If you want a crash course in how Australian melodic hardcore grew up without losing its bite, the 20 best songs of Trophy Eyes are exactly where you start. This Newcastle-born five-piece has spent over a decade turning raw, scream-your-lungs-out punk into something far more textured — part pop-punk hook factory, part emotionally gutting singer-songwriter project. I’ve had these tracks looping in my car, on long walks, and through a decent pair of over-ears for years now, and every relisten still finds something new to love.
What makes Trophy Eyes special isn’t just John Floreani’s voice, which somehow manages to sound simultaneously torn apart and perfectly controlled — it’s the way the band has let their sound evolve across four studio albums (Mend, Move On, Chemical Miracle, The American Dream, and Suicide and Sunshine) without ever abandoning the emotional urgency that made them a Hopeless Records mainstay in the first place. Below, I’m breaking down the 20 songs that best represent this band’s evolution, blending the anthems that built their reputation with the newer cuts that show just how far they’ve come.
Chlorine
“Chlorine” was the first single off 2016’s Chemical Miracle, released on August 2 of that year and produced by longtime collaborator Shane Edwards at Karma Sound Studios in Thailand. It’s the song that introduced a lot of international listeners to Floreani’s gravel-and-melody vocal approach, and it still holds up as one of the tightest pop-punk-meets-hardcore hybrids in their catalog. The track even cracked the Triple J Hottest 100 that year, landing at No. 101 — modest by chart standards, but a real marker of how quickly this band was building a devoted following back home in Australia. On headphones, the mix lets the guitar tone breathe in a way that car speakers just can’t replicate; you catch every bit of grit in that bridge.
Heaven Sent
Tucked into Chemical Miracle, “Heaven Sent” leans harder into the melodic hardcore side of the band’s sound, with instrumentation that swells and recedes like it’s building toward a confession. Lyrically, it fits the album’s overarching theme — Floreani has described the record’s title as coming from the idea that life itself is a chemical miracle, and this track captures that tension between despair and something like grace. The vocal performance here is one of the rawest on the album, and live, it apparently hits even harder, judging by the setlists I’ve seen from that era’s tours.
Breathe You In
Released as the second single from Chemical Miracle on September 29, 2016, “Breathe You In” is where the band’s knack for a big, gang-vocal chorus really starts to show. Meanwhile, the verses stay restrained, almost conversational, which makes the eventual release of the hook feel earned instead of forced. It’s a great example of dynamic songwriting — quiet-loud-quiet — done without sounding formulaic, and it remains a fan-favorite deep cut whenever the band tours older material.
Counting Sheep
“Counting Sheep” is one of Chemical Miracle‘s more insomnia-flavored tracks, and it’s aged into one of the record’s most quietly beloved songs among the Trophy Eyes fanbase. The instrumentation stays punchy and driving throughout, but there’s a lyrical vulnerability running underneath that keeps it from ever feeling like filler. On repeat listens, I keep noticing how the drum work (this was still the Callum Cramp era of the band) drives the whole thing forward without overpowering the vocal.
Nose Bleed
Also from Chemical Miracle, “Nose Bleed” is a shorter, punchier cut that leans into the album’s punk-rock backbone more than its melodic-hardcore flourishes. It doesn’t overstay its welcome — in fact, its brevity is part of the appeal, hitting hard and getting out before the energy dips. In contrast to some of the record’s more atmospheric tracks, this one is built for a mosh pit, not a headphones-and-headspace kind of listen.
Home Is
Closing out much of the emotional arc on Chemical Miracle, “Home Is” strips things back just enough to let the songwriting take center stage. It’s a song about belonging — or the lack of it — and it fits the record’s broader narrative about identity and self-acceptance. If you’re new to the album, this is a good one to sit with on a quiet night rather than blast through your car stereo; the lyrics deserve that attention.
Chemical Miracle
The album’s title track distills everything Chemical Miracle is trying to say into one song, recorded with Shane Edwards at Karma Sound Studios and released via Hopeless Records in October 2016. There’s a real philosophical undercurrent here — the idea that existence, chemically speaking, is both mundane and miraculous — and Floreani sells that duality with a vocal take that oscillates between weary and hopeful. It’s one of the most thematically important songs the band has ever written, even if it’s not the most streamed.
Hurt
Released as a standalone single on November 7, 2017, “Hurt” marked the band’s first new material with drummer Blake Caruso, who’d taken over from Callum Cramp. It charted at No. 135 on that year’s Triple J Hottest 100, and honestly, it plays like a bridge between Chemical Miracle‘s rawness and the more melodic direction The American Dream would take the following year. The production feels a little more polished than the earlier singles, without sacrificing any emotional weight — this is Trophy Eyes figuring out how to grow up without going soft.
You Can Count On Me
The lead single from 2018’s The American Dream, “You Can Count On Me” dropped on May 29, 2018, and immediately signaled a shift toward bigger, more anthemic songwriting. It later reached No. 93 on the Triple J Hottest 100, and it’s easy to hear why fans latched on — the chorus is one of the most instantly memorable in the band’s discography. Floreani has talked about this record being about transitioning from boyhood to manhood and building a home after years of chaos, and this track sets that tone from the jump. If you’re testing out new gear, this is a great reference track; check our headphones comparison guide if you want to hear how differently mixed vocals sit across different driver setups.
More Like You
The second single from The American Dream, released June 25, 2018, “More Like You” ramps up the tempo and layers on massive backing vocals that turn the chorus into something closer to a chant than a traditional hook. It’s one of the most communal-sounding songs in the band’s catalog — you can practically picture an entire festival crowd screaming it back. On the other hand, the verses stay tightly wound, almost nervous-sounding, which creates a nice tension against that wide-open chorus.
Friday Forever
“Friday Forever” came out July 30, 2018, as the third single off The American Dream, and it’s arguably the most straightforwardly euphoric song Trophy Eyes has ever released. There’s an accompanying music video that leans into that celebratory, cathartic energy, and the track itself functions almost like a thesis statement for the album’s themes of shedding your past. It’s a song that genuinely sounds better the louder you play it — car stereo, festival PA, doesn’t matter, it wants to be big.
Lavender Bay
A softer, more melancholic entry from The American Dream, “Lavender Bay” got its own music video treatment on November 13, 2018, months after the album’s release — a sign the band and label saw something special in it. Named after a suburb of Sydney, the track trades the record’s bigger hooks for something more intimate and reflective. It’s the kind of song that rewards a late-night, headphones-on listen far more than a car ride with the windows down.
Figure Eight
Released as a standalone single in January 2020, “Figure Eight” is notable for introducing saxophone into the band’s sonic palette, courtesy of bassist Jeremy Winchester. It was recorded in Newcastle with longtime collaborator David Miles, and it shows a band actively pushing past the pop-punk template that had defined them for years. The song’s planned East Coast Australian tour got scrapped by the pandemic, which makes this track feel a little like a snapshot of a moment that got cut short — but the song itself holds up as one of their more sonically adventurous singles.
27 Club
Dropped in October 2021 amid ongoing pandemic disruptions, “27 Club” finds Trophy Eyes grappling with mortality and the mythology surrounding musicians who died young. It’s a heavier, more introspective cut than “Figure Eight,” recorded under the limited-capacity conditions bands were dealing with at the time. Lyrically, it’s one of the more directly confrontational songs in their catalog — Floreani doesn’t dance around the subject matter here.
Bittersweet
Following “27 Club” by a couple of months, “Bittersweet” arrived in late 2021 and leans into a more melodic, almost wistful register. Meanwhile, the production keeps things relatively stripped down compared to some of the band’s bigger album cuts, which suits the song’s reflective mood. It’s a transitional single in the best sense — you can hear the band working toward the more mature, polished sound that would define Suicide and Sunshine.
Nobody Said
Closing out the trio of pandemic-era singles, “Nobody Said” came out in early 2022 and continues the emotionally direct songwriting that defined this stretch of the band’s career. It’s a song about facing hard truths nobody warned you about, and the vocal delivery carries a weariness that feels earned rather than performative. In many ways, it’s the clearest signal that the band was heading toward the more nuanced, emotionally layered songwriting of their next full-length.
Blue Eyed Boy
The lead single from Suicide and Sunshine, “Blue Eyed Boy” dropped March 3, 2023, and it’s one of the most quietly devastating songs the band has ever put out. Produced by Shane Edwards and Fletcher Matthews at Studio 28 in Bangkok, the track marked a real sonic maturation — less frenetic, more emotionally direct, without losing the intensity that’s always defined this band. It’s become something of a fan-favorite touchstone from the album, frequently cited by listeners as the song that hit them hardest on first listen.
What Hurts the Most
Released April 12, 2023, as the second single from Suicide and Sunshine, “What Hurts the Most” leans into a slower build before letting the chorus land with real weight. This album reportedly began as something of a swan song for a band that was considering calling it quits after a decade together, and you can feel that gravity in tracks like this one. The arrangement gives Floreani’s vocal plenty of room to breathe, and the mastering keeps the dynamics intact — worth revisiting on a good pair of earbuds if you’ve only heard it through phone speakers; our earbuds comparison breaks down which models handle vocal-forward mixes like this one best.
Kill
“Kill” arrived as the third single from Suicide and Sunshine on May 3, 2023, and it’s a tighter, more urgent track than some of the album’s other singles. There’s a restlessness to the instrumentation here that mirrors the lyrical content, and it shows the band hasn’t lost their ability to write something that hits hard in under three and a half minutes. It’s one of the record’s punchier moments, sitting nicely between the album’s more contemplative tracks.
Epilogue
Fittingly, “Epilogue” closes out Suicide and Sunshine — and, at least for now, the band’s studio discography — with a sense of finality that feels earned after everything that came before it. It ties together the album’s themes of mortality, growth, and hard-won peace, functioning as both a conclusion to the record and a kind of mission statement for where Trophy Eyes might go next. Whether you’ve followed this band since Mend, Move On or you’re discovering them through Suicide and Sunshine, “Epilogue” is the kind of closer that makes you want to start the whole record over again. For more song breakdowns and artist deep-dives like this one, check out our full songs archive.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Trophy Eyes’ most popular song?
Streaming numbers and chart history both point to “Chlorine” and “Blue Eyed Boy” as strong contenders for the band’s most popular songs, with “Chlorine” building their early international audience and “Blue Eyed Boy” driving significant attention around the Suicide and Sunshine era.
How many albums has Trophy Eyes released?
Trophy Eyes has released four full-length studio albums: Mend, Move On (2014), Chemical Miracle (2016), The American Dream (2018), and Suicide and Sunshine (2023), all through Hopeless Records.
What genre is Trophy Eyes?
Trophy Eyes blends melodic hardcore, pop punk, punk rock, and emo influences, with their sound growing more melodic and emotionally direct across each successive album.
Who is the lead vocalist of Trophy Eyes?
John Floreani has been the band’s lead vocalist since its formation in Newcastle, Australia, in 2013, and his songwriting has driven much of the band’s lyrical evolution across their four albums.
Is Suicide and Sunshine the band’s last album?
While Suicide and Sunshine reportedly began as a potential farewell record for the band after a decade together, Trophy Eyes has continued releasing music and touring since the album’s June 2023 release.