Solamente Revisits a Decade of Evolution
Washington, D.C.-based heavy music project Solamente will release its new single, “1313 Refresh,” on September 1, 2026. Led by principal artist Raza Mahmood, the track is a newly recorded version of a song he originally recorded and released exactly ten years earlier, giving the release a significance that extends well beyond a typical remake.
The original “1313” arrived during the formative period of Solamente’s career. In 2016, the project released its debut album, Savor the Dissonance, introducing a sound built around heavy guitars, grooving drums, melodic vocals, and lyrics exploring despair, loss, and redemption. Returning to the song ten years later allows Raza to revisit one of his earliest musical statements with the experience and perspective gained across a decade of artistic growth.
Rather than simply looking backward, “1313 Refresh” connects Solamente’s beginnings with the project it has become. A song can take on a different meaning as its creator’s life changes, and rerecording the track offers Raza an opportunity to reconsider the material from his present-day perspective. The result represents a conversation between two distinct stages of his creative life: the artist who first released “1313” in 2016 and the artist returning to it in 2026.
Throughout the intervening years, Solamente has continued to expand its musical identity. The 2020 album Mere Nal, whose title translates from Punjabi as “With Me,” blended personal struggle, social commentary, and reflections on parenting with a direct and forceful sound. Across approximately 40 minutes, the record moved between grooves, growls, and blast beats while demonstrating the project’s willingness to combine emotional vulnerability with musical intensity.
Solamente pushed its ambitions even further with the 2025 release Requiem: Grief in Five Stages. The 55-minute album unfolds through five epic songs representing denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance, with brief interludes connecting each stage. Its music moves from drum-driven grooves to Black Sabbath-inspired doom metal and gothic drama, drawing influence from artists including Type O Negative, Deftones, and The Smashing Pumpkins. The album was mixed and mastered by Grammy-winning producer and engineer Machine.
That history gives “1313 Refresh” a compelling place within Solamente’s catalog. Listeners familiar with the original will be able to hear the song through the lens of everything Raza has created since its first release, while newer fans will receive an introduction to material that helped shape the project’s foundation. The single celebrates the past without remaining confined to it, demonstrating how older work can be renewed as an artist’s voice, skills, and outlook evolve.
“1313 Refresh” will be released on September 1, exactly ten years after Raza first shared the original recording. Follow Solamente on Instagram and TikTok at @solamente.band and on YouTube at @solamente-band for additional updates surrounding the release.