Outlaw and Split Person are Sok Hop’s upcoming performers for this Tuesday, Feb. 10. Before going to see them play, learn about the origins of the musicians, their music and where they plan to go.
Outlaw
Outlaw is a post-punk band based in Cedar City featuring Caleb Lameman on guitar and vocals, Willow Lee on drums and Rafael Arredondo on bass. The band came together one month before their first show in October 2025 at the Neon Duck in Cedar City. They wrote a 20-minute set in four weeks.
Lameman and Arredondo first met at Southern Utah University’s orientation, and Lee met the duo at a courtyard show put on by Post Human Democracy’s Dennis Stuprich. Arredondo picked up guitar two years ago, but switched to playing the bass when Outlaw was formed, and Lee, being a drummer of 14 years, was the missing piece they’d been looking for.
“The status quo right now is to comply and obey, but to be an outlaw is to fight against that and accept who you are as an individual,” said Lameman.
When they first got together, Outlaw was going by the name Bare Knuckles and trying to play hardcore music. The name Outlaw came about when they considered the desert landscapes they’re surrounded by and the group members’ individualism and going against the grain.
“(We are) the self-proclaimed most pissed off band in Southern Utah,” said Lameman.
The news updates the group sees on social media are among their main inspirations for the music they create, specifically the recent actions of the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Outlaw uses music as an outlet for the anger they feel, a way to raise awareness for the causes important to them and to foster a community of like-minded individuals.
“We want to see people moshing, we want to see people throwing hands, we want to see people making friends and we want to see community being built, because that is how we get through what’s going on right now,” said Arredondo.
Split Persona
Split Persona is based in Las Vegas, featuring guitarist and vocalist Zander Joel, bassist Sam Pableo, drummer Michael Westridge and lead guitarist Locklin Hannet.
Split Persona performed its first show at Battle of the Bands in Reno, Nevada, and Joel is the only remaining member of the original group. The band was also originally called Subliminal, but at 13, Joel came up with the name Split Persona, and it stuck.
After creating a fan base in Reno, Joel decided it was time for the group to move to Las Vegas, which caused them to lose their previous bassist and drummer. Joel knew Pableo played a five-string bass, so he called him to ask if he would join the band and move to Las Vegas with him, to which he replied with an immediate, “Yes.”
Westridge joined the band after seeing a flyer they’d put up in a Guitar Center about drummer auditions. The same day the band put up the poster, Westridge texted the number on the flyer at 5 a.m. saying, “I’ve been waiting for an opportunity like this my entire life.” He was the first and last person they auditioned.
Hennat came along through Westridge and has been standing in as their guitarist, and according to Joel, now they’re all BFFs.
As their name implies, the music they play can’t be defined by one genre.
“Every song that we write has to be a different experience. I want it to be like you’re on a fucking roller coaster,” said Joel.
The band mainly dabbles in loud guitar, metal, hard rock, and sob rock, but won’t hesitate to write a country song if it calls to them. They’re always striving to expand their sound and do more than what they’ve accomplished previously, often revisiting old demos and building on what they’ve created.
Joel takes a lot of inspiration from the human experience and the real emotions and situations people go through. Listeners are at the forefront of his mind while he’s writing lyrics.
“I feel like music is the last thing we have to bring people together,” said Joel. “(We want to) put on shows people feel like they’re a part of, where everybody in the room feels like they’re a part of the band, everybody feels like they’re a part of this big family.”
Outlaw and Split Persona will be playing at Sok Hop this Tuesday at 7:15 p.m. Tickets are $5 and can be purchased at the door.
