“Despite the dramatic situation we are currently experiencing in Italy and in the world dictated by the ongoing pandemic, we feel the need to continue our adventure together as musicians and as people.”

These are the words of Italian hard rock outfit Søndag, who, despite the current crisis engulfing their country and home town of Piacenza, have just released a brand new music video called ‘Trendsetter’ – an openly “anti-influencer” manifesto from the band that pokes fun at the mechanism of “leader and follower” in the days of social media, underlining how hollow and lacklustre our relationships with others have become.

Modern human interaction has taken a turn for the worst, even before countries across the globe started descending into lockdown and restorting to video calls and Zoom meetings to maintain contact as a result of COVID-19. For many, Likes and Follows given behind the safety of a screen seem to have replaced genuine compassion and care for our fellow man. Yet if there is one thing that the current world climate has done for humanity, it has brought us closer together.

Living in the heart of a country that has lost somewhere in the region of 12,000 of its inhabitants, Søndag feel, now more than ever, that music is a vital part of our culture. “In this moment, right now, we feel that the world needs to breathe. To breathe new music and to appreciate the beauty of art itself, in order to find the courage to think positively despite everything that surrounds us”, comments the band. “In our lockdown experience that has lasted for weeks (and it is still going on), we found ourselves paradoxically almost more united as a band, as every day we feel the need to have a common goal that makes us think outside the box of the oppressive situation that becomes more and more serious.” And yet, while social media has become an even more powerful tool for connecting humanity, it has also become a minefield of toxicity and misinformation. This is the angle that ‘Trendsetter’ zones in on, exposing the negative side of social media relationships. “Especially at this moment, we are witnessing the climax of this delusion while sources of any kind do nothing but throw gasoline on the fire increasing the psychosis that in these weeks is ramping up on social networks. With this new track, we wanted to interpret in an ironic way the alienation that binds us to what social media (voluntarily or not) offers us every day.” Søndag’s latest single, ‘Trendsetter’, is available to stream and purchase now via Spotify and BandCamp.