You have to feel a strong connection to something to get it permanently etched on your body.

So when a devoted fan of the newly formed band My Memory Remains said she plans to get a snippet of lyrics from their song “Beautiful Monsters” as a tattoo, they knew their music was affecting their fans on a deeper level.

The lead vocalist of the female-fronted hard rock/alternative metal band, Nicole Steinmetz, said she not only enjoys performing this genre of music, but also feels it is a way for the band to communicate how they truly feel.

“It is not like what every other band is putting out,” 20-year-old  Steinmetz said. “It’s whatever we want to create, whatever we want to say. It’s a really fulfilling feeling that we can make something that people are enjoying, and we enjoy getting on stage and performing every single night.”

The band “came to be” at a scheduled jam session back in 2015, Steinmetz said, when she, Aaron Aull on rhythm guitar and Kyle Miller on drums found the sound they were looking for with Steinmetz singing lead vocals and decided to go along with it.

From there, the band connected with Justin Perry who now plays lead guitar for the group and their current bassist C.J. Schmidt. Steinmetz said the band’s name, “My Memory Remains,” came from how they wanted to portray themselves as individuals and a band: to be remembered.

The Eau Claire-based band has been together for a year and a half, and shortly after getting together in October of 2015, they performed their first show that November.

Although they only practice once a week because of each member’s busy schedules, My Memory Remains has excelled in a short amount of time and played at Rock Fest in 2016 with only one year of preparation under their belts.

Perry said as the band increasingly became more popular, he was shocked but ecstatic when he started getting noticed by people he never met before.

“The fact that someone in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota recognized who I was from Rock Fest, she said ‘I know you, you were on the side stage at Rock Fest,’ I was just like oh my God, this is actually happening,” Perry said. “It gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.”

Perry said the band members describe their music as based on who they aspire to sound like. He said they identify with Halestorm, which is an American rock band, vocally, as well as a mix between All That Remains, a heavy metal band from Springfield, Massachusetts and Black Veil Brides, a rock band originating in Hollywood, California, instrumentally.

“When I ask people what we sound like, they just say ‘I don’t know, you just sound like you,’” Perry said.

When writing their songs, Perry said the process typically starts with him and Aull generating a guitar riff, including a lead and rhythm section incorporating both styles of guitar. The two then add in Miller on drums and Schmidt on bass and record the compilation, keeping their verses simple so they do not overpower the vocals. Once they have a sample recording of the instrumentals, it is then presented to Steinmetz, and she helps determine the intensity of each bit and writes lyrics to compliment them.

Steinmetz said she does not take the traditional route when it comes to composing the vocals. Instead of jumping in and writing the lyrics right away, she said she listens to the instrumentals on repeat, then establishes a vibe of the song and what she wants to convey through words. She then gets her thoughts out on paper in the form of a poem and plays around with it until it fits the beat. Most of their songs reflect emotions experienced during relationships.

So far, the band has released an EP, “Take What You Will,” containing the first songs they wrote as a band and are currently working on a single called “Amethyst.” They have a full schedule for the next few months, playing in Fort Atkinson March 18, a cancer benefit at Every Buddy’s Bar in Chippewa Falls, a tour kicking off April 21 through May 6 and Rock Fest 2017 in Cadott on July 22.

My Memory Remains’ tour, titled “Stand Strong,” is based off the single that goes along with a new song and video they will be releasing April 8. Starting in Texas and making their way up through the center of the country back to Wisconsin, the band will end the tour in their homeland of Chippewa Falls.

Through it all, Aull said the rush he gets when he steps out on stage to a crowd of 250 people waiting to hear them play is what being a part of the band is all about.

“We can pretty much remember every show that we play,” Aull said. “Whether it goes good or bad, you always remember the feeling. It (performing) is almost like a high.”

The band’s music is available on Spotify, Bandcamp, SoundCloud and their website.