Toxic Madness Wants to Leave You Bruised and Hugging Each Other

Toxic Madness began with an argument—a Spanish “tóxico/tóxica” thrown back and forth by frontman Diogenes “DJ” Negron-Forsythe’s parents years ago. He added the word “madness,” and it became a band name for something that, back in 2021, was barely more than an idea. They played their first show in January 2022 and now tour familiar Deep Ellum venues, such as Three Links, RBC and the TX Tea Room, as well as Haltom City spots like the Haltom Theater.

The four-piece, made up of Negron-Forsythe on vocals, Kya “Wednesday” Vasquez on bass, Noah Dial on guitar and Scottie Rose on drums, puts on expertly-tuned, crazy performances of a hardcore bent, with lyrics peeking into personal demons and turning them into something new and resonant. Toxic Madness is many things, but first and foremost, they are a band committed to creating a space where people can be themselves. They accomplish this through meaningful messages that touch on taboo topics like pain, abuse and self-harm, putting on energetic performances during which the audience can lose themselves in a mosh pit or enveloped in a riff on Dial’s guitar.

Just as Toxic Madness wants their audience to be themselves, they also want to create a sound that is both a battle cry and a lifeline. They prefer not to label their exact genre; however, they delve into hardcore punk with most of their music. At a show, one can expect screaming, moshing and booming sound. But if you listen closely, you can find Negron-Forsythe’s quiet footsteps through the poetry of Bukowski, Poe and Lovecraft, who have given him meaning and crafted the band’s identity. He also admires philosophers like Carl Jung and John Milton, the latter of whom inspired their 2024 song, “Pandemonium.” It is rare to find someone as committed to authenticity as Negron-Forsythe. He carries a weight with him, both in terms of emotional maturity and artistic responsibility.

Toxic Madness on Their New Album Sleep

On their newest record, Sleep, available only on CD and vinyl, Negron-Forsythe draws from his own lived experience, touching on abuse, betrayal and how unhealed wounds and trauma can make it difficult to construct your sense of self. He doesn’t want his audience to let their own wounds define them or compel them to disappear; rather, he seeks to create a sense of belonging through Sleep, and he feels it was “imperative” to the album’s artistic direction to confront these emotions within himself.

Negron-Forsythe describes one of their first songs, “I’m Hardcore,” released in 2022, as an “embarrassment.” Sitting down with him in October, he laughs with us about it, his head in his hands. “At the time, we were a punk band,” he explains. “The hardcore scene gave us a lot of flak for that title. Punk didn’t feel authentic to me. But now, we are many things. We are creating something for ourselves.” He isn’t afraid to make these mistakes, and that is what makes him influential. Negron-Forsythe’s lyrics can emulate a softer side, a more vulnerable take on the typical hardcore genre one might be acquainted with. But to get the whole experience and get to know who they truly are, it is necessary to see the band in person—the yelling, stage-diving craze and unadulterated talent. It is a symbiotic relationship that reflects the band’s cohesion, but it wasn’t always that way.

Negron-Forsythe’s favorite lyric is “I am that I am” from “Cancer.” “It has Biblical roots,” he says. For him, it came from a place of insecurity. “I found that saying it over and over was like rocking myself back and forth—reassuring myself.” It became an anthem that carried him through lineup and genre changes, which once threatened to end the band altogether. Negron-Forsythe values growing with people and creating meaningful relationships. Constant lineup changes felt, as he puts it, “unnatural.” “Everyone has an ego, even me,” he says, “But I like to suppress it. I was raised to be humble. And for some, ego gets in the way of being an artist. They start to think, ‘It’s my way or the highway.’ It irks me, and we dealt with a few members like that. When they left, it left me thinking, ‘Did I just get used?’”

Not a Guitar Hero Kind of Band

Since Dial joined in March 2024 and Rose and Vasquez in early 2025, the band has formed a united front, each member bringing a unique artistic inspiration to inform the band’s sound and performance. For Rose, it is the philosophy of letting go. “I don’t like to force anything [at shows],” he says, “I’ve learned how to be in the moment and let things unfold–dive into the unknown.”

For Dial, it is old-school rock bands like Kiss and Led Zeppelin, where he found solace from his ADHD. He watched their performances and listened to their “dark riffs” that showed him what was possible. He’s inspired by guitarists who don’t perform for entertainment value, but do it for an outpouring of love they have for the world they live in. The guitarists who use their skills to create something new constantly inspire him. “And I don’t want to say the bland ‘but I got a lot from Guitar Hero 3,'” he quips.

Rose echoes this sentiment: “Guitar Hero and Rock Band did a lot for this generation.” 

Vasquez began her music career on guitar. When Toxic Madness needed a bassist this past April, Negron-Forsythe convinced her to try it. Her desire to join a band stemmed from attending shows and feeling the energy that emanated from the stage. She thought, “God, I want to do that.”

Emotion is everything to her. “A lot of my writing comes from finding an outlet for negative feelings. I can’t write about the positive–it just sounds cheesy,” Vasquez said.

Vasquez played her first full set on bass earlier this summer and has now assumed that pivotal role in the band with ease. She collaborates with Negron-Forsythe on lyrics and holds space for others to feel and grow alongside her.

A Quick Trip

Before a show, the band’s ritual involves a trip to QT. After a key cocktail of electrolytes, energy drinks, pizza and meditation, the chaos begins. It is more than chaos, however, because the band’s intention is deeper. A good show, Vasquez tells us, ends with a little, for lack of a better term, violence. Negron-Forsythe agrees. “I love to see bloody noses and people hugging each other,” he says, adding the goal is catharsis. “I want to see people throw down at our shows and learn how to be themselves.”

Their music overtakes you; compels you. It is easy to lose yourself in it, and possibly, find yourself. The band aims to make a positive impact on teenagers and serve as a source of encouragement and escape. “Toxic Madness has a voice,” Negron-Forsythe says. “The voice says hang in there—let it out and be yourself. You don’t have to cry or vomit or otherwise act like someone else—you can be authentically you.”

For Dial, that very characteristic is worth sacrificing. “I’ve canceled family plans and ended relationships for this [music],” he says. “I’ve sacrificed days from working and had a hard time paying bills. It takes a lot of gas.”

But for him, he knows that what he is doing is making a difference, and he wants to show people, much in the way Zeppelin showed him, what is possible. “And when I’m at a breaking point, I call DJ.”

Toxic Madness with Reinosa, Ball and Chain and Tesoro will be performing on Thursday, Nov. 13, at 6 p.m. at TX Tea Room, 815 Main St Suite B. Tickets are free and you can RSVP at eventim.us.