sound Check — Anton Vibes With SiM’s “FiVE TiMES DEAD (by my wallet)”
by Anton Kromoff
Welcome to the table,
In the interest of digging into physical media in a meaningful way, I have been distancing myself more and more from my phone and making more and more time to focus on just one thing at a time. For many years, I have played a video game, while listening to a podcast on my phone, while watching a movie on my laptop, while flipping through a TTRPG book between rounds, or when I need to pause and not get frustrated at the swamp lobster for blasting me off my spirit yack with its death ray of hydration.
The result is a diminishing of my attention span that has frankly caused me some concern and a feeling that I’m not enjoying anything as fully as I should … or could … be enjoying it, because I’m not giving anything my full attention. This led me to get back into music.
I really stayed away from anything outside of live shows. Listening to music always made me feel like I should be at least cleaning my office, or researching an article, or doing some kind of extra task I should be doing, but the introduction of a record player to my home has changed all that for me. It’s turned my listening time into a ritual. I have now conditioned myself to sit and enjoy a song, track list, or sometimes even a full discography in an almost meditative state. I just hang out enjoying some cool glass of water or a nice old-fashioned and the vibes of the sonic experience.
So this leads me to talk about new tracks, albums, and bands that have come across my desk, and while I do not have a vinyl by them yet, I am pretty excited about a new track I heard today.
3,2,1, let’s jam…
The Japanese band SiM just shared their first release of 2026, a single titled “FiVE TiMES Dead (by my wallet.”
The track is heavy, kinda punky, and weirdly upbeat with a vibe that makes you bounce. This particular vibe comes from SiM‘s fusion sound affectionately known as chaotic “reggae PUNX.”
If you happen to be in Japan April 4-5th at SiM’s annual DEAD POP FESTiVAL, you can catch SiM, Babymetal, Coldrain, Maximum The Hormon, Crystal Lake, Ankor, Thornhill, and more. Granted, you are going to be surrounded by 15,000+ people each day, and the show is going to be off the rails, but it should for sure be a good time if you can be there and you dig this kind of sound.
Check out the track below to see if it’s something you vibe with.
SiM, which stands for Silence iz Mine, has been doing really well in Japan with their energetic blend of nü-metal and postmodern hard rock, and broke into the US rock scene with hard-charging singles, including the No. 1 smash The Rumbling for the anime Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2. When it dropped, it shot to the No.1 slot on Billboard’s Hot Hard Rock Songs list.
SiM sold out the iconic Nippon Budokan in 2015 and the 17,000 capacity Yokohama Arena in 2016, then made their US live debut at Knotfest Meets Ozzfest. This is due to their wildly boundless energy and a sound that kind of conjures early 2000s titans like Linkin Park, Deftones, and Korn.
For me, it helps that they have this fun two-tone ska back end that adds that bright bounce to the driving melodic bombasity and the punchy rhythms. I dig what I have heard so far and would for sure check them out if they were at a local venue. I’m looking forward to grabbing some of their tracks on wax and seeing how it plays in the office while I sit drift along with the sonic experience.
Until next time, check out SiM and stay tuned in to Comicon.com as much more musical mischief is sure to come.
