Most new bands are preoccupied with the immediate: the next gig, the next merch drop, or the next follower milestone. They rarely stop to consider the footprint they’ll leave behind. The Talon, however, are fully reckoning with their legacy.

“If The Talon can be remembered in the same light as Hog Hoggidy Hog or Sibling Rivalry then that would be winning for me,” says Steven Ilbury, bassist for The Talon. For the hardcore collective from Cape Town, success isn’t measured by an international tour, but by whether they can influence the next generation of South African hardcore kids to pick up a guitar. “I want kids to be like, “You’re the person I spin kicked. You’re the person I jumped on.” Like, that’s cool for me. That’s hardcore music.”

Looking at the composition of The Talon, with members from bands like Armour, Bottom Feeder, and Life Below, they could be considered a supergroup. However, unlike bands like Them Crooked Vultures or Isles & Glaciers, The Talon don’t view themselves as a continuation of any of their previous bands. “When we started the band, we just said, ‘Let’s start a hardcore band,’ and that was the goal,” Brett Allen-White, guitarist, notes.

While the members of The Talon are veterans of the hardcore scene, they’re all also creatives. A fact that informs their sharp instinct for spectacle. They understand that in the current attention economy bands have to fight even harder to grab their audience’s attention.

Their creative strategy is evident in their DIY visual output, whether it’s music videos, merch, or stage visuals. For example, the music video for At Pains, which has racked up over 10,000 views on YouTube, was filmed by the band’s guitarist and full-time cinematographer, Marku Boshoff. It’s a frantic production that breaks the traditional mold of a music video. Hell, it has their drummer CP Van Der Merwe playing drums in the back of a Citi Golf.

This understanding of spectacle extends to how they approach booking shows. A pivotal decision The Talon made early on in their career was booking a free all-show at LuvBuzz Studios. “We played in a tiny room to 100 kids [and it was] the most violent show we’ve ever played. Scott [Miller, our vocalist] got his eyebrow split open.” says Ilbury. For a lot of people, it was their first time watching the band perform, and it did a lot to endear The Talon to a younger audience. “There are still kids who come up to us at shows and go ‘We were at the LuvBuzz show’. Even though it was only a year ago, they already have this sense of nostalgia for us,” explains Ilbury.

In a scene that can often feel repetitive and cutthroat, The Talon understands the necessity of a “hook” for live shows. Whether it’s an international band, or a new venue, people often come to shows because of that hook. “If you have the same lineup at the same venue every weekend, the audience’s internal monologue becomes ‘Why would I go to this show?’”, says Ilbury.

It’s a stark contrast from the scene of 15 or 20 years ago. Back then, the community was smaller, more insular, and there were fewer bands. “I don’t think kids know how good they have it right now,” Illbury notes. “We would chomp at the bit to watch the same band every weekend back then.” Today’s bands are fighting against the oversaturation of events, mounting socioeconomic pressures, and the lure of the doomscroll.

However, despite these rising pressures, the Cape Town metal scene is undergoing a transformation. Metal shows, even in the middle of the month, are packed to the rafters as a new wave of younger people are clamouring to come to shows. “Emo Night and Cape Town Metal Realm are doing a lot to bring young people into the scene,” says Ilbury. As a result, the demographics of the scene are rapidly changing.

“You’re starting to see multiracial audiences when 20 years ago it was predominantly a bunch of white men, but now it’s more open and diverse,” explains Allen-White. Much like their counterparts in Johannesburg, GRIFT, they’re acutely aware that they’re at the epicentre of a renaissance in underground music in Cape Town. “We are really grateful for it. It really shows how invested and excited this new generation is about live shows,” says Allen-White.

For some, being at the heart of a scene revival might generate a sense of ego and entitlement, but The Talon have already seen how ego can stifle the local scene. “We’re too old for arrogance and egotism. I’m 41, I don’t care what people think of me anymore,” Allen-White says. By stepping away from the ego and politics that are often inherent in the music industry, The Talon are modeling a healthier version of the underground. If The Talon’s idea of success is inspiring the next generation, then they’re already winning.

See The Talon live at Emo Night Presents: Feedback in Cape Town on 25 April. Tickets on Quicket.