Rising Stars: Meet Bryan Torres of La Puente

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bryan Torres.

Hi Bryan, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in a strict, religious household where music wasn’t really allowed, especially anything secular. For a long time, I didn’t have an outlet for it. That changed when a cousin secretly showed me a burned CD of The Strokes. I instantly connected with it and wanted more.

After that, I’d wait until my parents left the house and download music off LimeWire, just trying to discover anything I could. A couple years later, a friend invited me to see his band at a local bar. I didn’t know what to expect, but it completely blew my mind. It was raw garage rock, and I knew right away that’s what I wanted to do.

I started a band with some friends just to write and play, but eventually I got kicked out. Around that same time, I was also working on another project on the side, which later became Death Lens. In the beginning, it was more of a party band, but I always felt like I had more to offer creatively.

Over the years, the lineup changed a lot, losing people and gaining new ones who really helped shape the band. We kept improving, and at a certain point I stopped playing guitar and focused fully on being a frontman. That shift changed everything for me, and things really started to take off.

Eventually, I made the decision to leave a stable job with the gas company to go all in on music. It was a risk, but without it, none of this would’ve happened.

Now it’s a group of kids who started in La Puente, grown up and playing shows all over the world. That’s something I don’t take for granted.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
A smooth road to any dream is pretty much impossible, and it definitely wasn’t for us. There were a lot of ups and downs. We lost friends along the way. Creative differences, personality shifts, just growing in different directions, not being able to afford to do this. The band almost broke up multiple times.

On top of that, the financial side was always heavy. Coming from a household with no money meant we were funding everything ourselves while also helping our parents pay rent at times. Paying for tours, setting up our own shows, trying to make something out of nothing for years, it adds up fast. Finding the right bands to connect with and building real relationships was another grind. And building a fanbase from the ground up is its own beast entirely.

Things are a lot more stable now. We’ve got a solid team behind us, our manager has been a huge help, and Ground Control Touring has really come through for us. But getting to this point took a lot of trial and error, setbacks, and just sticking with it when it would’ve been easier to walk away.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a musician from a city not many even realize exists. I’m the frontman of Death Lens, and we’re fortunate enough to be on a major, legendary label, Epitaph Records.

What sets us apart is the community we’ve built. We’ve become a voice for misfits, for people who’ve never really felt like they fit in anywhere else. That connection has turned into something real and tangible at our live shows, where that energy becomes the core of everything we do.

I’m most proud of my bandmates, the message we carry, and the way our music has been able to leave even a small positive mark on people’s lives. If it helps someone get through a hard moment or feel less alone, that’s the real win for us.

So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
Time. It’s the one thing you don’t get back.

It’s easy to get caught up in routines and expectations, but most of that isn’t really living, it’s just moving through days. I think what matters most is being intentional with the time you actually have, and not letting it get swallowed by things that don’t mean anything to you.

I’ve seen how fast things can change, how quickly opportunities and people come and go. That’s why I try to stay present in what I’m building, the people I’m doing it with, and the moments we get to share on and off stage.

Time is beautiful, but it’s limited. I just want to make sure I’m actually using mine to create something real before it’s gone.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://deathlensband.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deathlensband
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deathlensband
• Twitter: https://x.com/deathlensband
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@deathlensband
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4WqVsCKvGiqrgF9v27Dsa8

Image Credits
Photos by: Robert Nuñez, Alex Hecht, Marco Hernandez