The digital postman just dropped a fever dream into my inbox here in Gdańsk, and the walls are still vibrating. It is a rare thing to have the morning stillness shattered by something that actually feels vital, but Dead Air have managed it. This trio is a loud, chaotic reminder that rock music is at its absolute best when it is half an inch away from falling off the rails. I have only just put these boys under the microscope, but the signal is coming through loud and clear. This is not just another band playing at it, they are possessed by the spirit of the thing itself.
The trio, Lyle Salvatore, Rich Greenbury, and Reuben Moonasar, are about to drop their latest sonic hand grenade, “Do It For The Pay”, on 23rd January via Fly Tip Records. It is the third cut from their upcoming EP, “World Wide Villainy”, which is slated to arrive on 13th March. If you have been paying attention to the tremors, you know this band does not do things by halves. This is the same outfit where Rich Greenbury leaped onto the stage with Foo Fighters in Croatia after Dave Grohl spotted his sign. That kind of audacity is baked into the very DNA of this band.
From Streatham To The World
The Dead Air story is one of grit and fate. It started at Leeds University, but the heart of the operation moved to Undercover Records, a family run shop in Streatham. Reuben Moonasar grew up there, quitting classical music after seeing his band play “Highway To Hell” at age 14. When Lyle Salvatore walked in looking for punk, a spark was lit. Reuben Moonasar recalls the early viral success of their debut, saying, “It came completely out of left field, the song was steadily on the rise from November 2023 when the numbers just went through the roof, the comment section started taking on its own culture, it was very surreal watching everything unfold“.
That success has not made them soft. If anything, the friction of their rising star has only sharpened their edges. Their 2025 EP, “Elements”, was recorded at the legendary Konk Studios, but the writing process was a battle. Reuben Moonasar admits, “We spent a few weekends locked away writing day and night, sleeping in the control room on blow-up mattresses, it was the grimiest dream come true, there was a lot of arguing, from the writing process all the way to the recording and mixing, everyone was just as passionate as the other, so no one would back down.\”.
No Manifestos, Just Pure Venom
The new single, “Do It For The Pay”, is a visceral beast. It follows the trail of breadcrumbs left by “Fast Food World” and “Black Flag”, but it feels more jagged. While lesser bands might try to sell you a complex critique of capitalism, Dead Air are more honest. Reuben Moonasar explains the track was born from the pure, unadulterated frustration of a shitty job, “When I was coming up with the lyrics it wasn’t really an attack on capitalism, we’re talking about a symptom of it, but the lyrics are just born out of anger towards my old job, it wasn’t an attack on the system, it’s just that this shit sucks“.
There is a touch of Queens Of The Stone Age in the swagger, a hint of Soft Play in the attitude, and a pummelling rhythm section that reminds me of Turnstile at their most frantic. For the upcoming EP, “World Wide Villainy”, the band has stripped away the overthinking. Reuben Moonasar says, “We weren’t looking to fuck about, a message needed to be said and it needed to be delivered efficiently, down the line, high energy drums and fast guitars, we’re coming at you from the beginning“.
Dead Air are playing the Duck And Dive Festival at Signature Brew on 8th February alongside Opus Kink and Joe And The Shitboys. When asked about the plan for 2026, the band kept it simple, “Fuck shit up, die“.
I suggest you see them before the latter happens.
About Dead Air
Dead Air are a South London three piece that sound like a high speed collision between desert rock swagger and the raw, unpolished anxiety of modern life. Born from a chance meeting at Leeds University and solidified in a family record shop in Streatham, the lineup features Reuben Moonasar on vocals and bass, Lyle Salvatore on guitar, and Richard Greenbury on drums. This is a band with enough audacity to hold up a sign to Dave Grohl and actually get on stage, a feat Richard Greenbury pulled off with Foo Fighters in Croatia back in 2019. Their trajectory since the 2022 debut EP, "City Sins", has been a glorious riot, fueled by the viral success of "Teeth Grinder" and a work ethic that saw them recording the "Elements" EP at the legendary Konk Studios. Forget the polite indie scenes of the capital, Dead Air trade in heavy riffs, powerhouse hooks, and a philosophy that boils down to one simple command: fuck shit up, die.
