It’s not often that the first song you release as a band is the one that takes you to the top of the charts.
That’s exactly what happened when Nashville-based In Color — the quartet consisting of lead vocalist and Michigander Matt Hastings, bassist Holden Clontz, drummer Miles Laderman and guitarist Val Hoyt — dropped their hit single “Headlights” in February 2025. The track has been dominating alternative radio and helped them nab a record deal with Big Loud Rock, the rock imprint of Big Loud Records.
The band admits that while they knew “Headlights” was special, they didn’t know what to expect when they released the track last year.
“That was one of the first songs that we wrote as a band, and I think initially, we believed in that song so much,” Hastings said before In Color’s performance at the Majestic Theatre in Detroit last month. “I think we didn’t really have any expectations because it was the first song we ever put out. So…over time, it’s just had consistent growth, which is just the coolest thing, and people continue to find it.
“We get messages every week that are like, ‘I just found this song!’ The hope is that people find that song [“Headlights”] and then go listen to our other music and…follow along and be attentive to that. But we’ve just seen steady growth from it…that pours into every aspect of our band.”
In Color have officially released 10 songs but the group is always writing new material. Naturally, the goal is to unleash a debut studio album to the world, but they don’t want to rush it.
“We want to make an album, but we also hold ourselves to such a high standard all the time that we just really want to take our time,” Hastings shared. “Our first album is so important to us…I think we’re on track for that. We have no shortage of of music, and I don’t know if we ever really will because that’s something that we do all the time. So, I think we’re going to be on track for that.”
Watch the full interview above, where we also discuss how In Color connected with Big Loud Rock, how they balance the artistic and business aspects of the band, birds (yes, birds) and more.
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