High risk, high reward

Though they may be one of the younger bands in the area at just 18, 19 and 21, The Coves band members Johnny Delorit (vocals/guitar), Riley Stieglitz (vocals/bass) and Izze DeGrand (drums) are making their mark on the local music scene.

“We formed in 2023,” Stieglitz said. “Izzy and Johnny had been doing stuff for about a full year at that point, but the band really took off once we all got together as a group of three. Since then, we’ve been writing originals, putting together a full album, traveling across the state and now we’re kind of expanding to doing shows out of the state.”

This past March, The Coves were also named Original Artist of the Year at the 2025 BAMMY Awards, in addition to taking home an award for Original Song of the Year for their song “Bittersweet” and earning nominations for Breakthrough Artist of the Year and Rock/Alternative Artist of the year — although Stieglitz said the band’s music draws inspiration from several genres.

“We tend to get classified as alt rock among our listeners,” he said. “I’d call it a little eclectic because we all kind of come from different inspirations. I listen to a lot more alternative music and heavier music. John listens to bands like Muse, Tool and alt rock from the ‘90s. And Izzy was kind of into the sub pop for the longest time. She listens to a lot of music, though. I’d say we’re under the umbrella of alt rock or post grunge.”

What did it take to get The Coves to where they are today? Stieglitz said the key is “lots of commitment and practice.”

“We practice at least once, if not twice a week,” he said. “We all just have a lot of passion as a group. We all sort of have a passion towards creating and writing new music, so that definitely contributes. We’re also taking a lot of risks.”

One of those risks included the band’s first-ever tour, with shows throughout six states and ending in Texas, where they’ll embark on the next big milestone in their music careers — an album.

“We’re actually going to be recording our first full-length album — that’s essentially what the tour [was] for,” Stieglitz said. “We’re traveling down to Houston to meet up with our producer and recording down there for a week so by the end of the year, we’ll have our first full-length album out.”

Though their upcoming album and current music can be found on Spotify and other streaming services, Stieglitz said there’s just something special about playing a live show.

“My favorite part would be when we’re all locked in as musicians, either during a breakdown or a super high-energy part,” he said.

“The physical energy on stage in a moment like that is super cool. And it’s cool when the people watching react to it, too. Seeing the reactions and the responses to what we create is very rewarding.

And playing live, that’s such a huge factor of it. It’s very fun to get involved with the crowd or to play large shows. We’re constantly wanting to work towards the next big show or the next big thing or the next big project we’re working on.”

To stay up to date on The Coves latest projects and upcoming shows, follow them on Facebook (The Coves-Band Page) or Instagram (@thecovesofficial).