After months in the studio, New York City metal band Once My Way aims to release its second EP at the end of May. Packed with meaningful lyrics and a plethora of musical influences, Once My Way is ready to show the world they can make their dreams a reality.

They want to fulfill their dreams and dominate the world with their music, according to lead guitarist Craig Belesi.

“We want to take this band as far as it can go, and work as hard as we can to get there,” Belesi said.

Once My Way originally began in December 2010 when Belesi answered an ad on Craigslist for a band in search of a drummer. After the band broke up, Belesi joined forces with its lead singer, Jerry Lourenco. Together, the duo started Once My Way and added the creative styles of four additional members to create the band’s eclectic sound.

Although screaming is a prominent characteristic of metal music, Once My Way carefully constructs its music to reach a large variety of listeners. This is possible since the band’s members find beauty in every genre and keep an open mind when searching for inspiration.

Belesi is a long-time fan of metal bands like Metallica and Black Sabbath, but he has also learned to find value in the mainstream music played on the radio.

“There’s always a silver lining to every song out there,” Belesi said. “That catchiness and infectiousness is something you have to capture. This way, people will remember the music we play during our shows.”

This mindset causes Once My Way to be everything but the average metal band — literally. Its music contains elements of almost every musical genre that exists, including hardcore, techno, pop, pop-punk and alternative. All six members of the band have different musical backgrounds, which creates a beautiful fusion of styles and tastes.

“You have to make an acronym of all the genres we use,” Belesi said. “That’s the only way to describe it since there are so many influences in our music.”

This open-minded attitude represents an idea that most metal bands may oppose. Yet the band benefits from taking the best of other music to make the perfect combination called Once My Way.

“I don’t want to ignore any type of music because it might give me inspiration to write the perfect song,” Lourenco said. “Ke$ha might have an awesome hook or pattern and that might inspire me, so I don’t want to miss out on it.”

The band continues to work on the last song of the new EP, which adds dubstep to its eclectic mix.

Both Lourenco and Nikki Hracs, the band’s keyboardist, work together to create lyrics that people can easily understand and relate to.

“Everyone has those moments when they want to hear when other people have gone through the same thing,” Hracs said. “Our main purpose is to connect to our audience. If a person can hear a song and relate to it, it will put them in a better place.”

Although metal bands generally stick to dark lyrics, Once My Way turned to its pop influences for inspiration. According to Lourenco, he tries to write lyrics that are upbeat, catchy and happy, so when people hear them, they’ll want to sing along.

Once My Way definitely has the motivation to succeed and obtain the ultimate dream record deal. With the amount of passion they have for their music, it’s no wonder the band receives lots of audience participation during shows.

“Every time I play a show, I imagine it’s the last show I’m ever going to play,” Belesi said. “I can say to myself that I was the best performer I could possibly be that day.”

The members of Once My Way are proud of their music and can’t wait to show it to everyone.

“We’re done being locked in the studios and we’re just ready to rock and play lots of shows,” Lourenco said.

Mark your calendars. The next show for Once My Way is at 5:30 p.m. on June 15 at the Broadway Bar in Amityville, N.Y. The band is currently working to book a summer tour to showcase songs from the new EP.

For more information on Once My Way, make sure to visit www.facebook.com/oncemyway for tour dates and tunes.