New Noise Magazine Issue #47

NEW NOISE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 41

ISSUE 47

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HEX RECORDS SCENE NOT HEARD THE NEW WHAT NEXT PILE SLINGSHOT DAKOTA USA NAILS SAMSARA AS CITIES BURN AMON AMARTH THE EXPLODING HEARTS J. ROBBINS CJ RAMONE EARTH DEATH ANGEL RINGWORM L7

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BARONESS THE GET UP KIDS GLORYHAMMER HE IS LEGEND BIG|BRAVE THE PLANET SMASHERS LO-PAN PELICAN FULL OF HELL THE DAMNED THINGS BRACKET FIRE IN THE MOUNTAINS AGGRONAUTIX THE SHORTLIST ANALOG CAVE FURY COVER PHOTO BY JOE CALIXTO BAD RELIGION COVER ART BY BARBARA GEORGES TABLE OF CONTENTS PHOTO BY ALYSON COLETTA BAND - I DON'T KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME

20 YEARS OF

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n 1999, Ryan Canavan released the first record under his label HEX Records. He was delving into unknown territory after printing his punk zine “Hanging Like a Hex� for several years. He was supposed to do a sampler release to ease into the process, but the partner balked. Instead of letting the idea linger, Canavan continued on this intimidating trek.

RECORDS having one foot firmly moving into the future.�

INTERVIEW WITH FOUNDER RYAN CANAVAN BY HUTCH started in 1999, and last year, I got to thinking, ‘I should do something cool,’� Canavan recalls. “I didn’t put much out last year, as I was settling in to Portland, getting accustomed to my job out here, and

for almost 20 years now. Every week is a different record that I put out. At this point, I’ve put out almost 50 records. I know that’s not much for 20 years, but it is about one [blog post] a week.�

That first record, HXR001, was a four-way split 7� featuring NORA, Hermon DeKalb, Eternal Youth, and Every Time I Die. Canavan knew good music when he heard it even if it did not fit the parameters of a known genre, and he has continued to act on these impulses for 20 years.

Two decades later, in 2019, it seems an appropriate time to reflect on the last nearly 50 records—and, of course, keep releasing new ones.

Canavan defines “awesome� by his own standards, not trends or numerical equations. The ethos, spirit, and attitude of the band— and their sound, of course—are what decides his output. “A lot of that veers on bands that have a connection to punk and hardcore but might not sound like that in the strictest sense,� he says. “I like the idea of bands that are heavy and weird doing something original and interesting, not just traditional hardcore.

There’s a place for that, but there are plenty of labels that serve that. I’ve always been into heavy and weird stuff.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

After that initial record in 1999, Canavan was eager to repeat the process. “Once I put out a record, I thought, ‘That wasn’t that tough,’� he says. “I’ve gone through periods where I didn’t put out a record, like a whole year, and I have other years where I put out four or five records. I stopped the zine in 2005, and I just focused on putting out the records.�

Canavan was born and raised in Syracuse, New York, save for a few years in adjacent Buffalo. “In the past, so much of it was being regional,� he says of his early releases. Through the 2000s, Canavan kept releasing records, but his geographical reach grew organically. Now in Portland, Oregon, after 40 years in Upstate New York, he is comfortable and excited for the future. “This year is a big year for Hex Records,� he states plainly. “It’s the 20th anniversary.�

Prodded by the round number, the itch to celebrate began in 2018. “I

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The criteria for Canavan when selecting releases is the same paradigm he has followed for 20 years.

In true DIY fashion, he is HEX Records: executive, A&R, PR, designer, and financier. “I try to release records with people I am friends with,� he says. “I still get to do that, but there is also stuff I put out for bands that I think are awesome. Bands that are great.

That’s where I am at now. That’s what piques my interest.�

getting used to things.� But now, Canavan plans to continue the DIY approach he has continually implemented. “I’ll be putting out some records which I’ve wanted to do for a long time,� he says. “I have a whole bunch of records I want to put out, a bunch of new bands. That’s part of it in 2019.�

The other part is a retrospective project. “I’m doing these weekly ‘making of’ type pieces on my blog site about every record I’ve put out,� he explains. “I am interviewing people who I have known

Canavan indulges in the emotional gratification of the project, but he doesn’t want the spotlight to be solely on his past accomplishments. “I love historical stuff and documentation, but as much as I like celebrating nostalgia, I don’t want to wallow in it,� he heeds. “I like moving forward and doing new stuff. That’s where putting out new records comes in—celebrating the old but

SCENE NOT HEARD FEATURING EARSHOT MEDIA FOUNDER ike Cubillos is a PR individual and the founder and owner of Earshot Media, which celebrates its 20-year anniversary this year. His day-to-day, while wild and often unpredictable, mostly consists of being the middle man between Earshot’s clients and the press—like this magazine!

Based in Los Angeles, Cubillos has become one client I rely on to consistently represent diverse musical genres and artists willing to take risks in their exploration of different soundscapes. His job description is my dream‌

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“One day I might be pitching a singer-songwriter and the next, a punk or metal band. Or I might be out in the field covering a show or working an event or meeting up with a writer or manager for coffee or lunch. There are many times where I wake up and think I have an idea of what my day is going to look like, but then I check my email or get a phone call, and all of a sudden, I’m thrown for a loop and off doing something totally unexpected.� “One day I might be pitching a singer-songwriter and the next, a punk or metal band. Or I might be out in the field covering a show or working an event or meeting up with a writer or manager for coffee or lunch. There are many times where I wake up and think I have an idea of what my day is going to look like, but then I check my email or get a phone call, and all of a sudden, I’m thrown for a loop and off doing something totally unexpected.�

PHOTO BY ALEX BEMIS

SHI FTI NG THE FOC US FRO M THE IND IVI DUA LS WHO CRE ATE THE BES T ALB UMS TO TAK E AN INS IDE LOO K AT THE BEH IND-TH E-S CEN ES JOB S THA T KEE P THE IND UST RY RUN NIN G. GO BEY OND THE MUS IC AND MEE T THE PEO PLE WHO KEE P YOU R FAV ORI TE BAN DS IN THE PUB LIC EYE... out that foundation of learning from experienced music industry veterans. My time working at different record labels prepared me to go out on my own with Earshot Media.�

What inspires him to continue working in this scene?

What experiences led Cubillos to “I’m inspired every day by my bands. his position?

They risk a lot and sacrifice so “I got my start in college by doing much to put their art out into the a few different internships. I used world. I have a ton of respect for those experiences to learn all I the labels I work with as well. It’s could about the different facets of no easy feat to start a record lathe music business and eventually bel, let alone be successful at it, so got hired on by one of the labels I I love that I get to champion these was interning with. I honestly don’t smaller companies that are putthink I’d be where I am today with- ting out great music for all the right

reasons. I’m also inspired by all the Does Cubillos have any advice for brilliant writers and editors I get to others wanting to get into the music work closely with. We’re all music industry? fans first and foremost, so the fact that I’m surrounded by so many “I would say to just start by learning creative people is something I ap- all you can about the music business.

Start locally by getting involved in your preciate about what I do.� scene. Hit up record labels or PR firms “Bands that influenced me a lot in- to ask if they are in need of an intern. clude Pixies, Ramones, The Clash, Make the most of any opportunities Pavement, Nirvana, The Specials, that come your way. Make yourself Fugazi, New Order, The Smiths, indispensable so they’re left with no X, Guided By Voices, Matthew choice but to hire you. Work hard and Sweet, The Velvet Underground, don’t expect to have anything handed and I know I’m forgetting a to you. Pay your dues and don’t be a bunch. Too many to name! I was jerk. People will notice and, eventually, also a big fan of labels like Sire, doors will open.�

Sub Pop, 4AD, 2 Tone, Factory, Matador, Trojan, Island, The Cure, We are always grateful for people like Mike. So, be like Mike. đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł Vagrant, Epitaph, etc.â€?

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THE NEWEST NOISE FOR YOUR LISTENING PLEASURE! PHOTO BY MICHAEL THOMAS

CERES Melbourne, Australia

PHOTO BY MATT LAMOURT

FIGURE EIGHT Long Island, New York

We Are a Team | April 26 | Cooking Vinyl Australia RIYL: Rain on your wedding day. Falling in love. Happy tears.

Any Given Flower | May 24 | Level Music RIYL: The best of both worlds. Passion. Accidentally humming in public.

We Are a Team is the cutest damn thing. It’s a happy emo record—no, that’s not quite right. This is a full-on joy of an album, because it oozes the feeling of being elated after overcoming turmoil.

If that all sounds quite ironic—don’t you think?—wait until the magic of We Are a Team washes over you. This is the type of record that grabs the listener immediately and brings them into its world. Ceres’ upbeat musical style is dynamic and even more resonant than their love-struck lyrics, yet none of it feels tacky or cheesy. Vocalist and guitarist Tom Lanyon’s earnest nature radiates from his tales of happiness. “This record started once I fell in love with someone,â€? he explains. “It’s such a contrast to where I was in my life throughout writing [2016’s] Drag It Down on You. I’m in a much better place. It’s pretty much a time capsule of the giddy first year of falling in love, and I’m so glad it exists.â€?đ&#x;’Ł

Figure Eight are going to be the next great Long Island band. Any Given Flower is haunting, hooky, and as potent as any emo rock record in recent memory. In many ways, so much of the album feels like a long-lost classic from the previous decade, boasting aggression and angelic choruses in equal measure. There’s a personal quality to the tunes that most bands don’t quite capture, and that’s for good reason. Figure Eight is vocalist and guitarist Ryan Meyers’ passion project but offers the fullness of a complete lineup behind him. “This band started with just me wanting to write songs that I had all the creative control over,â€? he explains. “Kind of like a Say Anything situation, I write, record, and have a band who plays live with me, but we still treat it like a band rather than a solo project.â€? That’s why Any Given Flower feels so cohesive despite being the work of one person—and a very talented and engaging one at that. đ&#x;’Ł

PHOTO BY JOE AGIUS

HATCHIE Brisbane, Australia

Keepsake | June 21 | Double Double Whammy RIYL: Collectibles. Transformations. Euphoria.

Proving that self-discovery doesn’t have to be morose, Keepsake is an incredible reminder of the power of pop music. The hazy, dreamlike quality of Hatchie’s shoegazey synthpop imbues it with an ethereal sense of serenity. All those AP Lit words aside, what’s most telling is how fucking fun this debut is and how lasting its joyful sentiments are long after the record stops spinning.

Keepsake plays off the idea of Hatchie frontwoman Harriette Pilbeam trying to define her role in the world on her own terms. While not every experience was pleasant, she seems happy to sing the praises of life, so it’s not surprising that this neon-inflected album is imbued with so much sonic jubilation. This bliss was central to the songwriting as well. “I wanted to write music that made me feel happy and euphoric, that you could sing along with,� Pilbeam says. “I wanted to make music different from everything I was hearing in the local scene at the time.�

The result is a timeless, terrific first impression from an artist who only will grow more precious over time.đ&#x;’Ł

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PHOTO BY ROBLEY DUPLEIX

BAD LOOKS Los Angeles

Bad Looks | May 4 | Metal Assault Distro RIYL: Cerberus. Unholy trinities. Tasty blends.

Bad Looks come storming out of the gates of Hades with this three-headed beast of an EP. Boldly tackling different styles, each of the three songs carries the spirit of exploration, yet the result feels strikingly connected rather than disjointed.

Hardcore punk, sludge, and metal collude in distinct but equal parts to create this little Cerberus of a cassette. Bad Looks is furious, hooky, aggressively melodic, and perfect for those who long for the mid 2000s Southern metalcore boom and love acts like He Is Legend and Every Time I Die. Vocalist and guitarist Alessandro Pulisci sums up the band’s creative drive nicely. “That adventurousness [from the mid ’00s] was something we talked about before we even finished these songs,â€? he explains. “We want to dabble in a variety of styles, and we wanted to announce that right out of the gate, so we tried to pick three songs that sounded different from each other but all like us.â€? It’s a huge credit to the trio that this triad of treble-heavy hardcore tunes beckons for seconds and thirds, which the band plan to serve up soon.đ&#x;’Ł

IDLE HANDS Portland, Oregon

PALE MISERY Lafayette, Louisiana

Mana | May 10 | EISENWALD RIYL: Happy accidents. Sad songs. Devon Sawa’s possessed right hand.

Black Candles and Gutter Scum | May 31 | Self-Released RIYL: Blackened stuffed-crust pizza. Sugar-free jams.

Leaving your mind in the gutter.

Imagine the time is 1987, and a heavy metal maiden falls in love with a goth sister of mercy. Their child would sound something like Idle Hands’ Mana, which marries the two styles masterfully. Flashy guitar work, a propulsive and expressive rhythm section, and a beautiful baritone combine to make some of the most engaging and electric retro metal in ages.

Think a less blackened In Tribulation mixed with Spirit Adrift’s flair for the dramatic, and you’re halfway there—living on a prayer!—but what makes Idle Hands really attention-grabbing is the result of both humility and pride. “I sing low because I can’t sing high,â€? frontman Gabriel Franco explains. “Otherwise, people might not be making these comparisons. It just worked out the way it did. Be yourself!â€? That said, limiting Idle Hands’ appeal to Franco’s fantastic pipes would be like tying one hand behind their back. The music is bombastic, as gloriously over-the-top as any ’80s fusion band yet with a magical quality that renders Mana a truly heavenly treat. đ&#x;’Ł

The best part of waking up is Folgers in your cup, but the second-best part is the filthy, ferocious blackened crust that Pale Misery serve up on their fucking fantastic debut. Featuring a cornucopia of disgusting riffs and unleashing more aggression than “The Breakfast Club,â€? Black Candles and Gutter Scum is a delight for anyone willing to meet these miscreants where they are—down in the gutter. This is hardcore-fueled second-wave black metal at its absolute finest, and the triumphant nature of these morose melodies will wake even the most zombified listener. “The album is lyrically very personal,â€? vocalist and bassist Thorn Letulle states. “I feel it’s both a glimpse into my own self as well as an affirmation of the suffering of those before me. In a very unitive sense, the album illustrates the turn of one’s moral beliefs in an effort to survive a violent and inhospitable world. It’s real, and there’s nothing sugarcoated about it.â€? Sugar’s not ideal in the morning, anyway. Instead, give Pale Misery a shot. Your energy levels will thank you.đ&#x;’Ł

PHOTO BY ELEANOR PETRY

PHOTO BY JEFF BLUMER

JULIA SHAPIRO Seattle

Perfect Version | June 14 | Hardly Art RIYL: Navigating crises. Pushing yourself. The friends you made along the way.

How would you handle an existential crisis? That’s the central theme of Julia Shapiro’s Perfect Version, an album that’s not at all what it initially seems. There’s a free-flowing spirit to the music that contrasts with the record’s piercing, purposeful lyrics. Constructed while on break from her main gig with Chastity Belt, Shapiro’s solo project is enveloping in nature and enthralling in execution. The hazy nature of the music plays with the notion that all of these versions of Shapiro are trying—and possibly failing—to figure life out. “Writing and recording this record helped me rediscover songwriting in a new way. I’d never really written a whole song—guitar, bass, drums, etc.—all on my own, so it felt really gratifying to be able to do that on this record. I guess that’s a version of myself that I am attached to,â€? she laughs. “At the time I was writing this album, I was definitely having an existential crisis, which is not uncommon for me, so a lot of the lyrical content has to do with me questioning myself, my life, my purpose.â€?đ&#x;’Ł

PETTY LARCENISTS Minneapolis

NEVALRA Columbia, Missouri

Stolen Chords and Lifted Riffs | May 10 | Rad Girlfriend Records RIYL: Domestic bliss. People watching. Sticky Fingers.

Conjure the Storm | June 7 | M-Theory Audio RIYL: Jump scares. Expensive whiskey. A tornado of riffs

Jesse Thorson has seen it all and written a whole host of incredible punk rock tunes about it. As the voice behind The Slow Death and Pretty Boy Thorson, there has always been an earnest Midwestern appeal to his songs. His latest project feels like both an encapsulation of all he’s done before and a slight left turn into more heartland-rock waters. There’s still a dose of punk energy, but on Stolen Chords and Lifted Riffs, Petty Larcenists ooze the soul of good ole rock ’n’ roll, with fascinating stories to boot. “Usually, I write songs about me and what I’m going through or have gone through and stuff like that,�

Thorson explains, “but really, this record is different. These songs, for the most part, are about other people and their stories.

Honestly, I’m pretty damn lucky. I’m at a really good spot in life now, and nobody wants to hear a song about how loud my dog snores, so I had to find other things to talk about.â€? Thorson and Petty Larcenists radiate an easygoing charm that’s incredibly easy to love—even if his dog snores super loud.đ&#x;’Ł

It’s the unexpected that throws you for a loop, like a jump scare that comes out of nowhere rather than being telegraphed by a minute of loud orchestral clangs. The same can be said for the next great extreme metal band, who come not from the predictably fertile lands of Europe but from a relatively small Midwestern city. However, they aren’t just memorable because their arrival wasn’t preceded by months of fawning— it’s genuinely scary how incredibly balanced Nevalra’s blend of extreme metal styles is, even in the band’s infancy. Conjure the Storm is symphonic but not cheesy, blackened but more focused on atmosphere than apostasy, and stunningly melodic but with riffs that will rip your neck to shreds. Like a perfectly crafted horror film, it’s all about executing individual elements in cohesion. “I appreciate you noticing the balance,â€? vocalist and guitarist Scott Eames says. “That is a very big part of what I wanted Nevalra to be. I am a huge fan of melody and also of ‘bludgeoning heavy.’ There was no way I was going to be happy with choosing one over the other.â€?đ&#x;’Ł

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DOOM FOR TOMORROW mate in the U.S. “The people who are not in power are losing their faith in the people they elect, and then, they elected somebody who is a dictator-wannabe,� Barr says. “It’s a little disheartening and it’s hard to watch, and a lot of the lyrics are based on that.�

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST/VOCALIST BRIAN BARR BY MIKE GAWORECKI seethe’s full-time synth player and soundscape artist left the band just before the recording of 2017’s Hopes of Failure, so the Iowa doom trio adopted a more strippeddown approach. They largely stick with the less-is-more formula on their new full-length, Throes, out May 17 on Thrill Jockey, but as fans have come to expect by now, Aseethe continue to evolve all the same.

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Throes does feature some samples that add flourishes of industrial ambience at key moments, but guitarist and vocalist Brian Barr says that, once again, the songs didn’t need any additional adornment. Even the band’s live show has been stripped down to the essential basics of guitar, drums, bass, and voice. “We haven’t even been using the sampler live lately,�

Barr says. “We’ve just decided that it was easier and the songs didn’t really need it much.�

What chiefly sets Throes apart from Hopes of Failure is a greater emphasis on the guitar work. Barr triple-tracked the guitars in the same live room as the drums so they would have the same natural reverb and better complement each other. Meanwhile, the addition of Noah Koester on bass freed him up to explore more dynamics and melody. Barr’s brother Danny Barr handled bass duties on Hopes of Failure, but he ultimately decided the touring life was not for him and bowed out of the band. Koester, however, made an immediate impact. “He definitely adds a lot more on the bass end, as far as more playing, where Danny more just backed me up most of the time,� Barr notes.

That Koester was a perfect fit isn’t surprising considering Barr and drummer Eric Diercks first played in a band with him 20 years ago. “We’ve known Noah for two decades,� Barr says. “We even actually had this exact same lineup 20 years ago almost, but a totally different band, where it was Noah, Eric, and I. So, bringing him in, it’s bringing in an old friend who we’ve played with before.�

There are also more vocals on Throes, supplied by both Barr and Koester, compared to Aseethe’s previous efforts. Koester penned most of the lyrics, which are seething with anger and sadness about the political cli-

PHOTO BY ZAKERY NEUMANN

That the latest evolution of Aseethe is as potent as ever is immediately apparent in the massive, crushing riffs on Throes. Its five songs traverse territory from hypnotic to bludgeoning, all tied together by a take on doom metal that achieves the grandeur and majesty of a post-metal act like the titanic Neurosis.

However, Barr and his bandmates weren’t entirely certain they were even making a doom album. “We were actually joking about it. ‘What is this album?

What’s going on here?’� he says. “It took a little while to wrap our head around where we wanted to take it.�

The opening title track, “Throes,â€? bookends the album with the closer, “Our Worth Is the New Measure.â€? Both songs were completed in time to be road-tested on the band’s November 2018 tour with Fister, but then along came “To Victoryâ€? and “No Realm,â€? two songs that they weren’t sure would fit the rest of the material they had prepped for the album. “No Realm,â€? in particular, wasn’t even written to be a doom song. “I wrote it to be twice as fastâ€? as the version that appears on Throes, says Barr, who’d been listening to a lot of Majority Rule when he composed the song. “In the end, I think it all sonically makes sense and fits in together, but ‘No Realm,’ in all of our opinion, is still kind of the weird one on the album.â€?đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

DREADNOUGHT INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST/FLUTIST KELLY SCHILLING BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

readnought have long been legends in Denver for their flawless blend of doomy psych black metal with plenty of keys and flute. It’s a unique sound but one the band nail perfectly, and it’s grown in popularity across the U.S. and the world.

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Their latest release, Emergence, out May 10 via Profound Lore, is an album Dreadnought think represents a new era. “I think this new record is a kind of comingof-age in a way,� vocalist, guitarist, and flutist Kelly Schilling explains. “I think we’ve really homed in on our craft and have really begun to understand how we write together and the best way of approaching it. I think the sound on this record has really matured, and it’s a little bit meaner, a little more dramatic. There’s a lot in it, but it’s also really slow. I think there are a lot of different emotions here.�

The lyrics are also varied and introspective, focusing on upheaval and transformation, although it’s not always laid out as a positive narrative. “The record starts out with a catastrophic event,� Schilling explains. “[Keyboardist

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and vocalist] Lauren [Vieira] wrote it about a volcano erupting and kind of seeing the end come toward you. It’s basically about having catastrophic-event anxiety. Then, the rest of the elements kind of reflect upon that event, which, compared to any other event in your life, would be catastrophic to you, but as the album continues, you start to grow and realize that, you know, you’re able to be objective about the thing that had just occurred. So, it’s a lot about taking ownership and taking on a new perspective in order to move forward and grow.�

As Dreadnought grow and develop, they’re also happy to be part of a scene and a city that are experiencing similar growth. “It’s exciting that we get to reach new audiences and connect with people around the world,� Schilling says. “It’s great that the Denver music scene is growing in that way too. It’s really nice to see a bunch of friends who are working really hard at their craft and are also being recognized for it. I’m really happy and excited for everybody.�

Look for Emergence and its story of transformation on Profound Lore now and catch Dreadnought on tour this summer.đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

PHOTO BY ALVINO SALCEDO

HE IS LEGEND WHITE BAT

JUNE 28TH HEISLEGENDNC.COM

EMPLOYED TO SERVE Eternal Forward Motion The highly anticipated new album available now.

employedtoserve.com spinefarmrecords.com

spinefarm.merchnow.com

ANXIETY AND ACCEPTANCE sound is far from cookie-cutter rock ’n’ roll.

Void of guitar solos and sonic flash, Dan Bogosian described it as “a man falling from the top of the Empire State Building and landing safely on his feet only to get run over by a car� for Consequence Of Sound in 2015.

situation. I was coming to terms with that having been for over a decade and some of my friends either deciding that they didn’t want to do it anymore or people who had never done it, seeing what their lives look like compared to mine.�

“I have a tough time describing it,â€? Maguire admits. “There are two pulls that are movable, [‌] being very delicate and sensitive and vulnerable and then very aggressive and abrasive, and I like running back and forth between the two and, in some cases, moving them farther apart from each other. So, I don’t know. It all falls under the umbrella of rock music.â€?

Following up 2017’s A Hairshirt of Purpose, Green and Gray is Pile’s seventh full-length album. The band’s unique and acclaimed

Maguire cites Aphex Twin and Wiseblood as two of Pile’s most recent influences. When asked if moving away from a traditional rock

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST RICK MAGUIRE BY ANGELA KINZIE “

irst, your heart pounds in the dark,�

Pile songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist Rick Maguire exhales on “Bruxist Grin.� Maguire sings with firsthand candor and what feels like sheer need. On the first single from the Boston band’s new album, Green and Gray, released May 3 via Exploding In Sound Records, Pile open up a conversation about the price of change.

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“I don’t know if it was technically a panic attack. It was just an experience that happened,� he answers when asked about a panic attack he described in a recent feature on NPR. “I experienced a lot of anxiety all at once. It was related to a bunch of things changing in my life.�

sound was conscious, he answers, “I wanted to make music that was exciting and interesting to me. Sometimes, the easiest answer isn’t always the right one—but, yeah, just trying to continue being exciting. I got to try to stretch myself a little bit.â€?.đ&#x;’Ł

“There’s not a lot of the anxiety on this album that was on past records,� he adds. “It’s pretty self-contained to just that one [song].�

Describing the intentional self-awareness that is the narrative throughout Green and Gray, Maguire explains, “My goal from when I was very young was to create stuff and have that be sustainable for me, financially and otherwise. I’ve gotten to that point. So, I’m very grateful for that, but with that usually means, or at least it has for me, that some other things are sacrificed along the way, whether it be personal relationships or any sort of static living

“

ALEX LAHEY don’t think that I actively seek to be humorous in my music,� Melbourne pop rock artist Alex Lahey says, “but I definitely don’t take myself too seriously in any part of life—I would feel shackled otherwise—so maybe the result of carrying myself like that is that a few gags slip into my songs.�

I

While not intentional, humor does sometimes find a way into Lahey’s music and, more frequently, her music videos. Her lyrics aren’t tongue-in-cheek per se, and she certainly is no novelty act, but listeners do pick up on her lighthearted approach to life. “Humor is important to me, because it makes the challenges that life presents far more manageable,� she says. “I feel as though just the knowledge of being [able] to look back and laugh is enough to propel myself through a less-than-desirable situation or period.� Lahey’s fun, catchy, and friendly songwriting has won her fans all over Europe and the U.S., but it’s always special for her to come back to her home country. “For all the excitement that comes with touring abroad and traveling the world,� she says, “it makes touring in Australia truly feel like a

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INTERVIEW BY JOHN SILVA

homecoming and that you’re back where it all began.â€?Â

Something that almost always comes up when fans talk about Lahey is her relatability. For example, a prevalent theme on her new album, The Best of Luck Club, out May 17 via Dead Oceans, is the loneliness that comes with adulthood—an experience most people in their 20s can understand.

Though she doesn’t make a conscious effort to write songs that others can relate to, the personal experiences she sings about are fairly universal. “I am so aware that a lot of the experiences that I have had, am having, and will go on to have aren’t drastically different to that of anyone else,� Lahey explains, “and I love that. I feel that these common experiences and feelings bring people together and connect us all. That’s a really special thing.�

The Best of Luck Club was inspired by the dive bar scene in Nashville, where Lahey wrote much of the record. The casual, lowkey, accepting environment provided a good backdrop for the album. “I think the inspiration was more taken from the feel and unspoken codes of conduct of these places,� Lahey shares, “the idea that anyone

can come in at any time, no matter who they’re with, if anyone, and not feel like they’re intruding or don’t belong. For me, it’s borderline utopian and is very aligned with my own beliefs of inclusiveness and authenticity.�

Lahey’s music seems to complement these beliefs. There is something very warm and welcoming about her songs. When listening to Alex Lahey, fans are in a judgement-free

PHOTO BY CALLUM PRESTON

zone: they can feel safe, they can be vulnerable, they’re allowed to feel sad, and through that sadness, they can find joy—so much joy. On The Best of Luck Club’s lead single, Lahey repeats the titular line, “Don’t be so hard on yourself,â€? over and over again. Listening through earbuds, it feels like she’s sitting next to you at a dive bar, laughing with you and encouraging you to try to enjoy life. đ&#x;’Ł

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DYNAMIC DUOS

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/KEYS PLAYER CARLY COMANDO BY SAMANTHA SPOTO arly Comando and Tom Patterson, the quirky wife-and-husband duo who comprise Slingshot Dakota, just released their fifth album, Heavy Banding, on May 24 via Community Records in the U.S. and Specialist Subject Records in the U.K. Complete with empowering power

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pop anthems, Heavy Banding is not only the product of the Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, band’s dedication to their craft but also their patience for a hard-to-navigate scene.

When Slingshot Dakota first began playing in 2003, the DIY community they found

PHOTO BY JAKE CUNNINGHAM

FRAYLE

themselves in mostly praised white male musicians, leaving women like Comando to idle under the radar. Even though the scene claimed to be inclusive, they were falling short in their representation. “The scene I loved so much was not actually doing what it preached,� Comando admits.

and support in any room,� Comando says. “What we do now is so much more appreciated by not only our fanbase who has been following us since the beginning but by new people too. Everyone’s acceptance level has grown so much.�

While it’s refreshing for Comando to watch the scene that defined her approach transform, she knows there is only so much she and her partner can do to hop out of their pond and into the mainstream. While that leap forward isn’t in their control, what they do know and believe is this:

In the nearly two decades since the band’s inception, Comando has witnessed a positive shift. “While there are still shows and cu- “The only thing that we have control over is rated tours that are white-male-dominated, writing music that we are proud of and that people are realizing that’s not OK,� she says. resonates with us,� Comando shares. “If you’re creating art and practicing nonstop “People are realizing that years and years of and doing everything that you can to be a ingrained, institutionalized thinking have good artist, you’re already doing your best. made it that way.�

We are grasping everything to be the best versions of ourselves, and it’s pouring out Comando has not only seen a change in of this record more than any of the others.� managers and booking agents becoming more inclusive, she’s also noticed that SlingComando and Patterson will continue to shot Dakota’s followers are representative of a much wider audience. In the past, peo- write music that impacts them on a personal level, and they can only hope their listenple often tried to pigeonhole the group or ers will hold on tight. “We want to cause a dismiss them when they refused to conform ripple effect and shake things up. In order to a specific sound. Now, more and more for us to get there, the support needs to be people are recognizing how accessible and killer,� Comando says. approachable they are. “It’s wonderful when, at best, the music community can be a therapy session. When it’s really genuine, you can feel that love

That support starts at shows. You can see Slingshot Dakota on tour in support of Heavy Banding this summer.đ&#x;’Ł

INTERVIEW WITH GWYN STRANG AND SEAN BILOVECKY

BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER ome bands click so well that it seems like fate, and that’s the case with Frayle. The Cleveland band got together when guitarist Sean Bilovecky heard his life partner Gwyn Strang, now the band’s vocalist, singing in the bath and decided her voice was wasted if it wasn’t being heard onstage.

Because they are a couple, the two are fortunate to have lots of chances to make music together.

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ranged, and then Sean takes it and makes it sound freaking awesome.�

When the two first started dating, neither Bilovecky nor Strang were actively playing music. Bilovecky was taking a break, but when Strang bought him a copy of Logic Pro, he began using his computer to record again. He then got the chance to encourage Strang as well.

“She would always sing in the bathtub at “Gwyn and I are lucky to have a for-real nighttime, and I would hear it, and our studio in our house, so we write the daughter would hear it, and I was like, music, record it, then Gwyn will do vo- ‘Gwyn, you have to sing,’� he explains. cals. So, we kind of do things at our own “She would always sing Portishead songs, PHOTO BY PAUL VERHAGEN pace on the third floor in our house,� which is how we ended up with the ‘WanBilovecky explains. “It’s a lot of me play- dering Star’ cover on our [2018 debut] EP, ing guitar. The riffs will end up on the where it’s super bright white,� Bilovecky [The White Witch].� says. “We’re always trying to do something record, and then Gwyn will come into the studio and spend some time with the Frayle’s latest record, Dead Inside, re- new and not get stuck in a rut. The song vocals. Then, she’ll call me in, and we’ll leased April 19 via Aqualamb and The ‘Dead Inside’ is still slow and heavy, but it’s get the song together.� more accessible, like a gateway drug for Netherland’s Lay Bare Recordings, builds doom. People categorize us as doom, but on their previous sounds but takes things we get a lot of reviews where people don’t “Sometimes, the lyrics come quickly and a step further. know how to categorize us, which I think easily, and sometimes, it’s a challenge,� is great. We don’t want to just fit into one Strang adds. “Once I figure out the verses, “The last cover for the EP was darker, and we kind of go in and figure out how it’s ar- with this one, we went the opposite way, definition of a genre.�

12 NEW NOISE

Dead Inside’s two songs—the title track and the B-side, “Godless�—are still heavy and powerful, but they flirt with a softer, gentler edge that makes the single stand out. Look for it on 7� clear vinyl, complete with a 100-page art book and a collection of ingredients for various spells curated

by Strang as part of the limited-edition Alchemy Box release. đ&#x;’Ł

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PUNK INFUSED NOISE

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST STEVEN HODSON BY JOHN SILVA n some very rare instances, alcohol can lead to good decisions. For example, if it wasn’t for alcohol, we might not have the U.K. noise punk band USA Nails.

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“When I moved down to London, my friend Matt [Reid] said he had started a new band and they were looking for a singer,� vocalist and guitarist Steven Hodson says. “I drunkenly said I’d give it a go.�

That drunken commitment ended up being a good one, as the band meshed together quickly and, after a couple of lineup changes, found they had something special.

dropped May 10 on HEX Records and is sure to delight those seeking loud, weird, noisy Brit punk. USA Nails are a great representation of the good music coming out of the U.K. right now, which is, perhaps, an example of how much a scene can thrive when people work together to provide quality DIY spaces.

As Hodson explains, “The music scene in the U.K. in general is pretty good at the moment. There’s a load of great DIY venues all over the place.�

Unlike many European bands who sing with American accents, USA Nails make it quite clear that they are from the U.K. with vocal inflections that sound undeniably British. This is very much intentional.Â

it’s important to sing in your own accent.

I’m singing about things that I’ve observed, not character-based stuff, so it makes sense to use my actual voice.�

USA Nails have a knack for recreating their live show energy in the studio. Their recordings feel urgent and raw, making the listener feel as though they are in the club yelling along with the band. This sound comes from their stripped-down recording process, in which they ensure the songs are good but don’t over-polish them.

“We recorded our first record, [2014’s Sonic Moist], in a day. The most recent one, Life Cinema, took four days,â€? Hod“Everyone seemed to be on the same page son explains. “We try to do a couple of [and] write songs quickly without much takes of each song, but if we’re happy agonizing,â€? Hodson says. “Over the years, with the first, we’ll go with it. Writing is we’ve lost Stu [Plant] and Matt and added “Something that’s always grated on me is Tom [Brewins] on drums. We’ve recorded British bands singing with American ac- the same, really; if something isn’t workfour records now, released some EPs, and cents. I just find it strange,â€? Hodson admits. ing, we move on to something else. We’ve been in bands that faff around too much toured the U.K., Europe, and the U.S.â€? “We have two vocalists, and we’re from before. This time, we usually just stick with opposite ends of the country, so I guess the first thing that comes to mind.â€? đ&#x;’Ł The band’s fourth album, Life Cinema, [our] accents vary a lot. Personally, I think

VALE INTERVIEW BY CHRISTOPHER J. HARRINGTON ale’s debut full-length, Burden of Sight, out May 24 via The Flenser, doesn’t paint a pretty picture. “It’s about an end of times,� the band say. “It’s meant to hurt some.�

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It does.

PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

The Oakland black metal quintet deliver perpetual dread, offering very little hope. This is serious stuff. The group attack without compromise, musically or thematically. “We don’t view ourselves as a ‘black metal band in the contemporary universe,’� they note. “We

are definitely not about positivity. We are definitely not confined by a specific genre or its boundaries.�

No, Vale do their own thing completely, driven more by punk and hardcore’s frenetic propulsion than anything black metal. “There’s definitely a punk force driving behind us, no denying that,� they agree.

They may just find themselves playing this twisted form of black metal because of the band members’ recent backgrounds.

While bassist Thaddaeus Perkins is a relative newcomer, drummer Justin Ennis spent time in Mutilation Rites and Tombs

and splits time with Ulthar and Void Omnia; guitarist James Meyer also lends his talents to Atrament and Abstracter; guitarist Daniel Borman formerly fronted Lycus; and vocalist Kate Coysh has sung for hardcore bands such as REIVERS and LeftĂśver Crack. The total morphing of the five musicians is powerful. It’s crisp, without much baggage. They say their piece and get out.  “Vale as an entity has nothing to do with spirituality,â€? the band state. “There wasn’t much of a conversation about a direction. Burden of Sight is a collaborative effort, and each member’s personal perspective, ability, and style played a role in reaching what we’ve released.â€?

These six songs are quick and blunt, yet many drift past the five-minute mark.

It’s a unique mutation of musical dexterity. The album feels fresh and never seems like it’s trying to be something that it can’t be. It’s a nice kick in the ass for contemporary black metal.

Vale formed like their name sounds— like dark water rolling through the tide of an endless night. “Vale came together very naturally,� the band say. “Right off the bat, things began to jell. Once we got going, everything fell into place.

We’ve all got a very similar vision of what we’re trying to accomplish. A lot of times, the total vision can be a big struggle in a band, different people wanting different directions. No one’s aim is ever fully realized when you’re all pulling in different directions.�

Luckily, with Burden of Sight, listeners are getting a full realization. đ&#x;’Ł

14 NEW NOISE

OFF THE CUFF CREATION

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST/VOCALIST BILLY ARVISO BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER e’ve all been there: a friend is self-destructing right before our eyes, something terrible happens to someone close to us, or we see someone hiding behind a screen spouting hateful beliefs on social media. These unfortunate events are all a regular part of life, and sometimes, we just feel like asking people to reap what they sow and own up to their mistakes.

This is what the new Samsara record is all about.

“Everything was just so smooth, and everyone came in knowing exactly what they had to do and just getting it done,�

Arviso says. “It was great and extremely refreshing. Everyone came into the recording process really well-rounded and ready, and if you listen to this record, you can really hear how we’ve changed. We’ve matured a lot, and the sound is different, a lot darker. Everything was super easy this time around, though, and it just felt natural.�

“One of the first things we put out with this new lineup was about a friend of ours who did drugs and fell asleep at the wheel,� guitarist and vocalist Billy Arviso says. “We wrote another song about an ex-girlfriend and another about how people can seem so entitled behind a screen rather than talking to you faceto-face. They will say anything behind the computer screen, and they don’t think about the consequences. We’ve gone through a lot in our lives, so we’re just writing about personal experience.�

Samsara’s plans are to tour as much as possible and to make even more music now that they’ve landed on such a stellar formula.

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Reap What You Sow, out May 24 on Inner-

“I’m hoping to be on the road constantly and just keep playing music, to be honest with you,� Arviso confirms. “I want to keep making as much music as possible and just ride this momentum.� strength Records, is an ode to the concept of consequences, and the Arizona band don’t shy away from darker subject matter. This doesn’t mean that they

aren’t having fun making music, though.

In fact, on this EP, the recording process came together even more smoothly than on their previous releases.

Arviso sees a bright future for Samsara, even if they are exorcising their darkest demons on Reap What You Sow. đ&#x;’Ł

THE YAWPERS INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST NATE COOK BY THOMAS PIZZOLA

hen it came time to prepare a follow-up to their acclaimed 2017 LP, Boy in a Well, Denver-based roots-punkers The Yawpers took a much different approach. While Boy in a Well was meticulously plotted and planned, their new album, Human Question, which dropped April 19 on Bloodshot Records, was more off the cuff. They wrote, rehearsed, and recorded over a succinct two-month period.

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“The primary reason for a shorter incubation period was necessity,� vocalist and guitarist Nate Cook says. “We lost our longtime drummer and needed to audition and rehearse a new member—in our very lucky case, the inimitable Alex Koshak. That left us with a very small window to write and prepare a record. I think having those sorts of hurdles is actually a boon to the creative process, though.�

to electric slowly and inadvertently for the past few years. I never felt particularly tied to the acoustic guitars, nor felt like it was the whole of our identity,� he says. “I wouldn’t say the move toward electrics on this record was intentional or a statement—[it’s] just what we felt like doing.�

In addition, Cook changed up his approach to writing lyrics. “This record was my attempt to take stock of my culpability for my lot in life. I have spent a lot of my career describing either outside forces at work or tangential metaphors,� he says. “I really wanted to give myself a roadmap to responsibility. That all sounds a little up my own ass. I guess I just wanted to write in a way that made me feel like the more fully formed adult I’m becoming.�

Cook is spot on in is his assessment of their creative methods, because Human Question bristles with a live-wire energy that is hard to ignore. Over the course of 10 songs, The Yawpers weave a rich musical tapestry, integrating punk, rockabilly, country, and psychedelic rock, among other influences, into their sound. This is par for the course for the band, though one thing stands out: there is a more pronounced use of electric guitars and straight-up rock songs on this album.Â

All of this was captured perfectly by Reliable Recorders’ Alex Hall at the esteemed Electrical Audio in Chicago, where The Yawpers also slightly changed their approach to recording. “Well, we tend to do most of our records live in one room. This one was just a bit more so, as we had just spent so much time rehearsing it that way and it was the only way we knew how to do so,� Cook says. “Past records, we’d had enough time to get to know material that we could take some liberties with how we recorded it. Circumstances dictated that we keep it natural on this one.�

Cook says it’s just a natural progression. “We have been making the transition

Cook adds that it was a no-brainer to record at this studio. “I mean, Electrical Audio

16 NEW NOISE

has a sterling reputation, and I’ve wanted to record there since I was kid,� he says. “I don’t know a musician who doesn’t want to record there. We also wanted to record in Chicago again. It’s really our second home.�

Human Question marks a new chapter for the trio, who are rounded out by guitarist Jesse Parmet. From its sonics to Cook’s newfound ways to express himself in the lyrics, it’s one corker of a record that shows how much The

PHOTO BY MICHAEL PASSMAN

Yawpers have grown over the course of four albums.

However, Cook has a different way of looking at it, one that cuts to the bone. “We’re getting older. We’re more aware of dying.

We’re more comfortable with it,â€? he says. “Our ambitions skew more honest. We’ve lost so much and so many. I don’t know how that’s changed the music, but I know that we’re all incredibly different people—for better or worse.â€?đ&#x;’Ł

PHOTO BY MELISSA KINSKY

SUMMER PODCASTS

BY JOHN SILVA

Whether you need something to listen to during your next road trip or you just want to pop in your earbuds and lay in a hammock, here are four great podcasts to binge this summer.

“THE HARD TIMES PODCAST” Interview with Hard Times founders Bill Conway and Matt Saincome

“AXE TO GRIND” Interview with cohost Bob Shedd

“ANGRY GRRRL MUSIC OF THE INDIE ROCK PERSUASION”

“BETTER YET”

Interview with host Amanda Starling

Interview with host Tim Crisp

When it comes to podcasts about “I started ‘Angry Grrrl Music…’ because “Hey, all right!” That warm welcome kicks hardcore and the culture surrounding it, I was looking for more music that off every episode of Tim Crisp’s “Better Yet” none compare to “Axe To Grind.” Cohost reflected my own voice, and it was very podcast. Crisp’s gentle demeanor has Bob Shedd explains, “My cohosts, challenging for me to find not only the a way of putting his guests at ease, and Tom [Sheehan] and Patrick [Kindlon], music itself for a long time but also a many fans of underground music look to had been discussing wanting to do a platform where I could learn more “Better Yet” for long-form conversations podcast about hardcore, because they about it,” says Amanda Starling, creator with their favorite artists. “I wanted to thought there wasn’t anyone doing a and host of “Angry Grrrl Music of the get into their own experiences getting into music and eventually getting to a Indie Rock Persuasion.”

The website has gotten huge in the past podcast about hardcore the way we point where they’re choosing to do this would like to, where they were talking few years, but among its staff, it still Starling’s podcast features interviews and have a working life that is centered feels like a big family. “All the editors about it as a living, breathing entity.” with a variety of women and queer folks around it,” he says. and all the people who we have doing in the independent music scene. “It’s just the photos are all homegrown stuff,” In some ways, the individuality cocreator Bill Conway explains. “Our and independence of each host is a space where people are working really “Better Yet” listeners know there’s a team is all people who have bought representative of what they like about hard, and a lot of non-men, queer folks, question Crisp frequently uses to open his interviews. “I always start with into the cult we’re starting to get put hardcore in the first place. “We all and people of color work even harder to be in that space,” she says, adding, “The effort where you grew up, was there music are drawn to some of these real ideals together.” that a lot of people put into starting their in the house growing up, and kind of about hardcore being this thing that’s just getting into everybody’s personal Although The Hard Times is a comedy fiercely independent, a lot of free own careers and the DIY aspect of it really website, the brand’s flagship podcast thought, a lot of focus on expression, appeal to me, because that’s something experience with growing up with music

by Saincome and Conway follows more and that there should be no barrier of that resonates so much, not only in the and finding the first bands that really connected with you,” he explains. Like music but in feminism in general.” of a traditional interview style. “Our expression,” Shedd explains. many of his guests, Crisp grew up in a podcast is a really nice, natural way that Starling’s guests often talk about artists who musical household and discovered his Shedd says one of his goals with “Axe we can A, show people the guys behind love for music at a young age. “My version made an impact on them, and she hopes the site and B, have all these band To Grind” is to help people become to similarly inspire younger listeners. “That’s of my ‘cool older cousin’ or ‘cool older people who we’ve always admired more comfortable talking about music without feeling like they need to be an something that I want to be able to deliver brother’ was my dad,” he shares. come be a part of the website in some expert. “To me, music is art,” he says. with the podcast itself,” she says, “being able way,” Saincome says. to give somebody an opportunity to hear Crisp isn’t alone when he interviews his “There’s so much subjective nature there that having conversations about that is a voice that will one day motivate them guests. His pug, Chloe, is always by his side, The Hard Times will spawn more podcasts either to play music, write about music, take and she even has a couple favorite guests. in the future, some of which will lean into a really healthy part of life.” photos, launch their own labels, and see “I think it’s between Julia Steiner from the style of humor for which the website Ratboys and Ginger Alford [from Good that it’s accessible.” is known, as they are starting a full-on BEST EPISODES FOR Luck],” Crisp says. “When Ginger was here, podcast network.

NEW LISTENERS: Chloe wouldn’t leave her alone.”

“I thought I’d get beat up,” The Hard Times cocreator Matt Saincome laughs, discussing his expectations when starting the site, but the satirical news outlet has since become a cultural phenomenon within punk, metal, and other music subcultures.

BEST EPISODES FOR NEW LISTENERS:

Episode 8, featuring Lars Frederiksen Episode 7, featuring Brian Fallon

Episode 20, “What’s Next for Hardcore?”

Episode 33, “Listening Party With Paul Blart” Episode 58, “Have Heart Reunion”

BEST EPISODES FOR NEW LISTENERS:

Episode 5, “I Can Make a Difference, With Slingshot Dakota” Episode 18, “The Greatest Emotional Release I’ve Ever Had, with Gutless” Episode 61, “Uplifting Each Other, With To The Front”

BEST EPISODES FOR NEW LISTENERS:

Episode 123, featuring Sarah Tudzin of Illuminati Hotties Episode 118, featuring Steve Hartlett of Stove and Ovlov

NEW NOISE 17

EXPLORATORY SOUNDSCAPES

DROWSE

PHOTO BY ZHONGSHENG GU

INTERVIEW WITH KYLE BATES BY LUCY BRADY

ince departing from his former band SLOTHS in 2016, Kyle Bates’ career has seen a series of explorations into different areas of shoegaze, drone, and electronic music, contributing to the legacy of artists like The Microphones, Mount Eerie, Grouper, and Unwound.

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Bates’ previous album as drowse, Cold Air, utilized a wall of noise to replicate the experience of taking Klonopin, and Light Mirror takes a similarly experimental bent. The result is at once expansive and intimate, expressing its primary themes of isolation, openness, and the self’s relationship to the landscape and the body through a dense layering of melody and found sounds that resonate on both a cognitive and a physical level.

“This part of the country spawns a lot of gloomy, sad, and grey-sounding music,�

Bates reflects on the Pacific Northwest and his home of Portland, Oregon. “I’ve been using a lot of sounds that I’ve recorded on my field recorder to maybe Now recording under the name drowse, ground the listener in a sense of place and to try to reflect this internal state in this his latest album, Light Mirror—out June 7 very physical, tactile, sensory way,â€? Bates via The Flenser—picks up from the themes explains. “My body is something that causof mental illness and the conditions of es me a lot of anxiety for a lot of different heightened or depressed emotional states reasons, but also, just the idea of waking present on 2018’s Cold Air, turning to wider up at night, feeling anxiety, and feeling questions of creation and the relationship your heartbeat or feeling your physical between the artist and the world. presence, at least for me, it reminds me of death or makes me think of these big “As artists, we kind of constantly try to seek existential questions.â€? this place where we’re just in our own head, between us and the world that we’re Created as part of Iceland’s NES Artist making,â€? Bates says. “People think of this as a creative flow and this positive thing, Residency, Light Mirror’s composition alternated between prewritten songs and but for me, I’m very consistently in my own tracks originating entirely with digital and head. [‌] I feel like I’m living internally analog processing of earlier recordings. It more often than not, and so, I question if acts as a biography comprised of samples that creative process is actually healthy.â€?

and field recordings, fragments from the production of earlier works including Cold Air and Bates’ NES-affiliated Fog Storm project from 2018, and voices from Bates’ own audio library.

Running through drowse’s work are also a range of literary and cinematic influences, including the poet Louise GlĂźck—whose poem “The Untrustworthy Speakerâ€? is invoked in Light Mirror—and the director Andrei Tarkovsky. Lines and images from Tarkovsky’s films “Stalkerâ€? from 1979 and “Andrei Rublevâ€? from 1969 can be

found encoded into the lyrics, but more central to the album, Bates cites, is the wider theme of sacrifice that marks both Tarkovsky’s life and work. “I have a strange process for creating,�

Bates explains. “I think if I didn’t record myself, the songs would not be the same at all. I couldn’t really imagine writing these in a studio, because so much of the process is me messing around with the sessions on the computer and trying to build a world that way.â€?đ&#x;’Ł

EMPLOYED TO SERVE INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST JUSTINE JONES BY CALEB R NEWTON PHOTO BY ANDY FORD

mployed To Serve blast into fascinating fresh heaviness on their new album, Eternal Forward Motion, out May 10 via Spinefarm Records.

Their intense music itself signifies and communicates the record’s thematic push

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18 NEW NOISE

Vocalist Justine Jones explains that the band intentionally zeroed in on this potential and are interested in moving forward just like their music does. “It’s a creative release that helps us process aspects of our life,� she says of their writing process. “We get to grow as people through working and learning together. We enjoy coming back to writing to see how far we can push ourselves and the boundaries of the music we make.�

Musically, Employed To Serve definitely evolved over the course of their first two albums, 2015’s vicious Greyer Than You Remember and 2017’s expansive The Warmth of a Dying Sun, both of which emerged via the U.K.’s Holy Roar Records. Alongside Jones, their lineup includes guitarists Sammy Urwin and Richard Jacobs, drummer Robbie Back, and bassist Brett Houslop. Eternal Forward Motion features an Employed To Serve who are focused on the personal experience of sonic intensity, invigorated and blasting through boundaries in all directions.

Toward that end, while relentlessly brutal at times, Employed To Serve are far from one-note, trying to provide an experience that envelops listeners “I think it’s more evolved. It still sounds and gets them involved in the inescap- like us for sure, but I feel that it shows us growing as musicians and ones who ably heavy core. The band offer some are fully comfortable with what we intriguing, almost ethereal moments want to sound like,â€? Jones explains of on Eternal Forward Motion that feel like the instant atop a waterfall before cas- the new album. “We write music that we enjoy. Otherwise, what’s the point? cading down over the edge, and their We’ll always be Employed To Serve, and heaviness itself breaks boundaries in we will continue to write songs that are sonically sprawling but decidedly direct better than our last and incredibly fun forms. to play live!â€? “Heaviness can only be fully realized Jones insists that these shifts are fitting when used in the contexts of lighter bits and exactly what the band are going for to add more dynamics, so we carefully and hopes listeners can experience this made sure that songs had peaks and growth along with them. As she puts it, troughs to make certain parts of songs of relentless progress. The U.K. band prove stand out more and appear heavier,â€? “The ultimate takeaway from this album so physical on their new release that it’s is to remain positive, because time aldifficult not to get swept away in their drive, Jones says. “There’s no right or wrong ways moves one from any bad situation whether sitting alone at home with the al- way in doing this, but we look to bands or moment in time, and there’s always such as Deftones and Gojira and how bum or getting pummeled by the music in time to improve.â€?.đ&#x;’Ł they structure songs.â€? a live setting.

DIS 187 J. Robbins - ‘Un-becoming’ LP / CD DIS 10 8 Autoclave - re-issue + 4 songs LP

dischord.com

PHOTO BY CHAD STEEVES

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST TJ BONNETTE AND GUITARIST/VOCALIST CODY BONNETTE

BY SEAN GONZALEZ

T

he world is continuing to change due to rapidly increasing advances in technology. Day to day, the way humans communicate is questioned for its authenticity, as the spirits and individuality of people devolve into two realities: the anxiety-driven real-life embodiment and the confident hiding behind the barrier of the web wall.

When Nashville’s As Cities Burn last made an album, these dual deceivers were not as present. “You can definitely see that the business side of things has shifted to more of a digital world,� vocalist TJ Bonnette comments about the state of the music world now compared to when the band went on hiatus in 2009. “Social media is a big part of how successful a band will be today. You really have to find a way to stay on top of people’s minds or you will get lost.�

Luckily, As Cities Burn have a

20 NEW NOISE

catalog that has stayed on the and guitars spiral into the defeated scene’s mind since their first three tone of the vocals, creating a albums were released. Now, the dissonant clash that echoes the community has a new record to noise of the everyday world. get lost in with Scream Through the Walls, which opens itself to the “Hollowed Out� takes shape as an world on June 7 via Equal Vision incredible piece of art. “I love the Records. “Scream Through the Walls music, vocal melodies, and lyrical means to communicate through intensity [and] meaning,� Cody barriers built up inside ourselves reflects. “It’s the best representation and/or between ourselves and of the core theme of the record.�

God or others,� guitarist and The lyrics and melodies invoke vocalist Cody Bonnette states. This the destruction that humans are thematic embrace is the eye of able to create. The song is also the storm of all the daily chaos, of where the title of the album comes tip-toeing along the line between from, via the lyrics, “If you find you reality and the digitally-produced. always do gravitate to isolation / Move into this empty room next to Musically, Scream Through the mine / And we’ll scream through Walls features piercing shrills and the walls.� urgent lyrics that force listeners to think. The emotional brevity “Chains� paints a devastating of each line is passionately picture of humanity’s path, posing spewed into the microphone. The imagery of “the blind leading third track, “2020 AD,� has both the blind leading the blind.� The Bonnette brothers providing their penultimate song on the album, vocal instruments to the song’s “Venture,� is a constant build of progressive structure. The drums energy that bursts into the closer,

“Die Contrary,� which runs through thoughtful progressions and spastic guitar-bending licks.

Scream Through the Walls is another solid pin on the map of As Cities Burn’s incredible history. The thought-provoking, emotionally cathartic, and musically intuitive release proves the band have a knack for consistently powerful songwriting, even after all these years.đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

A

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST JOHAN HEGG BY JAMES ALVAREZ

mon Amarth have carved out a mighty kingdom for themselves in the chaotic metal realm. After well over two decades and 10 albums of melodic death metal mastery, the Swedish band have grown from the coolest Tolkien-influenced, Viking metal titans in the underground into one of the biggest and most respected metal bands on the planet, period. Their 11th and brand-spanking-new studio album, Berserker, released May 3 on Metal Blade Records, not only reaffirms the band’s current MVP status, it cements these OG Asgardian heroes as straight-up living legends.

Amon Amarth, like the Slayers and the AC/DCs that came before them, have a signature, almost trademark sound. The band have never strayed far from their pummeling but infectious Swedish death metal roots, so it’s not surprising that, with Berserker, they don’t reinvent the wheel. Instead, they’ve somehow managed to perfect it. “[Guitarists] Johan SĂśderberg and Olavi Mikkonen love classic stuff

22 NEW NOISE

like Iron Maiden, Metallica, and the lyrics. I had a whole story Judas Priest,� vocalist, frontman, already written, and we put and Viking spokesperson Johan music over the top of it,� Hegg Hegg explains fondly. “Well, we all recalls. “On this album, we wrote love [those bands], but those guys music first and listened to the wanted to do more harmonies and songs, and then I wrote the lyrics. more guitar work on this album For each song, I had an idea and were pulling a lot of creative and worked on the lyrics to flow dynamics from those icons.� together over the music to tell a story on Berserker.�

The opening notes of the first track, “Fafner’s Gold,� illustrate And what a goddamn story it is!

Hegg’s point perfectly. Gorgeous Berserker spins 12 more epic tales acoustic guitars give way to of Norse mythos and history, set stadium-rattling, electric- to some of the most fist-pumping, shred harmonies. Think of the headbanging music the gods could mechanized twin-guitar attack ever conjure. There are songs Maiden and Priest pioneered but about Thor, like “Crack the Skyâ€?; on steroids. True, aping NWOBHM songs about his aforementioned sensibilities has kind of always hammer, like “MjĂślner, Hammer been melodic death metal in of Thor,â€? obviously; songs about a nutshell, but it’s never been Viking battle tactics, like “Shield as epic and seamless as it is on Wallâ€?; and songs about ancient Berserker. There are moments in Norse warriors, like “Ironside,â€? and which it feels like Iron Maiden’s they all friggin’ rule. iconic mascot, Eddie, himself is going to jump out of the speakers Naturally, epic tunes like these and start waving MjĂślnir around require epic music videos. Luckily, instead of a Union Jack.

Amon Amarth have blessed the realm with a series of time“Our last album, [2016’s] traveling, dimension-hopping, Jomsviking, was a concept album demon-zombie-mosh-pit-filled where we had to write music for videos that are currently racking

up millions—yes, millions—of views on YouTube. “We all had a few ideas for what our next music videos should entail,�

Hegg shares. “This concept was brought together by the director of the videos, Roboshobo [aka Robert Schober]. We wanted everyone to walk away from the music videos learning something about history, as a few of us are actual descendants from Vikings, but you also don’t have to take everything too seriously. The Battle of Stamford Bridge was a real battle, and we sing about it on our new album. We thought this could be a cool way to connect our past and present through an interdimensional portal as seen in the videos.�

Amon Amarth are at their absolute best in 2019, enjoying a massive victory lap around the rainbow bridge. Fans of the highest-quality, utterly catchiest heavy metal tunes will definitely want to give Berserker a spin—and dive into Amon Amarth’s interdimensional YouTube rabbit hole while they’re at it. For Asgard! đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

A DIFFERENT SHADE OF BLUE NEW FULL LENGTH OUT AUGUST 23, 2019

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST GREG GRAFFIN AND GUITARIST BRET T GUREWITZ BY NICHOLAS SENIOR

PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

AMERICA, LET’S TRY AGAIN. 24 NEW NOISE

I

t’s Christmas in May, because the kings of intellectual punk are back with their 17th gift basket of reason and reality. In fact, Age of Unreason, released May 3 via Epitaph Records, might just be Bad Religion’s most accomplished, assured, and appropriately-timed release yet.

The Southern California icons’ career is a wonderful showcase for how academia and art can coexist, and that union is what has made the band’s work so ingenious over the last four decades. Punk bands often

face the frustration of being so angry to Age of Unreason, the culmination that they don’t know how to say of the band’s excellence. It is very what they mean or offer a solution, much a milestone album and, remaining solely focused on the heart arguably, the best Bad Religion and why it aches. This approach have ever sounded. Regardless, frequently produces beautiful results, vocalist and noted academic Greg but Bad Religion do a fantastic job Graffin humbly acknowledges the of stepping back, utilizing the brain challenges inherent in being part to explain what the heart is feeling, of such a longstanding institution. and presenting real suggestions for moving forward. Their challenge, “A lot of times, bands get so long especially approaching 40 years as in their history that they become a band, is to always stay fresh. a caricature of themselves, and we’ve always been conscious of These decades of experiments, that,” he says. “We didn’t want to do experience, and success have led that. Let’s be fair, it’s been five years

[since the last album, True North], and that’s a long time for us. I think [guitarist] Brett [Gurewitz] was in the same place as I was, where we weren’t sure we had it in us.”

There’s an abundant love of craft on Age of Unreason, even at the outset. It starts with “Chaos From Within,” a two-minute jam that might be one of the most quintessential Bad Religion songs ever. Though the lyrics are horrifying, one can’t help but smile at its feral energy. It’s a very quick reminder of the band’s vitality.

Despite the time off, Graffin states that creative zeal was not lacking.

our desire to share these ideas in a new package. Certain qualities that Bad Religion has retained all along are now seemingly more relevant. That makes you more motivated to get the word out. As opposed to being something very simple, it’s something very rich and contextual with our writing and creative heritage.”

Gurewitz, too, is an endless fount of knowledge, and the fact that Bad Religion were blessed—though, surely, they would use a different word—with two keen intellects as bandleaders has contributed to their longevity. He concurs that “Part of it is just the desire to take now was the time to search for themes that are part of the Bad meaning and truth in an age of Religion heritage: trying to awaken “alternative facts.” people from all walks of life to the potential dangers of all the things “Let’s come together through that are going on right now,” he says. converging on the truth,” Gurewitz “The funny thing is we’ve always had asserts. “The notion is that the first these warnings in our music, and step is to acknowledge that there’s now, [they] are being played out such a thing as truth, and then, if every day. Those warnings were we do that, we can use our values kind of the philosophical issues that to converge upon that and come conflicted with conventional religion. together. That’s part of what’s Things like ‘Don’t believe something been the big problem with society, just because it was written.’ that the current president is trying to undermine the very notion of That’s the traditional anti-religious truth. He’s trying to wear out our philosophy about questioning faculty of critical judgement so authority. It fits in with punk. It fits in that people will just dismay over with Bad Religion.” being unable to uncover the truth and then give up pursuing it. When “Now, fast forward to the current that happens, democracy is dead, day,” Graffin continues, “and because you have to all agree that you’re told you should believe this the fact is a fact to have rational because it’s on the president’s discourse about anything before Twitter account or you should you can have a course of action. believe that because it’s been That’s why the title of the album shared on social media. That is right has to do with reason. Really, a lot in keeping with what Bad Religion of our inspiration had to do with has always railed against. That’s the Enlightenment thinkers, who great motivation. It reaffirms that provided a framework for society we were on the right side of history, based on freedom, equality, and so to speak. It’s a refortification of humanism.”

PHOTO BY ALICE BAXLEY

PHOTO BY JAMES ALVAREZ

PHOTOGRAPHY BY PAT GILRANE

“REMINISCING ABOUT A GOLDEN AGE GONE BY DOES NOTHING BUT PROMOTE A STATIC SOCIETY. WE’RE NEVER GOING BACK.” NEW NOISE

25

All this rigorous thought and a leader; it’s about the best way analysis is much more difficult than to correct our worst decisions, believing everything the Cheeto- because we’re never going to be In-Chief says, but it’s completely great at choosing the very best worth it. person, and we’re never going to be clairvoyant and make policies “Liberalism is challenging,� Gurewitz that work every time. So, we’ve got elaborates, “and it’s messy. It’s not to be able to change the leader perfect. Really, what it comes down nonviolently, and we’ve got to to for me, what a great democracy update our policies incrementally.� must be, it can never be dependent on a charismatic personality “I know that sounds terribly who is going to be the savior of moderate coming from a punk everybody. It’s not about choosing rock firebrand, whatever, but it is the best leader. What it’s about revolutionary,� Gurewitz laughs. is designing the best institutions “The ideas of John Locke and so you can tinker with policy and [David] Hume and these great do error correction. That’s the Enlightenment thinkers, they scientific worldview. Gradualism were revolutionary. As a result of is how things progress. Whether it’s them, we have all of the progress biological evolution, democracy, or that we see in the world. This songwriting, the result is the same.� whole fucking MAGA concept of looking backwards to a golden “A democracy is only as good as its era when things were better, it’s institutions,� he adds. “That’s what’s just appealing to people’s base being tested right now as Trump instincts, their fears and their tries to destroy them. It’s very scary. racism, nationalism, their euphoric At the end of the day, democracy recall. In a word, it’s bullshit. isn’t about the best way to choose Reminiscing about a golden age

gone by does nothing but promote “I don’t want [people] to think we a static society. We’re never going believe that everything sucks. The back. Problems are inevitable, but truth is there’s a hopefulness problems are solvable. I think we’ve that Bad Religion has always got to solve them with science and approached these issues with, and critical rationalism, being the best I believe philosophy in general problem-solvers we can possibly shouldn’t lead you to gloom be. I’m an optimist. I believe we and doom. Yes, it’s true we’re can do it.� all going to die,� he laughs, “and eventually, the planet will become All of these problems and an uninhabitable wasteland. The solutions—the scientific method, hopefulness comes through the individual liberty, and justice for humanistic struggle to understand all—ain’t exactly simple subjects to the truth and to share and make into catchy tunes. That’s why participate socially in obtaining Age of Unreason is such a success. the truth. That’s what Bad Religion It may be Bad Religion’s purest has always stood for and where the statement of intent, with their most hopefulness arises. It’s not nihilism; engrossing songs to date. Few punk it’s science, enlightenment, the acts come with the recommended engagement with other human pairing of a dictionary, but beings, hopefully to arrive at education and rational thought similar conclusions, which is the are things America needs right now. basis of truth.�

Still, the hope this album imbues in the listener is its most important The truth is, Bad Religion’s light has and lasting impression. never burned as brightly as it does Graffin admits that his aim was on Age of Unreason.đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł to inspire hope and unity, not sow further division, hate, and despair.

PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

26 NEW NOISE

new self-titled album - out now

Defeaterhc.com @Defeaterhc ART BY SARAH SCHMIDT

BAD RELIGION HAVE BEEN PUMPING OUT JAMS PACKED WITH SHREWD POLITICAL INSIGHT AND SCATHING SOCIAL CRITIQUE FOR NEARLY 40 YEARS. IF YOU’RE SEARCHING FOR EVEN MORE SOCIOPOLITICALLY CONSCIOUS BANDS WHO CHALLENGE THE STATUS QUO, LOOK NO FURTHER!

TACOCAT PHOTO BY RICARDO ADAME

PETROL GIRLS

LOKELLA

PHOTO BY MARTYNA WISNIEWSKA

PHOTO BY RYAN MILLER OF MILLERTYME DESIGN

INTERVIEW WITH BASSIST BREE MCKENNA BY J POET “We started out playing simple two-chord punk songs at house parties,� Tacocat bassist Bree McKenna says. “We all learned to play by being onstage, but our goals have evolved over the past 11 years. You can hear every rung of the ladder that we’ve climbed if you listen to us from album to album.�

This Mess Is a Place, the Seattle band’s latest effort, came out on Sub Pop Records on May 3. It’s their fourth outing and features 10 new tunes inspired by the U.S.’s unsettling social climate. “The Trump era weighs heavily on the record and our collective mood,� McKenna continues. “We’re a very liberal, feminist band, so I don’t see how you can feel super joyful about what’s going on right now.

[Lead vocalist] Emily [Nokes] writes most of the words, and her lyrics are super beautiful. They’re based on the things we talk about as a band in the van while we’re on tour. She has the ability to come up with an amalgamation of everyone’s thoughts and feelings, so the songs represent us all.� “This album is a little more serious about things, but that’s our current disposition,� she adds. “We use a lot of satire to make sense of everything, so we’re a little more serious this time. Our sarcasm is subtler, but we’re passionate about the songwriting we do together. The general feeling of the album is a reflection on everything going on in the daily news cycle of the world we’re living in right now, but we still think it’s a fun record.�

Feminism seems to be on the rise, particularly after the 2018 midterm elections. Have the members of Tacocat seen this reflected in their audience? “Yes, our community has grown,â€? McKenna confirms. “We get a lot of women at our shows, for sure, but we have a wide variety of people and ages. There’s been a big rise in bands making amazing music, with members who are people of color, feminist, and queer. The presence of white men has been with us for so long, it’s refreshing to finally have other voices being heard.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

28 NEW NOISE

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST REN ALDRIDGE

BY JOHN SILVA

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/PIANIST JENNIFER BARTLETT

BY SEAN GONZALEZ

For European post-hardcore band Petrol Girls, feminism “We were exploring our dynamics musically and personalis more than just the subject matter of their songs. Vocalist ly,� Jennifer Bartlett, vocalist and pianist of Grand Rapids, Ren Aldridge wrote in an introduction to their new album, Michigan, quartet LOKELLA, reveals about the writing Cut & Stitch, out May 24 on Hassle Records, that “feminism process for their new record. The five-track EP, Censory has become more of an overall approach than an obvious Overload, out May 17, is patient with its discovery. The topic.� This comes through in the band’s music, as activism magnitude of sounds involved in the listening cycle are carefully detailed, ever-expanding, and emotionally full. and gender equality are at the forefront of their lyrics.

Aldridge sees art as a powerful method for fighting systemic The third track, “Good Girls, Like You,� bursts from the oppression and bringing about real change. “Art, and es- starting gate with grounded, driven riffs but drifts into the pecially music, is hugely emotional,� she explains. “Making it elegant breeze of the atmosphere with plenty of breath. and listening to [or] encountering it has so much to do with “There is a weird chemistry with the song,� Bartlett explains. empathy, and I think empathy is something that’s often hugely “It’s flowery, it’s light, but it’s very percussive. I ended up lacking in politics. I also think art and music can reframe, or loving the message so much.� The flowery nature of the simply frame, our experiences in ways that can make things song is led by Josh Poel’s drumming, which moves through that seem everyday seem surreal, tragic, or monumental. different progressions with power and instinct.

Being able to see things differently is a vital part of the process of change. Many oppressive structures are maintained “Wicked,â€? the second and most seductive track on the through culture. Nation-states and the gender binary are both record—thanks to the push and pull from guitarist Chris maintained through things like TV shows and music, so it makes Bursley and Bartlett’s partner, bassist Evan Bartlett—pulssense that culture, which includes music and art, is territory in es with steady jazz tones. Initially, when Evan asked about the song’s meaning, Bartlett froze up. “The song is about, which to fight these kinds of concepts at their root.â€? all of my life, having this physical attraction to women Aldridge has some hesitations about the concept of self- separately from men,â€? she says. “I never really opened up care, since it can sometimes be weaponized against mar- about that in my life, nor have I ever dated any women, ginalized people, but she feels it’s important for activists because I have never had the guts to do that.â€? Beneath to be able to lick their wounds. “Boundaries has been a the song’s sexy dancehall feel, it took strength for Bartlett huge learning curve for me,â€? she shares, “understanding to write these lyrics. “We don’t always talk about it, bethat I don’t have to be available to everyone all of the cause it’s not a topic of conversation,â€? she says, “but it is time and that if I take some time out to be offline and what the song is about. It still feels like I have this secret, in nature, then I can come back to the shit I care about even if it’s not a secret.â€? with the energy that requires. I think women are socialized to take care of everyone else’s needs before their own, and Bartlett’s lyrics across Censory Overload reveal the perit shouldn’t be underestimated how exhausting this can be.â€? sonal conflict that follows people as they navigate their courses, but the closing track, “Messiah Complex,â€? is With their members spread all over Europe, it can be chal- about the abuse of power. “Truthfully, when I wrote this, lenging for Petrol Girls to write new music together. Aldridge I was thinking about our asshole of a president. When says this album was particularly difficult, but the geographical everybody is going through this, it is still affecting us distance didn’t stop the band from making a powerful piece of whether we like it or not,â€? she comments. “If we weren’t art. Cut & Stitch is a creative, thoughtful album that wrestles with to write about things directly or indirectly affecting us, what else should we write about?â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł relevant issues through hard-hitting, melodic music. đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

PHOTO BY JEREMY SANCHEZ

AMYGDALA San Antonio, Texas

Our Voices Will Soar Forever | May 3 | Prosthetic Records RIYL: Biology 101. “The Thing.� Community Care.

PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

CHARGER Oakland, California

Charger | May 10 | Pirates Press Records RIYL: The Resistance. Leather rebels. Jack Daniels.

Named after the almond-shaped part of the brain responsi- Charger are proof that fighting the good fight doesn’t have ble for memory and emotional response, Amygdala’s sound to be so damn dour. With an incredible pedigree—including is also influenced by another question you got wrong on your time spent in Rancid, Operation Ivy, and Jello Biafra’s Guanhigh school biology test: the amoeba. Our Voices Will Soar tanamo School Of Medicine—the trio recall that magical era Forever is an arresting, vehement first statement, one full of of the ’70s when punk and metal started influencing each musical shapeshifting. This single-cell organism is hardcore other. Judas Priest, Dio, and especially MotĂśrhead are obvipunk at heart, but elements of black metal, sludge, crust, and ous influences, but this maniacally entertaining record needs death envelope the listener over the course of the album’s to be experienced—preferably in a live setting—rather than too-short runtime. This sonic ferociousness is paired with stun- read about. It’s the sound of a 15-person barfight gone senning emotional fervor. Vocalist Bianca QuiĂąones Cruz Benitez tient: brash, powerful, and packed with more energy than exhas a soaring voice, and it’s put to wonderfully dexterous use pected. The songs are serious, riotous, and righteously angry, throughout, making the evocative and agonizing lyrics come making the EP feel like the sonic equivalent of punching a Nazi. alive. “The theme behind writing this record was trauma and “Resistance to the rise of fascism, racism, xenophobia, and healing, the different kinds of trauma marginalized folks en- gentrification [as well as] anger at the way our government dure, and the nonlinear journey we embark to heal ourselves,â€? is trying to reverse the progress that we have made in regard Benitez says. This is wonderfully reflected in the nonlinearity of to the rights of marginalized people is in these songs,â€? guitarist the music. “Healing ourselves,â€? they continue, “means healing Andrew McGee says. “These are themes we’ll always return to a community. The motif behind this record is to end the stigma as long as they are prevalent in our culture.â€? He laughs, “We on mental health in Latinx [and] POC communities and end also have fun songs about barfights and shit, but ya gotta the generational violence behind the trauma.â€?đ&#x;’Ł –Nick Senior come see us live for those.â€? đ&#x;’Ł –Nick Senior

PHOTO BY ADELE C. WINN

HASH REDACTOR Memphis, TN

Drecksound | April 26 | Goner Records RIYL: Schadenfreude. “Monty Python.� Playful spite.

Social critique is rarely this fucking hilarious. Hash Redactor embrace the art of sarcasm, self-loathing, and schadenfreude with the ironically named Drecksound. The band play a familiar yet fresh style of art punk that takes more than a few cues from post-punk, and their lyrics take a perverse yet playful view of humanity’s rake-stepping self-destructive side. This plays masterfully with their more modern view of tired post-punk tropes. Sure, they’re influenced by The Fall and Swell Maps, but Hash Redactor have a charm all their own. Vocalist and guitarist Alec McIntyre’s charisma oozes from the speakers, which only elevates the entertainment value. “I enjoy laughing at other people’s—particularly powerful people’s—misfortune about as much as my own,â€? he notes. “My bandmates are much more positive, well-adjusted people than I am generally, so if they rub off on me at all, I’m sure the next record is bound to be all kittens and roses.â€? While such positivity might feel out of place, surely Hash Redactor will react accordingly. In the meantime, Drecksound is a post-punk party for those willing to laugh through the frustration. đ&#x;’Ł –Nick Senior

PHOTO BY TYLER BERTRAM

FLORIDA MAN Charleston, SC

Tropical Depression | May 3 | Spartan Records RIYL: Bizarre outbursts. Surprise alligators. Shit going down at the Walmart.

It’s some juicy irony that the band named after the tragicomic “Florida Man� meme reside in Charleston. However, just like there’s often unfortunate sadness hidden behind the wealth of hilariously weird shit that happens in the Sunshine State, Florida Man offer depth well beyond one’s initial expectations. Their sound is somehow both complex and immediately catchy, like if Botch tried to write a ’90s noise rock record, except that only tells part of the story—much like Floridian headlines. Tropical Depression reveals a surprising thematic gravity as well. Beyond the riffs, the shouting, and the bursts of buoyant energy lie a group railing against injustice, both external and internal. “Some of the lyrics follow loose fictional narratives and some are more real-life-based,� vocalist Jim O’Connor notes, “but even the made-up stuff is influenced by the stresses of working a blue-collar service industry job, especially in a tourist town like Charleston, so that found its way onto the album a lot. The stress, the classism, the griminess, the self-medicating, the endless repetition, it’s all in there, and we’ve all seen it make people snap.� Given their choice of name, if Florida Man do snap, it will make quite the headline.

Let’s hope this delightful batch of noise is enough to keep the madness at bay. đ&#x;’Ł –Nick Senior

HELP Portland, Oregon

Help | May 28 | Self-Released RIYL: Community service. Forward-looking nostalgia.

Bad Beatles references.

Help! I need somebody. Help! Not just anybody. What we all need are more bands like Help. There’s a delightful nostalgia present on their debut EP, but it’s a rare healthy form of reminiscence that plays with adoration of grungy noise rock acts of yesteryear and tugs at the heartstrings with memories of one’s first punk show. It doesn’t hurt that Help is also visceral and noisy, feverish and fervent. References to METZ are inevitable, but there’s somehow more aggression and subtle melody at work that elevate Help into their own class.

It also helps that the band’s passion isn’t limited to a shared destruction of their instruments and vocal cords; Help aim to unite through art and push for better, more collaborative and creative communities. “The injustices happening on a daily basis are out of control, or so it seems,â€? vocalist and guitarist Ryan Neighbors elaborates. “I want the lyrics to be able to strike a chord with people. If people in our communities help each other out and strive to do better, it can go a long way. Art can do that too. Even if it just makes the listener remember that things are pretty fucked up right now, it keeps a passion alive.â€? đ&#x;’Ł –Nick Senior

MODEL ZERO Memphis, TN

Model Zero | June 28 | Slovenly Recordings & Black Gladiator RIYL: The end of ze world. Le tired. Doomsday dance parties.

What’s the last thing you want to hear at the end of the world?

Model Zero’s self-proclaimed “crack psych� feels like the perfect post-apocalyptic party music: primal, punchy, and designed to get those hips on the dancefloor. The band’s style is a mix of garage rock, post-punk, and vintage electronics—basically, weird tunes getting as freaky as possible.

Maybe it’s the paranoia and existential angst that build with each passing week, but Model Zero feel like the perfect salve for the lack of sanity. All this is aided by the fact that the songs are more contagious than a viral pandemic and more lyrically savvy than this bonkers experiment has any right to be. Bassist, “Drum Buddy,â€? and synth player Keith Cooper notes, “The creative process for this group began in the winter of 2016, around the same time as the election of the 45th President of the United States. It’s no coincidence that the cold winds of change on the world stage could be felt blowing on the streets of Memphis and inside our bewitched, booze-addled brains. Additionally, there was just a lot of creative buildup with no output that came spewing forth. All of that combined is really what’s responsible for the frenetic energy and madness in the songs.â€? Long live this creative and delightful insanity! đ&#x;’Ł –Nick Senior

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D ON AN WILLDSUGUAY .

P X E T ER AIL BY ROBER ODUC H R E P T A H WIT DAVON F VIEW OR AR T INTEIR C E D R

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S e m lm. continu as a film ing a fi r myself ut mak ant to o fo w b r u a e o y e re o m e ca , ‘Hey, d st in de a nic nd said have tru I’ve ma to me a ? I don’t p t to d u n n a e a w b m I and He ca bout the l ow you, movie a e a coo b but I kn , it ld u o make a o d c to there. It people t f u o o t s lo u t a ou story ab get the PHOTO BY RICKY_MALPAS

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30 NEW NOISE

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOE CALIXTO

32 NEW NOISE

LOVE

VERSUS

FEAR INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST JEREMY STITH

BY ANGELA KINZIE

NEW NOISE

33

gether re swollen to s of things we adds. ith St ,� all those kind ng hi yt writing ever when we were ck is d opening tra first single an The album’s Berlin.� “Angels Over arked record was sp stuff on the ie called ov “A lot of the m ] rs de 7 Wim Wen ecially by this [198 shares, “esp sire,’� Stith De of gels who an e ‘Wings es th t s a story abou is that song. It’ One of them ound Berlin. ar g in to er s nt nd are wa entity and wa g a spiritual , but tired of bein mortal human a g in be at k ac mes wh co a take d the bad that ment is is. ns the good an iled Entertain ar ea fe Fa m us 3, at rs th ay ve M at’s what love rding to Run Released on th co k . d ac in ys th an d, sa I fe an it. , ith with ore LP er and be sa t Jeremy St eling Fury’s sophom y in your corn ,� Fury vocalis u ronts Stith’s fe yo sta nf n or co ca it e u s, nc Yo rd “I don’t know sta co di e For Cover Re A.� communicat hing from a yt DN t. to er y no m le ev in or ab at st rt look “It’s ju ever be Failed her you get hu that he’ll “n right in, whet d feeling, a the an ve m t di fro n gh e ca ou ris th ry every single ty quartet Fu d Inside continues.

Orange Coun t.� portant,� he rm Choice an ifo Entertainmen Un as ts ing [that] is im hern do ut k and not in So le th of ab same stree “I n er the traditio en and vuln ne through a op on go g e ng in sly yi I’v be , rr ou putting is ps ca ne e is hi Out, simulta ing like “Lov with relations side of things rdcore while uth “Even erything seem and the fear , yo es and ev t id nc of as ra s fe af ar Co California ha er ye st gg tough couple energy of Ea ns, reflecting doors and bi ai e pl th ur ex yo . on LD he g on rit ,� in s BO cu y that lock build ng down Today and ’t said me type of se it was crashi like Youth Of grab on to so felt like I hadn to ys g nd of an in wa ki l al try crew bands al “I s in on the quote. begin with. It’ time to certa to e gh er ou th en ’t ve sn wa dn’t gi eaks. inment in enough or di nate as he sp Failed Enterta illusion.�

Stith is passio s wa my life. It’s a it of e, m rts r pa fo t to the ve the way e of things, bu lo m I he . t ic sc ou d us e] m an this ideology the gr I love the d gotten [mor so applies gig, I in the al ha I t e liv en ith sh St es a wi “Subjectively, I pr at ve the energy the opposite. d confusion o I didn’t gi ve an lo wh d ia I e , an lif ob songs ds y e e ph m un lin th no in xe it so t on the ose people also informed ’s laying it ou yself, I guess.â€? ich he says says. to th m wh he , en S. e,â€? ev U. love people bl — ta to the enough time rtainment. ything out on ey can put on Failed Ente putting ever ing you I like that th sh d. wi di e th ey d m th in an “I like what at people fro d the anger ly, ok at the world in power tre “The guilt an ings different d how they lo le th ly an e op do es ab es pe d lv th ob e an se in pr se e them “To ck tim , that’s of hidden could turn ba as less than etic way, kind mits. ad he ,â€? other places more of a po m fro r e most ange e songs.â€? where I get th very abrasiv ly political.â€? ne sa in is rd “The reco head ne over the to beat anyo yone er ev e “I never want us ca ical views, be lit n’t po do y m “I . th ds wi â€? he ad of their own, them in g in is deserving ld ho to feel like I’m me. want anyone t agree with use they don’ ca be pt swers, an e th contem ve ha I pretend like thing I don’t want to ink the only ly don’t. I th al re I e . I can ow kn becaus t n’ do I re of is that I’m really su ep figuring it g on it and ke in rk wo ep đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł only ke đ&#x;’Ł .â€? ns more questio out and raise

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34 NEW NOISE

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LEGENDS

INTERVIEW BY JOHN SILVA

explains. The track opens with a reference to the dance marathons that took place during the Depression, which were essentially an early form of reality television before reality TV existed. Couples who had nowhere else to go would dance at the marathons nonstop for days until they dropped, just for the promise of free food and the occasional nap, while wealthy spectators gawked at them. Robbins says it seemed like a good metaphor for where some people are trying to take the U.S.Â

Robbins is best known for his work as a producer and engineer at his Baltimore recording studio, The Magpie Cage, and as a musician in acclaimed alternative bands like Jawbox, Office Of Future Plans, and Burning Airlines, but on May 31, he will release his debut solo album, Un-Becoming, via Dischord Records.

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Because it is a solo endeavor, Robbins was able to take his time with the album, which he worked on over a span of three years. “I think it ended up being an advantage even though it got a little bit painful from time to time, especially toward the end. I was wondering if I would ever finish it,� he explains. “It happened that way out of necessity, because my time and energy is really split between running my studio and being a parent.�

Although the length of time it took to create Un-Becoming was due to Robbins’ busy schedule, it also played well to his perfectionist tendencies. “Especially with lyric writing, things don’t really happen instantaneously for me; they tend to happen over a long span of time, and a lot of times, I like to go back and rewrite and sort of

PHOTO BY JANET MORGAN

rework and re-tweak things—and some of the recording is that way too,� Robbins says. He goes on to explain that because the writing process wasn’t rushed, he is happier with the end product. “I feel really good about the lyrics on this record because I was able to take my time with it,� he confirms.

DANKO JONES

The album is a somber look at the current state of the world, particularly the decline of the U.S. in recent years. The title track, “Un-Becoming,� is particularly dark. “The lyric in that song is a little bit about the unraveling that’s going on right now, the unraveling of society and the seeming, sort of time travel back to the Gilded Age, the Depression era,� Robbins

While Un-Becoming deals with heavy subject matter, Robbins remains optimistic about music and the people who create it. “I’ve always been cynical about the music industry,â€? he says, “[but] I’ve always been really hopeful and really excited, and I continue to be excited, about the creativity of people around me.â€? Changes in the music industry over the past couple of decades have made it increasingly difficult for artists to make ends meet while doing what they love, and Robbins is very aware of that, but he’s also happy about the community surrounding music right now. “People are doing it for really good reasons,â€? he says. “They’re not trying to get to the top of somebody’s heap; they’re just trying to do something really good and worthwhile. So, I’m quite encouraged about how much of that is going around.â€?đ&#x;’Ł

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST DANKO JONES BY THOMAS PIZZOLA

or over 20 years and eight albums, Danko Jones—the man and the Toronto band who bear his name— have delivered hard rockin’ salvation with their high-octane blend of punk ’n’ roll.

Though he’s been at it for a while, Jones’ fire still burns hot, and it shows on album number nine, A Rock Supreme, which dropped on April 26 through M-Theory Audio.

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The new album lives up to its title by providing a supremely stiff shot of hard rock riffs mixed with the speed, efficiency, and catchiness of punk rock. There is no fat to be found on these 11 songs; they’re highly concentrated doses of badassery, full of the joy of being in a band, raising hell, and making time with the ladies. It’s business as usual for Jones, bassist John “JC� Calabrese, and drummer Rich Knox, and business is booming—well, with one slight alteration. “Garth Richardson produced this album, so that was different,� Jones says. “When it comes to tones and feel, Garth brings his experience into the studio and you can

36 NEW NOISE

feel it. This is the guy who did the first Rage Against The Machine album, the Melvins, Jesus Lizard, Biffy Clyro—he knows what he’s doing.�

Danko Jones are a lapsed garage punk band who found salvation in hard rock, and their music is an exciting mix of the two genres—just don’t label them metal. They’re also one of the best live bands in loud rock, guaranteed to burn any stage “We come from the garage punk scene of they play to the ground and get the crowd the mid to late ’90s. It was a genre based going nuts. Like many of his heroes, Jones on pop culture nostalgia with a lo-fi has a larger-than-life stage persona, but aesthetic. We found these confines boring how close is it to his personality when he’s and limiting, so we slowly transitioned not onstage? “Close friends who see me oninto being a hard rock band,� Jones stage aren’t too surprised by the live show. says. “When we did, though, we definitely They’ve seen that side of me,� Jones says. held on to our punk roots, musically and offstage in how we do business. As far as “Of course, I’m yelling louder at the live show, because I’m trying to project my voice, but metal, I don’t hear it. I’m a heavy metal the anger and ferocity is something close fan, but I don’t feel we incorporate metal friends have seen if you hang around me into our music. We get booked on metal long enough.� festivals as ear-relief and we get written about in metal magazines, but I don’t For a band well into their second decade hear any metal influence. Frankly, I don’t of existence, Danko Jones certainly show no have the chops to sing it or play it.�

PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

signs of slowing down. A Rock Supreme is a true corker, and they plan to tour hard behind the new album—all systems go, foot on the gas, like always. Jones is still in the game and still killing it, but what keeps him going after all these years? “I think it’s a simple case of paying the rent. After two decades of doing this one particular thing, you realize your life skills have faded and you look back and realize that this is really the only thing you can do,� Jones says. “We weren’t born with silver spoons in our mouths and can’t afford to take a year off. So, we do this because this is all we know how to do.

Luckily, we enjoy doing this very much, so we don’t mind at all—but really, got to pay the rent.â€?đ&#x;’Ł

BILLYBIO INTERVIEW WITH FRONTMAN BILLY GRAZIADEI BY JOHN SILVA “ PHOTO BY MELISSA CASTRO

believe in following uncertainty—go with it, take the risk, don’t stay with the sure thing that’s an easy, safe bet,� Billy Graziadei says.

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The musician, known to fans as BillyBio, has spent his long career playing in legendary bands like Biohazard and Powerflo. Now, he’s taking on the unknown by pursuing a solo career. “Venturing off into your own thing—it’s a lot easier for me to stay with Biohazard and Powerflo and things like that where I’m sharing the brunt of baring my insecurities and turning myself inside out among other friends,� he says.

While continuing to perform in bands might be the safer option, Graziadei likes to push himself outside his comfort zone, especially if it means putting out an album that is completely his. “I love the fact that I have a vision in my head and what I’m feeling inside and what I hear in my head comes out with a finished idea,� he explains. “It’s not tainted, it’s not watered down, it’s not changed—that I love.�

As a follow-up to his debut solo album, Feed the Fire, from 2018, Graziadei released the Freedom’s Never Free single via Bridge Nine Records on May 10. The single will be accompanied by three other tracks, including demos of “Freedom’s Never Free� and “Feed the Fire,� plus a cover of Bob Marley’s “Get Up, Stand Up.� Regarding the Marley cover, Graziadei says he sees reggae and punk as kindred spirits in that they are both “rebel flag-waving� genres. “I don’t know most of the history behind reggae, but I love it.

I always have, and I think that there’s a lot of parallels between our music,� Graziadei says.

Biohazard were known for incorporating hip hop and metal into their brand of hardcore, so it should come as no surprise that Graziadei enjoys exploring other genres. “I missed out, I think, on a lot of great music, ’cause if it wasn’t punk rock, if it wasn’t hardcore, and if I didn’t read about it on the back of somebody’s album, I didn’t like it,� he says. “Even the guys in Biohazard helped me—you know, turned me onto a lot of metal that I still love to this day, and in return, they definitely got into a lot of hardcore stuff through me.�

Following the release of Freedom’s Never Free, Graziadei says he will continue working on a new BillyBio full-length, which will likely come out in 2020, and that fans can expect more tour dates in the near future. đ&#x;’Ł

INTERVIEW BY JOHN SILVA t would be easy for a person who has been a part of the music industry for several decades to become jaded or burned out, but that is not the case with CJ Ramone. “Music never lost its magic for me,� he says.

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The veteran punk rocker—best known for his time playing bass with Rock & Roll Hall of Famers Ramones—has found that music is one of the things he’s held on to after all these years. “I’m 53 years old,� Ramone explains, “so, in life, a lot of the things that you are really into, over time, just kind of tend to fade and you don’t enjoy them as much, and the things that definitely don’t, in the long run, are the things that are most important to you. I guess music is that one thing for me.�

Ramone’s solo songs tend to skew toward positivity and optimism. He believes there’s a place for dark music, because it helps people going through hard times know they’re not alone, but when he writes songs, positivity is what comes most naturally. “It’s not really me making a conscious decision like, ‘I’m only going to write positive songs,’� he says. “I really just write about the stuff that I feel, that has the most impact on me, and that tends to be the more positive stuff.� Ramone establishes a perfect balance, incorporating a lot of the same elements that fans love about Ramones—short, fast, poppy—while also carving out a distinct sound as a solo artist. He says the similarity between his solo material and the work of Ramones is not intentional, but it may be natural given the musical influences he shared with the band. “My writing is influenced by just about the

same stuff the Ramones were influenced by,� he explains. “I grew up on country music and early rock ’n’ roll and then moved into classic rock and metal and everything. So, when I go back to my deep roots, it’s pretty much the same thing that Johnny and Joey and Dee Dee and Tommy were listening to when they were younger.�

He adds that his new album, The Holy Spell—out May 10 via Fat Wreck Chords— distinguishes his signature sound better than anything he’s done in the past. “At this point, with the new record, The Holy Spell, I feel like my writing style has really solidified into my own style,� he confirms. “It really is my style now, and I’m really happy about it. I’m glad it all came about the way it did. I wouldn’t wanna change anything.�

One big difference between The Holy Spell and Ramone’s previous solo albums is that he didn’t have the help of legendary Adolescents bassist Steve Soto. Soto was a sounding board for Ramone, as well as a close friend, but he tragically passed away in June of 2018 at the age of 54.

While Soto was not around to help record The Holy Spell, Ramone and producer Paul Miner—formerly of Death By Stereo—made sure his presence was still felt. “When Paul and I sat down at the beginning of making the record, we both agreed that we had both been working with Steve for a pretty long time and we pretty much knew what he would do and where he would do it and whatnot,â€? Ramone says. “So, Steve, even though he wasn’t there in person, he was definitely there in spirit.â€?đ&#x;’Ł

PHOTO BY MELISSA KINSKY

PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

NEW NOISE 37

LEGENDS

PHOTO BY GEERT BRAEKERS

Those were the same wind chimes that we had used on Hex‌�

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST/BASSIST DYLAN CARLSON

BY MARIKA ZORZI

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uitarist and bassist Dylan Carlson and drummer and percussionist Adrienne Davies of Olympia, Washington’s Earth return as a duo on Full Upon Her Burning Lips, out via Sargent House on May 24. “I’ve been really fortunate in playing with some great people who I love,� Carlson says. “I just really wanted this album to be the core, and I felt it was the first album where the drums really get to shine.�

the more traditional timekeeping that they are sort of relegated to,� Carlson says of the process. “I wanted to limit the instrumentation.

My guitar has always been the main anchor and structural element, and on this one, I felt I was free and able to focus on a lot of melodic parts.

There’s the riffs obviously, which is the structure, but then, I felt on this one that I was able to step out from that a bit and just really focus on melodic passages and adding melodic parts to the album.�

“Live, they’re a big part of the show, but on record, especially when you have a lot of extra instrumentation, the drums are sort of in a background role,� he admits. “With this one, I wanted everything—the guitar, the drums, and the bass—all to be very upfront. Previous records that we’ve done have been quite lush-sounding: a lot of reverb and studio glossiness. I wanted this one to be quite dry and everything upfront and raw.� “We used a lot of percussion with the drums, so it really became part of the fabric of the song rather than

Carlson is the sort of guitarist who is capable of shifting people’s perspective on the instrument. “I feel like the guitar and the melodic part should be like vocal melodies,� he says. “I love the guitar, but there are albums that I feel are made by guitarists for other guitarists, and I don’t do that. I make music for everybody. To me, my favorite players, and the strongest players, are phrasing. It’s like a vocal instrument or a horn in jazz.�

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“That’s, to me, the ultimate goal: the guitar should be your voice,� he adds. “I realized that no matter what I use, it’s

“The music came quite quickly,â€? he continues. “There were a lot of times in the past where I had a super specific concept or conceptual framework for an album, like with Hex‌ With this one, the music just came so [naturally]. It was more about the music and it just coming out. In the past, I’ve had notebooks full of song titles, and as I write the songs, I go back and pick a title. This album and the songs all came, and I didn’t have titles. The titles were a work in progress, and it came about sort of at the end when we were mixing.â€?

Even the title, Full Upon Her Burning Lips, has a fluid meaning. “I always try to find something that has a numinous quality and that’s open to interpretation. Obviously, there’s Earth entered Studio Soli in Seattle the passionate, sexual nature of a with this awareness of their identity kiss that could be referenced, and as musicians. Familiar with the the ‘full upon’ reference, to me, is band from previous collaborations, a statement of intent like, ‘This is producer Mell Dettmer assisted Earth. This is what we do. No one with the organic process of cre- else does this. No one else can do ating Full Upon Her Burning Lips. “I this,’â€? Carlson explains. “I really feel like every record is a snapshot wanted to evoke sort of the femior a time capsule,â€? Carlson says. nine mystery and magic that is part “It’s that specific moment, those of music, and especially a part of specific people in that specific the world, that’s been repressed, environment, and everything influ- ignored, mistreated. There’s a lot ences what comes out at the end. of stuff in there, to me, from the It’s been renamed, but it was the specifics about the band and our studio where we did [2005’s Hex; music to the situation of reality, that Or Printing in the Infernal Method]. the feminine needs to be restored So, it was sort of a homecoming to its place of power and majesty. or a circle, and, in fact, I can’t re- The world, and especially rock ’n’ member which song it is, but one of roll, has been a boys’ club for way them opens with some wind chimes. too long.â€? đ&#x;’Łđ&#x;’Łđ&#x;’Ł going to be me, because it’s not about that stuff. It’s me on guitar, and I’m not going to sound like anyone else.â€?

“I LOVE THE GUITAR, BUT THERE ARE ALBUMS THAT I FEEL ARE MADE BY GUITARISTS FOR OTHER GUITARISTS, AND I DON’T DO THAT.�

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INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST NORNAGEST BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

hose who worship at the The way in which this change took decided to tap into new areas new territories.� altar of black metal are place, like it does for many who with their music. probably already famil- are maturing, is that Enthroned In addition to that personal touch, iar with Enthroned. The Belgian switched from taking a negative “It’s not like we looked around and the band also explore other new band have been around for 25 stance with their lyrics to only decided, ‘Oh, let’s play it like this,’� material through their lyrical years now and have effectively focusing on what they embrace.

Nornagest says. “Like, we’ve been themes. Instead of just writing participated in the unholy birth through a lot in our personal lives songs that glorify Satan and deof black metal. They’ve evolved “Now, instead of singing about this past year, each one of us has, cry Christianity, they have crafted a lot since the band first start- what we hate, we sing about and you can hear it; it reflects in lyrics about Satanism in its many ed, but rather than struggling what we are, which is a big dif- the music automatically. In the be- forms through the ages. against the tides of change, this ference,� Nornagest adds. “We ginning, we were thinking, like, ‘How has just been a part of their in- used to have songs about hating does that fit in with us, if we write “The lyrics on Cold Black Suns are Christianity, and we did that a about these [personal] things? based on the different human evitable growth. lot, so there’s no use to repeat How does it make sense with what approaches to what Satanism is Their latest record, Cold Black that again and again. So, we we do?� Then, we were like, ‘It will and knowledge that may have Suns, out June 7 via Season Of Mist, are focusing on what we believe be made by us, so of course it will been hidden through the ages, is a sign of that growth, a new take in, what we are and experience, fit.’ It was just something we hadn’t from the point of view of different on their established sound. what we’ve been through, instead explored yet, some new material. civilizations,� Nornagest explains. of just what we are not.�

As I said, we didn’t want to do the “The lyrics will take you on a trip “Well, it’s normal evolution, you same thing over and over, because from ancient Greece to the modknow?â€? vocalist Nornagest ex- This isn’t to say that everything has it would be boring. It’s some- ern times.â€? plains. “I always see the band a been sunshine and roses for the thing that’s still within bit like an entity on its own. We band. They’ve experienced the range of what you Will Enthroned stretch beyond their all grow and change from being a lot of personal hard- can expect from 25-year legacy and continue makteenagers to being adults, and ship, which is one Enthroned, ing music? That remains to be seen. the band is no different. In the reason they but it’s beginning, you’re a bit naĂŻve. “We live day by day now; we just The band was originally don’t want to put too much formed to mix our Satanic on ourselves in the future,â€? belief with the most exNornagest concludes. “You treme kind of sound, and never know what the futhat’s still what we want ture has for us. I would to do today. That’s the like to see the band reason why the band touring the world and was formed, but we that kind of thing, evolved, just like a but we will have to man or woman see.â€? đ&#x;’Łđ&#x;’Łđ&#x;’Ł evolves.â€?

PHOTO BY LESLIE VDM

40 NEW NOISE

BRAND NEW ALBUM OUT JULY 5TH!

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BRAND NEW ALBUM OUT JULY 19TH!

info and pre-order at fatwreck.com

LEGENDS Y INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST ROB CAVESTAN LE

BY TOM CRAND

E

ven casual metal fans know about “The Big Four� of thrash, but more serious metalheads know that the next biggest four—Death Angel, Exodus, Overkill, and Testament—have been cranking out much of the best thrash of the new millennium. Death Angel will once again confirm that fact when they unleash their ninth studio album, Humanicide, on Nuclear Blast Records on May 31.

The fact that Death Angel exist at all is a minor metal miracle.

Founded in 1982, they were part of the storied Bay Area thrash scene in the ’80s and released three classic albums before disbanding in 1991. They reluctantly got back together in 2001 to play a benefit show for Testament vocalist Chuck Billy, who was fighting cancer at the time.

It was meant to be a one-off gig.

No one could have imagined that the band would still be at it 18 years later.

erlands, which was basically an old favorite festival that we played in the past. One show led to another, and then, Nuclear Blast came around courting us to write another album. That inspired some writing.�

Cavestany is the only remaining founding member of Death Angel, although vocalist Mark Osegueda has been with the band since 1984 and has sung on every album. Humanicide is the fourth record in a row with the same five members. “Each album we’ve done with this lineup has basically gotten smoother and smoother,� Cavestany says. “This lineup has been together, at this point, longer than the original lineup had. We’ve done more shows, and we’ve done more records.�

Like the best Death Angel material, Humanicide is a study in contrasts. “The heavy shit’s very, very heavy and dark, and the melodic stuff is very melodic,� Cavestany shares. It’s all about finding the right balance. “There’s no magic wand to know when it’s right or wrong. I just try to trust in my intuition,� he says. “Sometimes, when I can’t tell, I just literally tell myself that I’ve been doing this for a long time and I must know what I’m doing.�

“When we got back together in 2001, we were only doing it to do that benefit thing,â€? guitarist Rob Cavestany recalls. “We were not even into getting back together for that, to be honest. It was just a very important cause, so we did The music isn’t the only thing it for that reason. We that’s heavy on Humanicide. were absolutely plan- The meaning and message ning to do that one show can get pretty heavy too. “It’s like a warning, a foreboding and that was it.â€? about what inevitably is bound Things progressed from there. to happen if we don’t fucking come “It was a series of events,â€? Caves- fix things, if we don’t correct to try and together was thing first “The says. tany quite when we hit the stage and start- these problems that are “We ed our set that night, it totally obvious,â€? Cavestany opines. , disaster for headed be to seem crazy went crowd The went off. and we played really good, and unfortunately.â€? of course, it brought back a lot doom of old feelings. It was a really Fortunately, it’s not all and gloom. “We put a positive intense surprise.â€? spin on it as well. The album you “Shortly thereafter, word of starts off and kind of brings that show got around, and we into the darkness of the Humanises started getting some offers,â€? cide scene, then as it progres a little he explains. “We were turning further, it will lift you up don’t them down, but then, we got bit,â€? he concludes. “Things đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł way.â€? that be to have Dynamo the the offer to play [Open Air] festival in the Neth-

42 NEW NOISE

PHOTO BY KYLE BERGFORS

C

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST JAMES “HUMAN FURNACE� BULLOCH BY HUTCH

leveland metallic stal- “I think every record has its own that they do. Sometimes, that’s on beats. Relegated to a new speed, warts Ringworm have personality, but we always try to purpose, but most times, you don’t the throat-clenching experience been shredding ear- stay true to what it is that we do even know notice the finer nuanc- is elevated by damning lyrics drums and expectations for eons— best: keeping it fast, heavy, raw, es of your sound that only a fan of from Human Furnace. “Yeah, in underground band terms. They and nasty,� Bulloch says. “We stay your music notices. Taylor brought that song really rips. It’s pretty have been creating their version honest and continue to make out a lot of power and aggression ugly,� he says. “Lyrically, that one of thrash-injected hardcore since music that we enjoy and not try to with the new material, coming addresses the way humans treat 1991, and arguably, if you excuse cater to the ever-changing mar- from that point of view. Plus, he each other and the inevitable some nostalgic bends, their ma- ket. Personally, I love the fact that just made the whole thing heavy outcome of total destruction. terial keeps improving. In that fans can know what to expect.�

We’re animals at our core. To as fuck—raw and brutal.� time, they released seven studio think anything different is being albums beginning with Birth Is Pain Bulloch’s lyrics are vivid depic- “Also, this time around, we tracked obtuse and dishonest.� in 2001, making Death Becomes tions of murder, revenge, horror, live drums and guitars,� he conMy Voice, released May 3, their and inhumanity. Through this cre- tinues. “We tracked at Mercenary The pessimism embedded in these eighth overall and third for Re- ative outlet, as well as his tattoo- Studios here in town with our new tracks reflects a world of lapse Records. With all the touring, ing, he creates visceral offerings buddy Noah Buchanan. He did smoldering embers, proven by side projects—check out guitarist of the ugliest impulses of human— an awesome job capturing every- repulsive acts driven by repugMatt Sorg’s band with bassist Ed and supernatural—beings. thing and preserving the intensity. nant religious zealotry and racStephens, Shed The Skin, on Hells For the vocals, I returned to work ism, such as the recent mosque Headbangers—and day jobs, one To help bolster Ringworm’s in- with Ben Schigel at Spider Stu- shootings in Christchurch, New vigorated sound, Taylor Young dios. Me and Ben work really well Zealand, and church and hotel has to be impressed. was recruited to produce. Then, together. He knows how my voice bombings in Sri Lanka. While it Fueled by a festering world mired mastering duties were handed works, and he knows how to get makes Death Becomes My Voice in self-destruction, vocalist James to the King Midas of metal, Brad things and sounds out of me that seem prophetic, Bulloch notes, “Human Furnace� Bulloch’s misan- Boatright at Audiosiege. “It was sometimes I didn’t think I could. “I think all those [events] are inthropic incantations burn brightly a really cool experience working Then, yeah, finally, Brad Boatright credibly horrible. Unfortunately, on Death Becomes My Voice. While with Taylor,� Bulloch offers. “We at Audiosiege was the icing on the it’s hard to see a time when these Ringworm always explore furious wanted to shake things up and go cake. He always does a fantastic types of things will ever stop. I’ve thrash licks and riffs, this time, with a fresh take with this new re- job. So, I guess the whole record always found the best thing that Sorg and Mark Witherspoon’s cord. Taylor, early on, expressed was a five-way effort between I can do, on a personal level, is chaotic guitars and Ryan Stei- a lot of interest in doing the new [the band], Noah, Taylor, Ben, just be the best person you can gerwald’s maddening drums are record. We really liked what he’s and Brad. We couldn’t be happier be and treat others with dignity. increased to the level of carnal done with other bands. Plus, he’s with the result.�

The world can be such an ugly savagery. Death Becomes My Voice a fan from way back, and for us, place. Things rarely make sense. contends to be Ringworm’s most we thought that was kind of im- The song “Carnivoresâ€? stands I often pray for the meteor to hit brutal work—and that’s not hyper- portant, as sometimes, over [the] out on Death Becomes My Voice. us. It would be fair.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł bole. Their focus and confidence years, bands often drift away A pummeling bassline from Stefrom some of the signature things phens is inundated with blast are obvious.

NEW NOISE

43

LEGENDS INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST DONITA SPARKS BY JANELLE JONES

U

nless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard about the momentous return of L7.

Sparks says it took a little time for everyone to commit, but that bassist and vocalist Jennifer Finch was the first one to dive right in. Then, once guitarist and vocalist Suzi Gardner and drummer Dee Plakas were committed, in a careful manner, L7 started out by playing shows, playing songs people already knew from their vast catalog “to test the waters.�

The legendary Los Angeles band, who had an impressive initial run from 1985 to 2001, reunited in 2014 and have been super busy ever since. Not ones to be satisfied playing around as a “greatest hits� reunion band, the punk, grunge, “We didn’t want to undertake and rock icons have helmed their recording an album with each reformation in a smart, exciting, other,� Sparks says, noting that and fulfilling way. They’ve already they wanted to see if the chemistry played all around the world— was still there first, to “see if we touring the U.S., South America, enjoyed being a band together Europe, and rocking Punk Rock again.� Turns out the experience Bowling in 2018—and released was positive. “We had a lot of fun a duo of hard-hitting singles, “I on the road,� she affirms, adding Came Back To Bitch� and the that they had a great time “conincomparable “Dispatch From necting with our fans again.� The next step was to write new songs Mar-a-Lago.� “in order to stay relevant,� Sparks Showing no signs of slowing down, says. Plus, she notes, “We felt we the four-piece are keeping up had something to say. Let’s write their momentum with the won- songs. So, that’s what we did.� derfully-crafted Scatter the Rats, released May 3 via Joan Jett and Fast forward to Scatter the Rats. The Kenny Laguna’s label, Blackheart stellar album features 11 songs, Records. It’s their first full-length flanked by the fiery opener “Burn in 20 years, following 1999’s Baby� and closed out by the epic and enthralling title track. Sparks Slap-Happy. says the more melodic “Holding As mentioned at the end of the Pattern� has a long history, having comprehensive and entertaining been written before the band’s 2016 documentary “L7: Pretend “indefinite hiatus� and resurrected We’re Dead,� the band’s reunion for this album. She explains that the came about in part because of song is “kind of a symbolic choice,� their fans’ fervor and in part elaborating that they thought “it’d be due to the actual creation of the cool if this one could actually reach film. Vocalist and guitarist Donita fruition, because it’s a good one and Sparks relates that she and her never made it.� bandmates began communicating because of the documentary As is the norm on many of their after many years of not being in records, L7 feature a great mix of sounds and feelings on Scatter contact. the Rats. There are heavier songs “The documentary was being made, counterbalanced by lighter ones. and I had to approach everybody When asked about the dynamic, for their content and for their par- Sparks remarks, “We feel the freeticipation and for their interviews. dom to do that. We like fast songs, we So, that kind of got the ball rolling like slow songs, and anybody who insofar as getting in contact with doesn’t like it, they can kiss our ass.� everybody,� she elaborates. “Then, the Facebook page I started for “For some people, you’re not heavy archival purposes really blew up, enough. For some people, you’re and our booking agent was like, not pop enough,� she spiritedly ‘Hey, there is interest.’ I just ap- continues. “You know what?! Kiss proached everybody and didn’t our fucking ass.� care one way or the other.�

With the verve and confidence of Sparks figured if everyone agreed a true scene veteran, Sparks conto participate and was into it, cludes with a laugh, “We can do they’d get the band back together. whatever we want because we’re “If we were to wait any longer,â€? she fucking L7. We’ve proved ourselves explains, “our window of opportu- again and again. If you don’t like it, don’t get the record.â€?đ&#x;’Łđ&#x;’Łđ&#x;’Ł nity would’ve closed.â€?

44 NEW NOISE

PHOTO BY ELENA DE SOTO

“

” .

NEW NOISE 45

LEGENDS

B A RO N E S S INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST JOHN DYER BAIZLEY BY CHRISTOPHER J. HARRINGTON

“Some of the lyrics, putting it very broadly, deal with rising up and trying to overcome the powers that be..."

"W

e’re headed for disaster / And I will close my eyes until it’s over,� vocalist and guitarist John Dyer Baizley sings on “Front Toward Enemy,� the opening track from Baroness’ upcoming album, Gold & Grey, due out June 14 on Abraxan Hymns.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOE CALIXTO

in the past and one in the future, he’s able to connect the listener to the present, striking a balance of perpetual curiosity. It’s a skill that’s been honed for many years. “When I was young, I really connected with symbolism and metaphor,� Baizley recalls. “The metamorphosis that occurs when working with those concepts is that, really, anything can come into play.�

This foretelling, or historical admission, is part of the literary hammer On “Borderlines,� Baizley sings, the Savannah, Georgia, band “Fallen like a hammer on a solitary routinely wield upon their listeners. ark / It struck a nail and now we’ll It’s a sort of shadowy reflection, never be apart,� and it’s hard part fiction, part reality. The song’s not to imagine ancient biblical lyrics then become slightly inde- stories of Noah and Christ. Yet, cipherable, but with a very clear knowing Baroness’ career arc—a refrain—“And I’m not afraid of major bus accident in 2012 left dying�—the abstract verses mold Dyer with broken body parts and together with the clearer ones, re- chronic pain—one can deduce sulting in a total and unified piece the symbols that lurk behind the of art, mysterious and penetrating. physicality of the lyrics. This is about day-to-day life, and Baizley Baizley’s lyricism is what gives admits he wrote Gold & Grey from Baroness their edge. With one foot a specific point of view.

46 NEW NOISE

“I was making an effort to write and convey my waking experience,� he says. “The lyrics do have a sort of nonlinear way about them, so in that way, they might foretell of things to happen.�

Dyer cites the influence of William Faulkner, Joseph Conrad, and T.S. Eliot on his writing, so naturally, his lyrics have a folklorist quality to them, juxtaposing the gravity of Earth and its painful weight with the sweet sense of release the night sky offers.

only gotten stronger in every aspect of their dimension. Gold & Grey is a total vision, an accumulated juggernaught. The group have reached this level by never really altering their mission while always continuing to morph their notions. “I think that, somehow, in my experience through six lineups, the fundamental ideas, ethics, and creative goals have never changed,� Baizley says. “We started in 2002 with the idea that we could always evolve, that we could always change.�

Like many a Baroness album, Gold The new Baroness lineup is perhaps & Grey shifts from abstraction to their most cerebral. “We don’t need stark materiality, drifting from to verbalize much,� Baizley notes. world to world like a dream—or, in It’s also the most reflective and many cases, a nightmare. One can varying, and Gold & Grey reaches feel the pain and beauty on each spiritual and psychological levels movement, each turn and phase, no other Baroness record has. making the total experience rich and true. When Baizley sings, “I am “I’ve learned over the years that selfish, I am wrong, I’m scared to be someone does need to have their alone / Every aching joint breaking hands on the steering wheel,� Baithe bone,� on “I’d Do Anything,� the zley admits, “but you have to make chorus then takes that darkness and sure that everyone feels valued and heaves it into the heavens, and all everyone gives an equal percentone can do is smile and hope. “I’d do age to the work, therefore there’s anything to feel like I’m alive again,� greater motivation to contribute in he sings, and it’s easy to relate. a meaningful way. With this record, some of the ideas I was chasing “The band has always been a raised some eyebrows, but nobody platform to turn the darkness into said no, and more than anything, art,� Baizley explains. “For me, it’s we really, really pushed ourselves everything. It has quite literally kept technically and creatively.� me alive.�

The result is Baroness’ best album Through all these years, all these yet. “I wouldn’t release it if I didn’t different lineups, Baroness have think it was,â€? Baizley says.đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

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LEGENDS INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST MATT PRYOR

BY BEN SAILER

48 NEW NOISE

“There’s bits and pieces of weird shit and there’s bits and pieces of Americana and there’s bits and pieces of drum machines, then there’s also ripping guitar solos and big, big guitars in some songs.

There’s a little bit of everything.�

END OF THE CENTURY Something To Write Home About Turns 20!

“I don’t know what it is. I don’t necessarily know [if] that’s the best thing I’ve ever written or the best thing The Get Up Kids have ever written as a whole, but that one was the lightning in a bottle,� Pryor says of 1999’s Something To Write Home About. “It was the right place, and the right time too. That doesn’t explain the staying power of it, but in that moment, that scene was—and look at that, I used ‘scene,’� he laughs. “Things were moving up at a really rapid pace.� “So, I don’t know, but it is interesting when people are like, ‘Our first dance at our wedding was to “I’ll Catch You�’ or all that kind of stuff,� he continues. “People get tattoos of it and shit. It’s humbling to have created something that is that meaningful to people. Part of me wonders if, [if] we dissect it too much, it loses its magic, but there’s got to be something people connect with.�

To read more retrospectives on classic albums released in 1999, follow our End Of The Century series at newnoisemagazine.com

“On this one, we were like, ‘Let’s not take anything off the table, but let’s challenge ourselves, and if it works, it works,’� Pryor says. “Don’t be like, ‘Oh, that’s too much of a ’90s emo thing’ just because, even if it works as a song. ‘Let’s not be afraid of that.

Let’s not get in the way of our own process by overthinking it.’�

As a result, Problems sees The Get Up Kids pushing themselves forward while retaining a reverence for their own history.

A

Take the long view of their discogras a rock band in a mod- phy however, and it’s clear that sort est Midwestern city with- of pigeonholing isn’t entirely fitting. out much punk pedi- Whether they’re infusing alt-coungree, The Get Up Kids have never try influences into 2002’s polarizing considered themselves part of any On a Wire or experimenting with given scene according to vocal- the synth-driven stylings of 2011’s ist and guitarist Matt Pryor. That There Are Rules, the band’s creative might sound odd coming from the trajectory has never traveled along frontman of one of the most influ- a well-worn path. Now, back with ential emo bands—if one must use their first full-length in eight years, that tag—of the past two decades. Problems—available May 10 via PolyviHaving released genre-defining nyl Records—the band have combined classics like their 1997 debut, Four everything they’ve done before to Minute Mile, and its 1999 follow-up, create what may be the most definitive Something To Write Home About, it’s Get Up Kids record to date. easy to think of the Kansas City, Missouri, band as synonymous with the “Musically, I think there’s the entire ’90s sound that is currently enjoying span of our catalog in this record,� a resurgence.

Pryor says.

While taking the better portion of a decade between records might seem like a long lapse, Pryor says the band never had any intention of calling it quits in the interim. In his own words, it just took a while “to get off the couch, really.� With their return to action, it feels like they haven’t missed a step.

One of the most common things they hear after playing their new material live is how well the songs PHOTO BY SHAWN BRACKBILL fit into setlists, situated alongside fan favorites like “Ten Minutesâ€? from Something To Write Home About and “There’s bits and pieces of weird shit “Campfire Kansasâ€? from On a Wire. and there’s bits and pieces of Americana and there’s bits and pieces With that said, The Get Up Kids are far of drum machines, then there’s also from content to recapture former glory. ripping guitar solos and big, big gui- Rather, they’re continuing to grow while tars in some songs. There’s a little bit bringing fans together regardless of age or background, bringing upstart of everything.â€? bands like Retirement Party and ReArriving at their newfound kitch- member Sports on recent road outen-sink approach took an evolution ings while playing to more than just in songwriting mindset. For their longtime diehards. For Pryor, that’s past albums, the band often entered part of what keeps things fresh. the process with a clear idea of what they didn’t want to do, which “We’ve always been in favor of using typically meant avoiding repeating our shows as a platform to promote anything they’d already done. This bands that we like and bands that time around, they made a conscious we’re friends with,â€? he says, “and, decision to write an unequivocal rock even more so now, I like being able to record, never immediately dismissing promote bands that have a different perspective than we might.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł ideas or riffs off-hand.

NEW NOISE 49

PHOTO BY ROBERT ZEMBRZYCKI

GLORYHAMM ER

INTERVIEW WITH KEYBOARDIST CHRISTOPHER BOWES, AKA ZARGOTHRAX, DARK EMPEROR OF DUNDEE BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

F

or many in the power metal scene, “silly� is a dirty word.

They feel it takes away from the gravity of the epic music the bands make, the true skill they possess.

And big they will be, as the U.K. band’s latest album, Legends From Beyond the Galactic Terrorvortex, out May 31 via Napalm Records, is already getting a lot of attention from reviewers and fans.

Not for Gloryhammer—they use “silly� all day.

This tongue-in-cheek attitude is part of what has been propelling Gloryhammer forward so far. Instead of worrying about being “silly,� they are capitalizing on having fun, being epic, and building their own universe from the music they create.

“I don’t see any reason why we can’t be one of the biggest bands in this style,� keyboardist Christopher Bowes—aka Zargothrax, Dark Emperor of Dundee— says earnestly. “A lot of silly, European power metal stuff sells out 6,000-ca- “We have a major concept going with pacity arenas, so I don’t see why, in this album,� Bowes adds. “It’s spanning a few years, Gloryhammer can’t be thousands of years across multiple doing ridiculous stage shows with, like, dimensions through time and space. actual flying unicorns flying across the There’s an evil wizard who has traveled stage, wizards casting spells, an army back in time to a different reality in having a battle, actual explosions—just medieval Scotland. It’s sort of like ‘Back to the Future,’ but imagine that with the silliest, biggest show of all time.�

50 NEW NOISE

wizards, basically. It’s like wizard ‘Back real orchestra sounds. He spent, like, to the Future.’ After that, the guy who’s literally 20 hours a day on the program basically Marty McFly—but wearing for a while, just stayed up all day and armor, and we’ll make a giant hammer night. That was probably incredibly unfor him—has to travel through time and healthy for him, but he got it done.â€? save the world. There are also some dragons, in space, in the future. So, it’s “Our singer, [Thomas Winkler, aka Anjust chaos.â€? gus McFife XIII, Crown Prince of Fife], is Swiss,â€? Bowes continues, “and he’s The process for recording Legends fluent in English, but sometimes, he From Beyond the Galactic Terrorvortex doesn’t have the best grasp on English itself was part of the chaos as well. idioms and pronunciation. So, we have to go to the studio to remind him how to “We all go to the studio and record a say certain words in English.â€? bunch of instruments—the guitars, bass, drums—and magic just happens,â€? Bow- Despite the controlled chaos, the fores says. “Our drummer, Ben [Turk, aka mula works. Gloryhammer are growing Ralathor, the Mysterious Submarine their fanbase by leaps and bounds Commander of Cowdenbeath], he’s and are looking forward to keeping it like an orchestral-arranging wizard; up. Look out for them on tour soon in he’s just incredible, you know, doing all the U.S. and Europe. đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł this stuff with software that emulates

ELUVEITIE

S

wiss folk metal group Eluveitie released their new album, Ategnatos, on April 5 through Nuclear Blast Records. The nine-piece band recorded Ategnatos in a month at New Sound Studio in Freienbach, Switzerland. “We only had a month for recording because the studio was busy,� vocalist and Celtic harper Fabienne Erni says. “Some stuff really was created spontaneously in the studio, and this was less with [2017’s] Evocation II.�

Erni joined the group in 2017, making Ategnatos her second album with Eluveitie.

Ategnatos explores medieval and Celtic sounds side by side with death metal. The songs are equal parts heavy metal electric guitars and folkish harp, flute, and hurdygurdy. “My part, mostly, is I get the melody and I get the lyrics and then I have to make

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/ CELTIC HARPER FABIENNE ERNI

BY DOUGLAS MENAGH

Erni herself joined the latest lineup of Eluveitie while pursuing her master’s degree to teach singing in ZĂźrich. “I got into the band thanks to Jonas, the new guitarist,â€? she says. “I knew him because we were at the same school and he suggested me as a singer.â€?

Wolf showed Eluveitie a video of Erni singing, and after that, she got a call from the band.

She met them, then went to see an Eluveitie concert backstage and ended up recording something with Glanzmann. Erni heard back from them after three months. “They chose me,� she says. “I was like, ‘OK, I will just give it a go.’ I was overwhelmed. I was like, ‘What the fuck?!’ It just happened.� something out of it,� Erni says. “What I do mostly singing-wise is I really ask [frontman] Chrigel [Glanzmann] so many questions about the song. I want to know: What’s it about? What do we want to say? Everything.

Then, I create my own story around the song.�

Songs like “Ambiramus,� featuring clean vocals that build and change key juxtaposed with death-march drums and brutal riffs, were improvised and written at the studio. “It just got created during the studio time,�

Erni says. “It was, like, one in the morning, and Chrigel and [guitarist] Jonas [Wolf] were there, and they were like, ‘No, we need one more song.’ Then, they just jammed around it, like, ‘OK, here’s a rough idea. Let’s do something,’ and this song just grew in the studio.� Given the limited amount of studio time, the writing, recording, and engineering

HEILUNG

of Ategnatos took place simultaneously. “Since we were tight on schedule,� Erni says, “we were working parallel to each other.�

Capturing the sounds on a behemoth record like Ategnatos took serious engineering.

Eluveitie recorded with engineer Tommy Vetterli, who worked with the band previously on 2014’s Origins. “He has this special studio,�

Erni says of New Sound Studio. “It’s specially built so it sounds nice. So, for example, for the violin, we had to record in this room so it gives the full sound to it, but, for example, flutes we recorded in the smaller studio.�

Eluveitie recently dropped the brutal video for “The Slumber.� “It’s just about the decisions we make, and it’s like a pretty deep thought of renewal,� Erni says. “It’s not really related to [the] history or development of the

“The thing is, you can’t beat nature when it comes to crazy rhythms. It’s both chaotic [and] there is also a sort of logic to how stuff happens. It’s not completely random—and that is a beat,� Juul shares, adding that he INTERVIEW WITH MARIA FRANZ AND feels “these sounds and even rhythms, they CHRISTOPHER JUUL BY CALEB R NEWTON combine us all, because everyone has On the group’s sophomore album, Futha, heard it somewhere, everyone can relate ncient history is alive and walks that viewpoint takes a markedly feminine among us—at least when Europe’s to it.� turn, allowing the strength of counterparts Heilung come to town, toting music to conventional male energy to shine like their new album, Futha, available June 28 Heilung bring their epic flourishes together via Season Of Mist. The songs sprawl across in- brightly. Maria Franz serves as the group’s in a stage presentation that perfectly fits female voice, offering her vocalizations of tense instrumentation utilizing the implements their craft. Franz, Juul, and vocalist Kai ancient Icelandic poetry throughout Futha. Uwe Faust participate in Heilung’s sonic people would have used not just hundreds but thousands of years ago across Europe, “When we say ‘feminine vibe,’� Franz clarifies, Asia, and even North America. The music “in Heilung’s context, that doesn’t mean soft has taken off, connecting people of dif- and normal, our modern-day society’s version of the female part. I mean, you ferent cultures across space and time in a have for instance ‘Galgaldr,’ which is about primal longing for connection, based in a the end of the world, and it’s also about raw confrontation of our past that doesn’t birth and lionesses hunting and the female have to be so distant after all. warrior spirit, so there’s not much sugar and pink stuff on it at all,� she quips. “We are working on how it might feel inside one single person, right?� vocalist, multiBesides the thematic element of their instrumentalist, and producer Christopher work, exemplified via the lyrics and overall Juul explains. “For instance, how is it to compositions, Heilung utilize an inescapably mentally trip out to another dimension unique sound to transport listeners and or whatever, right? How would that sound observers to a time and place outside of if you were that person experiencing the one in which they began. After initially this? So, on one hand, we are trying to, of confronting the listener with the sound of course, expand and amplify history from fire on “Elddansurin,� Futha introduces a what we know from actual accounts, but beat composed of tones isolated from the we are taking it from the viewpoint of a person and not necessarily from a third- flames themselves, exemplifying the fresh rawness the album offers around every turn. person perspective.�

A

band. Some people were asking, ‘Are you reborn with the new lineup?’ It’s not about this. It’s more about decisions we make and growing.�

Erni had never been in a band before Eluveitie. “I’ve been in school bands, but it’s not the same, right?� she says. “For me, it was a little bit of a new world.� Erni had, however, previously studied the complete vocal technique in Copenhagen. “I had a teacher when I was 15, and she started to [teach] me this technique,� she says. “It’s about how you can create every sound but in a healthy way.�

For 2019, Eluveitie plan to tour Australia, China, New Zealand, and North America. “Then, we go on a Europe tour for one and a half months with Lacuna Coil,� Erni says.

Eluveitie expect to play new songs live. Of her own future, Erni says, “As long as it’s possible, I want to sing and teach on the side.

That would be cool. I also learn a lot from teaching. I really like it. You grow a lot and always rethink.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł rituals while dressed in attire clearly pointing to more primal times. Using their own bodies to present their compositions, the group insist that nothing is contrived, offering fans a personally guided journey into humanity’s origins. “For everyone in Heilung, we’re not faking anything,â€? Franz says. “We’re not trying to be something we’re not. We are standing on that stage and we are performing a ritual, and we bring every single cell in our body into it.

I suspect that is also why the audience also can feel so strongly toward what we’re making.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

PHOTO BY COEN HALMANS

NEW NOISE 51

PHOTO BY JOSHUA MARANHAS

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST SCHUYLAR CROOM

BY JOSHUA MARANHAS

table—the skeleton that’s built. I’m there to put the skin and scars and things over the skeleton of this music and paint a picture.�

T

he latest release from “This album was—I knew, conceptual- Croom adds that he tries to escape North Carolina’s He Is Leg- ly, I was being inspired by a certain the mindset of “This song is about me end, White Bat, is the next true crime case that kind of, it was in my lifeâ€? and avoid being overly spealbum missing from your collection. kismet,â€? he continues. “It was a chill- cific “if the song’s about someone who It’s available from Spinefarm Records ing kind of story.â€? we are aware of or we know.â€? on June 28, and it’s more He Is Legend White Bat is full of storytelling. Jumping “But look through a lens of someone than the band have ever been. right out of the gate with the title track, else, and I guess you get unlimited On White Bat, they’re comfortable, it grabs the listener by the neck. The possibilities,â€? he says. and they’re tight. There’s an evolved alarming growl of Tanbouz’ downconfidence in themselves, a positivity strokes sets the pace for Croom’s White Bat was demoed and recorded about their creativity, and an energy lamenting tales. His lyrics are literary in studios from Wilmington, North in their presence. “I feel like we’re in their own right, but they begin with Carolina, to Atlanta to Hollywood. at home with each other and with a book, “I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: By the time the recordings made it the sound that we’ve created,â€? lead One Woman’s Obsessive Search for to California, Croom was ready to vocalist Schuylar Croom says. “When the Golden State Killer,â€? by Michelle lay down vocals. Croom self-pro[drummer] Jesse [Shelley] joined the McNamara. Croom takes inspiration duced the vocals on 2017’s few, but the needle drop on side A to the last band, everything kind of grew a little.â€? from the book’s title, as well as its it was difficult, and he chose not to crackle and pop on side B. inspiration: the titular serial killer who do it again. “You’re by yourself, and White Bat builds on a 15-year storm once told a victim, “You’ll be silent you’re trying to sound like the most “On White Bat, it was just like everyof releases. It’s is the band’s sixth forever, and I’ll be gone in the dark.â€? passionate you’ve ever sounded live. thing was tingling,â€? Croom quietly full-length, and Croom, Shelley, This becomes the song’s chorus, a line I mean, you’re supposed to sound as exclaims. “Everyone felt it. So, I think guitarist Adam Tanbouz, and that’s chilling, haunting, pounding, live as possible, but it’s exactly the that’s a sign that you have something bassist Matt Williams combine to and melodic all at once. It sets the opposite,â€? he relates. “It’s intimate, good, but obviously, you don’t want make songs full of growth from one tone for this record—it’s a rock record. and it’s embarrassing sometimes. to jinx it. We just continue to power album to the next. “I’m a big horror It’s a crazy thing to be in a studio by through and continue to write and movie buff,â€? Croom says. “I like true “I’ve always tried to write fairytale-style yourself, trying to evoke this emotive record. At the end of the day, it crime. I like the darker side of all of lyrics,â€? Croom explains. “I’ve always response and prove it.â€? was like, we’re in a position now those kinds of things, and I tend to tried to relate it to love or loss, which that we’re going to be golden. I’m gravitate toward that style of music is—you know, most songs are about Croom and He Is Legend “prove itâ€? just happy with the way everything as well. I’ve always related to the longing and, I guess, pop sensibility. on White Bat. It’s a perfect on-record turned out, really happy with the music that Adam brings out of his I feel like the best songs are about performance and a complete al- response, and I just can’t wait for mind and, you know, brings to the something that everyone can relate to.â€? bum that begs to be listened to from people to hear it.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

52 NEW NOISE

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BIG

BRAVE INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST ROBIN WATTIE BY MARIKA ZORZI

E

“

PHOTO BY RACHEL CHENG

xperimentation in music is absolutely the foundation of what we do and how we write,�

BIG|BRAVE vocalist and guitarist Robin Wattie says. Since forming in 2012, the MontrĂŠal band have focused on “minimalism, repetitions, trying to keep that space, [and] intentions,â€? she adds.

These elements are the foundation of BIG|BRAVE’s fourth LP, A Gaze Among Them, out May 10 through Southern Lord Recordings. “We wanted to go back to our original concept and move forward with what we know now.

There is a sense of maturity, a sense of growth in this, sonically,� Wattie reveals, crediting “the experience we’ve had in writing these albums, in playing live. We took that knowledge and applied it to our original concepts when we first started this band.�

The biggest challenge for Wattie, guitarist Mathieu Ball, and drummer Loel Campbell was to keep the core of their sound going while expanding beyond what they had already done with the previous albums. “Each song

54 NEW NOISE

and I was like, ‘I don’t know. I think it’s OK, though. We’ll just wait.’ Luckily, he sounded excited, and he kept talking about it. I think that he’s very much happy with what we came up with.�

is one chord, basically, with different before the recording session. We had parts. There’s a narrative to follow. I never done that before.â€? think the biggest challenge with that is to make something to captivate Ultimately, the trio are proud of what the listeners enough for them to be they’ve accomplished. “We worked The album’s cover art, which was also interested in listening to the rest of so hard on it, and we’re pretty ecstat- created by Wattie, reflects the lighter the song,â€? Wattie clarifies. “One com- ic with the end product,â€? Wattie says. side of BIG|BRAVE. “Our last albums mon theme I’ve noticed when people “This is the first album where we’re had beautiful art, but they’re very, very talk about our music is that it doesn’t happy to share it. We’re more willing dark. With this album, we just wanted to click with them upon the first listen. It and less shy. We have let our close go for something that sort of reflected takes them a few listens. They have to friends listen to it, and normally, we where we were, where we are, and actively listen to get into it, and even don’t. I think we feel a little bit proud of how we feel about what we’re doing understand it, and then, when they see A Gaze Among Them. I think that’s why.â€? sonically,â€? she shares. “It doesn’t have us live, then everything comes together.â€? to be dark imagery to pair with heavier, The new album was released through loud music or sad music. I think there A Gaze Among Them was recorded Southern Lord Recordings, the label can be a lot of emotion and feeling with Seth Manchester at Machine run by Greg Anderson of Sunn O))) in lighter colors. When Mathieu and With Magnets in Pawtucket, Rhode and Goatsnake fame. “We always I were talking about the album art, I Island. “The process of creation of this feel nervous sending a new album immediately went to white. I wanted one was also a bit different, because to Greg, because his opinion matters something white and light.â€? we didn’t start writing the record until so much to us—and I know that he four months before the recording date will support us no matter what we do, “I wanted something also to represent that we booked,â€? Wattie says. “Usually, because he’s a very open-minded us as people,â€? Wattie concludes. we have all the songs a good chunk of person musically, but we still want “We’re serious when we need to be time before the recording session. We him to like what we make,â€? Wattie serious, and we have ups and downs play them all live for months, and we admits. “When Mathieu finally sent like everyone, but we’re also really are overly prepared. With this one— it to Greg—I think it was like an hour goofy and happy to do a lot of things. except for ‘Holding Pattern,’ that we after we sent it, and there’s a time We’ve matured. We’ve reached a difwrote and recorded in the studio—we difference too—he was like, ‘Greg ferent level, and this album expresses wrote the entire album four months didn’t reply. Do you think he hates it?’ exactly who we are now.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

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THE PLANET PHOTO BY JEN ARNOLD

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST MATT “SMASHER� COLLYER BY JONESY

T

he Planet Smashers from Twenty-five years later, The Planet MontrĂŠal have been Smashers are back with their around since the third ninth studio album, Too Much wave of ska, when punk-influenced Information, out via Collyer’s own ska bands popped up around Stomp Records on May 10. every corner. It was the summer of 1994, Rancid had just released “The biggest difference between Let’s Go, and bassist Dave Cooper Too Much Information and the answered a musician want ad and first one is that we learned how got introduced to vocalist and to play our instruments. I could guitarist Matt “Smasherâ€? Collyer. barely hold a guitar back in 1994,â€?

Collyer laughs. “We started going to shows all the time together and eventually For the latest release, The Planet realized that everything we Smashers have returned to their wanted was both free beer and two-tone influences and mixed for people to have fun at our it up with their take on new wave shows,� Collyer remembers. and punk.

56 NEW NOISE

SMASHERS

“There’s way more organ on this one,� Collyer explains, crediting much of the new sound to their recent addition to the lineup, organist Patrizio McLelland. “His influence on the tunes gives the album a fresh twist compared to our past releases.�

The Planet Smashers are often described as a party band with whimsical song titles like “Pee in The Elevator� and “Super Orgy Porno Party.�

Collyer laughs when talking about their lyrical themes and inspiration.

Lyrical themes covered on Too Much Information include obsession and eating far too much ice cream. “Break My Neck (A Love Song)â€? even takes listeners back to the time in January of 2016 when Collyer broke his neck in four places after a show in Sherbrooke, QuĂŠbec.

With their latest release, The Planet Smashers continue their “We don’t take ourselves seriously— 25-year legacy of positive vibes no one should for that matterâ€? and danceable tunes.đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

NEW NOISE

57

LO-PAN INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST JEFF MARTIN AND DRUMMER JESSE BARTZ

BY TIM ANDERL

T

he literary canon is packed with tales of brave heroes from disparate backgrounds who converge to best a common enemy or achieve a common goal.

While viewing audiences are rapt with attention over the climactic and series-ending battles on “Game of Thrones,� a quartet of champions for hard rock listening audiences continues to emerge in a far-away kingdom called Ohio.

Those champions are Columbus’ Lo-Pan, who come wielding considerable weaponry in the form of “I love a lot of heavy music, but hontheir latest LP, Subtle, unleashed via estly, I find myself listening to music Aqualamb on May 17 and accom- that is a huge departure from that panied by a 100-page art book and more often than not,� he continues. digital download package. “Truly gifted vocalists like SZA or Bruno Mars are in heavy rotation at “I think we have come to a place my house. I will always love strong where we are aware that the sum singers like Chris Cornell or even outweighs the means,� drummer very early Ozzy stuff, but the older I Jesse Bartz says about the differing get, I find myself drawn pretty heavbackgrounds existing amongst the ily to soulful voices that really belt band’s ranks. “Our compromises, it out, like Tevin Campbell or even however hard they may seem at the Amy Winehouse, people who take a time, are ultimately what lead to us classic rhythm and wrap themselves creating some of the best music.� around it vocally. Listening to a wide variety of music is the best training “We constantly butt heads. We are for any musician in my book.� four very different personalities and have very different approaches to Not to be overlooked, the core cadre writing,� he adds. “That has made us of warriors behind Subtle included uncomfortable at times, but in the producer and Grammy award winner last few years, we have learned to James Brown, who has worked with really openly talk about our differ- artists such as Ghost, Foo Fighters, and ences, and that has led to pushing Nine Inch Nails. everyone’s confidence and pride in this music and relationship of being “He is an incredibly talented producer in a band to find a new appreci- and engineer,� Bartz relates. “He ation for each other and the joy of made a few recommendations afdoing what we get to do.� ter listening to our pre-production demos, a couple of tuning ideas In order to get battle-ready, perhaps and small structure changes, all of the most drastic training regimen which we tried at practice and reemerged for vocalist Jeff Martin. ally liked. After that, it was game on, because it felt like he had listened “I think when I first joined Lo-Pan, it and really thought out his plan with was a jarring transition from other us. It made the recording a really styles I had explored vocally,� Martin comfortable environment.� confesses. “The volume of the band necessitated a shift in pitch on my “The actual recording process took part that took a few years to adjust to about two weeks,� he notes. “We physically. Finding the vocal range to planned on recording 14 songs but compete with our volume as a band is only managed to record 11 because an ongoing challenge.� of time constraints. It is definitely the

58 NEW NOISE

most material we ever prepared for recording, and we expected to have some material on the chopping block.�

The benefit of investment in the epic tale of Lo-Pan carries with it great reward, in large part because their potential for future adventures is infinite.

An opportunity to witness the warriors as they clash with the hostile forces of convention, complacency, and routine will arise when they join their comrades in Crowbar and Corrosion Of Conformity on the North American battlefield this summer. đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

PHOTO BY KEITH MARLOWE

eder-Lebec. “It was a whole album idea that was floated by Tusk’s singer Jody Minnoch, probably pretty close to 2008 or 2009, sometime around after Tusk had made what ended up being our last album, [2007’s The Resisting Dreamer],� de Brauw remembers. “He’d had an idea for another album, but he lived in Portland, [Oregon], and Larry lived in L.A. and Laurent and I lived in Chicago, and although the ideas were really compelling, there was just never time to work on anything.

So, it kind of just slipped away, and then, more recently, in 2014, Jody passed away unexpectedly.�

PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARK VALENTINO

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST TREVOR DE BRAUW

BY MARIKA ZORZI

S

ix years after releasing Forever Becoming, the instrumental quartet Pelican have announced their new album, Nighttime Stories, out on June 7 via Southern Lord Recordings. That’s the longest stretch between records yet for the Chicago band.

After six years and one new member, Pelican’s approach to composition has changed. “The process of creation was slow and meticulous,� de Brauw admits. “In the past, there was maybe a little bit less jamming in the practice space and, more, we would do our writing at home and bring it and sort of hone it in the practice space, whereas these songs expanded and became their entities when we were playing them together.�

“When we started writing the music for this album—I would hesitate to say it sounds like Tusk, but there is an element of the dark psychedelia and dissonant chord voicings that seem to harken back to Tusk in some ways,� he continues. “Larry suggested titling the first track that we wrote ‘Nighttime Stories’ as a sort of homage to Jody, and as the songwriting continued, we found that that same sort of, like, the bad-acid-trip vibe was creeping into many of the songs. So, he suggested the idea of pulling some of Jody’s lyrical concepts and using them for song titles, which we did for many of the songs on the record.�

The stories of which the title speaks are a tribute to the late vocalist. “I think the stories are lost in the sands of time, because Jody is no longer with us, but in general, they involve outcasts, derelicts, people at the edge of society who are just sort of looking for their way,� de Brauw shares. “He had a very singular narrative style that was very much about the underbelly of society and sort of like these outcast characters.�

Musically speaking, Pelican have always excelled at vacillating between the savage sounds of the metal underground and the more delicate and nuanced sounds typical of the indie music scene. “This vacillation between heaviness and things that are a little bit more delicate and gentle has always been a part of Pelican,â€? de Brauw acknowledges. “In some ways, I think this is our least delicate record, because there’s less clean stuff on this record than usual. I feel like this record is a lot heavier and more caustic and almost more claustrophobic at points, which I think taps into the anxiety that we’ve been feeling as a society but also as individuals. I think that sense of claustrophobia—[it’s] not healthy to exist only in that spot. So, it was important to find moments of rest in the storm.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

“I think part of what took a while was just playing shows and getting a sense for what this new entity of the band was and what the vibe of it was before we started creating Nighttime Stories is also different in new music with it,� guitarist Trevor de tone from the band’s previous works.

Brauw says. “I feel, in a lot of ways, “Our other records are cathartic in that we’re a better band than we a way, but this one feels a little bit ever have been before, especially in more, I guess, antagonistic—but not the live iteration, and we just wanted antagonistic toward the listener,� de to create music that would translate Brauw clarifies. “When I think of anthat same live energy.� tagonistic music, I think about music that’s difficult to listen to or someThe eight-song album marks the thing like this, but this is sort of like an band’s first release to fully incorpo- antagonism toward external forces rate their new guitarist, who joined that would wish to do the world the band in 2013. “This is the first harm. We’re inviting our listeners to record we’ve written front to back join in that antagonism and anger.� with our new guitar player, Dallas Thomas,� de Brauw confesses. “He The title Nighttime Stories was initially played on Forever Becoming, but proposed for Tusk, de Brauw’s halluhe joined right before we recorded, cinatory art-grind band who includand he wasn’t as integrated into the ed Pelican drummer Larry Herweg band when we made that album.� and former guitarist Laurent Schro-

PELICAN

NEW NOISE 59

PHOTO BY JACKI VITETTA

I

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST DYLAN WALKER BY BRIAN O’NEILL

t’s hard to believe it’s been 10 years since Full Of Hell formed, even for the trio of vocalist and electronics maestro Dylan Walker, drummer Dave Bland, and guitarist Spencer Hazard who have been around since the beginning. “It’s a weird perspective just to look back and it feels like when you’re sitting in the middle of it, it’s like an eternity,�

Walker laughs. “Where did the time go?�

Being prolific may have helped the decade fly by. If the East Coast group—whose lineup has been completed by bassist Sam DiGristine since 2015—weren’t recording a collaborative effort with the likes of The Body or Merzbow, they were putting out an EP, or maybe a split.

Despite the nigh-unprecedented quantity, there has been more than enough quality in the band’s unique combination of grindcore and electronic noise, especially on their thrash de rÊsistance, Trumpeting Ecstasy. Studio Svengali Kurt Ballou

60 NEW NOISE

FULL OF HELL

brought clarity to their calamity, industrial underpinnings, as does that’s like a two-step groove punk helping Full Of Hell create one of “Angels Gather Here,â€? which sounds part and it has a crazy noisy solo in the most highly touted albums of like an asthmatic old man’s last gasps it, and having Sam rip some sax [on 2017. “Trumpeting‌ went pretty well,â€? for air while the hospital collapses ‘Ygramul the Many’] was pretty sick.â€?

Walker modestly recalls. “Everybody around him. “I felt like we had a lot seemed to enjoy the record, and of time to write this record, and I feel They’re also still collaborating, this there was definitely mounting pres- like everyone was trying to push them- time with Kristin Hayter, aka Lingua sure to make something that lives up selves individually,� Walker explains. Ignota, on “Armory of Obsidian Glass.� “We were at the highest efficiency “It’s like this emotional centerpiece of to people’s expectations.� we’ve been. It only took us four or five the record that none of us expected,�

The band attracted the interest of Re- days to record this album, because we Walker gushes. “She sent over her volapse Records, easily the biggest label prepared to a high degree.� cal tracks, and I was kind of confused, of the many the group have recorded because it was, like, 10 gigabytes. It for, who released the follow-up, The band brought back Ballou for was because it was 30 vocal tracks!�

Weeping Choir, on May 17. “I think we Weeping Choir. “He’s like the perfect can probably attribute Dom [Romeo] middle point between a true punk Weeping Choir is unrelenting and from Integrity to Relapse hitting us guy who’s just natural enough with unpredictable, points of pride for up,â€? the vocalist says. “It’s different, his recordings and studio pro style,â€? Full Of Hell even if some decry their because Relapse is a team of people, Walker says. “On the track that’s all schizo-frantic style. “There’s a subset but I think their passion is similar to the chopped-up drums and junk electron- to every niche that thinks were toics, [‘Rainbow Coil’], his use of After tally fake,â€? Walker shrugs, “like fake vibe from the other labels we’ve been Effects and mixing was pretty genius.â€? grindcore or fake death metal or with who are run by one guy.â€? fake harsh electronics. We lift things Weeping Choir does not disappoint. A decade into their career, Full from all of those things, because we Gnashing guitars and swirling Of Hell are still taking chances. love all of those styles of music. I feel screams create a calamitous ca- “Downward,â€? for example, “was like like were taking to heart elements cophony on the opening tracks, us finally going for certain things of [all of that], so it’s pretty OK with that we should have gone for soon- us to be the ‘false’ version of all of “Burning Myrrhâ€? and “Haunted Arches.â€? “Aria of Jeweled Tearsâ€? has er,â€? Walker says. “There’s a section those things.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

NEW NOISE 61

PHOTO BY BRIAN DIAZ

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST KEITH BUCKLEY

BY SEAN GONZALEZ

T

here’s no instruc- Those “certain things� make tion manual for The High Crimes a championship Damned Things: They’re run as a Cinderella story of like that classic, vintage item that sonic spice varieties. “Storm is found while sifting through the Charmer� blusters with a blues mundane. shakedown of staccato-timed, pulsating flurries. Raining with The New York quintet appeared downtrodden melodies and in 2009, were put on the shelf for carefully detailed melodic the better part of a decade, then shifts, it triumphantly highlights decided to throw themselves the band’s passion. “It’s really back into the mix of the industry fortuitous. We are pretty lucky with High Crimes, their sophomore that when we do what we like to record, on April 26 via Nuclear do and do what comes naturally, Blast Records. The supergroup’s those alliances merge perfectly,� time away allowed the band to Buckley says of writing the revise, grow, and home in on behemoth track. what works by intertwining the variety of genres that inform “Invincible� bridges the gap their diverse members. “‘We’re between the last record and this 10 years older than we were last one with pop-tinged refrains time,’� vocalist Keith Buckley commanded emphatically by remembers thinking. “‘Let’s take Buckley. “It was more in my the stuff that we have learned wheelhouse,� he reflects on the and really work with that.’� vocal process. “It was more of an expansion on what I do that I A sense of unmatched charm love.� flows through High Crimes, ripping through the opening track, “Cells.� With his prowess as vocalist, The song’s accompanying music Buckley’s lyrics have always been video is an eclectic tip of the hat a shining spotlight to complement to their previous video for “We’ve his glowing delivery. Lyrics flip Got a Situation Here� from their from personal strife to universal 2010 debut, Ironiclast. Evoking an abstractions, such as the clever ’80s horror movie clip, “Cells� is set line, “We have all the time in the in a studio without a real sense world / But never the timing,� of the surroundings as Buckley from “Cells.� accidentally slaughters the other band members in a gory fashion. “Keep Crawling� unravels the Behind the video, “Cells� offers concept of addiction in a fourlisteners a taste of the rest of the minute, fluid song that revels in album, coming at their ears with its mood. Buckley reveals, “It’s abrasive, bluesy dynamic shifts about knowing that you’re doing with thought-provoking lyrics. something that is harmful to a lot of people, including yourself, The gameday lineup for The but you keep doing it because Damned Things consists of you get this serotonin boost Buckley—best known as the out of it.� To its final chorus and vocalist for Every Time I Die— outro, the song is an exploratory guitarist Joe Trohman and snapshot of the masterful spaces drummer Andy Hurley of Fall Out The Damned Things are willing to Boy, guitarist Scott Ian of Anthrax, soar into and able to capture in and recently added bassist an artistic frame.

Dan Andriano of Alkaline Trio.

Marking a shift from Ironiclast, High Crimes is a collective High Crimes utilizes the influences embrace of culture, sound, and and backgrounds of each diversity within the music industry. member in riveting ways. “With It lives in a time unbound by our different backgrounds, it has labels or speculative expectation. helped us become very good at For The Damned Things, the certain things,â€? Buckley states. experiment has become an “Now that we know what those are, experience. đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł we put them all together in the right way.â€?

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BRACKET INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST RILEY MCSHANE BY NICHOLAS SENIOR

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he last time California punk quartet Bracket played a show together was nearly five years ago at Fat Wreck Chords’ 25th anniversary event. The next year, they put out their latest record, The Last Page. It’s been pretty quiet for Bracket fans since then.

But that certainly didn’t mean the band were done.

“Bracket has been taking it day by day, or week by week, for about 20 years,� longtime guitarist and backing vocalist Angelo Celli says. “I think we have continued to naturally find a reason to keep making music together—and the last three albums were all written and recorded back-to-back. We haven’t toured, and we all work fulltime jobs and have families, but we have released three albums in less than five years—and one of them is really long.�

Those three albums were 2014’s Hold Your Applause, 2016’s The Last Page—which consisted of the lone, 70-minute song “Warren’s Song

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Part 28�—and, on May 31, Too Old To Die Young, for which the band returned to Fat Wreck Chords for the first time since their Live in a Dive release in 2002.

The reunion with their former label goes back to 2015 when Fat Wreck Chords asked Bracket to play their anniversary show, though the band were still working on The Last Page.

“We didn’t hesitate, even though we were totally immersed in the crazy 70-minute song [and] album,� Celli says. “After we played, we saw [label cofounders] Fat Mike and Erin [Kelly-Burkett] and just felt grateful to be a part of Fat’s history and to be able to celebrate it that day.

That night, Mike, [Bracket vocalist and guitarist] Marty [Gregori], and I started talking about what we’d been up to as a band for the last few years. He basically said, ‘You guys should do another record for Fat,’ something we didn’t necessarily expect to hear. He acknowledged what we had done on the last couple of albums but asked if we had thought about doing a more straightforward punk album again.�

To be honest, they hadn’t. The band had been making albums for many years without much of a plan, just kind of doing whatever they wanted.

says. “It’s not that we were trying to make a career out of it, but it was disappointing to put so much time and effort into music that we thought was our best, only to find that no one knew it existed. It seemed like most people who did know of us in the past didn’t even know were still putting out music. We don’t have regrets about it, though. We wouldn’t have been able to make those records if we were booking studio time or had a label that had timelines, expectations, etc.�

“After talking it over and getting together a little bit to share ideas, we decided it was something that we wanted to do,â€? Celli says. “It was exciting to think about incorporating some of the musical risks that we took over the years while distilling them into a 25-minute pop punk album. We With Too Old To Die Young already started writing new songs as we recorded and mixed before finished mixing The Last Page and delivering it to Fat Wreck Chords, got to work on the new album soon the band were able to retain the after. We finished in October 2018 creative control they have become and sent it to Mike and Erin, unsure accustomed to. if they were still interested. They loved it, and here we are!â€? “We have a group of people at Fat who are enthusiastic about our The homecoming to their old label music, supporting us, and pushing comes after Bracket self-released us to be more active,â€? Celli says, their last two albums under the “and having been on Fat before, name High Output Records, which there are all these people now who was a lot of work for the band’s are surprised—and even excited— members. that we are still around, unaware that we have kinda been here the “I think the hardest thing was feeling whole time.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł like the music we were making wasn’t reaching many people,â€? Celli

PHOTO BY JOHN SLAUGHTER

FIRE IN THE MOUNTAINS INTERVIEW WITH MUSIC CURATOR AND WAYFARER GUITARIST SHANE MCCARTHY BY CALEB R NEWTON

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ire In The Mountains takes the mental journey that dedicated lovers of truly out-there music experience when immersing themselves in their favorite tracks and makes it real. The event will take place on July 13 and 14 at the remote Heart Six Ranch in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, near both Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Park and will host big-name artists like Olympia, Washington’s Wolves In The Throne Room and Germany’s The Ruins Of Beverast.

It’s grown over the last several years from a low-key gathering with just a handful of bands to an event with a nationally and even globally recognized profile, but music curator and fest alumni Shane McCarthy—who also plays guitar in Denver’s Wayfarer—insists on maintaining a core vision of conscientious escape.

“The festival is a little inaccessible, but in a way, there’s value in [it being] out in the middle of nowhere in a place that’s hard to get to, because you kind of have to commit to be a part of it,� he says. “I think everybody there really wants to be

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there and appreciates the atmosphere and appreciates the music.

So, one of the biggest kind of goals or pillars of the festival has been that kind of community among people who truly live for this sort of thing and having them get together in a beautiful place and experience the outdoors, experience the Rocky Mountains, experience the Tetons.�

black metal outfit Saor for 2019’s Fire In The Mountains similarly, utilizing a personal connection to get the artist to the U.S. for the first time ever.

McCarthy didn’t stop there, and this July, the fest he’s been connected to for years will also host dark folk acts like fellow Denver locals Slim Cessna’s Auto Club and Munly & The Lupercalians.

be performing. Made possible by the unique environment, there are a number of ancillary outdoor events planned for the festival days, including horseback riding, river trips, and even local farms preparing food for the attendees.

Through all of those twists and turns, Fire In The Mountains remains dedicated to operating in tandem with the local environment, not exploiting it. Although tackling large-scale climate issues may feel like an insurmountable task—and it might soon be—we still have the opportunity to treasure the places we have left and experience the world outside of human intervention.

As McCarthy notes, much of the “It just makes sense for the atmomusic at the fest has close ties to the sphere to have both styles there,â€? natural environment. His own band he explains, “It’s important to us Wayfarer craft music that they as people running this festival that explicitly describe as “black metal it’s not just a metal festival in a lot of the American West,â€? growing the of ways. Obviously, with the music tradition of folk-infused metal for in of itself, we don’t want it to be their actual current environment. like, ‘It’s Maryland Deathfest, but Panopticon’s Austin Lunn operates in the mountains.’ It’s kind of more similarly, blending his menacing, aimed toward a certain vein of “We don’t want it to lose the soul raw black metal with a folk sensibil- things that are a little more esoteric that it has,â€? McCarthy says of the ity drawn from his home in Kentucky, and atmospheric, either directly fest. “We think it’ll grow in terms of near the Great Smoky Mountains. nature-based or just something capacity over the years, but we will that makes sense in that beautiful, limit that even to a point so that it Panopticon made a rare live ap- natural, secluded, and isolated en- never gets out of our hands and pearance at the 2018 edition of Fire vironment, and I think a lot of those turns into something else. It’s got In The Mountains, which McCarthy dark folk bands fit the bill just like to stay true to what it’s supposed to explains fell into place because of the metal bands.â€? be, and that’s important to us going Wayfarer’s personal relationship with forward as we enter more into the the band. He scored the presence of The intrigue doesn’t end with the public eye—that we don’t lose what Scottish atmospheric, folk-infused striking selection of artists who will we started out trying to do.â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

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INTERVIEW WITH FOUNDER CLINT WEILER BY GREG PRATO

he concept of “rock ‘n’ roll to do so is to contact him through dolls� has been around aggronautix.com. seemingly for ages—The Beatles, KISS, and Michael When asked which dolls are Jackson have all taken the plunge Aggronautix’ hottest sellers, he throughout the decades—but it acknowledges, “All but a few have wasn’t until 2009 that punk rockers sold out, so they are all pretty hot. began getting the “doll treatment� The fastest ones to sell out were J on a regular basis when the Ag- Mascis [of Dinosaur Jr.], Fat Mike gronautix company began issuing [of NOFX], Milo [Aukerman of “Throbbleheads.� Subsequently, the Descendents] V1, and GG Allin likes of GG Allin, DEVO, Jello Biafra, ‘1991’ Extra Filthy [Bloody] edition.�

Mike Watt, and Rancid, among countless others, have been immor- “I would love to make Stiv [Bators of talized in polyresin.

Dead Boys], but the clearances are foggy,� Weiler says. “It would have “At first, I wanted to make a GG been Cheetah Chrome and Stiv on Allin designer vinyl toy, but it was one base, similar to the Dwarves just too expensive, so I settled for Double Throbblehead. Cheetah a bobblehead—or ‘Throbblehead,’ was onboard, but we couldn’t get as I branded it,� founder Clint Weiler the other part together. I also really shares. “I was working publicity wanted to make Pete [Shelley] and for all of these legendary punk Steve [Diggle] from the Buzzcocks bands, and I felt they deserved to in this same way. So crushed over be immortalized, so that’s when the Pete’s death; they will always be one idea of a complete line of figures of my most favorite bands.� came about.�

In 2018, Aggronautix released the Weiler is the sole president, owner, gnarly GG Allin 25th Deathiversary and founder of Aggronautix, but Bust, depicting the legendary punk others have helped along the way. rock monster as a zombie. “It’s “Craig Holloway [is] an amazing based on a drawing by Lou Rusconi, illustrator who helped conceive the who does a lot of work for [Allin’s initial Throbblehead design and brother] Merle [Allin] and The illustrates the posture of a figure Murder Junkies,� Weiler says. “I so the sculptor can sculpt it,� Weiler gave the drawing to Arlen Pelletier, explains. “Penn State Great Valley who is a world-class digital sculptor. has an awesome maker studio and He really brought it to life in three helped me print prototypes when dimensions. Eddie Bradley finished developing new figures. Daniel it off with a masterful paint job, and Gillies creates awesome little history was made!� commercials for my Throbbleheads when I need [or] want them. He’s Has Weiler ever thought of creating also a member of The Meatmen.� a scratch ’n’ sniff GG Allin doll? “Not really,� he admits. “People like So, how do the artists get selected to joke about that concept a lot, for the Throbblehead series? “Most though, so maybe it is something of the time, I have someone in that needs to happen.� mind, and I pursue them through management or label people,� Aggronautix is celebrating its 10Weiler says. “Other times, I act on year anniversary in 2019, but Weiler suggestions from my customers. wasn’t always sure it would last this There’s also the people who reach long. “It was a goal, but not from out to me to become a Throbblehead, the very beginning. At first, I just but that’s rare.� For cult icons and wanted to make sure that people punk rockers who want to lend their would actually like the concept,� likeness to an Aggronautix product, he says. “As we released more and Weiler says the best way for them more Throbbleheads, the branding

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came together, which I really have to thank Marco Palumbo, my art director, for. He’s been along for the ride since day one! I can give him an idea I have, and he’ll nail it almost instantly. He’s extremely talented in that, and every, regard.�

Besides Throbbleheads, Weiler says Aggronautix carries “all types of punk rock products, from vinyl

and CDs to DVDs and Blu-ray, plus pins, posters, books, and more.�

They also have some big projects brewing, but Weiler declines to offer a sneak peek. “I can’t really talk about things before they happen, because there’s always the possibility that shit falls through,â€? he says. “Rest assured we’ll continue to crank out your heroes in polyresin for the foreseeable future!â€? đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł đ&#x;’Ł

FIXATION: INTO THE PAIN: WAR RECORDS

Fixation crashed the hardcore scene in 2018 with their first EP, Marked. Back on Andrew Kline’s WAR Records, the band returned with another EP on May 3, Into the Pain—this time on flexi disc! Representing Philly, Fixation play short, fast, loud hardcore with a vicious tenacity. Driving straight edge values into your face, Fixation come hard and brutal with four newly recorded tracks of ferocious, demanding oldschool hardcore applied within five minutes. Into the Pain was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Wyatt Oberholzer at The Knife Lair and finished with artwork by Linas Garsys. The flexi is available on green or orange. –Hutch

SELF DEFENSE FAMILY: PERFORMATIVE GUILT: 6131 RECORDS

Noisy rhythms and solemn introspection drive the undeniable catchiness and force of Self Defense Family. On Performative Guilt, the Cohoes, New York, band offer four new tracks of their raucAous yet hypnotic vibe. The layered textures and incongruent harmonies of “Awaiting Acknowledgment” are captivating, leading into the meandering, sleepy, drunken stagger of “Future Girls.” Whispering some Joy Division, Quicksand, and Fugazi into their own indie concoctions, Self Defense Family treat their music as a somnambulant adventure into idle anxiety. Performative Guilt was released April 24 on 12” clear vinyl, limited to 700 units. –Hutch

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HANDS OF GOD: BLUEPRINT FOR SELF DESTRUCTION: FLATSPOT RECORDS

HAUNT: MOSAIC VISION: SHADOW KINGDOM RECORDS

THE SHRINE: CRUEL WORLD: SELF-RELEASED

WESTERN SETTINGS: AGNUS: A-F RECORDS & GUNNER RECORDS

Hands Of God are a hardcore band out of San Jose, California—five dudes out to punish dancefloors with lyrics of purpose and chaotic riffs. It’s beatdown brilliance with metallic sophistication. Flatspot Records announced their signing by issuing Blueprint for Self Destruction through all platforms on May 10. Among the metallic calamity, pounding percussion, and intense, charging riffs, the lyrics are confrontational and brazen in their disgust for the racism in and destruction of this society. Hands Of God deliver a reckoning with words of passion and foreboding about the corrupt, the greedy, and the murderous. One-sided 12” EP has a silkscreened B-side and is available on black or blue vinyl. –Hutch

The Shrine have blazed through four full-lengths, traversing ’70s rock, punk rock, and Cali skate rock and blending their unique lysergic fury through a Marshall stack. Embracing the tapestry of their Venice, California, home, these rockers’ artistic contributors include legends like Shepard Fairey, Keith Morris, Dogtown Skateboards, Hawkwind’s Nik Turner, and now, Corey Parks of Nashville Pussy and Die Hunns fame stepping in on bass. The single “Dance on a Razor’s Edge” accompanies three other bangers on their new EP, Cruel World, released April 22. The track is like a sleazy Sunset Strip callback filtered through a psychedelic stomp. The dirty, stoner rebellion embraces a dark, aggressive feel not often found in this fuzzed-out sound. Killer stuff. –Hutch

Fresno, California’s Trevor William Church must be petrified of the devil, because he never lets his hands sit idle. Haunt began as a side project to his first band Beastmaker’s horror-soaked doom, and a quick EP in 2017, Luminous Eyes, led to an LP in 2018, Burst Into Flame. Now that Haunt are diving into their second LP, If Icarus Could Fly, on May 17, Church and co. have dropped Mosaic Vision. This is not a single with one song from the LP and some rehashed track: This is four new songs spanning 17 minutes. Haunt triumph with their version of NWOBHM adoration infused with speed metal. No irony, no polish—Haunt just crank out blistering heavy metal with scorching guitars. Mosaic Vision is out April 24 as a 12” mini-LP or cassette. –Hutch

Getting a little antsy waiting for Western Settings’ new record later this fall? Lucky for you, the San Diego melodic punk band put out a surprise three-track EP, Agnus, on April 26 via A-F Records and Gunner Records, the same labels that will put out the LP. Early birds are able to snag the limited-edition—we’re talkin’ limited to 50 pieces in the U.S. and 40 in Europe—8” lathe-cut square vinyl EP via the band’s Bandcamp page, but Agnus is also available digitally for the slowpokes. Western Settings will be touring Europe for most of May and June, with more dates sure to follow after their album drops. –John B. Moore

DON'T SLEEP ON THESE SPLITS, EPS, & REISSUES

WOUND MAN / REGIONAL JUSTICE CENTER: SPLIT EP: ATOMIC ACTION! RECORDS

New Bedford, Massachusetts’ Wound Man and Los Angeles’ Regional Justice Center join forces to punish eardrums with politically-driven, powerviolence-inspired hardcore that is short, fast, and loud. Both projects started with the vision of a single multi-instrumentalist before growing into fullfledged bands: Regional Justice Center resulted from Seattle’s Ian Shelton creating an aggressive, concept-driven debut LP, World of Inconvenience, in 2018, while Wound Man spawn from the frustration of Trevor Vaughan, who later recruited Justin DeTore to play drums. Their split features three songs from Regional Justice Center and four from Wound Man, and was released on April 19 on blue vinyl. –Hutch

PROTOMARTYR: NO PASSION ALL TECHNIQUE: DOMINO RECORDING CO.

The Detroit mind-twisters in Protomartyr gathered in 2011 with no set direction. Shortly after, they had a masterpiece.

Quickly out of print on Urinal Cake Records, the 2012 album, No Passion All Technique, became a thing of myth.

Now, Domino Recording Co. resurrects this stellar piece of craft. Protomartyr delve deep into your psyche with their ominous, bluesy psych garage punk, glorious in its simplicity. The rushed, four-hour recording session for the album is incomprehensible and wouldn’t yield the variety here in the hands of lesser musicians. Out May 3, the black vinyl LP reissue comes with a tip-on jacket, a 20-page zine, and a download card, which includes four bonus tracks. –Hutch

SEAWAY: FRESH PRODUCE: PURE NOISE RECORDS

Ontario’s Seaway compile some previously unfound treasures on Fresh Produce, released via Pure Noise Records on April 24. Fresh Produce consists of B-sides, rarities, three cover songs—including The Cars’ classic “Just What I Needed” from 1978—and alternate acoustic versions of fan favorites like “Lula,” “Slam/Shy Guys,” “Something Wonderful,” and more. The track “Blur” is a catchy ode to indulgent nights and consequential hangovers, while “Pleasures” and “Your Best Friend” are perky punk with polished production. Fans can gather these 13 songs on a deluge of colorful vinyl. –Hutch

VANITY MUSIC GROUP proudly presents

THE AQUABATS!: THE AQUABATS! SUPER SHOW! TELEVISION SOUNDTRACK VOLUME ONE: GLOOPY RECORDS

To celebrate their 25th anniversary, the world’s leading begoggled, bodysuit-sportin’ superhero ska band are putting out a brand-new album! Following their successful 2018 Kickstarter campaign, Orange County, California’s The Aquabats! are self-releasing the 27-track The Aquabats!

Super Show! Television Soundtrack Volume One on CD, vinyl, and digital download on June 7. The music is a companion piece to their kids show, “The Aquabats! Super Show!” and their first new record in eight years. The crowdfunded album is coming out via their own Gloopy Records, and the band plan to spend most of July on the road touring the States with their buddies in Reel Big Fish. –John B. Moore

Killer melodic, progressive metal.

Features drummer John Macaluso (Ark, Labyrinth, Michael Romeo, etc.)

Las Vegas' top alternative rock act.

Features the single, "Already Gone."

www.vanitymusicgroup.com/store www.vanitymusicgroup.com

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ANALOG BECAUSE CASSETTES RULE HARD AND NEVER REALLY AGE, T HE ANALOG CAVE IS HERE TO BRING YOU SOME OF THE BEST IN UNDERGROUND TAPES A ND COLLECTED VISION. A CASSETTE IS LIKE YOUR BEST FRIEND, YOUR MOST TRUSTED TRAVEL PARTNER, AND A SPECIMEN OF IMAGINATIVE FANTASY AND OTHERWORLDLY DIMENSION. POP ONE IN AND TRANSFORM. RIDE THE HIGHWAY ETERNAL.

COSMIC PUTREFACTION: AT THE THRESHOLD OF THE GREATEST CHASM: CALIGARI RECORDS Cosmic Putrefaction’s lone member, Gabriele Gramaglia, is a go-after-it-yourself kind of guy. With his newest band, formed in 2018, he’s found the sweet spot of cosmic darkness and bedtime storytelling, à la Clive Barker. The Italian band’s debut, At the Threshold of the Greatest Chasm, reckons itself chilly and sharp, like the cathedrals that drip from the sky in Satan’s cloud fortress of hell. It’s really good old-school, new-school death metal. The songs are short, punk, and to the point, and everything is shaped clear and yielded wisely. By the time you’re hearing album closer “The Dismal Black Nothingness,” you’re right there in Gramaglia’s universe, floating around like a human butterfly in an alien cocoon in the abyss of death and bones, skulls and light flares darting to and fro on the blue and pink nightmare horizon. You’re down deep, where the real stuff grows.

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MATEIS E. AQIR: GOLDEN ILLUSION: YIELD RECORDS Mateis e. aqir is a Barcelona-based DJ with a penchant for extension. Golden Illusion is a seven-song trek into the psychosis of maximum blending. Compositions are treated as individual yet always gravitate toward a whole. Images pour out of your mind in a simple and refined motion; dreams are mixed with reality, and the line between the two is blurred exquisitely.

“Coral Life Time Lapse” is the midway point, an underwater-type reformation, relaxing the vitals while maddening the cerebellum. You melt into a putty of color, greys and blues flash above the retinas of yesteryear. Good electronic music has the strange capacity to unlock old feelings you long for yet can never quite recapture.

“Polypipe” is a nexus of that hallway, somewhere between high school and middle age, the yearning for adventure, the need for connection and love. Humanness is always at the heart of beautiful music, and with Golden Illusion, it beats a pattern of strength and humility.

TECH FLIPS: THE STIMULUS TAPE: SHELLED TAPES A blend of hard and soft, the short compositions on The Stimulus Tape roll by like a blurry dream of pace and curiosity.

Tech Flips are lo-fi, walking-in-a-trancein-the-hazy-summertime hip hop—the sort of dream you have in the back of your mind while plugged into the idiot box, fighting your hardest to reach the power of art through consumerism. The beauty of appropriation is at its finest here, with deft cut-and-paste splicing highlighting every soulful pocket of stardust. Urban density, landscape deconstruction, intergalactic avant-garde—all is fair game in the hands of Tech Flips, an artist connected to In The Loop Radio, where “underground hip-hop, lo-fi, vaporwave, and hip-hop samples” are found “all on one station.” There is a reason why cassettes were molded into the minds of humans: The Stimulus Tape rolls like wheels on a spinning planet, the sounds of life sprouting mightily around pockets of mist and green.

NNHMN: SECOND CASTLE: K-DREAMS RECORDS NNHMN are the duo of Lee and Michal Laudarg, and second castle is a scary descent into the pair’s mind, with alternating hopes and fears driving the peculiar beauty of the recording. Minimalism proves to be the backbone, as airy touches forge the tranquil quality of the abstraction. “fountain of myrrh” is a beach far away in the digital land of tomorrow, where human relics echo the dreams of shattered visions and pain. The aesthetic of NNHMN is vital to the manifestation of the art they yield; it is slow at times, crushingly deep at others. There is beauty throughout, dream pop masked as slow and unnerving darkwave. The band drink from the cup of ’80s VHS trash bins, David Lynch dust bunnies, and über-goth, unleashing a total vision. “love is dead” speaks to the enchanted, the longing for, the underground where slow petals fall from the sparkling crystal rose. Yes, this is a love album, a recording of a feeling that is attached to the highway of forever. Speak it true.

TM

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