New Noise Magazine Issue # 58

ISSUE 58

THE FRONT 6 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 30 31 32 36

THE NEW WHAT NEXT SAM RUSSO YEAR OF NO LIGHT ACTION/ADVENTURE SUMO CYC0 BOOK NOOK FEAR OF A QUEER PLANET HIRS COLLECTIVE CHER STRAUBERRY CHRIS GRAUE PUNK THE CAPITAL CLEOPATRICK JAPANESE BREAKFAST

FEATURES 26 38

WE ARE THE UNION KING WOMAN

THE BACK 42 44 46 68 50 52 54 56 58 60 62 64 66 68 70 72 74 76

FIDDLEHEAD AT THE GATES CRYPTA ATREYU COLD CAVE AMENRA HALF WAIF NEIGHBORHOOD BRATS LOU BARLOW STREET EATERS KING GIZZARD AND THE LIZARD WIZARD MANNEQUIN PUSSY FUCKED UP SUZI MOON DARE VREID THE SHORLIST ANALOG CAVE

WE ARE THE UNION COVER PHOTO BY RAE MYSTIC KING WOMAN COVER PHOTO BY MARA WEINSTEIN RIP JACK TERRICLOTH OF WORLD INFERNO/FRIENDSHIP SOCIETY PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

BY NICHOLAS SENIOR PHOTO lilwzr

BLOSSOM REYNOLDS

PHOTO Courtesy of RidingEasy Records

DEATHCHANT

HOMETOWN: Cleveland, Ohio ALBUM: The Feelin’, out now via Self-Release RIYL: High School. Reminiscing. Self-Reflection.

HOMETOWN: Los Angeles, California ALBUM: Waste, out June 25 via RidingEasy Records RIYL: Heavy Metal Hippie Shit. Friends. Fuckery.

It feels like pop punk now might be better than in it did during the Drive-Thru Records heyday, and that’s the, uh, feeling Blossom Reynolds is searching for with this truly excellent single. The nu-punk jam “The Feelin’,” which features a beat from King Theta, is imbued with the sunny, shimmering sheen, and contains maybe the best pop-punk hook since the wonder days of New Found Glory. It’s a new style for Reynolds on his own, but it’s the first of many bangers to come. There’s the sense that Reynolds is deeply aware of the best of the ol’ guard but also willing to learn a thing or two from the modern, emo-rap-meets-punk boom. It helps that the lyrics’ emphasis on the healing power of hopelessness and self-reflection feels timeless and especially relevant.

Waste is the sound of very close people getting into a room and sorting out their demons in between some gloriously trippy hybrid Thin Lizzy/Melvins/acid punk jams. Deathchant retain a looseness that only the best of artistic buds can do. In that way, much of the record reminds me of some the best conversations that I’ve had with friends, the ones that linger in my mind as souls colliding together in understanding and fun. Like the best smoothies, all sorts of ingredients are perfectly mixed, creating one delicious treat for listeners. So how did the band conjure up magic?

“This style of pop punk has always been my first love,” Reynolds notes. “Back in high school, I was the type that was at a show every other day, obsessing over bands like The Wonder Years, Fireworks, Title Fight, Such Gold, etc. I was really connected in my local scene with my own band, so really this all comes very natural to me. I connected with King Theta recently through Instagram, and when I heard this beat from him, the song just naturally came together on its own. It felt like I was writing for my old band again.” 💣

PHOTO Carly Boomer

PHOTO Annie Lee

HAND MODEL

HOMETOWN: Los Angeles, California ALBUM: The Thinking Monster EP, out July 2 via The Flenser RIYL: Environmentalism. A Sense of Self. Public Relations.

This gorgeous, emphatic solo project from Ignat Frege, one half of the legendary experimental act Wreck And Reference, exposes the world (and particularly the seedy underbelly of his home state of California) as being as vapid as the world’s most infamous fictional hand model. Yes, George Costanza thinks he is of great importance, but behind the wit and pomp, he is a broken, horrifying man void of purpose, meaning, and incapable of anything other than selfish acts. Of course, Seinfeld is hilarious, but there’s some terrifyingly dark shit behind much of the classic comedy. Hand Model takes aim at the vapid promise of California and how little we truly care for the “We wanted to make an honest record,” vocalist TJ Lemieux world around us. The music at the center of this exceptional states. “We recorded it live and tried to translate our life- EP is a totally different beast from Frege’s day job, cloaked styles and tour regimen into a recording. That means wran- in goth pop and distortion. It’s like an industrial nightmare set gling chaos and laughing a ton while fuckin’ off and being to minimalist pop music, as rewarding as it is enlightening. To shitheads while documenting the serious fuckery we’ve all Frege, having the chance to be authentic while isolated during the pandemic resulted in a deeply personal album. As to the dealt with the last couple years.” record’s themes, he explains: So why the emphasis on improv? That’s tougher if you’re not “The environment, both natural and social, and how we have a tightly knit group. traded these things for profit. Between the skies blacked “We’re burnt,” Lemieux answers. “Improvising shit on the spot out from fires in California and the way the pandemic was is easier and requires less brain cells. Shit was loosely written handled, there was a lot to talk about. The Thinking Monlike a skeleton of a tune before we hit the studio, which we ster is busy, always busy. California sometimes is seen as this liberal place where we are creating a new way of life, did not leave for a handful of days.” 💣 or something. But California is really a center of cutthroat capitalism where power is concentrated in the hands of the wealthy, and a lot of people suffer because of this. Because of California, people suffer not only here, but globally. The PR campaign is great, though. Don’t even worry about it; just HOMETOWN: Winnipeg, Canada look at these palm trees.” 💣 ALBUM: Some Tracks, out now via Captured Tracks RIYL: Reinvention. Defying Convention. Groove.

JAYWOOD

Some Tracks speaks to my soul and has me dancing in the kitchen while cooking dinner. It’s a record that asks you kindly to just enjoy the short ride. It also has my wife asking, “What the hell are you doing?” but that’s because I’m listening with headphones on and am way too uncoordinated to attempt this level of hip-shaking. While so much of what makes JayWood’s Some Tracks debut a success is how wickedly smart and intelligent he is, it’s this innate groove that makes his hybrid soul/ indie/jazz/funk/psych truly sing. I can’t think of a better record to (hopefully) usher in our summer of love and reconnection.

This keen songwriting focus is met by laughter from JayWood: “That’s so funny that you say that, because a lot of the time I have no clue what I’m trying to get out of the songs I’m writing, they just kinda happened! I think the [creative] spark for me was really just not wanting to feel boxed in at any point when it came to songwriting. I always loved the idea of constantly ‘reinventing myself,’ but I never wanted to only be able to do that between albums. I wanted to do hard turns within the songs as I saw fit. I think I’m just a natural rulebreaker, especially when it comes to anything creative. I don’t like to work within the lines of something, It keeps things fun for me!” 💣

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PHOTO Matthew Lea

REAL SICKIES

HOMETOWN: Edmonton, Canada ALBUM: Love is for Lovers, out July 9 via Stomp Records RIYL: Fun. Maximalism. Love.

“We wanted to amp everything up tenfold: bigger, louder, more melodic, just—more. I’ve never been into the idea of ‘less is more.’ More is more!”

URWELT

LOCATION: The U.K. ALBUM: Distant Galaxies Collide, out June 4 via Sleeping Giants Glossolalia RIYL: Psychology. Sci-Fi Horror. Being Open-Minded.

Urwelt is both an incredible collection of talent and the vessel for some of the most entrancing, terrifying music of the past few years. Featuring members who have spent time in Ramleh, Godflesh, and JFK, it’s impossible to understate their capability and impact in the heavy industrial/noise rock world. Distant Galaxies Collide will appeal to fans of the aforementioned acts, but it’s more Merzbow or Sunn O))) filtered through a sci-fi horror lens. The is the kind of music best experienced with excellent headphones while ignoring work for 40 minutes. It’s purely instrumental but wonderfully evocative, telling a story that feels ancient and futuristic without words. It’s like a story of the creation of the universe and its eventual destruction.

Wise words from Real Sickies guitarist Evan Hughes, describing not only his band’s recent, maximalist mantra but a real mood after being shut off from just about everything the past year. Interestingly, Love is for Lovers is a reaction to some homophobic comments the band received a while ago, emphasizing the power and freedom to love applies to all. It’s a call to recognize that despite our differences, we are all equal. Well, when it comes to Ramones-esque power punk, the band really have no equals. Love is for Lovers has some of the biggest riffs and sharpest hooks in the game, and it’s clear that the band’s craft is a labor of love, as Hughes recalls: “We’re happy for the music to act as a blank canvas for the listener to project their own thoughts, fears and interpretations onto,” Urwelt’s Anthony Di Franco states. “And, in “Rob Lawless came up with the name and laid out the initial vision for the band. He was sort fact, that’s what we do ourselves. A lot of what you’ve said here rings true for me too, of the blacksmith’s hammer that created that first spark. He’s also been our main engineer but I’m also aware that the imagery we’re invoking with the name, the presentation, and and produced or co-produced most of our work up to this point. As each member joined, the music could also be seen as metaphors, or sublimations, of other things. The name, they brought in their own flavor, and over the last six years our influences and ideas have Urwelt, for example, means ‘primordial world,’ or words to that effect, and that—for swirled around one another to create something we feel is greater than the sum of its parts. me—can be a metaphor for the unconscious mind, which is where I draw most of my If I could sum up the uniting element of this band in one word, it would be ‘fun.’ We’ve all creative ideas from, I think.” 💣 played lots of different musical styles, and we always argue about what to listen to in the van, but we all have a shared love of punk and old-time rock ’n’ roll. We just want to bring that fun and energy back into punk rock and make people dance and fall in love.” 💣 PHOTO Juuso Soinio

SILVER LAKE BY ESA HOLOPAINEN

HOMETOWN: Helsinki, Finland ALBUM: Silver Lake, out May 28 via Nuclear Blast RIYL: Hobbies. Talented Friends. Renewed Inspiration.

There really are few (if any) silver linings to the darkness of the past year, but with so much shut down and work commutes shrinking from cars/trains/planes to mere steps (if you even got out of bed … ) comes a fair share of new free time. Some took up new hobbies, binged streaming shows, played video games, while I spent more time with physical books than ever before, and loved having some time away from my many digital screens. Guitarist Esa Holopainen, who is both much more talented than I and not currently able to tour as part of the legendary progressive metal group Amorphis, had some time on his hands and an opportune phone call from a friend that sparked what became his latest project. Silver Lake is an expansive, expressive gem of somber yet gorgeous music. It’s at the intersection of rock and metal, recalling both Dire Straits and the folk-y portions of Amorphis at their most reflective. With nine songs and eight guest vocalists, the diversity is a great strength, showcasing Holopainen’s songwriting abilities when he’s not crafting expert prog metal. Recalling how the project came about, he shares: “I’ve had this idea about doing a solo album or project in the back of my head for quite a long time. I never had time to fully focus on it, due to pretty hectic touring and my duties with Amorphis. With COVID-19 hitting us all hard, I was suddenly without any plans. A producer friend of mine [Nino Laurenne, owner of Sonic Pump Studios] called me up and asked if I would be interested in working on my solo album, as I obviously wasn’t busy anymore.” 💣

NEW NOISE 7

PHOTO Matthew Guarrasi

PHOTO Johan Von Bülow

TALK SHOW HOST

TERMINALIST

At some point, we really should just have a Canadian punk section of the issue, as one of the biggest joys each issue is discovering which new bands from our neighbors in the north will emerge. Talk Show Host may be my favorite of the recent bunch because of how expertly the band’s brand of power-pop punk marries nostalgia with innovation. It’s a style that plucks at my old-school heartstrings, with nods to Bad Religion, Jawbreaker, and Samiam.

Though nailing down what makes Mid-Century Modern so excellent is much less enjoyable than just hitting play and letting all the goodness wash over you. It’s clear that the band’s members know their way around punk and songwriting, and they laugh when asked why the record felt so perfectly balanced between old, modern, and new ideas:

Thrash has long been associated with a need for speed, but few bands take that notion to heart quite like Terminalist does. One could even say it’s their problem free, philosophy—dromology (no, not hakuna matata). Taken from noted French thinker Paul Virilio, it’s the idea that every major innovation has in some way accelerated the way in which we act or do things, but also, speed kills. He’s noted for the phrase, “The invention of the ship was also the invention of the shipwreck.” Wisely, The Great Acceleration isn’t slowed down by all this emphasis on speed. Instead, it’s a perfectly curated mind-meld of talent, concept, and intelligence (of which I have none). This is progressive thrash that features some of the best songwriting since the ’80s, and a plethora of genuinely wonderful ideas and riffs. It’s bound to surprise, impress, and please just about any metalhead. Vocalist and guitarist Emil Hansen waxes philosophical about the album’s goal:

HOMETOWN: Toronto, Canada ALBUM: Mid-Century Modern, out June 4 via Wiretap Records RIYL: Renovation. Innovation. Interaction.

“We know we’re basically dinosaurs at this point [laughs]. We’re three cis, white dudes playing guitar music in 2021, so we’re not exactly on the cutting edge of relevance. Nor are we particularly bothered by that. Almost everything we do is rooted in the past, just by the nature of our appropriated sound, and so the big challenge is to avoid falling into the nostalgia trap. The video for ‘Crisis Actors’ does rely on the whole ‘OMG, remember MS-DOS?’ thing as an initial hook, but it’s in service of a commentary on how our digital interactions have evolved in the last 30 years.”

HOMETOWN: Copenhagen, Denmark ALBUM: The Great Acceleration, out now via Indisciplinarian RIYL: Sci-fi. Philosophy. Speed.

“You know, that clip with [High On Fire’s] Matt Pike where he says heavy metal should sound like a warlord chopping heads off in a battle? In sort of the same way; when you play sci-fi-themed, progressive thrash, the music should give you a feeling of blasting through outer space while being attacked from all sides. Or at least something akin to that. The best of metal gives you a rush that makes you want to stand up and feel indestructible. I don’t necessarily know if we succeeded doing exactly that, but that was part of the ambition—to just come right out the gate and provide this sensation of speed in the form of some “The album title Mid-Century Modern has a bunch of meanings, but the most important one refers to our main creative goal, which is to Trojan-horse some new, unique ideas— lyrically, well-crafted songs.” 💣 structurally, whatever—into what are essentially loud pop songs. So, we might be old farts, but at least we’re trying to bring something fresh to the farters’ market.” 💣

PHOTO James Rexroad PHOTO Terry McAullife

THE ALTERED HOURS

HOMETOWN: Cork City, Ireland ALBUM: All Amnesia, out now via Pizza Pizza Records RIYL: YouTube. Obsession. Pushing Yourself.

Time spent with those we love or on favorite hobbies feels altered in some way, like it moves more slowly and too rapidly at the same time. How many times have I opened a book before bed and realized an hour passed, or thinking back to time spent with close friends and looking at the clock, realizing, ‘Shit, it’s really that late?” There’s something special about losing yourself to the moment and not counting down the hours. The Altered Hours’ latest post-punk bop tackles that concept to heart—drenched in reverb and atmosphere, it’s a song that feels timeless with a runtime that flies by. Just close your eyes and watch a sub-four-minute song repeat ten times because you’ll be so enraptured by what this group can do. Their clear talent at songcraft comes naturally, though both practice, obsession, and “reachers” play a hand at why The Altered Hours should be the next big post-punk thing.

“We’re obsessed with writing songs,” Cathal MacGabhann vocalist notes. “Whether I like it or not, it’s an obsession. So, I guess all that listening to records, and radio mixes, and YouTube binges becomes research at some point, and that all gets condensed back into our music somehow.

We try and keep it really simple, be who we are, but at the same time, reach out and try and make something meaningful to us. [Vocalist] Elaine [Howley] and I often joke when we have made something that goes a little further than our usual habits, we call those tracks ‘reachers’ [laughs]. A lot of our writing style comes from an abundance of energy mixed with a love for condensing that down to something simple.” 💣

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THE MISTONS

HOMETOWN: Portland, Oregon ALBUM: World of Convenience, out May 21 via Self-Release RIYL: The Clash. Growth. Portland.

Everything about The Mistons is informed by how the past impacts the present and future. From the act’s brilliant pulling of punk’s history, to the shifting changes in the world around us, to the fraught history of their hometown of Portland—World of Convenience feels like the best of friends who is willing to call you out on your bullshit while buying the next round at the bar.

Created by two punk lifers in Sean Croghan and Micah Kassell, there’s both a sly intelligence and glorious brashness to their debut that is a testament to the power of talent doing what they do best.

As Croghan notes, “In many ways, I think of this as being a very political record, maybe not capital ‘P’ political, but definitely about personal politics: the imbalance and in equity in our society, and also how we as humans fit into this new world.”

“Sean has a preacher in him,” Kassell continues. “But the most kind, and non-ego-driven one I’ve ever seen. My personal, musical goal was to set up a rhythmic sanctuary where Sean’s lyricism and pounding riffs could be showcased. I always reference Clash records with Sean—especially Combat Rock and London Calling. Mind you, I’m not at all comparing what we do to the gravity of those records, but they are albums you can visit tomorrow and 10 years from now and have a connection to the message and to the feel. They grow with you. Almost like those albums are listening to you as much as you are to them—that’s what I want Mistons records to do: grow with you, like a friend, reminding you that you can change, and age, and evolve, but still be a child and throw things around—yet still be able to take out the trash.” 💣

PHOTO Andy Woodall

PHOTO Courtesy of Candlelight/Spinefarm

URNE

HOMETOWN: London, U.K. ALBUM: Serpent & Spirit, out June 25 via Candlelight/Spinefarm RIYL: Non-linear Storytelling. Metallica. David Lynch.

PALETTE KNIFE

LOCATION: Columbus, Ohio ALBUM: Ponderosa Snake House and the Chamber of Bullshit, out May 28 via Take This To Heart Records RIYL: Sarcasm. Snakes. Nostalgia

I love when the best parts of art are hidden or at least require some extra thought or reflection. That probably explains why I love David Lynch, Christopher Nolan, and Salvador Palette Knife’s slithering, spirited debut is like the sassiest and smartest snake in the pit.

Dali more than most—as even their most “obvious” art is shrouded in mystery and surreal While a lot of their peers in the emo world are either all coiled up and sad, or bite-y and imagery. There’s also an emphasis on the power of dreams and repressed or expressed full of venom, Palette Knife move about with dexterity and a vibrant sheen. It’s a record that memories, both of which are explored on Urne’s incredible debut record. There’s is a style wins you over while giving you a chance to laugh and cry at the same time. All of that was and presentation that feels impressive and impactful on initial listens, a style of progressive intentional, as the band note: stoner rock that’s awash in meaning and interpretation. However, with each subsequent listen, more comes to the forefront—layers of thrash riffing, NWOBHM melodies, and influ“Humor and specificity is so important to us—humor lets us wink at the camera and acknowlences from Mastodon and Metallica. Also, it becomes clear that the story has more than edge heartbreak emo is kinda trite, while using specific references and experiences helps meets the eye and ear—a non-linear narrative begs to be discovered, though I won’t spoil us give it meaning and earnestness, we hope. On the whole, the record is about asking yourthe twists and turns there. As bassist and vocalist Joe Nally recalls, the band’s goals became self whether nostalgia is a good thing or a bad thing—which, not to get too galaxy-brain, is clear once the lineup was secured. what the snake on our artwork is trying to represent. Particularly, nostalgia for the friendships and romances we gain and lose throughout those moments of coming-of-age.”

“I’ve been doing bands with [guitarist] Angus [Neyra] for almost 15 years now, so we each know what the other enjoys musically. But once [drummer] Rich [Harris] joined us, it real“Midwest emo is a bit of a misnomer,” they note. “The bands that helped shape the genre ly felt complete, and we all had the same goal: writing metal [like what] has inspired us were from the Midwest, but the reason this style of sound resonates with so many people is throughout our lives. We took that enjoyment that we would get from hearing Metallica, it really centers around coming-of-age. Not necessarily ‘teen-movie coming-of-age’ but Megadeth, or Judas Priest for the first time, and we tried to put our own spin on it. So, I guess the phases and roles we take on when growing up in a suburban area, going to college, the spark was looking back to our heroes growing up, and still to this day, and letting them becoming a young professional, and trying to deal with the relationships we maintain with inspire us.” 💣 friends and loved ones along the way.” 💣

PHOTO Andy Wilcox

WANDERER

WORM SHEPHERD

It’s easy to feel like the past year is one long, horrifying time loop in which we’re doomed to repeat the same day over and over, questioning our reality, sanity, and even our purpose.

That’s the theme behind one of the best metallic hardcore records of the past ten years.

Wanderer’s sense of personal meaning may be in question, rightfully so, but musically, those seeking the best post-Converge/Trap Them-style riffs are in for one tasty treat. Songwriting is deceptively simple yet quick to reveal clever twists and turns.

Much is going to be made about the fact that Worm Shepherd are in their teens, as if we grade albums on a curve based on age alone—so here’s how I’d put the band’s debut in context: this is the best deathcore album I’ve heard since the last Fit For An Autopsy or Carnifex records. Like those bands, Worm Shepherd have a keen understanding and insight into why you must focus on the “death” part of the equation much more than breakdowns and chugs in order to make for an interesting listen. Awash with apocalyptic doom, symphonic black metal, and tech-death, In the Wake ov Sòl is a riveting, harrowing listen, featuring some of the best written songs in the genre.

HOMETOWN: Minneapolis, Minnesota ALBUM: Liberation from a Brutalist Existence, out June 18 via Entelodon Records RIYL: Existential Dread. Sci-Fi Fear. Aggression.

There’s a through-line of feeling both boxed-in and aimless, which is definitely relatable.

Vocalist Dan Lee expands on this notion:

LOCATION: Connecticut/Massachusetts ALBUM: In the Wake ov Sòl out June 4 via Unique Leader RIYL: Darkness. Light. Riffs.

Thematically, the record’s duality of light and dark plays into spotlighting mental health “I certainly was channeling a lot of hatred for humanity and frustration with being alive at and suicide, with the hope that by delving into the deepest reaches of gloom, the band can the time. More specifically, the vitriol that I wanted to express was more existential than embolden others to overcome. anything. For example, the track ‘Frost Cage’ is about an astronaut on his way to explore a new planet, but he is spending nearly a lifetime in suspended animation, living his entire life “I wanted to reach as many struggling people as possible,” vocalist Devin Duarte shares. in dreams. What I was trying to get across with that song was essentially just a version of the “This record was written at my emotional lowest and brought me back to the darkest places ‘What is life, and what is real, does anything actually matter?’ question. Going forward, I am in my life. I wanted to encapsulate the hopelessness people feel with these words, so that it almost one hundred percent positive that the next record will be very politically focused, can have a uniting effect. I wrote all the lyrics at the location where I made an attempt on though, as I think I said all I want to say about existential dread.” 💣 my life, and I feel that it brought me even closer to the message.” 💣

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Quarantine Inspirtation

SAM RUSSO

The album title stems from a long-running inside joke amongst him and his friends, which has become a mantra of sorts, especially in difficult situations.

tic about what lies ahead for him and his fellow artists. He hopes that from the smoldering ashes, live and recorded music, of all genres, will return stronger than before.

INTERVIEW BY GEN HANDLEY

“We just developed this attitude where “I’m not a fan of the corporate, live music recorded with some of Russo’s musician ver the crazy course of the global we would say ‘refuse to lose’ in the worst model—I don’t think it serves the arts friends and peers, including Chris Stock- possible situations,” he says, laughing. community at all,” he states. “I think we pandemic, songwriter Sam Russo has regularly experienced a num- ings on guitar, Garth Vickers behind the kit, “Like, if we got ourselves in a real pickle can burn that down and start again. It and Alkaline Trio bassist Dan Andriano. ber of emotions. This has included periods and somebody was about to be arrested, might take a horrible tragedy to create of anger and frustration at the current one of us would be like, ‘refuse to lose.’ But that change and all you can do is find Russo reveled in the organic nature of the situation, but also optimism for what lies it’s kind of universal in that everyone has some positivity in it ... try to build someEP’s fruition and says he “couldn’t be hap- a different application of that phrase in ahead, as well as gratitude for everyone thing better than what was there before.” pier” with what they created. who listened to his last album, Back to the their lives, and they pull different meanParty, which was released in March of last ing out of that.”

“I can’t way to get back to playing shows—to year, just as the world was coming to terms “It was great to be able to let go of these get back to doing what I love and seeing songs and let people, who I completely with its new, frightening circumstances.

As mentioned earlier, in spite of a stunted the audience again,” he says. “I want to get trust and respect creatively, just go with it music industry, Russo is cautiously optimis- back to the party, man!”💣 To express this gratitude, Russo released Re- and do whatever they want with it—that felt amazing,” he says. “By letting go and not fuse to Lose in late April, a surprise EP made being precious about it, the songs turned up of three singles from his last album that out exactly how I wanted them to. If I was were re-recorded as much louder, electric prescriptive and told people what to do versions. and how to play it, that would have felt totally wrong to me.”

“I wanted to say thank you to those who listened to [After the Party] for sticking with us through the mess ... for having the energy “Also, who the fuck am I to tell Dan Andriano how write a bassline?” he laughs. and mental bandwidth to digest a new album during the pandemic,” he says, via Zoom from his home in Haverhill, England. In addition to letting go of the steering wheel artistically, Russo also wanted to “I’m very grateful for everyone who listened to that album in spite of the circumstances— surprise people by turning up the volume this was how I wanted to show my gratitude.” on these songs which the listeners have never had the privilege of hearing them in a live setting. Where in most cases, an While it may be only a trio of tracks, Refuse to Lose packs emotional and sonic punch, artist will strip down their songs, revealing the perfect example of how quality tri- the tracks’ bones and structure in the process, Russo went in a very different umphs over quantity, and how a small but direction, adding more sonic layers and incredibly focused piece of impassioned compositions, challenging and therefore art can have big impact. A combination of PHOTO online collaboration as well as some social- demonstrating what he’s capable of voChris Stockings cally— and it’s impressive. ly distanced studio time, Refuse to Lose was

O

GO AHEAD AND DIE INTERVIEW WITH BASSIST/GUITARIST/VOCALIST IGOR AMADEUS CAVALERA

BY NICHOLAS SENIOR

G

o Ahead And Die’s debut is as massive an achievement for the Cavalera family as 2020 was a feat of fetid feces piled into one calendar year. The Arizona-based group, featuring father-son duo Max Cavalera and Igor Amadeus Cavalera, feels distinct from the groove metal typically associated with metal’s famous family— and that was totally on purpose. The band’s Self-Titled, out June 11 via Nuclear Blast, is an ode to old-school death metal’s venom, grindcore’s hostility, Celtic Frost’s ingenuity, with more than a dash of punk attitude. It’s a middle finger to all those who stand in the way of total freedom and equality for all, as well as a rallying call to the furious and disenfranchised. Go Ahead And Die is also a record that should stand the test of time and go down as one of 2021’s crowning musical achievements.

The band’s inception was long overdue and spawned by the events of last year, as Igor notes: “Basically, it was an idea that my father and I had for a while. I’d say as far back as even a few years ago. We always talk-

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ed about doing an extreme record. We wanted to do something in the vein of, like, old death metal, punk, crust, and grind, all mashed up in one thing, and like Nailbomb, just being very unapologetic and no-holds-barred.”

litical vibe to it, but it’s definitely meant in a positive sense,” Cavalera says. “It’s about focusing it as something. It’s about taking the aggression [we all felt this past year] and creating positivity

out of it. After last year for Americans, I think a lot of us very nearly lost our minds with everything going on. It was nice to just take a lot of that frustration, that anger, and these views and opinions that we have and instead of just bitching and moaning on Facebook about it or doing something like that, we actually just created something that will hopefully stand the test of time. Then, future generations can listen and kind of get an idea of what 2020 was like.” 💣

“We never actually got to do it,” he continues. “Because we were both just really busy over the last few years [with other bands]. When the pandemic hit, all of a sudden, it was like, ‘Oh man, we’re not going on tour for months, and who knows where this is going to get back to normal?’

So, I just called up my folks and I was like, ‘Hey, I’m going to come back home for a month. I haven’t seen you guys in a while.

The world is crazy.’ So, we stayed out there with no distractions. We just laid super low and worked on this, almost like a full-time job. Seven, eight hours a day coming up with demos, writing songs, doing it all from scratch.”

All that musical might is backed by some genuinely pissed lyrical content, not shy to call out the racists, the dirty cops, and corrupt politicians: “[The record] does have this sort of po-

PHOTO Jim Louvau

Quarantine Inspiration

GREG ANTISTA & THE LONELY STREETS

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST GREG ANTISTA

BY JANELLE JONES

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We weren’t playing shows, just recording stuff and putting it up online,” Button, the band’s main songwriter, says. “We called ourselves Dollar Signs because we wanted an ironic name. The idea of a folk punk duo making it big by putting acoustic songs up online seemed preposterous.”

musicianship and songwriting are on full display here, which comes as no surprise, as the foursome is assembled from a great cast of characters.

Antista is joined by punk veterans Warren Renfrow (bass and vocals), Jorge E. Disguster (drums), and for the first time, guitarist Frank Agnew, whom Antista met in the early Adolescents days, when the pioneering band would rehearse in the Agnew brothers’ garage.

“That was the only thing that mattered, and that’s been the only constant in my life—music,” singer-songwriter Greg Antista confides. “Something about the honesty, something about how raw it is. “The fact that [Frank] was available and in a place in his life where he wanted to Something about the rebellion and the outsider nature of it. It took over my life.” join the band full time, I jumped on the opportunity,” he says. “We’re having a And we must say, Antista had an incred- great time.”

PHOTO Rob Wallace ible musical upbringing, having had the As for the process of putting this album good fortune of coming of age during together, the guys had the music record- until the goal of playing shows to sup- “It was such a wonderful way to come the golden era of Fullerton punk, with back, too, just the best sound system in port the record was more within reach. ed for a while, finishing that in early bands such as Social Distortion, Agent the world; the crowd was really happy Orange, and The Adolescents all com- 2020. They were about to get the vocals to be there; it was outdoors,” he gushes. down, but then, in mid-March, the pro- “We definitely want to hit the road to ing out of his high school. ducer, Paul Miner, advised against it. support it, so we just figured we’d wait,” “So, we’re really fired up now.

Antista says.

They came back three months after that “I think just in punk rock history, that’s As for his hopes for this album, Antista ground zero for punk in Southern Cali- and were able to record vocals. says: “I hope people hear it, and if they And the band actually have played their fornia,” he rightly states. hear it, they’re going to like it. I think a lot first live show, this May at the Silverado “We had high hopes of releasing it in Showdown festival in Orange County. of people kind of have the same heart 2020,” Antista says. “We thought the This lifelong love of music really comes and sentiments our band does, and I The frontman says the venue normally through on the band’s latest release, Un- record was going to be done by April think they’ll relate to it and like it. I think holds 20,000 people, but they limited 2020, and that all changed, just like der the Neon Heat (out July 16 on Primal the beats are undeniable, and I think capacity to four or five thousand this everybody else’s lives changed.”

Beat Records), the follow-up to 2019’s the sentiments are kind of universal.”💣 year to keep things distanced.

They decided to not release the album Shake, Stomp and Stumble. The excellent

ROLLIN COFFIN INTERVIEW WITH FRONTMAN TIM WILLIAMS BY MICK R.

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tions and a lot of drive to create music.” im Williams is best known as the The sound of Rollin Coffin is pretty far frontman of New York hardcore outfit Vision of Disorder. However, outside of the material Williams is known for, favoring big guitar hooks and seethhowling for that pioneering metallic ing vocal melodies. It might even sound a hardcore band is not Williams’ sole little like grunge— but don’t be mistaken, passion at the moment. His top priority the influences of Rollin Coffin are clear, right now is getting his project Rollin and they don’t include Kurt Cobain.

Coffin out of the ground, tuned up, and terrorizing a town near you, just in time for live, indoor concerts becoming a “You know, I’ve seen the grunge comparison getting thrown around,” Williams regular occurrence again. says. “That’s interesting. I’m not offended.

Rollin Coffin is far from something Wil- I wouldn’t say I’m trying to be a grunge band now. But some reviewer said liams is doing to stave off the boredom of Screaming Trees. I was very happy to hear the pandemic. It’s a project that has been that.” gestating high his cranium for more than a season or two, and it is now time for the As much as Williams hopes his fans will folproverbial brainchild to leave the nest of low him in this new direction, he is candid his cluttered mind. about his motivations for the project.

“Well, Rollin Coffin is my brainchild,” Williams says. “[It] is a project that I’ve had “I don’t need the money,” he says. “I don’t need the ‘atta boys’ or a pat on the back. in mind for as long as I could possibly There just was a certain sound that was remember, probably stretches back 15 in my mind for years, and I worked with years, maybe longer. I’ve always wanted a bunch of different people, we never to do a more loose project, where I can could quite nail it.” kind of break out of my mold that I’ve kind of created for myself, explore different Rollin Coffin is the manifestation of that styles and feel comfortable doing it, feel sound in Williams’s head. It’s out now confident doing it.” and living in the world. Will it survive and prosper, or be declared DOA? It’s up to “It took a long time,” he explains. “I just got fans like you to decide.💣 tired of sitting around, you know? I still got a lot of creative energy, a lot of aspira-

PHOTO Jammi York

NEW NOISE 11

French Connection

WE HATE YOU PLEASE DIE INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST JOSEPH LEVASSEUR AND VOCALIST RAPHAËL MONTEIRO BY CHRISTOPHER J. HARRINGTON

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e Hate You Please Die songs are often thick with variance, almost to the point of non-recognition within each particular composition, which gives a certain life to them that when taken as a whole, is quite substantial, playing out like worlds within worlds.

“They’re kind of like stories on their own,” guitarist Joseph Levasseur explains. “They go through many emotions, many dynamics, and, like in a film, we like the moments that surprise us and put us in a position of a little difficulty.”

On the group’s latest record, Can’t Wait To Be Fine, out June 18 via Stomp Records, you get the inkling of the difficulty that Levasseur talks about. Often songs take complete 180-degree turns, and then turn right back around to fit snugly as great little punk rock numbers. But the expanse contained within each is of note, giving it the ultimate expression you hear.

“Personally I really like hearing songs that surprise me,” Levasseur adds. “When they start we don’t know how they will end, and what states of mind they will lead us through. There are endless possibilities to create songs, so it would be a shame to do only what makes sense. The music would be so sad.”

And Can’t Wait To Be Fine does feel happy, feels alive, brimming with possibility, like something contained and finally let loose.

You hear bits and pieces of influence, often within seconds, giving the record nobility and grandeur. It shows its cards, and still surprises with a flush.

“It’s cool if the songs give off joy,” Levasseur says. “Because despite the name of the group, the goal in all of this is not just to be angry, it’s to create virtuous circles of joy through the songs. It’s almost a political choice to play only major chords.”

The angst comes through each song the band lays through, though, the spirit of aggression, of awareness and purpose, very clear and straight. With a name like We Hate You Please Die, you’d think there’d have to be some function of anger beyond a passive one, and there is, but through this forceful message is a peaceful, loving purpose, and that is felt like a warm sun, each aggressive measure swallowed into a tranquil blur, a collective conscience of sorts.

more. We’ve reached the limit. People forgotten or damaged, they want to talk about their reality and no longer suffer or act as if nothing had happened. Suddenly, another part of the people who have always lived far from this reality finds it very difficult to digest it, which is understandable. We must show empathy and tolerance once and for all, and stop our individualistic education. Because, at the end of the day, if one day everything burns down, it doesn’t matter where you

come from, you’re going to burn the same way. So, it would be cool to manage to stop sawing the branch you’re sitting on one day, and not end up with an end like in Watchmen.”

Can’t Wait To Be Fine sounds like Rorschach and Ozymandias fighting it out, and coming up with a better solution in the end. But what about Dr. Manhattan— perhaps that’s for the next record? 💣

PHOTO Titouan Massé

“The name has several meanings,” vocalist Raphaël Monteiro explains. “It’s a great tribute to the comics and the movie Scott Pilgrim first and foremost, but it’s also a cathartic and provocative name. The name is extreme, but also extremely opposed to our beliefs. We don’t want people to die, but it synthesizes a raw anger towards this world and towards ourselves.”

Ultimately, the band’s multiplicity is reactionary. The songs come together as an expression of solidarity, and that is the warmness and trust you hear. The rage, though, is the seed, the ultimate dynamic of the group.

“I won’t hide from you that I am not optimistic even if I try to keep a little hope,” Monteiro quips. “We are very much on a planet that is being destroyed more and

YEAR OF NO LIGHT INTERVIEW BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

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We play progressive and heavy instrumental music with a fucking French accent,” say Year Of No Light.

“Music against modern times. We are celebrating the epiphany of the Fall.”

And if you play their incredibly dark, heavy, layered, and despairing music, they are true to their word. It’s heavy, and it embraces the end times.

“We needed sublimation, so we created this band, a kind of underdeveloped orbital entity, cursed by doubts and addictions,” the band cryptically says.

“At its weird inception, YONL was never considered as an active band and as a top priority. Everybody was more or less involved in other projects. It gave us freedom. We took our time, without planning anything. Three years later, once we found the first incarnation of the band and started to play live shows, we recorded the demo and then the circus began.”

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They started out with their demo record, Nord, and got such favorable comparisons as “The Cure playing Sludge,” according to their own recollections of early reviews. However, it wasn’t until they went from a normal, five-piece band to the “massive, instrumental entity crafting a sepulchral and down-tuned incantation seeking vengeance with a majestic and mournful vibe” they are today that their sound truly blossomed.

In order to capture their unique and extreme take on sludgy, extreme metal, they took a special approach to recording with their latest album, Consolamentum, out July 2 via Pelagic Records.

“We wanted to sound as organic and analog as possible,” they say. “All tracks were recorded live. The goal was to have the most natural, warm, and clean take possible to give volume to the dynamics of the songs. We aimed to have a production with a singular personality.” 💣

PHOTO Courtesy of Pelagic Records

French Connection

FLÉAU INTERVIEW WITH BAND MEMBERS SHREDOS AND SLAPOS BY MICK R.

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i! as a genre started out as a melodic, working class counter point to the more noisy, anarchic tricksters like The Damned and Sex Pistols, as well as a companion to the pub rock that proceeded punk rock’s rise in the U.K. during the late ’70s. Its champions included great Sham 69, Cockney Rejects, and The Business, all of whom put out some superb records in their day.

However, the music’s association with the skinhead subculture of the era would somewhat dampen its prospects for longevity, especially as skinheads became closely identified with the violent underbelly of various ascendant right wing political movements during the ’80s and ’90s.

If you’re going to play this style of music today, you kind of need to get around the heaping baggage of its recent past.

To do so, some have gone old school, like, really old school… like, back to 1498.

France’s Fléau are a modern oi! band with medieval flair, a band who cut their melodic bar rock with elements of hardcore and metal, and polish it to a deadly sheen.

They are known for wearing knights’ helmets as they perform, accessories which they describe as having been made from “thunder steel,” and which give them the

courage to do battle with their greatest foes. When asked, band member Shredos reveals this foe’s identity to be “fake people.” His bandmate Slapos then clarifies that this enemy army is large, surprisingly so, as it consists of “most of humanity.”

Verily, Fléau is a band to be feared, partly because they lack fear themselves. Even though they know no fear of death, they confide that they prefer writing and

PERTURBATOR

recording music to rushing headlong into battle, for obvious reasons.

As Shredos explains: “In a battle, you put your tears and blood into it. We do the same for a recording session. Failure can be hurtful, even fatal, on a battlefield, not so much in a recording session. It’s safer to record than going to war.”

Even though mounting a stage for a

performance is less likely to result in evisceration than to mounting a steed for a cavalry charge, Fléau see no reason to approach the latter with any less of a thirst for blood.

“Fléau was created in a time of crisis by angry people,” Slapos proclaims. “I guess, ‘Is too much enough?’ could be our motto.”💣

PHOTO David Fitt

INTERVIEW WITH JAMES KENT BY NICHOLAS SENIOR

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ow do you leave behind a scene you helped popularize? How can you move beyond something you defined for an entire generation? Those are the questions French electronic artist Perturbator (aka James Kent) had to figure out when making his magnum opus. Lustful Sacraments, out May 28 via Blood Music, is a rousing success not because it ignores what has made Perturbator the pinnacle of synthwave (the mix of French house and ’80s neon-drenched nostalgia), but because it honors the past and transcends simple genre labels to deliver his best record yet.

It is a marvel how Lustful Sacraments feels like a total departure from both The Uncanny Valley and New Model styles while also utilizing some of the same musical ingredients. Perturbator’s signature—for lack of a better word—throbbing bass riffs are better than ever. Songs like “Death of a Soul” and “Secret Devotion” are glorious industrial goth jams, timeless in sound, and as emotional as any goth coming out of the ’80s. So, what were some of Kent’s goals with Lustful Sacraments?

“The idea was mainly to make a love letter to post punk, while still keeping the DNA of Perturbator intact,” he says. “There was also this story I had in my head that became the framework for the album and its themes. I felt like the song structures need-

ed to be a little more simple than on New Model, and I wanted it to be driven by melodies rather than complex percussion and distorted synths.”

“I have this sort of horror vacui,” he continues. “So, it took some time for me to change my writing style and learn to not overcomplicate and add too many layers to the tracks. Lastly, I wanted the album to be much more organic, with real basses, guitars full of choruses, and distant vocals, which are sort of trademarks of the goth and post punk music I enjoy.”

Kent has not been shy about wanting to separate Perturbator from a lot of the pure ’80s nostalgia of synthwave. What’s so awesome about this record are his continued nods to so many musical bits of the decade (Vangelis, EBM, post-punk, goth, even thrash), filtered through a modern lens. Did Kent feel any added pressure to truly leave synthwave further behind with this record? With this and New Model, Perturbator’s really created something truly unique.

ter releasing The Uncanny Valley, I feel like I might’ve confused some people. At the time all the big movies and TV series were riding on that ’80s nostalgia. The scene got really oversaturated, and many of its producers are real gatekeepers. Back then, if you strayed too much from authentic ’80s sounds or implemented elements from other genres, you’d be considered a non-synthwave artist, and you’d just have to fuck off.”

“I’ve sort of reached a point where I don’t really bother with genre names or etiquettes in my music too much,” he answers.

“It’s way healthier for me and my sanity to simply go with the flow and compose what I want to hear. When I announced that I “Even though I started in that scene, these would be doing non-synthwave music afsort of ‘rules’ are not something I want to

abide by,” Kent adds. “I don’t want to cater to nostalgic people and become a parody of myself, and I also don’t want to make the same album over and over again. I said everything I wanted to say when it comes to making albums that are love letters to 1980s trash culture and exploitation cinema. So, it was just time to go my own way and try new things I’ve always wanted to try. New Model and Lustful Sacraments both are a result of that decision and my proudest achievements so far. They have elements of a lot of music that I love and feel much more personal in that sense.”💣

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ACTION/ADVENTURE INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST BLAKE EVARISTO AND GUITARIST BROMPTON JACKSON BY ROB KENT

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We have wanted this since we can remember,” is the opening line spoken in union by Action/Adventure vocalist Blake Evaristo and guitarist Brompton Jackson. The band have now gained some well-deserved traction after delivering their latest EP, Pulling Focus.

“We wrote what we felt, and we approached this EP swinging,” Evaristo says. “This music is honest, collaborative, and cathartic. Music is the most important thing to us, and this music comes from deep within ourselves.”

“When we wrote this music, we took a step back to really analyze what we were trying to convey within Pulling Focus; the desire was for listeners to be connected physiologically when they enter the sonic space of the music,” comments Jackson.

It is a record for everyone, so much so that the band are aware of how limiting and big today’s musical world is. The album integrates listeners of all demographics and gives direction, in a perfectly crafted formula, for new sounds to enter people’s lives with ease.

“This genre has one agenda at a time, and so does the music industry as a whole,” Jackson says. “Multi-genre shows were amazing for me when I was going to shows, and sounds need to be examined, and pushed further, and head into as many genres as possible; it is the best way to do so in today’s climate.”

this more than anything else and have been tenacious and constantly pushed this project. We had so much hope in a lot of these songs. Yes, we have been grinding, but also patient.

We grew up on pop-punk, and since we really clicked with that genre of music, it has been so important to us.

In high school, when I was in junior year, we played at a bowling alley and 150 people came, and people knew the words. Moments like that I still, and will always, remember as the shape and the reason why we do this today.”

A small spark can become the catalyst to pursue and never forget why a dream exists, and Action/Adventure play music for one reason only—because they love it. 💣

Action/Adventure are set to be that band that unite and break down boundaries and captivate modern alternative listeners in a way that indulges and educates all at once.

“We took some risks and tried different approaches, and we just all hoped and prayed it worked, and currently it is working,” says Jackson.

“It has been very validating to watch the response to the EP so far.

“Pulling Focus is the combination of the six years we have been a band,” Evaristo adds. “This record is the best version of us in every way. All the questions we had about the band were answered when making this. It is a product of the band’s history and how much we love doing this. We want

PHOTO Chris Anderson

THY CATAFALQUE INTERVIEW WITH MULTI-INSTRUMENTALIST TAMÁS KÁTAI BY CALEB R. NEWTON

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he Hungarian, avant-garde metal project Thy Catafalque present a stirring portrait of inner contemplation in the shadow of a storm on their compelling new album, Vadak. As suggested by the forest-filled cover art, venturing into the immersive world of Vadak (meaning “wildlings”) feels like rushing through an ominously formidable stretch of shadowy woods before emotionally settling into the expanse.

in its heavier moments, the album consistently dashes along rather than sticking to a slower pace, keeping the trek electrifying. The crushing guitars run across album opener “Szarvas,” the over-tenminute-long “Móló,” and elsewhere.

Shadows of existential tension have always stretched across the work of Thy Catafalque, Kátai observes.

what I do. I cannot really get away from this.”

Although Vadak is strikingly heavy, its rhythms often prove emotively dynamic, making the journey feel self-reflective. As it soars into unique crescendo-like passages, including the wistful violins on “Vadak (Az átváltozás rítusai),” the record packs grounded resolve. The heavy moments balance with lighter passages, creating a feeling like laying down to rest in the soil once reaching the record’s conclusion.

“This is my main idea. This whole project is all about—not death, but almost like that.

“As I think about the album, it’s about Even the band’s name is Thy Catafalque. “In the beginning, it was just playing fast and running or fleeing from the realities of A catafalque is a pedestal for a coffin. Still, life,” multi-instrumentalist and project the main motive is this tragical escapism mastermind Tamás Kátai shares. “I see from death, but also looking at the beautiful it as: we are like running animals in the things. So, I don’t think that has changed a forest of existence and running from the lot. I think this theme, this topic has been realities of life, running from time, and here for the last 20 years.” this is the whole thing. And yeah, it can be cathartic at times, sometimes it’s tragic, but also this forest—this is an al- As for Vadak in particular, the album is legorical forest—this is a beautiful place “darker,” the multi-instrumentalist says. anyway. So, I try to see the nice things in passing, and I try to concentrate on the “It’s, I would say, darker because [2020’s] Naiv was not lighter, but more playful, and beautiful things as well.” probably this kind of playfulness or cheerfulness is not really present here,” Kátai The vibrant record, a June release from observes. “There are some songs and there Season of Mist, features a worldwide are some parts that are quite happy, and list of collaborators providing a striking it’s quite cheerful and playful, but yeah array of instrumentation, from the gently moving cello on album closer “Zúzmara,” this time I think it’s darker in general tone than the previous one. It wasn’t intentional. to the Armenian woodwind instrument I didn’t want to make it harder or make it known as the duduk that appears on “Piros-sárga.” Alongside these flourishes, heavier, but it turned out like this, and I’m sure it’s because of the global situation as Thy Catafalque employ ferocious metal well because obviously it has its effects on riffing that proves quite tense, although

THE RAGING NATHANS INTERVIEW WITH JOSH GOLDMAN BY JOHN SILVA

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he Raging Nathans have been a group of underdogs from their inception. The punk band are based in Dayton, a small city in Ohio, and, while centrality to other cities in the Midwest certainly has advantages, living in Dayton can also be a setback when trying to get on regional shows.

furious, but it has changed a lot,” Kátai explains, discussing the guiding principles of Thy Catafalque. “Because in these times, I’m not interested in being heavy at all. If it happens, it happens, but it’s not the main goal to play heavy, or to play fast, or to be dark. It happens, but it is not my main motivation. However, it used to be, and I think that’s a big change. I just see the world more colorful now, and in general, I’m more playful than I used to be, even though [Vadak] was not so playful. But still, there are these elements.”💣

PHOTO Orsolya Karancz

Goldman says. “So, I just said fuck it man, I’m just gonna do everything on our own.

Everything the Nathans have done, we worked for and we earned. And I’m proud of that.”

Waste My Heart, like The Raging Nathans’ previous LP, will be released through Goldwhen you play that much, not everybody The band have worked tirelessly over the man’s own label, Rad Girlfriends Records. In can do it all the time. So, you’re constantly past decade, and they don’t take any sucputting out records themselves, the Nathans teaching people who are filling in how to play cess that comes their way for granted. embody a DIY ethos to the very core. old songs, or rehearsing for a show instead of moving forward and writing new material.

Having the same four people in the band has “I know what it’s like for labels not to pay “I cherish the opportunities that I’ve received because of that,” Goldman says. “I attention to you, or people not to pay been great in terms of being able to move attention to you when you’re really trying,” won’t let a single thing go to waste.”💣 forward instead of constantly looking back.”

“When bigger bands would come through, a lot of times they would skip Dayton, and they would just play Cincinnati or Columbus,” explains Raging Nathans band member Josh Goldman. This affected the Nathans’ ability to get on shows in bigger Ohio cities.

With a solidified, four-piece lineup, the band have been able to record more frequently, and have made two albums in less than a year. Waste My Heart came out June 4, a follow up to 2020’s Oppositional Defiance. Goldman says it is the band’s best album to date.

“Being from Dayton, it was like we couldn’t catch a break,” Goldman says. “Because the promoters were always going to put on a band that’s bigger locally than [a band from] Dayton.”

“The thing that we wanna make sure that we do with every record is make it better than the last record. That’s a conscious thing,” he explains. Indeed, as the band have grown in both their songwriting and musicianship, each record they make has consistently improved on the one that preceded it.

Despite their geographical setbacks, the band worked their asses off to get their music in front of people, touring so aggressively that it sometimes prevented them “We keep writing better songs,” Goldman explains. “And I’m not boasting or bragfrom being able to record new material. ging; I just know that we’re getting better.

The more we write and the more we “We were constantly touring or constantly record, the better we get.” playing shows,” Goldman explains. “And

PHOTO Stephanie Baker

NEW NOISE 15

SUMO CYCO

All of this flavor and personality is for a “Our sound is like a jambalaya, and the trick is to add lots of ingredients but still make it tasty. good cause, as Sever is quick to add: Matt [“MD13” Drake], our guitarist and other founder of the band, and I come from very “I really just want fans to know I’m going different backgrounds, and when we write, through the same things they are. The INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST SKYE “SEVER” SWEETNUM anger, frustration, depression, confusion, we clash much of the time. It’s the hitting

BY NICHOLAS SENIOR and I’ve struggled, but I’m trying my best sweet spot in between us that is the magic to keep that magic alive. I see people who moment. It’s an unlikely pairing, but we are nitiation out now via Napalm Records, struggles. The idea with Sumo Cyco was have their spark dimmed by this world, better and better at pushing ourselves and always to be an injection of color into a is the culmination of an interesting because there are so many external facdark landscape, a place to freely exper- each other to find the refinement in the band becoming an excellent one. The tors that weigh you down. I can only hope chaos. With Initiation, the process of writing iment in front of an audience. The Cyco Hamilton, Ontario based eclectic rock if I can’t be the one to change hearts and started in 2018. It’s not that we intended to City world has slowly been built, music outfit Sumo Cyco channel all sorts of minds, that someone who listens to us will take so long to release a record, but we did video by music video, over the course of styles into their first for new label Napalm. be. Passing on inspiration is one of the write more songs than we ever have to curate In a world full of grim and gritty anthems, 10 years.” greatest things we can do to help each the best combo we could. When we write, it’s the sheer vibrancy of Initiation feels like a other through dire times. You never know drug—it’s like a rainbow of punk/metal/ “Cyco City is like a distorted mirror re- still an adventure, and we don’t quite know when your spark will ignite a fire.”💣 flection of our reality,” Sever continues. exactly where we’ll end up.” pop bops unlike anything else around.

However, there’s no fear of delving into “It’s how I feel comfortable depicting my personal and existential darkness, ele- struggles. For instance, the giant spider invasion could be an analogy for COVID vating these jams into something special. and fire engulfing the city for climate change. I really do love to live in the Bands who create their own worlds and run with it allow for a unique and inte- spaces between reality and fantasy. The record was recorded both before and grated creative outlet—it’s also awesome when such a challenging concept is exe- after the pandemic hit, and like everyone else, I was affected deeply. Everyone has cuted so well. After playing around with darkness and trains in previous records, their own battles to fight in life and I always tend to have a thread of overcoming Initiation focuses on four rival gangs and and empowerment running through all how they intersect in Cyco City. It allows for some fantastic exploration of identity, the conflict and despair, almost as a differences, and the power of unity. Vo- mantra to myself. I’ll write songs that most of the time make more sense in hindsight.” calist Sever takes me through the concept and how this record was shaped by the Initiation is a record defined by expertly past couple years. blended contrasts—bursts of punk, metal, dancehall, electronic pop, and even swing “I’m a huge fan of Dream of Ascension. My mesh in a delightful musical concoction. imagination does feel like it’s constantly The sense of competing goals meeting in unfolding the memories of my childhood PHOTO the middle is the central theme in Sumo Cyand adolescence, and gives birth to new Francesca Ludikar co’s creative world, as Sever acknowledges. seeds of inspiration and hope though the

I

TOOTH AND CLAW INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST DANIEL AUSTIN AND GUITARIST SCOTT CROUSE BY SEAN MCLENNAN

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ast year, it seemed as if the world stood still. Communities around the world went out of service, as shelter-in-place orders went into effect.

A little over a year later and we’re all still dealing with the aftermath of the pandemic. However, what managed to keep operating throughout this period of time were the creative, musical minds of Scott Crouse (Earth Crisis/SECT) and Daniel Austin (Die Young).

The formation of metal/hardcore collab- Known for his colossal contributions to the orative Tooth and Claw, saw those two, more groove-oriented, hardcore sound James Chang (SECT, Undying, Catharsis) developed by Earth Crisis throughout the and Cameron Joplin (Magnitude, Ecostrike), ’90s, guitarist Scott Crouse began piecing connecting via file share during the together material that would be used for dreadful pandemic, to create an outlet for Tooth and Claw early last year. seething aggression. The members banded together to contribute their instrumental “I consider starting a new project when capabilities on nine viciously heavy songs it seems like the songs I’m writing don’t for their debut album Dream of Ascension, really fit the identity of the other bands I out May 21 via Good Fight Music. do,” says Crouse. “SECT and Earth Crisis are very different animals than Tooth and Claw, and these songs needed their own heading. With Tooth and Claw I get to explore territory that just wouldn’t work with the other bands.”

Crouse reached out to Die Young vocalist, author, and vegan powerlifter, Daniel Austin, to build on his musical ideas.

Shortly after quarantine kicked in, Austin received a surprise email from Scott.

PHOTO Reid Haithcock

16 NEW NOISE

“The email said he had a couple of songs he wanted to send me to check out, and he asked if I’d be interested in doing a new project with him,” Austin says. “I told Scott ‘yes’ without even hearing the tracks.

Earth Crisis was my introduction to hardcore, straightedge, and veganism when I was 14. To say they changed my life is not an exaggeration. I consider myself lucky to be a part of this project.”

Musically, Tooth and Claw represents something faster and heavier than anything the two musicians have worked on in the past (respectively).

“I’ve learned to understand and appreciate a fast part a bit more now,” says Crouse. “I grew up loving the crossover-thrash genre mainly, so that was a lot of mid-tempo, groove kind of stuff; fast parts didn’t really do it for me until much later. I think that’s one of the things that feels a bit freeing with Tooth and Claw—I’ve loosened my belt a little.”

“I always tried to avoid certain things because I felt they were very genre specific,” Crouse continues. “But on this record, I really let that go and tried to embrace certain genre tropes instead.

I don’t really like when things are too contrived, but I did think things like, ‘OK, time for a death metal riff’ a handful of times while writing this.”

Given the metal nature and compositions of the songwriting, both Crouse and Austin agreed that the lyrical vision for this project “called for deeply symbolic, metaphorical lyrics.”

“More introspection, less declaration,” says Austin. “This album is the first time I’ve tried to explore feelings with a sense of mysticism as a songwriter. That’s what the title Dream of Ascension refers to—something metaphysical, a calling.

A call to survival, a call to overcome.” 💣

book nook rather than a complete history.”

Chapman, who has 20 years of experience editing, publishing, and creating comics, curated and edited the stories in American Cult. The book covers wellknown cults like the Manson family, as well as more obscure ones, and, critically, it attempts to view those involved in these cults as fully human.

“I hope it just brings a more humanistic view to these groups,” Chapman says. “’Cause I think that if you haven’t [had] any experience with these groups or you haven’t thought about it too deeply, you’d probably be quick to write off the people in this group as brainwashed idiots, worthy of mockery.”

That’s not to say that American Cult skips over the dark parts, including the sinister acts of violence, sexual assault, and manipulation that have occurred in these fringe groups. But what sets this book apart is that it doesn’t only focus on those things.

ple join cults because they’re seeking.

They’re seeking a higher path in their life, they’re seeking a greater truth, and they find someone, or a group, that resonates with them. And their interpretation of reality, of the divine, makes sense to them.

And that’s why they join, usually.”

“A lot of books that are out there focus on the scandal of it,” Chapman says.

“The gorier, the bloodier, the sexier, Because American Cult explores these the better. To sell books, to get ratings, stories without othering people, some readers might see small reflections of that’s kind of a lot of what I see out their own social circles within its pages. there when I look at documentaries or books about cults. And that didn’t sit right with me; that didn’t feel real. It felt “I think community is the big thing,” Chapman says. “That’s at the heart of sensationalized. And I was looking for all these groups, these cults were like something that was journalism.” families to the people that were in them, and they really meant everything Chapman’s approach when compiling to them. It’s easy to understand how it’s the comics in American Cult was to tell hard to leave that. What are you withthese stories with 50 percent empathy out your community?” and 50 percent justice, and the comic authors were on board with this vision.

If there’s any aspect of American Chapman has an empathetic view of Cult that people in the DIY music scene why many people join cults in the first will be able to relate to, it’s the way the place.

INTERVIEW WITH EDITOR ROBYN CHAPMAN BY JOHN SILVA cult members are often closer to one another than to their own family members.

“I think that people join cults because that This was never meant to be a graphic novel from Silver Sprocket. “This particular cult resonates with them,” he primer on all the cults in Amer- is meant to be a collection of stories says. “I don’t think people join cults be- “You strip away the authoritarian figure ica, that would be an encyclopedia,” about a number of cults that are, or cause they’re stupid, or because they’re and the religion, and you have commuwere, in America, or had significant ties brainwashed. That might happen every comic editor Robyn Chapman explains nity. That’s what punk is, right? Commuto America. Just a collection of stories now and then, but most of the time peo- nity and shared values.” 💣💣💣 of American Cult, the latest nonfiction

AMERICAN CULT

“

18 NEW NOISE

book nook

PUNKS IN PEORIA INTERVIEW WITH CO-AUTHORS DAWSON BARRETT AND JONATHAN WRIGHT BY BEN SAILER

in the country—if it can “play in Peoria,” as the old cliché goes, then it can catch on anywhere. Including punk rock.

In their new book Punks In Peoria: Making a Scene in the American Heartland (available June 2021 via University of Illinois Press), co-authors Dawson Barrett and Jonathan Wright dive deep into the unlikely history of their unassuming hometown’s nascent counterculture. It’s the quintessential story of small-city youth creating something from nothing, and against all odds, making noise that would reverberate across the country.

“The initial impetus really came from being in touring bands in the early 2000s,” Barrett says. “Many of my best show experiences were in sort of no-name places like Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and Fargo, North Dakota—cities, like Peoria, where young people really had to get together and build their own music scenes from the ground up.”

S

urrounded by farms in the middle of the American Midwest, Peoria, Illinois isn’t known for much more than corn stalks and conservatism. Peoria’s even-keeled cultural temperament has made it one of the most popular test markets for consumer goods

Based on five years of writing and research, Barrett and Wright piece together the timeline of Peoria punk’s progression through interviews with bands and show-goers, poring over copies of xeroxed zines, and gathering old show flyers. While they did their best to corroborate as many details

IT’S HARD TO BE A PERSON INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR BRETT NEWSKI BY JOHN B. MOORE

as possible, much of this history hadn’t been well documented before. As such, it aims to capture moments in time as best as they were remembered, rather than as absolute truths.

The book touches on tons of interesting historical footnotes along the way, including an ill-fated show featuring a young G.G. Allin, and 7 Seconds inadvertently instigating a showdown between punks and jocks after playing next to a youth hockey practice at an ice-skating rink.

These pieces of local scene lore are often entertaining on their own, but when stitched together over the course of 250plus pages—and alongside the companion soundtrack that will be released on digital and vinyl formats via Alona’s Dream Records—they come alive to paint a much broader and more fascinating picture.

“I think most every city has a unique story to tell, and perhaps even warrants more than one book,” Wright says. “I don’t think small cities are any more or less interesting or unique than larger cities. But they are very different environments in which to come of age—and that difference alone makes their stories worth telling.” 💣

his drawings to tackle the stigma of mental health in a book.

“My mental health has improved drastically since talking openly about my faults or embarrassing crap I’ve done,” Newski says.

“I haven’t regretted being fully transparent about my worst lulls, although my parents got quite upset over a few personal things I’ve shared with the public. I feel bad when they feel bad. But I think it’s just that parental love and protection in their DNA kicking in. They’re incredible.”

perhaps you’re a sociopath,” Newski says.

“So, if this book can make someone feel less anxious for even 20 minutes, that’s a start.”

After a year kept off the road due to the pandemic, he is currently lining up shows for summer and fall.

You can order It’s Hard To Be A Person: Defeating Anxiety, Surviving the World, and Having More Fun at brettnewski.com.💣

Why a book?

“I felt it was time to make a project with some deeper utilitarian value for people,” he says.

“Music is magical and medicinal and my first love, but music is also very niche depending on what each listener enjoys. A book can cast a wider net and be more useful to more people. It’s not limited by sonic taste palettes.”

T

o anyone who has ever listened to his music or podcast, followed his musings online, or viewed his crudely drawn, often laugh out loud sketches, it’s obvious that Brett Newski has no problems sharing his mental health struggles with the world.

Through humor and surprisingly frank honesty, Newski has torn away any stigma surrounding oversharing about depression and anxiety.

It shouldn’t be a surprise that the always-prolific Newski also created an eightsong soundtrack to pair with the book. At his parents’ home, he found a bunch of lyrical scraps and song ideas he wrote in high school that focused issues like coming of age and handling anxiety (even before he was aware of what anxiety was). The songs served as “fire starters” and were recorded two years ago in a friend’s basement in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Newski and his collaborator, Spatola, didn’t know what to do with this batch of songs, but when the book idea came along, it was serendipitous, and the tunes fit perfectly as a soundtrack.

So, it seems only natural that he would use

“Everyone has wobbles in their brain, unless

NEW NOISE

19

INTERVIEW WITH STRETCH PANIC BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

PHOTO MJ Haha

I

n the wake of the terror from the past several years: a Trump presidency, extreme hate for trans folks, especially folks of color, and systematic racism and police brutality, queer folks have stepped up and fought back, protesting and voting in record numbers and taking a stand on issues that are scary and important. And all that is exhausting, which is probably why so many queers have also found refuge in cartoons, Netflix, and fantasy. Stretch Panic are the band version of that fun, yet still incredibly important, escapism.

“We were all in the Austin music scene, and we’ve played in different projects, and then we got together in 2016 around Halloween, and it started as a Halloween band,” the band say. “The theme was, like, ghost girls singing songs about a haunted world.”

While it started as a fun way to put together a local supergroup

20 NEW NOISE

and play spooky music, they soon realized there was more chemistry there, and they needed to pursue the musical partnership.

world that still keeps the important work in the mind, emphasizing inclusion and tolerance while creating a unique world for the listener.

dition to making queer music for queer people, they also love putting a femme face forward and showing others what’s possible.

When they describe their music, In addition to their progressive “We like using the term ‘girl band’ it sounds like the plot of the next political stance, they’ve also given in a sense because it’s so rare to kid-friendly, woke, and incredibly back to queer- and women-em- for young girls to see this, and it wholesome cartoon show you powering nonprofits through represents the fact that you can make friends with other women,” want to binge. music and ticket sales. they explain. “I think a lot of girls “Imagine a whimsical adventure “We also try to boost the signal on are socialized that other women with pirates and zombies, but other bands who are also queer, are the problem, and they don’t also romantic, and a whole world nonbinary, women, people of feel like they can make friends about inclusion and empower- color, and support their bands with them.” 💣💣💣 ment, and not judging someone so we can help get their voice out for being a monster, but for their there, because we think represenbehavior. And we’ve gone from tation is really important. And we spooky to more colorful and feel grateful we’ve been able to whimsical. We want it to be a have opportunities to play shows really fun, safe space, especially in queer spaces and supportive because we started in 2016.” shows that are raising money or awareness for the community.”

Inspired by cartoons, their queerness and identities, the feminine, While they don’t like being comhorror movies from the ’80s, and modified as a “girl band” or just good stories in general, the idea reduced to being a queer band, was to create an escape from the they do love the fact that, in ad-

Hirs Collective

I

t’s important to note that The HIRS Collective are truly a collective, not a band, meaning no one member is more important than the next.

In accordance with that, the person interviewed for this article will be referred to as “the collective member” rather than by name. Easy, right?

INTERVIEW BY JASON SCHREURS

PHOTO Maha

“It’s surprising in the media how many times they say, ‘We need your name,’” says the collective member.

This year marks the 10-year anniversary (“in theory”) of the uncompromising Philadelphia band that throws elements of punk, hardcore, and grindcore into a blender and out comes a style best described as blender-core.

The collective’s latest release is called The Third 100 Songs, which alludes to the fact it has recorded more than 300 songs since it formed.

“If someone doesn’t like a certain genre, they will say every song sounds the same. But if you really listen to our longer songs, ones that are more than 10 seconds, you will hear the to provide care and support,” a band who has trans folks,” difference, with different peo- says the collective member. says the collective member. ple writing them or producing “Also, not being afraid to talk “Out of the massive amounts of them—giving birth to them,” about the things we’re afraid of, members we have, there’s trans laughs the collective member. or that bug us. In theory, it’s this folks; there’s cis folks; we have never-ending support group.” non-binary; we have intersex.

Yes, collective members are The spectrum is bananas.” allowed to laugh.

The HIRS Collective are often referred to as a “trans band” and, The collective members aren’t Blasting chaotic music with a in some ways, that seems similar offended to be called a trans message, it’s important that to how alternative rock bands in band because their roots are the meaning isn’t lost in the the ’90s were called “all-female” pissed-off, queer, and trans. wonderful noise. The HIRS Col- or “female-fronted.” Is labelling lective’s main talking points are a band “trans” the same kind of “We’ve set it up like that. As long as inclusivity and safety, particu- tokenization? you’re not a ding dong, it’s chill to larly for queer and trans folks. call us a trans band. But if you’re “It depends on who’s saying it. It’s trying to say you’re not transpho“While aggressive sonically, we either a version of tokenization, bic because you listen to HIRS, are collective of folks that want or being excited about finding that’s not how it works, friend.”

22 NEW NOISE

An emotional gut-punch track on The Third 100 Songs is “Say Her Name,” which lists all of the documented trans women who were killed during the year preceding the song’s release.

Proceeds were donated to the Attic Youth Center, Women Against Abuse, and Morris Home, which supports trans women’s mental health.

“These women were taken away from us and we are saying their names in the song, and it felt really powerful to do that.”

One of the reasons The HIRS Collective keeps the main members’ identities a secret is to eliminate the hierarchy of traditional bands. Bonus points come from an element of mystery.

“We think mystery is sexy, but the main reason of being a whole unit instead of ‘this person does this, this person does that,’ is it is taking away one person being more important than the other,” says the collective member.

Bands almost always have someone that takes up more space or has their name more attached to the group’s public profile. Thinking of most bands, it’s rare to see them as completely equal units.

“Often, there’s a tier of who is more important,” says the HIRS collective member. “The reason we like to collaborate with so many folks, or invite them to be part of the collective, is to say: ‘This is all of us. There is no one person more important than anyone else.’ It removes that fame or coolness, and people pay attention to the actual art and collaborative work.” 💣

F

POM POM SQUAD

rom Pom Squad’s debut album, Death of a Cheerleader, is making waves prior to its June 25 release.

The album and its aesthetic are the goosebumped and “highly stylized” vision of Pom Pom Squad’s frontwoman, Mia Berrin: “While carving the identity of the record, I was particularly drawn to David Lynch and John Waters’ depictions of Suburbia. In David Lynch’s work, it’s listless, dreamlike, eerie, and surreal. In John Waters, it’s whimsical, campy, and subversive.”

This artistic statement is the perfect description for Pom Pom Squad’s approach to “quiet grrrl punk,” an ode to riot grrrl that strikes a “balance … between loud, fast, angry songs, and subdued, emotional, lyric-focused songs.” The band’s artful image is also an important piece to completing the quiet grrrl vibe. Berrin designs many of the costumes and set pieces for the band’s music videos, album covers, and other promotional art herself, and works with designers, like Bailey Elayne, to ensure her art can be fully realized.

Elayne’s creations were featured in the “Head Cheerleader” music video, inspired by films Heathers and But I’m a Cheerleader for their heightened and theatrical aesthetic. For the “Lux” music video, Berrin pulled directly from The Virgin Suicides to tell Pom Pom Squad’s version of Lux’s story.

INTERVIEW WITH FRONTWOMAN MIA BERRIN BY EMMA LAURENT

PHOTO Sammy Ray

“Sofia Coppola’s work is much more grounded in reality, but still has an elevated and curated kind of beauty that skews soft, demure, and feminine,” Berrin says.

The Brooklyn four-piece’s sound creates a unique listening experience that stimulates and comforts the listener at

the same time. Berrin co-produced the album with Sarah Tudzin, who brought her vast experience and technical skill to the project to create the intricate album. One of the highlights of the album is the band’s cover of “Crimson + Clover.” The choice to do the cover was both a musically driven and emotional choice.

“The original version of ‘Crimson and Clover’ evokes such a specific vibe, in that it’s so saccharine and earnest that it becomes creepy,” Berrin says. “I really wanted to exacerbate the horror-movie-weirdness that’s right under the surface. Plus, I love honoring the context of Joan Jett’s cover, which, for so many queer people I know, is one of the first songs they heard where a woman uses she/her pronouns in a romantic way. I like thinking of music as a tradition and context as a musical tool—how certain songs are passed down and reinterpreted—so I wanted to pay homage to and honor what both versions of the song meant to me.

Building out the noise sections and cutting out those big major chord stretches brought it into [Pom Pom Squad’s] world in a really fun way. It takes this romantic song and makes [it] into a song about the panic and anxiety that exploring your sexuality can evoke.”

Pom Pom Squad’s new album is for the truly authentic listener, and anyone who has ever loved. This is slightly macabre, considering that Berrin’s ideal setting to listen to the album is in the Red Room from Twin Peaks, suggesting that falling in love is like sitting in purgatory’s waiting room. However, we should all be so lucky to risk the Black Lodge if the result is the illustrious Death of a Cheerleader. 💣

A Riff Of One’s Own:

Gender, Queerness and Hysteria in Glam Metal INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR BETH WINEGARNER BY JOHN B. MOORE

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and homophobia, Winegarner cautions That essay is one of two in Winegarner’s latest zine, A Riff Of One’s Own: Gender, against dismissing the entire genre outQueerness and Hysteria in Glam Metal. right as vapid and simply unimportant.

Along with “Finding My Queerness in Sebastian Bach’s Gold Pants,” she also “There’s a lot in it that reflects the culture delves into Def Leppard’s biggest-selling of the era—for better and worse—and a album in “What Def Leppard’s Hysteria lot to explore, especially in terms of genTeaches Us About Actual Hysteria.” der and gender presentation, attempts to address political issues of the time, as “That got me thinking about the gorgeous White Lion and some other bands did, frontmen of bands like White Lion and “After I finished the Skid Row piece, I and the way ‘real metal’ bands and fans started thinking about Def Leppard’s Skid Row, and the feelings I had toward related to the popularity of glam-metal album Hysteria,” Winegarner says. “I’ve them as a teenager,” says Winegarner. “I bands,” she says. “There was, and is, a studied the diagnosis of hysteria quite a decided I wanted to write an exploration lot of effort to figure out what ‘belongs’ bit, as someone who has chronic illness of what those attractions meant in terms under the metal umbrella and what and PTSD. And the album has pretty much of my queerness, and also wanted to go doesn’t, a lot of tribalism, again centered nothing to do with the diagnosis, which deeper on the gender experimentation was what made the comparison an inter- on masculinity and heteronormativity, but those bands were doing. I find it interesting with occasional pockets of inclusiveness.” esting exercise.” that they adopted hyper-femme looks and

makeup in a lot of cases but expressed A Riff Of One’s Own is available in print for hypermasculinity—and even toxic mascu- And while some critiques of the glam or hair metal genres are certainly warrant- $5.99 and as an ebook for $1.99 at bethlinity—because heavy metal in general is a ed (pun intended), with the obvious sexism winegarner.com/riff. 💣 hypermasculine, heteronormative culture.” ournalist, essayist, and pop culture critic Beth Winegarner was listening to a podcast early last year when one of the hosts talked about how her teenage attraction to long-haired Brad Pitt in Legends of the Fall was a sign of her queerness.

NEW NOISE 23

CHER STRAUBERRY

PHOTO Dain Dunkin

INTERVIEW BY LILY MOAYERI

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here is something wonderfully analog in front of the whole internet. The moment I about Cher Strauberry. The punk transitioned, skating popped off; then music rocker, skater, zine maker, accidental started popping off. In retrospect, me doing influencer, and trans woman creates an that helped a bunch of people and opened environment that is not so much nostal- a lot of doors, which is cool.” gic as it is tactile, earthy, and engaging.

Strauberry sits in her home in Austin, Texas, Strauberry has been part of the skating where she has recently relocated, with a community from the age of 12 when she sketch pad on her knee and her face so won her first trophy from the California flawlessly made up she looks ultra-high Amateur Skateboard League. It wasn’t until def. As she answers questions about her up- discovering the queer skate company Unity coming album, Chering is Caring, clarifies Skateboards that Strauberry found her first misconceptions about her past, and paints queer community. a detailed picture of her present, she never stops drawing.

“Skateboarding has a long way to go,” she says of skating’s queerphobic nature. “It’s Strauberry is making her next zine. She holds jocks in a different uniform.” the sketch pad up and away to examine her work, then bends down over it to draw again, On Instagram, Strauberry receives both looking up into her iPhone often to maintain death threats and accolades for her truly eye contact and say at very regular intervals: impressive skating skills. She caught the “Do you know what I mean?” attention of the Smithsonian, which houses one of her signature boards from All Hail For all her analog existence, Strauberry is an the Black Market in its collection. internet sensation. While she doesn’t own a computer, she’s very handy on Instagram. It “When they hit me up, I was like, ‘What’s the is on this platform that she documented her Smithsonian?’” says Strauberry. “I didn’t transition, although she didn’t realize that realize it at the time at all, but I guess I was was what she was doing when it started. the first trans woman to have her own skateboard, and the Smithsonian jumped on it.”

“When I first posted trans stuff, I had 2000 followers, and I knew most of them,” says It was also on Instagram that Strauberry Strauberry. “It seemed like the easiest way was discovered by tattoo artist Marc to tell people. I was just being honest and Cross, who released her trans-centric genuine. I had no idea that I was transitioning punk project Twompdax and became

EVAN GREER

“

her first skating sponsor. Similarly, Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes saw her perform on Instagram Live and is now releasing Chering is Caring on his Silver Arrow Records.

scratchy, Chering is Caring is as honest and basic as pressing record on a boombox while playing for yourself in your bedroom—which is the case for the majority of these songs.

Chering is Caring has 31 lo-fi, bite-sized “I grew up with a bunch of older punk songs recorded on microcassette tape, dudes,” says Strauberry of her teenage out of which only a third was recorded ex- years living in the Bay Area, after leaving home at the age of 15 with her parents’ pressly for the album. The rest is culled from tapes Strauberry had amassed over years, blessing. “They all had four-tracks, and it was just what was accessible to me. I like including soundbites from conversations tapes. I like the hiss. I like crappy recordwith the likes of Rodney Bingenheimer and ings. I don’t like things too polished. It feels Kathleen Hanna. Strauberry refers to the ingenuine, at least for my music.” 💣 album as a mixtape. Stripped back and

PHOTO Joel Benjamin

INTERVIEW BY KEEGAN WILLIAMS Do you remember when basements felt like stadiums?” indie punk artist Evan Greer asks in the opening line of her album Spotify is Surveillance, the track “Back Row” acting almost as an allusion to a simpler time, pre-pandemic, maybe even before that.

On the track, Greer explores taking up space and being part of a community as a trans person, and the lyrics resonate at a time when people have been more isolated from one another than ever before.

By track three, “Surveillance Capitalism,” she dives right into the detriment of contemporary structures on both individuals and the music industry she is part of.

“For me, my music and activism have always been inextricably linked,” Greer says.

“That doesn’t mean that every song I write has to be some raging protest anthem, but it means that I often find music as an important creative outlet to explore and talk about the political issues that are important to me.”

The release follows Spotify’s announcement of their new patent, which would use an AI voice recognition tool to listen to people’s conversations, infer accents

24 NEW NOISE

and perceived gender, and use the information to recommend music and ads.

Greer already had the title ready before the news came out, which became all the more reason to hone-in on these themes.

“Originally, I was just pointing out the fact that Spotify has the same behavioral advertising-based business model of surveillance capitalist giants like Facebook and YouTube. But then it felt like Spotify was basically just actively trying to prove my point.”

Greer helps run the digital nonprofit Fight For the Future and is working with the Union of Musicians and Allied Workers to support the #JusticeAtSpotify campaign.

“It was so important to me to have a space to just express myself and create art that reflects what I’m seeing and doing in the world,” Greer says. “I think it’s so important for both artists and activists to try to connect with people on an emotional level rather than just an ideological level, and my hope is that the album really reflects that humanity.”

Looking to the future of the music industry, Greer says: “I shudder to think of a

future where music is made to please “The internet has the potential to grant every kid on Earth universal access to some cold-blooded, profit-maximizing human knowledge and creativity, and enalgorithm rather than created for human connection the way it has been for literal- sure that people are fairly compensated for the things that they create,” she says. ly thousands of years, but I also don’t think “But we only get that future if we fight for it.” it has to be that way.”

Greer says we must start building alternatives, embracing a reality where artists own the means of not just production, but distribution of their music, which will require new technology and policy changes.

Spotify is Surveillance is available now to purchase and stream. To learn more about Greer’s advocacy work and get involved, visit unionofmusicians.org, stopspotifysurveillance.org, or fightforthefuture.org. 💣

MAN ON MAN

PHOTO Steven Harwick

INTERVIEW WITH CO-CREATOR RODDY BOTTUM

BY KEEGAN WILLIAMS

T

an intimate and fluid creative process. he band name, tracklist, and album cover of MAN ON MAN’s (or M.O.M.) self-titled LP already tell a story about “There wasn’t a structure, other than the both the musicians and the content of the record, of just passing ideas back and forth or writbefore you even press play. The two band- ing together, and it was in those moments of collaboration that we started connecting mates and lovers, Joey Holman and Roddy more deeply as a couple,” Holman says.

Bottum, grimace in a playful embrace on the cover, which often transcends genre “We were in the middle of sharing this intense experience while also working on somewhile simultaneously owning their sound. thing we weren’t quite sure what it was just yet, so it was vulnerable but also incredibly The shoegaze-adjacent opener “Stohner” is fun. We created a quarantine bubble and engulfed in distorted guitars and a patient tempo, with longing vocals and a per- made the most of it.” sistence in the instrumental ebbs and flows While it was initially a low-stakes endeavor, through the track’s six minutes. The listener the intensity of pushing through the project knows they are in for a dynamic experience once it began only worked to make the LP by track two, “Daddy,” in the sing-song lyrics what it is. and playful guitars breaks. With a variety of influences ranging from alt-rock, pop-punk, and R&B, ultimately the record is the result “Getting through them together was part of all queer people. timately, M.O.M. want to use their music the theme and the sound and the outcome of two lovers and artists trusting each other. to open even more doors in the future, for of what we did together,” Bottum says. “It “It feels like there’s a responsibility in this themselves and other queer artists. provided a safe haven for us to get to know “I think we relied on each other more than age to address a global community of each other better, and to make ourselves anything,” Bottum says. “Joey was honestly my queer people,” Bottum says. “We talk about “We are also thinking about what our live feel worthwhile while everything else fell main influence. We hadn’t written or made creating safe places on tour, online and show will look like, not just how we’ll sound apart,” he adds. music together, and I was doing my best to offline, that makes room for queer people and who will be in our band, but what an impress Joey, as cheesy as that might sound.” of all identities to share and grow together. actual lineup would look like,” Holman And in the couple creating authentically I’d like to be able to serve as a role model says. “Maybe it’s not opening bands and with each other, they are posing a challenge The project was born out of the COVID-19 in that regard, but also I’d like to learn from then we play. Maybe it’s a poet, and then to current queer mainstream represen- the community in the same way, ideally pandemic and quarantine, and the pair a comedian, and then a live podcast, and tation in music in culture. M.O.M. says they admits that M.O.M. and this album could creating a real reciprocal back and forth.” then we play our set. And the merch area are not OK with being silenced from history very well not exist had it not been for this feels more like a pop-up of other local because of their age or size, and want their unprecedented event. They say there wasn’t queer artists selling their stuff. Who knows?

The project, born from turmoil, sprouted music to foster that same openness, and any agenda, rather more of a back and There are so many places we want to take into a multifaceted testament of two queer start a mutual, participatory experience for forth of ideas, which ultimately allowed for people taking on the world together. Ul- it. We’re just getting started.” 💣

twin kids F

resh out of more than a year of pandemic strife, the queer pop duo TWINKIDS have re-emerged with their persistent, silky debut LP, Nobody Likes Me.

INTERVIEW WITH PIANIST/PRODUCER MATTHEW YOUNG

BY KEEGAN WILLIAMS

PHOTO Nina Raj

place, and grappling with insecurities and doubts.

“Those voices are so easy to believe, and they can control your entire life, no matter how hard you try to disempower them,” Young The L.A.-based pair, comprised of singer Jin Fukui and pianist-producer Matthew Young, says. “With the songs on this album, we wanted to give life to that voice, and in doing so, weave an immensely rich combination of ’80s-inspired synths around the almost ther- hopefully to disempower it. We do think the album is very sad as a whole, but there’s apeutically breathy vocal tracks throughout something funny and light in there, too.” the album, with surprising, if not incredibly fun and interesting, production accents The title track, for example, features a handpeeking out through the seven tracks. ful of self-deprecating lyrics like, “This little spec of doubt in my heart will surely grow The album carries an element of sadness, a and fester ’til I fall apart … All my friends are clear reflection of the duo’s introspection gone ’cause all of them wronged me. Or was during this period of their lives. it me who said too much? But sometimes I’m just not sure how to show my love.” The more “I think everyone struggles with intrusive you listen, the more these words resonate thoughts and insecurity to some extent, but as conversations we end up having with me and Jin have been thinking and talking ourselves, alone in our own heads. a lot recently about how growing up queer encourages that type of thinking,” Young says. “It’s just a lot of not fitting in and, at “It suddenly becomes clear how ridiculous J-pop song, though they characterize it as some point, really accepting and internaliz- those words are, and yet, those really are a transcription over a full reinvention, citing the words those intrusive voices are telling ing that you’re an outsider, something about the sounds of that era and region as a main us,” Young says. you is different, and maybe even that you’re influence on their music. deserving of that outsider-ness.”

The album concludes with an homage “I know Jin is inspired by the melodic and to J-pop singer Mariya Takeuchi and a During the making of the record, the duo structural innovation of the songwriting [in cover of her 1984 song “Shetland Ni Hoho sometimes experienced the very feelings J-pop], and I’m constantly trying to analyze Wo Uzemete,” also their second cover of a they wrote about, being in a new, unfamiliar the purity of arrangement and virtuosity in

performance on those records,” Young says.

The record is a cohesive, enchanting treat, splicing together abundant influences, heartfelt lyrics, and stellar, all-encompassing production to display TWINKIDS as an up-and-coming force in the industry.

Nobody Likes Me is out now and available to steam or purchase. 💣

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PHOTOGRAPHY Rae Mystic

26 NEW NOISE

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST READE WOLCOTT AND TROMBONIST JER HUNTER BY FRANKIE TOROK

W

e Are The Union are back with their genre-melting new album, Ordinary Life. A follow-on in more ways than one from Self Care (released in 2018), Ordinary Life expands on its precursor’s narrative of mental health struggles, building from frontwoman Reade Wolcott’s gender dysphoria and recent coming out as trans.

What was that? I couldn’t hear you over the glorious sounds of horns and syncopated beats.

Ska is back, you say? Sorry to break it to you, guy, but ska never left!

“It was a very weird moment when everybody was like, ‘Ska’s back’,” says Wolcott. “We’ve all been doing this— in this band and other projects— for 15 years. The increasing popularity is very cool and we’re very grateful for it, but the idea that it’s back is kind of silly, because we’ve been here the whole time.

But welcome to the party.”

Hunter attributes a big part of the ska resurgence to social media, something they’ve built a career from with their YouTube channel, Skatune Network.

“Fifteen years ago, if you weren’t on a label, you didn’t have a way to really reach anybody,” Hunter says. “[Now] you have influencers talking about [ska], you have older bands giving recognition to younger bands, and bands outside of ska giving it recognition. Collectively everyone’s kind of deciding that hating it isn’t really as cool as people thought it was 10 years ago.”

Walcott says some of the ’90s third-wave ska bands gave the genre the uncool, “frat-dork” reputation that repelled outsiders, but thankfully, with a new generation of fans, that’s changing.

“We have an opportunity to reset and say yes, ska is fun music, and yes, there’s always going to be a place in it for humor, but there’s a lot of bands making music with real substance, and there “I feel like if the same record always has been,” Wolcott says. for We Are The Union dropped three years ago, in place of Self “I don’t believe there will be a Care, the reception wouldn’t band ever again that’s successhave been here the way it is now,” ful without a solid social media Hunter adds. “It’s super exciting presence,” Wolcott adds. “This to see friends that I’ve seen mak- new standard makes me exciting this music for years finally ed because we’re expanding put out a song and people care. what music is. It’s not just about It’s really dope to see that.” the song anymore. Let’s paint

“People rip on ska because ska kids like to have fun. They just want to dance, what’s wrong with that?” a whole picture, let’s create a more so than with Ordinary Life. visual, let’s encourage people to make music videos.”

“I made a point to weave [the story of my coming out] with And music videos are some- a story about a 12-year rething the band are going all- lationship that ended shortly out with for the new record. before the pandemic, with a Each single released from continuation of the Self Care Ordinary Life so far— “Morbid narrative, my struggles with Obsessions,” “Boys Will Be Girls,” mental health,” says Wolcott. “I and “Make it Easy”— has been wanted to weave together all accompanied by a gorgeous these things, that are generalvideo, directed by Chris Grau. ly relatable, with a narrative about dysphoria and the trans “If you look at ‘Make It Easy,’ the experience.” video is similar to the story of the song, but it’s completely its “I would love for lightbulbs to go own story,” Wolcott gushes. “Our off in a few cis people’s minds,” director, Chris Grau, created she adds. “That’s what I really his own narrative based on the hope people take away from prompt of the song, and that’s the record, a sense of normalcy such a unique thing to a music around the trans experience. video. It almost makes you think Hopefully, I told the experience about it more like you’re scoring in a way that is relatable to peoa movie in reverse. There’s some ple who don’t experience it.” magic that happens when you get really creative with music Looking to the future, the band videos, and I’m excited to see it also hope to change the narmake a resurgence.” rative of what it means to play ska, through collaborations with Narrative has always been of artists from all genres. Wolcott is importance to WATU, but never an avid pop fan (a collab with

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PHOTOGRAPHY Rae Mystic

“I wanted to weave together all these things that are generally relatable with a narrative about dysphoria and the trans experience.”

Ska has always been about unity, and on a fundamental level, that’s all WATU hope to accomplish with Ordinary Life, as Wolcott’s final words demonstrate: “I want nothing more than for this record to inspire people to take whatever the next step is to live their truth, and the fact that we’ve already had several people reach out and say that that’s happening for them is unbelievable. It’s incredible, and I’m just so grateful and thankful. I hope that maybe there’s a little bit more normalcy as we see more queer creators start to exist, let’s all support each other as queer creators, and let’s strive towards the normalization of this experience. If you have a story to tell, tell it.” 💣

Rebecca Black is “the dream,” but Illuminati Hotties are at the top of the list), who hopes for an eventual genre-less society.

Hunter looks to rappers, like the late MF Doom and Aminé, for their not-so-serious attitudes, and says punk shows should follow the example of other genres and lose the blasé attitude.

“A lot of times when I’m at a punk, emo, or hardcore show, I feel like the vibe is anything but to have fun,” Hunter says. “People rip on ska because ska kids like to have fun. They just want to dance, what’s wrong with that?”

28 NEW NOISE

IN THE DIRECTOR’S SEAT WITH

PHOTO Jen Razavi

CHRIS GRAUE

INTERVIEW

BY JOSHUA MARANHAS

M

usic video director and musician Chris Graue visualizes thoughts, feelings, and musical vibes. He’s an army of one—well, that’s not entirely the case, he’s a collaborator with a strong community of other creators. He values being part of a collective effort, and he’s figured out where he fits after a long journey from musician to music video director.

Graue is part of the punk and ska music scenes. He makes music; he makes videos, and he makes music videos. He’s also a Twitch streamer, video game console repairman, and Super Mario Maker 2 level creator. He says he doesn’t rest enough, but every second lost from sleep is a minute gained furthering his knowledge of music instruments, photographic gear, and computer software. He doesn’t seem to waste a lot of time.

“It started when I was a kid,” Graue says. “I just liked to be on stage, to act,

30 NEW NOISE

and play music, but as time went on, I “Through doing this stuff, I found a realized no one was like, ‘I’m making community of people that, espea movie, let me put you in a part,’ or, cially in ska and punk, they’ve al‘I’ve got a band, let me put you in it.’ ways won as a community,” Graue I kind of quickly realized if I wanted says. “Finding that community to do it, I was going to have to figure and being like, ‘Okay, how can out how to do a lot of it myself, so I you be a part?’ And for me, it was learned to play every instrument so video and technical skills.” that I could play with anybody at any time.”

Flash forward—Graue tackled 30 different projects during the Graue took those on-stage ex- pandemic in 2020. periences, musical skills, and knowledge of instruments to the “It was a lot,” he says. “At the next level by teaching himself to beginning of quarantine, I was photograph and edit video—he supposed to go on tour with The became a filmmaker.

Bombpops, I was supposed to meet up with Masked Intruder “I started making my own little mov- and do a music video. I had to ies,” he says. “I learned how to work cancel a lot of flights.” a camera. I think I learned how to edit because there was a cute girl He jumped into action, realizing his who needed help with a project for friends needed help and he had school, and I just told her I could something he could contribute. edit. But I wanted to learn so that I could start making my own little “I just got super worried right at the stories that I would be in.” start there,” Graue says. “I was like, ‘This is going to kill a lot of bands.’

That lead to making videos, And I knew right away, I decided sometime around 2005. He was this isn’t going to kill any of my building a world for himself to friends’ bands. We’re going to figexist in the punk and ska scenes. ure this out.”

With such an action-packed life, when does he find the time to make music and be on stage? He attempts to explain getting Lo(u) ser off of pause and back in play.

“Unfortunately, the one that takes the biggest back seat is always my own,” he says. “So that’s why I haven’t put out a song since February. I have three more that are ready to go.”

Chris Graue is an army of one in a community where everybody is an army of one. He concludes beautifully.

“Your favorite band, no matter how much of a genius the front person is or whatever, there’s an entire team of engineers, producers, press people like marketing, artists doing the cover. It takes a village. All of this stuff. Anybody that’s trying to do this stuff that thinks that they have to be able to do all of it, the good news is, you’re wrong. You just need to become a member of the community and start helping people with what they want to do, and they’ll help you with what you want to do.”💣

PHOTO Tiffany Pruitt

BUILDING

A

SOUND

MOVEMENT

earlier, to take a hard look at all these interwoven pieces that composed the foundation of this subculture.”

The results dive deep into crucial time period in punk’s development in the nation’s capital, and how its initial impact is still felt today.

INTERVIEW WITH CO-DIRECTOR AND EDITOR JAMES JUNE SCHNEIDER BY BEN SAILER

T

In that spirit, the documentary drives home is how the ethics and ideals of early D.C. hardcore have reverberated beyond the confines of punk itself, and how the city was a uniquely fitting location for a socially and politically charged counterculture to emerge.

As such, it was important to ensure the film could appeal to both fans and non-fans of early punk music and culture alike.

he history of hardcore has Blu Ray on June 8 via Passion River. “There’s a lot in there about how people treat each other, if you really look been well-documented since bands first started Covering the early era of D.C. punk, at it, and also about building commusupercharging punk with more ag- from 1976 to 1983, Punk the Capital nity,” Schneider says. “Hopefully, the gression and social consciousness offers a rare look into the scene’s film gets people thinking about some in the late 1970s. However, that beginnings, with previously unseen certainly doesn’t mean every story in material and interviews with the likes the genre’s rich history has yet been of Ian MacKaye, Henry Rollins, Jello told, particularly when it comes to Biafra, and HR of Bad Brains. specific cities and scenes that were most influential in its development. “When Paul Bishow and I started Like Washington, D.C. collecting materials around the turn of the century, nobody had made a That’s a gap James June Schneider documentary on D.C. punk, though (co-director and editor), Paul Bi- there had been several attempts,” show (co-director), and Sam Levine June Schneider says. “It was sort of the (associate producer and co-editor) Bermuda Triangle of D.C. documentaaimed to fill with the documentary ries. Other film projects on the subject Punk the Capital: Building a Sound came about after we started collecting, Movement. The film premiered in and it was a good thing, as it turned theaters and virtual cinema on May out. They pushed us to focus on the 14, and will be released on DVD and as-yet un-covered period, 1980 and

of those kinds of bigger questions we aim to frame. But, if we did our job, the film will also leave viewers inspired, with some of the intense creative energy portrayed and shared by this scene.”💣

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It Takes Two, Baby:

CLEOPATRICK

PHOTO Tanner Pare

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST LUKE GRUNTZ AND DRUMMER IAN FRASER BY J POET

C

to have some content,” Gruntz says.

“I was a bit embarrassed at first. It’s a bad movie of kids fucking around, but it’s an important part of the story of this band. You get to see how small this thing was when it started. When it blew up, there were some haters in the comments section, but no negative feedback from peers. They were all excited and supportive of what we were trying to do.” 💣

obourg, Ontario is not Fraser’s assertive drumming com- band released in 2017. It got more than known for its music scene, bines with Gruntz’s piercing guitar a million and a half hits on YouTube but cleopatrick took ad- and brutally honest lyrics to push and helped make them a Canadian vantage of their relative isolation to their rock meets rap sound into a phenomenon. It’s a penetrating look at put together a sound that’s all their place most bands never dream of the boredom of small town life that can own. The duo— singer, guitarist visiting. literally drive you to drink. and songwriter Luke Gruntz, and songwriter and drummer Ian Fra- “It feels right, to me, to be as real as “We gave a friend $250 to film us runser—combined elements of all the possible,” Gruntz says. “From the ning around Cobourg for a day, just music they loved, with an emphasis start, the lyrics were always honest on hard rock and hip-hop. They’re and therapeutic, and resonated now ready to make an impact inter- with people. There are a lot of songs nationally with their debut album, about nothing but getting drunk and Bummer, out June 4 on their own having sex. Ours are about the little label, Nowhere Special, via Thirty mundane events in life. We blow them Tigers. up to write things that may make you PHOTO Jared Stimpfl feel uncomfortable, but you can still “Cobourg is a beach town, not an ide- have fun to.” al place to grow up as an aspiring musician,” Fraser says. “We found Gruntz’s singing is a perfect vehicle our community in places like Toron- for conveying those uncomfortable to, Oshawa, and Peterborough. We truths. He inhabits a space between traveled in a big triangle to those singing, talking, and rapping that’s cities and realized we wanted to do hard to define. this thing forever. We don’t think of nraveled, out June 11 on Zegema ourselves as genre-bending; we’re “I don’t put too much thought into my Beach Records, is a marvel of modjust putting together the sounds we vocals,” he says. “The songs have a ernized screamo, a real wrecking ball lot of lyrics in them, so they come out like, in our own way. of sounds, emotions, and poignant reflecfast. I try and catch the moment and tions on the human spirit.

“We’re a rock band, but there’s a echo it. The lyrics come out with more lot of history behind that term. If emotion than they would have with Multi-instrumentalist Jared Stimpfl you look at what we do objectively, a perfect delivery, or maybe extra reflects, “This, for sure, is that healthy channel. Music in general [is]. A lot of the it does use rock elements, heavy emotion is the perfect delivery.” sounds come from left over trauma that drums, and guitars, but we give it a the body just holds onto. It’s a feeling, flavor that feels cool and comfort- That passionate honesty is one of the or set of patterns, that maybe distract hallmarks of “Hometown,” a song the able to us.”

ORPHAN DONOR

U

you from your truth, that unleashes

32 NEW NOISE

itself from your body because it wasn’t properly dealt with. There is a darker element to this record. I feel like I had to kind of go to some unknown territories I didn’t quite want to explore, especially in a new, sober mindset, exploring some of the hardest times of my life to sort of see if there was a new way to release it. There’s also a glimmer xof light and hope on this record; it feels like a natural progression of sorts, and it feels like I left some stuff behind me, finally.” -Nick Senior 💣

The Infinite Power of the Duo compositions,” Baker says. “The establishment of the right mood is one method of determining when a song is complete. Though, as most of the ambient and drone elements of our songs are improvised, those elements themselves can direct the shape of the songs, and the resulting mood can be quite unexpected or different from what we had been trying to achieve or express. But that element of randomness—the spontaneity of improvisation—is always something we embrace in the recording process.”

PHOTO Janina Gallert

Ultimately, Luminous Rot boasts a vibrantly broad sonic palette.

NADJA INTERVIEW WITH MULTI-INSTRUMENTALIST AIDAN BAKER

BY CALEB R. NEWTON

L

uminous Rot—the latest fulllength album from the ever-prolific drone-oriented duo, Nadja—feels like a dream.

The record is a May drop from Southern Lord. Nadja, who are based in Berlin, turn here towards comparatively compact tunes with feedback-drenched riffing that evokes shoegaze, alongside thudding percussion that suggests post-punk and industrial music.

sound lushly layered, but they’re also decidedly abrasive, providing a subtly depersonalized, outward-looking feel.

The tracks “started with recordings of live drum patterns, around which the riffs and chord progressions were built,” Baker explains. From there, they “mostly replaced the rough drum parts with sampled beats.”

“While Luminous Rot is one of our less introspective albums—sonically and structurally speaking—we always like to think our music encourages self-reflection and looking Luminous Rot, while at times pointed, inward, just as much as it might ‘en- is also immersive. tertain’—assuming that’s something music should do,” multi-instrumen- “Mood always weighs heavily on our talist Aidan Baker explains.

“It can be a challenge knowing when to stop adding yet another layer of sound,” Baker shares. “I do have to fight the tendency of not allowing silence its voice, and resist the urge to fill every space up with sound.

So, it can be tricky recognizing that perfect moment of just the right amount of saturation. Sometimes I find myself deliberately pushing the minimalism or repetition in a song to an extreme as something of a challenge—both for myself and the listener—and as a means of forcing some kind of catharsis, but I think the more structured nature of the songs on Luminous Rot encouraged restraint. With them, it was less about creating or forcing a cathartic moment than letting the songs exist in a more compact and less sprawling form, and if one might find catharsis in them, it might be something more fleeting and fragile.” 💣

Besides Baker on guitars, vocals, and drum machine, Nadja features bassist and vocalist Leah Buckareff.

Tracks across Luminous Rot often “While there is an overlying science prove captivatingly repetitious, as fiction theme to the album, this is though Nadja are building out an less about aliens or space opera uneasily shifting state of being to than it is about the ability to recogaccompany their instrumentals. nize or understand sentience and consciousness—which might apply Thanks to the resounding per- as much to interpersonal relations cussion and the harshly grooving between humans, as much it might guitars, the album consistently between humans and extraterresflows forward. Yet, rather than trials,” Baker says. purely a sense of exploratory Bursts of emotive passion make wonder, Nadja have also cap- notable appearances on the title tured a sense of existential un- track, which appears second on the certainty, as though the fabric of record, but even these especially reality itself has somehow begun free-flowing rhythms move within to fray. Whether at an industri- a haze of feedback. As the record al-inclined moment, like album progresses into its latter half, the closer “Dark Inclusions,” or on a rhythms prove especially dramatic, more surreally shifting track like as though capturing some kind of “Cuts On Your Hands,” the mixes monumental planetary drift on are thick with hazily disorienting record. Even within the sometimes atmosphere. compact song structures, Nadja

STORMRULER

masters of truly stirring black metal.

“In short, we were listening to a lot of Allegiance and Dawn. We’ve known each other for some years but never played in the same project until we both tormruler’s black metal harkens back to got recruited to play in a buddy’s band, the second-wave classics while injecting Xaemora. That led to us deciding that a real, battle-like intensity and power we felt the need to write a record that into the proceedings. Under the Burning Eclipse, out May 28 via Napalm Records, we felt brought back that war-like intensity that some more recent offerings takes influence from video games, war, and lacked.” -Nick Senior 💣 history. The St Louis, MO-based band are

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HIDE

INTERVIEW WITH HEATHER GABEL AND SETH SHER

BY MARIKA ZORZI

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ain is pretty universal, and I guess that’s something that I think is good for people to see represented.

Everything is personable; to a degree, this is why everything I felt in the past years is on this record.”

HIDE’s music is textured, minimal, and powerful, giving raw vulnerability an opportunity to unfurl. Their work is honest, confrontational, and thought-provoking, and with their third album, Interior Terror, the band continue to address and question the corporeal and immaterial body, in a physical and metaphysical sense.

“This record, with the lyrics and with the themes and subjects, it’s more immediate and less considered as a cohesive body of work,” Heather Gabel, one half of the duo that is HIDE, explains. “It’s just a bunch of moments, of unfiltered silvers, of what was on my mind and what was in my body.”

Interior Terror further abandons traditional concepts of song structure in favor of splintered rhythms and fevered, immediate release.

“With the other records, we played those record with Seth Manchester at Machines songs live, they changed, there was a lot with Magnets in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. of time between when we wrote them and when we recorded,” Gabel explains. “That “Seth Manchester is so chilled, and non-judgwasn’t the case this time—we didn’t play live mental, and patient,” Gabel recalls. “When because all of our shows were cancelled. It we recorded the first record, it was that same wasn’t considered in the same way. It’s defi- type of relationship—it’s nice to be around nitely more immediate and less structured; I someone who feels like they are not even didn’t feel like everything had to go together. there.”

If something felt right, I just went for it. With being able to play shows, there was more Interior Terror faces the current state of urgency to release them instead of process- our society, touching on experiences of ing over a series of time.” dysphoria and disassociation.

“Usually, we write the song together in the studio, practice it a bunch a time, and play it live almost immediately,” bandmate Seth Sher adds. “And as we play it live, things change, and over time we have a collection of songs that feel that way, which is why we decided to record them. A lot of the time, the music was just weird that we just worked casually during quarantine. Every few months, we would go into the studio and make a small loop. And then, at some point, we decided we needed to record something.”

The result is a minimal, spacious, and jarring body of work that HIDE decided to

INTERVIEW WITH ANNA TROXELL AND PATRICK TROXELL

BY THOMAS PIZZOLA

A

“We did want to do something different,” they say. “It felt like a moot point to just start another band that sounded exactly like Creepoid.

We were both interested in pushing ourselves and exploring other influences.”

This interest in exploring new sounds is in full focus on their debut album, What’s Yr Damage, which drops August 6 on 6131. It’s a synth driven corker of an album, and the duo have come up with an interesting way to describe their new music: drug pop.

“We aim to write pop music, but our version,” they say. “It’s music that people can dance to, but also spend a night listening to alone in the dark.”

And they are definitely going to keep their new band a two-person operation for its duration.

“Actually, we weren’t always a duo,” they say.

“When we first started exploring Lovelorn, we had a third member who played guitar.

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PHOTO Maria Isaeva

“Before, with vocals, I knew what I wanted to do, but this time, I didn’t. It was more raw, and I loved it. The things that resonate with me usually happen very quickly. It’s like a magnetic pull. It felt more like an impulse, less deliberate crafting,” Gabel says.

LOVELORN nna and Patrick Troxell know what it’s like to lose. The husband-and-wife team formed the rhythmic core of Creepoid, a highly touted, heavy psychedelic band that called it a day in 2018. Though from the ashes of Creepoid, came Lovelorn, a synth-punk project that allows them to fully be themselves, and is a total departure from their previous band.

“I feel pretty affected by the horrors of the world, like often,” Gabel says. “But, there’s always that feeling that you have when you see a piece of art or hear music when something gives you that feeling inside which makes you feel connected to something. That happens to me with every medium. There are things that stop me in my tracks, and if that happens to anyone, that’s incredible.” 💣💣💣

‘hooks’ came more in the mixing process, where we tried to arrange everything in a way that would really resonate with people.”

In addition, the recording of the album took on a life of its own.

an absolutely crazy week that is a story for another day. We ended up finally wrapping it up at Gradwell Studio in New Jersey, with the super talented Matt Weber. There were times we wondered if it would ever get done because we kept hitting roadblocks. So, it feels absolutely amazing to have it finally be here.”

When we decided to part ways with that per- “It was an epic recording process, filled with son, the intention was to find a replacement. some amazing highs and devastating lows,” From the dissolution of one band comes the they say. “It took way too long, due to many However, we played a few shows as a two rise of another. Lovelorn reveal a new side unplanned curveballs, which was super piece, and realized that we actually liked to the Troxell’s musical partnership, one frustrating. We rewrote the entire album the focus being on drum and bass. People that allows them to explore any ideas they started dancing, which was always the goal. after losing the third member, which was want to explore without compromise. They fun but challenging. We recorded the bulk Moreover, keeping it just the two of us made are totally committed to each other and of it in New York with the wild and inspiring things much simpler logistically. We are this band. definitely open to having guest appearances, Don Devore, literally studio-hopping for specific gear that we wanted to use for both live and on recordings, but the heart of certain parts of songs. Then we mixed in L.A., “Long Live Lovelorn,” they finish. 💣 Lovelorn will always just be the two of us.”

They enjoy the freedom it entails.

“It became clearer as we explored Lovelorn that we wanted to take advantage of being able to have control over the way we would shape the band. No matter what, when you play with four people, there are going to be compromises. It has been fun to be able to explore ideas that we’ve had for a long time, and execute them exactly as we envisioned them.”

This new-found creative control revealed itself when the pair began composing music for What’s Yr Damage, in that they decided to go with the flow and see where their muse took them— not necessarily having a plan, but going with their gut feelings.

“I wouldn’t say we plan any element of the music super intentionally,” they say. “Usually someone starts with one element, bass line, drumbeat, sample, and it grows from there pretty naturally. I think that the focus on

ARTOFFACT

RECORDS INTERVIEW WITH JACEK KOZLOWSKI BY CALEB R. NEWTON

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rtoffact Records, a Toronto-based Artoffact began rolling into the future. operation with a global reach, fea- Artoffact have established long-term tures a compellingly expansive array relationships with artists like Cloud of styles on its roster, from the ambitious Rat, who have over half a dozen grindcore of Michigan’s Cloud Rat to the releases out through the label. On a shimmering post-punk from groups like similar note, Ploho have a full dozen Russia’s Ploho and Canada’s Spectres. releases available via Artoffact, inThe musical selection that Artoffact cluding a new full-length album that presents seems united by passionate dropped this February. exploration. No matter where in the catalog one might land, something fresh “Over the last 10 years, I would say seems bound to emerge. it’s been a very strong attempt to work with artists for the long-term,” “I think it’s very much what piques my Kozlowski shares. “I think that’s good interest,” the label’s Jacek Kozlowski for business, but it’s also good to work says, discussing the roster. “But, I with people with whom you have mean, the label is as varied stylisti- strong relationships, and that you can cally and genre-wise as our fanbase. build friendships out of as well.”

I think music fans in general have been [that way] since the advent of On the note of strong relationships, the internet, but more so since the last Kozlowski shares that it’s been “heartfive to seven years, or maybe 10 years. breaking to see” the impact from There’s just not cliques in the way that the pandemic on the “behind-thethere used to be back in the ’80s and scenes” music industry workers, who ’90s, where you listened to heavy metal he describes as “unsung heroes.” and that was it, or you listened to punk rock and that was it, and everyone “If the circumstances on the ground else was your enemy for some reason. over the next five years, with flare-ups, I think that there are a lot of labels and variants, and scares, and tours that do that kind of thing these days, being cancelled at the last moment, and a lot of fans are more open to it.” and festivals being cancelled at the last moment—if that’s going to continue The current “era” has been formative a lot, then the balance between livesfor Artoffact, Kozlowski shares. treaming, and festivals, and in-person concerts is going to be such that I think “We tend to live in this sort of industrial, the tech is going to benefit, but it’s goth, post-punk, bit-of-metal, and going to be at the expense of those bebit-of-punk space,” he says. “But it’s hind-the-scenes workers,” he observes. still varied enough that I think we’re very much a product of the era, more Ultimately, the bustling community so than necessarily a product of my where Artoffact is embedded proown tastes.” vides the path ahead for the label.

Artoffact took shape in the 1990s, when Kozlowski sought to release a CD compilation.

Kauan, who are presently based in Estonia, released an album of atmospheric doom via Artoffact in April, and Kozlowski cites them when considering the future.

PHOTO Artur Mamleev

“I sometimes like to joke that I started it accidentally, and it kind of is that way,” he says. “It was never meant to be a full “If it’s dark and heavy or even not that label, never mind a full-time job that heavy—like a band like Kauan that employs a bunch of people, and works we just released. It’s not particularly with international artists, and all that.” heavy, but it’s poetic and dark, and hopeful and wonderful to listen to, After releasing the compilation, he and epic. Anything that crosses any says that “some of those bands asked of those boxes is something that we’re me to release their records,” and looking for, for sure.” 💣 💣 💣

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PHOTOGRAPHY Elena de Soto

36 NEW NOISE

JAPANESE

INTERVIEW WITH SONGWRITER MICHELLE ZAUNER

BY BEN SAILER

O

n Japanese Breakfast’s third full-length, Jubilee, available on June 4 via Dead Oceans, Michelle Zauner is embracing joy.

That might sound like a surprising sentiment for fans familiar with her previous work. Yet there are signs all over the album telegraphing a shift in tone, including some that are evident before listening to a single note.

Start with the title itself. Choosing one, single word that sounds like a “trumpet blast of victory” was an intentional decision that immediately sets the theme. Placing herself at the center of the album cover—as someone who historically hasn’t been comfortable with her appearances— is another step toward establishing newfound confidence as well.

The way Jubilee swaps self-depre- The words “joy” and “challenging” Extraordinary Machine, and Beach experiment with other people and cation for self-assuredness stands are instructive for understanding House’s Teen Dream as aspirational learn from other people in this way in stark contrast to 2016’s Psycho- Jubilee. Rather than peddling a benchmarks. Jubilee needed to before just doing the same thing pomp and 2017’s Soft Sounds From hollow “positive vibes only” mantra, mark a clear turning point in her with Craig again. I needed to push Another Planet, which often paired the record explores happiness as an discography, one that fully demon- myself and see what I could learn from other people beforehand.” wry humor with sharp pain, coming active pursuit, something one strives strates her musical capabilities. out after Zauner lost her mother to to attain rather than a passive state cancer. That juxtaposition is further of being.

The results see Japanese Breakfast When listening to Zauner discuss accentuated when placed in context sounding more musically and lyri- her most recent work, the cheer alongside her recent best-selling Releasing a book and a record with- cally mature than ever. While pre- and confidence implied by the book Crying in H Mart, an emotion- in the space of two months, all while vious records haven’t exactly been record’s title and cover shine ally heavy memoir tracing the loving balancing other projects, wasn’t the minimalistic, the arrangements are through. It’s a product of relentless yet sometimes difficult relationship original plan pre-pandemic. With decidedly more ambitious this time commitment to continuous growth she had with her mother. the weather warming and live music around. Long-time co-producer and pushing the boundaries of her slowly returning, though, that timing and multi-instrumentalist Craig comfort zone. While time will tell So, what made now the time to pivot may work out better than intended. Hendrix plays a crucial role in if Jubilee breaks through into the toward positivity?

Lead single “Be Sweet” (co-written keeping it all together, along with mainstream, suffice it to say that with Jack Tatum from Wild Nothing) an expanded roster of outside potential certainly exists.

“I’ve written two albums, and now could be the indie-pop jam of the collaborators including Tatum, an entire book, that people know summer, bursting forth from the Galloway, professional violinist “I think it’s my best work as a whole,” pretty well are about grief and speakers with massive hooks and Molly Germer, and Landlady’s Zauner says. “It’s hard to single one thing out. There’s some of the loss,” Zauner says. “By the final raucous energy.

Adam Schatz. best lyrics that I’ve written. I think purge of this book, I was ready to tackle something on the other end It’s a track that immediately makes “I wanted to explore working with they’re my best vocal performancof the spectrum, and I felt the most a statement, which, as Zauner ex- other people a little bit more and es all around. I think they’re my surprising thing to write about, and plains, is exactly what a third record ultimately ended up running back most confident compositions and the most challenging thing to write needs to do. She cites albums like to Craig [laughs],” Zauner says. “I arrangements. I’m proud of all of about, would be joy.”

Bjork’s Homogenic, Fiona Apple’s think it was important for me to that.” 💣 💣 💣

BREAKFAST

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PHOTO Mara Weinstein

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“I

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST KRIS ESFANDIARI BY MARIKA ZORZI

try to comfort people and provide that comfort I really didn’t have growing up,” says King Woman. I do think about real things, but I want it to feel like a warm hug.

Like someone is there for you.”

Feeling compelled to reshape the Biblical archetypes that once bound her, with the new King Woman album Celestial Blues, Kris Esfandiari has created a theatrical tale of rebellion, tragedy, and triumph, a metaphor for her own, personal experiences over the years.

“Now I see the world through my own filter and own lens,” Esfandiari says. “When we are growing up, plenty of our childhood wounds are not being seen, not being heard, not being validated. That’s a lot of the reason why fans get obsessive over certain artists. They feel validated by that person and it becomes an obsession. The world has been very crazy this past year and a half, so what do we do? We listen to music.

Music has saved me in so many ways— focusing on my creativity has given me a reason to live and a reason to stay alive.

Music is reason enough for me.”

Esfandiari founded King Woman in 2009 as a solo project which later gained the talents of guitarist Peter Arensdorf and drummer Joseph Raygoza.

Now wiser and holding less animosity than on King Woman’s previous releases, the fantasy world that once plagued Esfandiari’s psyche is dancing in a new light on Celestial Blues.

PHOTO Gabi Espinosa

ed writing,” Esfandiari says. “A lot of the key themes of King Woman are religion, spirituality, things I’ve had to work through, that have traumatized me, and I was very angry before, but now I find that things that used to really get underneath my skin just don’t bother me anymore. When you get older, you give less of a fuck; things that used to make you so angry just don’t even matter anymore.”

Charismatic Christian immigrant parents, who often held church at home, speaking in tongues and performing exorcisms. They preached about spiritual warfare, anticipations of heaven, and warnings of hell, which aided in the inspiration for Celestial Blues.

explain it, but growing up until I was 11, I just felt death around me. I had a few of these weird episodes, almost like blackout, seizure type episodes—the last one I had, I was really afraid of dying. And my mom would run in the shower with all her clothes on and pick me up in her arms. She was praying in “When I was little, I had a weird tongues, speaking in anoth“I have been through a lot of seizure and basically flatlined,” er angelic type of language, different experiences in the past Esfandiari says. “After that, I’ve praying for this death spirit four years than when I first start- Esfandiari was raised by her just had this weird, I can’t really away from me, casting away

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this death spirit. It was really traumatic, and I just had to sit down to write about it. It turned into a poem which turned into the intro for the record.”

Esfandiari’s words evolved into a composition called Celestial Blues which later became the title for King Woman’s long-awaited, fulllength, sophomore album.

“I had this title in my head forever, for years,” she says. “You can’t really rush those things— they have to come out when they want to, so I couldn’t really rush the process. But I definitely wanted to reclaim and reshape those things that once almost made me angry again. Because I was very angry in Doubt and Created in The Image of Suffering, and just working through a lot. With this, I was more interested in the character because I wanted to tell more of their stories in a way, but also tie it in with my own personal experiences.”

“It used to be a really dark shadow,” Esfandiari continues. “But aspects of it can be comforting; if my mum wants to pray for me because I’m going through something, I let her. I don’t see it as something so threatening anymore, as I really processed my issues with it. When you are an adult, you can filter out what works for you and what doesn’t. But when you’re a child, you don’t have the capacity to really know what anything means.”

With King Woman, Esfandiari never ceases to transcend this life of afflictions, only to lead the listener to find some hope through her music, while she makes peace with her weighty past.

PHOTO Nedda Afsari

“Now I find that things that used to really get underneath my skin just don’t bother me anymore.”

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“These things really stunted and terrified me in a lot of ways,” she says. “I’ve had to work through them, but I can’t say I’m angry at the way my life was, because, in a way, I’m making music that has really impacted people because of those experiences. It worked out for the better.” 💣💣💣

MINING FOR JOY

fiddlehead of overwhelming sadness of: My fa- around the room. I took all the ther’s never going to meet my son.” sadness of having your first child in The rich, dynamic shifts through- Flynn found a path forward. the absence of one of your parents out Between The Richness make and just really pushed towards the instrumentals feel especially “I would just play the [Between The something pretty positive, which emotive, charting movement Richness] demo tracks, play it was writing and finding the lyrical from a place of tension towards a pretty loud when my wife would ideas for a record, for just creating sunnier horizon. be out, and me and my son—you’d some poetry in life, and with him just see me kind of mess around on right there the whole time. It was Lyrically, Flynn explores the im- a guitar, and then sing along to it, just a totally awesome experience.” pact of his father’s death across and dance to it, and really get into the growing Fiddlehead discog- it,” he says. “[My son has] heard the raphy, and in this latest batch of record more than anybody, and it’s songs, Flynn says that there’s an so great, because when you play effort at “mining into the ground it, and you hear the little whirring for joy” and bringing that joy “up sound [on album opener ‘Grief onto the surface.”

Motif’], and then it’s the sound of E.E. Cummings’ voice. He knows “My father apparently was rather what it is, and he starts stomping catatonic in that first year of my brother’s life because his father had died in that moment, and I remember just really thinking like: I don’t want to be catatonic in the first year of my son’s life,” Flynn shares. “And I can very much understand that because of this kind

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST PAT FLYNN BY CALEB R. NEWTON

B

etween The Richness—the latest full-length album from Boston’s Fiddlehead, out now from Run For Cover Records—packs invigorating post-hardcore jams that prove noisy yet refreshingly propulsive, like a vivacious burst of life.

“This is the thing that must be done for the purpose of mental health,” vocalist Pat Flynn shares, discussing the overall music-making process.

Although there’s ample energy across this new Fiddlehead effort, there’s breathing space in the arrangements, providing space for contemplation. It’s vigorous-yet-soulful, a facet that Flynn’s urgent singing poignantly boosts.

PHOTO Dan Rawe

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Tracks like “Loverman” feature no- more to the music’s forefront. condition. We have to deal with the ticeably mellower moments, making fact that we are all going to die. the album’s passion seem strikingly “Springtime And Blind [2018] is personalized. Listening through the really about the larger theme of “There’s a darkness in the light of formidable and free-flowing tunes handling death in life, and this our lives that we all know, and it’s feels like experiencing what Flynn is record is really about handling life good to avoid it, but it’s happening; singing about firsthand. Ultimately, it in death,” Flynn shares. “I think that it’s coming, and the question is: sounds hopeful. Although there’s when you pause and really think How do you deal with that? And tension, it grows into emotional about those two concepts, it these two records are really how release, delivering a sharply is supported by the lyrical I’ve dealt with it. First record, I’m produced and consistently fistthemes within both records, looking into the devastation and pump-ready journey. but it’s also, I think, cataclysmic breakdown of the one of the biggest primary source of love and joy in With Between The Richness, Flyproblems before one’s life being gone. How do you nn observes that life has come us in our human manage? How do you deal with

that? How do you work against it so it doesn’t overtake you? And Between The Richness, in my view, is kind of a showcase of how you put life into death.” 💣

“There’s a darkness in the light of our lives that we all know, and it’s good to avoid it, but it’s happening; it’s coming, and the question is: How do you deal with that?”

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PHOTO Alan Snodgrass

The Philosophy of Pessimism

AT THE GATES INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST THOMAS LINDBERG BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

I

t’s a cliche in itself to say that a band needs no introduction, but we all know At The Gates need no introduction. After helping to pioneer the Swedish, melodic death metal sound, a sound that has helped inform metalcore, modern black metal, voidgaze, and countless other genres, At The Gates vocalist Thomas Lindberg moonlighted in crust punk and grindcore bands Disfear, Skitsystem, and Lock Up. Then he jumped right back into classic melodeath without missing a bet. And though they took some breaks, their releases continued to be strong and prolific.

The new At The Gates record, The Nightmare of Being, out July 2 via Century Media, avoids pretty much all the pitfalls bands who

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have been at it as long as they have often make at this stage in their careers. While it’s a dark, introspective concept album with some progressive undertones and deeper themes, it doesn’t sound boring, rehashed, or unfocused. In fact, quite the opposite.

“We started on the album before COVID, so some of it was written before the pandemic hit,” says Lindberg, regarding the lyrical themes that talk of a loss of hope and despair, concepts that were hard to avoid during the worst of the pandemic. “I don’t think the pandemic affected it much, but one way it did impact it is that we had much more time to focus on it, and I think that’s why it became such a layered and detailed record.”

The band were still able to safely record during COVID, as travel within Sweden was mostly permitted during the worst of things, as long as precautions were taken. The only struggle in terms of logistically getting the album done was flying drummer Adrian Erlandsson in from London, which was finally possible after much quarantining. So, while most bands weren’t able to share their chemistry during lock down, At The Gates still got to write and play.

The album is deep, not just lyrically or in terms of the art, but musically as well. Like any good melodic death metal album, it has memorable bangers with riffs for days and long, meandering interludes that lead into sadder,

slower songs. In short, it has all the makings of a great and resonating record. As Lindberg himself points out, it’s not an album from an old band— it’s a mature record, and one with cinematic appeal. And the concept comes from an unlikely place.

“I was reading some of Thomas Ligotti’s horror novels, and then I stumbled on his essay about the philosophy of pessimism, and I was intrigued by the connection to horror and death metal kind of themes,” he says. “I’m not usually a person who takes up different philosophies or religions or whatever, but this really resonates with me.” 💣 💣 💣

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PHOTO Courtesy of Napalm Records

FRESH DEATH INTERVIEW WITH BASSIST/VOCALIST FERNANDA LIRA

BY JAMES ALVAREZ

C

rypta’s stunning debut album, Echoes of the Soul, out June 11 on Napalm Records, is easily one of the best and most appropriately named metal albums of the year. This blistering four-piece are the latest in a long line of killer, Brazilian metal bands, only they also have in their ranks one of the fiercest lead guitarists the Netherlands has to offer. The end result of this gnarly, all-female, international collaboration is a shred-tastic ode to the death metal records of seasons past, and it rules.

It’s fitting that such a stellar new band would have a bit of pedigree behind them. Bassist and vocalist Fernanda Lira and drummer Luana Dametto had been members of the famed Brazilian thrash band Nervosa for years, when in the spring of 2019, the urge to spread their wings and explore heavier territory crept in.

it wears out in time. Luana came up with the idea for Crypta because she’s always been a death metal drummer, and she kind of missed playing that. She always wanted to have a side project, so Crypta started as a side project; that’s the thing.

We were on a tour and had many tours ahead of us when it started; we didn’t even think of leaving Nervosa back then. Then it all happened; it got to a critical point in Nervosa, and it was the hardest decision in my life. It was so hard to leave. But I’m so happy I was courageous enough to do it because I see it was better for everyone.”

Luckily, not only did the years of chemistry between Lira and Dametto transfer over into Crypta, but they’d strike lightning twice and recruit two amazing new guitarists into the fold as well.

“We always had two guitarists in mind because we love guitar duets,” “Our relationship in Nervosa was Lira shares. “We both said ‘Sonia’ pretty much worn out already,” Lira [Anubis, Cobra Spell and ex-Burnsays. “Like any regular relationship, ing Witches guitarist] at the same

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time; it had to be her! We’ve been “Fifty percent of the riffs are mine; fans of her for a long time, even 50 are Sonia’s, and some come way before Burning Witches. I’ve from Luana, too,” Lira says. “Tainá always loved the way she played came in and added new ideas for and her stage presence. She was leads, and she solos on every song.” like the perfect match for us, and we were so glad she accepted.”

Those frenetic, dueling guitar solos are a huge part of Crypta’s monster “For Tainá [Bergamaschi, ex-Hag- sound. Imagine soaring, NWOBHM bard guitarist], it was a completely leads transposed over early, different story. She got in the band Cannibal Corpse and Sepultura later, nearly a year after Crypta riffs, pummeling, Swedish death was born,” Lira reveals. “We had metal drums, and the sickest Chuck never heard of Tainá, had no Schuldiner-gone-black-metal friends in common, seen no videos vocals you’ve ever heard—that’s on the internet at all. She sent me Crypta’s new record in a nutshell. a message saying, ‘I saw you and Classic brutality, conjured with Luana have a side project going on, 21st-century finesse.

I don’t know if you have a guitarist, but if you don’t, I’d like to send you “I’m the raw person,” Lira says. “I like some videos, and I’d love to walk all the Florida death metal bands this path with you.’ And the first vid- from the ’80s and ’90s. Sonia, on eo she sent me, she covered ‘Crys- the other hand, loves all the same tal Mountain’ by Death. Like, she bands, but she has this talent of played the solo and I almost died, putting these epic melodies into like ‘I need this girl, right now!’” everything. I think this blend is what we have in Crypta.”

Armed with two phenomenal lead guitarists and a newfound creative Something old meets something freedom, the ladies in Crypta were new, adding up to something ready to hit the studio and record wicked.💣 💣 💣 what would become their stellar debut, Echoes of the Soul.

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PHOTOGRAPHY Alyson Coletta

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST DAN JACOBS BY ANGELA KINZIE

F

Baptize sees the band again working with producer John Feldmann, who produced 2007’s Lead Sails Paper Anchor and 2018’s In Our Wake, and features guests Travis Barker of Blink-182, Jacoby Shaddix of Papa Roach and Matt Heafy from Trivium.

ormed in 1998, Atreyu have been at the core of the metal scene for over 20 years.

Countless bands have followed in the wake of their success, echoing the fundamentals of the metalcore sound, for which the band is widely recognized.

Dan Jacobs, lead guitarist and co-creator of the Orange County five-piece, is softspoken, introspective and thoughtful as he speaks about his close friend and fellow, founding member Alex Varkatzas’ recent departure from the band, as well as the group’s eighth studio album, Baptize, released June 4 on Spinefarm Records.

“Warrior,” featuring Travis Barker and “Catastrophe” are among the first tracks to be released.

“A lot of the songs are just talking about the world being kind of a shit place and having hope in a lot of bad situations,” Jacobs says. “Or even a lot of self-reflecting on the things that, as a person, you’re not good at, and acknowledging not being the best person that you could be.”

“Losing someone like Alex …” he begins reflectively. “He’s been like a family member, you know.

We’ve been brother figures for 25 years, even before Atreyu.”

The lineup change was officially announced in September of 2020. The split was an amicable one, but Jacobs explains it was not entirely unexpected.

“To put it simply, I think it’s been a long time coming,” he says. “It’s like a marriage, like a loveless marriage kind of thing. It was one of those things where we were all doing our thing and keepin’ on keepin’ on, but it didn’t seem like everyone was really happy, or that everyone was where they wanted to be. It just wasn’t going the way everybody was hoping things would, and it was just time.”

as opposed to adding a new name. The band has traditionally featured alternating vocals from at least two band members.

Varkatzas’ absence as vocalist is filled by bassist Marc “Porter” McKnight, who will now take over harsh vocals and trade off singing with Brandon Saller.

Atreyu’s existing members chose to fill Varkatzas’ position

Jacobs concludes: “I think with Alex not being there, by him

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leaving that void, there’s a lot of opportunity for us to try things we’ve never tried before to fill that void. To be honest, it was a little bit refreshing. It was a little bit exciting. We’re trying to be as positive about this whole situation as possible, trying to make the best of it and hopefully come out even stronger, and better, and bigger than we ever have been.”

Addressing the title Baptize, Jacob’s explains: “A lot of it came from the fact that Alex parted ways with the band in the middle of this whole process. Having to finish the record ourselves and take on this next chapter of Atreyu without him, for us, is sort of like being baptized. It seems like a fresh start, like this new beginning.

So, we felt the title Baptize was appropriate for this situation.

It’s such a bold statement and such a powerful thing if you’re religious, or even anything involving baptizing.”

Atreyu will play the Blue Ridge and Aftershock festivals in September and October of this year, with more dates being planned for the future. 💣 💣 💣

PHOTO James Rexroad

D

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST DAVID SULLIVAN BY NICHOLAS SENIOR

elayed gratification sucks, softly into your ear soothing mantras that, but it worked, and it just gave or whatever, but it’s just something man. They (pompous, pa- like, “Isn’t this record FUCKING AWE- us that nudge that we needed to stay that we naturally turn towards. Again, tient assholes) say good SOME?!” It’s brilliant stuff that’s only productive. That was kind of how we it’s not like we’re setting out saying, things come to those who wait, but frustrating when realizing we could made ourselves do it. Also, we de- ‘We’re going to make a weird record. they made up those silly rules way have had Arrows last year. cided we’re not going to restrict our- We’re going to make this song be real before dial-up internet. The sheer selves to just one style, just because tricky, or thrown in curve balls.’ It’s not amount of music we’ve had to wait Guitarist David Sullivan shares how that gets boring. I know that there’s that we’re trying to do it. It’s just kind for due to the pandemic is truly the record’s formation required some a lot of bands that do one thing, and of what we do and what we like. That’s mind-blowing, but can you imag- tricky and unusual timing from the they are amazing, like AC/DC and the just kind of what comes out I guess.” ine having to wait a year-and-a- long-running band: Ramones. We want to be able to exhalf to release your best record yet plore more, especially on this record To the point of delayed gratification, the pandemic required a long hold(my words)? That’s what happened “Well, this one took up a little longer with textures, tones, and styles.” ing pattern where Red Fang were septo legendary, Portland, riff-rock than we wanted. Basically, we got group Red Fang and their soon-to- close to a chunk of songs where One of the key exploration points arated and not practicing. Sullivan be-beloved Arrows, out June 4 via we had enough to record [but not is the fact that Red Fang somehow recalls what that first time they got the Relapse Records. quite], so we actually gave ourselves sound reinvigorated and revitalized, gang back together to play was like. a deadline. It had been a while. I like they’ve combed over all the It’s a record that finds the group’s don’t know if we’re going to get in things they do well and amplified “It felt really good, yeah. I mean I was a beloved, stoner jams at their highest the studio unless we just went ahead them on Arrows. There’s a lot of fun little anxious about just remembering (in quality only, allegedly … ) peak and booked studio time. Even before little rhythmic touches throughout the the songs, especially the newer songs, yet, climbing and murder all of the we were really ready, we went ahead big riffs. So, what exactly were some but it felt awesome actually. I think we were all starting to feel bummed mountains, while offered up wisps of and booked time with Chris Funk. We of the goals with this record? out about not being able to play. Any sonic callbacks (ghosts?) to their past. decided we wanted to work with Chris Red Fang’s trademark ability to pair again and do it here in Portland, and “I think, like you mentioned math rock,” creative thing that you do, if you stop the sounds of the old heavy metal gave ourselves this arbitrary deadline, Sullivan answers. “I think that’s part of doing it, at least for me anyway, music gods with a Sargent House-style so that way we had to be productive our roots. I feel actually weird about is ... I don’t know, it helps me just deal math rock energy and enthusiasm and write enough stuff so that we saying the word roots [laughs], but with depression. It just feels good to takes aim at your heart like Cupid’s weren’t wasting our studio time.” it is. I think that just comes out, even do it, so I hadn’t done that in a long arrows. There’s also a simmering, ’70s, though our philosophy in Red Fang is time, getting together with the band psychedelic vibe to everything about “To be honest, it’s a little scary to me,” just keep it simple. You don’t have to to play, so yeah, it felt really great to the record that whispers ever so Sullivan continues. “I don’t like doing be all intentionally angular, or mathy, get back together.” 💣 💣

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PHOTO Dan Rawe

Darkness is Contagious

COLD CAVE

goth and electronic scene over the last 10 years, but were often lost at sea trying to find rontman Wes Eisold As a result, while other produc- peers in a genre that walked dished a few words sur- ers have worked with Eisold out the door in the heyday rounding his act, Cold and contributing bandmates, of New Order and Depeche Cave’s latest release, Fate in he remains the number-one Mode. In 2021, however, the Seven Lessons. The word “act” driving force behind each re- punk and alternative scene is is used intentionally. Cold lease. However, to create Fate definitely seeing a resurgence Cave are not a traditional, in Seven Lessons, Eisold did of post punk, new wave, and multi-player band. They are the collaborate directly with artist new wave’s edgier younger creation of Eisold, who brings in Amy Lee. sister, dark wave. a variety of collaborators whilst maintaining Cold Cave as his “She is thoughtful and analyt- Eisold defines darkwave as “a sole creation and art. ic[al],” Eisold says. “She un- bi-product of synth pop and derstands my work, my heart a divergence of post-punk “Ultimately, we fell in love with and soul, and she picks up the as more goth and electronthe demos and had a few mix- pieces. She is a very concept ic.” Through dark wave, Cold ers try them, only to abandon to completion type of artist. Cave are leading the rebirth most attempts for the sound She is my left hand, and then of a genre that hasn’t been we created,” Eisold says when some.” heard outside of a few movie asked about the album’s prosoundtracks in the last 25 duction. “I have always been Eisold also happens to be Amy years. instrumental in the production Lee’s husband in addition to of all of Cold Cave’s recordings, regular bandmate.

When asked if he thought and this is just the pinnacle of there was a larger, cultural self-realization sonically.”

Cold Cave have circled the meaning to the darkwave rise, INTERVIEW WITH BASSIST/VOCALIST FERNANDA LIRA

BY JAMES ALVAREZ

F

50 NEW NOISE

Eisold states, “I think our trouble became attractive … [and] darkness is contagious.”

For a contagiously dark album, Eisold reveals that Fate in Seven Lessons’ ideal listener is still someone who isn’t cynical about love, which is fitting for an album wrapped deeply in made-for-cinema passion.

Anyone listening can immediately place themselves in an internal montage of life, fantasy, or fantastical life. For Eisold, there isn’t just one ideal setting for listeners, “There are driving moments and candlelight moments, and dancing moments and contemplative moments.”

Find out for yourself which moments you’re ready to fall in love to when Cold Cave’s new album is released via Heartworm Press on June 11. 💣 💣 💣

JIM WARD (SPARTA, AT THE DRIVE-IN)

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the first song yet; she is always crying happily,” he continues.

“It’s a risk you take as a musician by shutting out people from the content, but if we are able to transmit the essence of the song to the people, that’s really how powerful the medium of music can really be.”

De Doorn (or, ‘The Thorn’) occupies a place between Amenra’s recorded and live work, less a testimony to the band’s individual bereavements, more an invitation for others to come forward, and to pass through darkness into light.

“The suffering and the sacrificing are necessary in life,” van Eeckhout explains. “There is no happiness without darkness and despair. There’s no good without bad. That’s how it is. But in our case, I got fascinated by thorn branches and the fact that it is a weapon crafted from nature, for a flower to protect its beauty, or for a plant to protect its seeds, to protect its fruits PHOTO Stefaan Tammerman from the people that want to cause it harm. I really love how nature really provided its offspring with weapons, and then it made me think about how humans have developed their own personal thorns to protect themselves from everyone who wants to hurt them. That’s why the cover of the album is a INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST COLIN H. VAN EECKHOUT BY MARIKA ZORZI study of a piece of art I was tryver since he started Amen- hardcore scene to world-re- “We’re trying to be genuine and ing to make—the cover is thorn ra with Mathieu Vandeker- nowned, spiritually guided inno- real, not trying to be something branches that are golden. ckhove more than 20 years vators, in an enthralling new light. that we are not,” van Eekhout continues. “Ultimately, using lan- “We had spray painted them ago, Colin H. van Eeckhout has always had a clear idea of ​​what “It had never really occurred to guage that is not your own limits golden, and spraying something he wanted to convey through me that I could sing in my own you. You cannot go into the same gold gives it status, gives it value language,” van Eeckhout says. level of depth, and you cannot in a human’s eyes. It’s only a the band.

“It was really weird, and it was write in-between the lines like you branch but if it is gold, you give it “A lot of our albums have light only because we started playing can in your own language and value and it demands respect. It that seeps in at the end,” he the cover songs of a Flemish play with words as much. I had gets a certain amount of respect says. “There is movement in every singer. It was at this point that I never really realized that, and to that it wouldn’t normally get if record. You came from the dark- started realizing how powerful us, it is important—our mothers it was its normal color. There ness and that negativity, and you our own language could be. don’t really speak English and are six different thorn branches, move towards the light, towards a That’s how the Flemish poetry speak Flemish, Dutch, Belgian. and each branch symbolizes a It was important to us to have at musician that is on the album. hopeful and positive conclusion. seeped into the album.” least one record that our moth- So, everyone has their own type It should be something that gives of thorns, and their own types of you energy and gives you force, De Doorn is the first Amenra ers can understand.” wounds that they try to translate and that is definitely something album to be sung entirely in “My mother hasn’t gotten through onto this records.” 💣 💣 💣 Flemish. that is part of our music.”

E

The new album, De Doorn, out this year on Relapse Records, is not an exception. It casts the 21year journey for the band, from the heart of Belgium’s crusading

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“I got fascinated by thorn branches and the fact that it is a weapon crafted from nature.”

PHOTO David Parham

INTERVIEW WITH BASSIST RAFAY NABEEL BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

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ans of sludgy, blackened Southern doom rejoice: Withered are back with a new record, Verloren, out June 18 via Season of Mist. And, like many other bands, they hoped to have the record out into the world sooner than this, but better late than never.

“There were some delays of our own volition, unfortunately, and we were kind of dragging ass on some of the writing,” admits bassist Rafay Nabeel. “A lot of that is just from being kind of nit-picky and peculiar about certain things, and that kind of comes with the territory, I suppose, especially when you’re

crafting something as personal as this record.”

are missing, but it could also be in an active sense, like I am missing something or someone. That kind of resonated with all of us because we’ve all experienced some pretty tragic losses and things of that sort. So, the overall concept kind of turned into this idea of yearning and being forlorn, which ‘verloren’ actually translates to.”

rework some parts, and really, really flesh out the lyrics, and Even though the record was give some more time to the lyrics started years ago, fitting for the The initial plan was to hit the studio and vocals. So, it was kind of a themes on the album, the last of last February right after a Europe- little bit of a blessing. There’s a it was written last summer during an tour, but when everything shut silver lining there.” lockdown. In this time of isolation, down in the middle of March, they they made the final decisions realized there wasn’t enough time While the process allowed for about the record and prepared to get it all recorded. more time to perfect the record, it to go out into the world. the concept had been with Na“Then March turned to April, and beel for some time.

In terms of what’s next, Withered April turned into July and August, are open to many ideas, includand we kind of realized that “When we first started writing this ing recording smaller releases things are going to be pushed record a couple years ago, I had and splits with friends, and they back a little more,” he adds. “But this very loose concept of ‘miss- are sitting on enough material this actually worked in our favor ing.’ I just kept getting fixated on to release another record in the because we didn’t have to cram the word ‘missing’ and started near future, in some form or anto get the record done. COVID approaching themes and con- other. Look out for more musical actually afforded us some time cepts from this angle. It could be and concert announcements to go back over some things and people, or places, or things that coming soon. 💣

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In Service to the Emotion

HALF

PHOTO Ali Cherkis

we didn’t go into it necessarily I wanted the voice to be able to go being like, it’s only going to be us there, so trying to yell more, trying was really starting to take a look two playing on the record, but at to belt more—and then, the belting at in a conscious way and be like, a certain point, we had created is also because I love pop music.”

‘This is not going to be my life.’” such a kind of nourishing atmosphere between the two of us Overall, the relative focus in Instrumentally speaking, Mytho- creating this album, and so it felt Rose’s songwriting imparts a poetics is emotively dynamic really important and special that sense of emotional warmth, throughout its runtime, with mixes we would make all the sounds.” adeptly placing the album’s that feel cinematically lush. instrumental explorations within The sounds that Rose and Hens- Rose’s lyrical context of relaRose blends warm, pop beats ler crafted ended up steeped in tionships with loved ones. Rose with earthy pianos, and her “high drama,” she says, and the ventures through themes like, on singing proves strikingly pas- duo felt as though they needed to “Swimmer,” watching the toll of sionate. While inviting, the beats “tone it down” ahead of release, Alzheimer’s disease on a family often feel subtly yet dramati- although ample breadth remains member, and in these overcast cally resounding, making for a throughout the music. moments, she finds space in her sometimes-whimsical but always steadily breathable songs for a forward-moving trek. Meanwhile, “In general, I definitely think of the sense of healing.

Rose alternates between em- arrangement as just as important phasizing the pianos and synths. a tool for conveying an idea as “I hope by the end of the journey “Fabric,” “Sourdough,” and “Sodi- the lyrics,” Rose explains. of the record, there can be for um & Cigarettes” feature promthe listener also some sense of: inent, standout pianos, making As for the role of Rose’s singing ‘OK, I’ve gone through this, and Mythopoetics feel grounded. in those arrangements, the mu- I’ve processed it, and I’ve sat with sician shares that she sees her it,’” Rose explains. “I’m definitely Rose worked with friend and col- vocals as being “in service to the a big proponent of feeling your laborator Zubin Hensler for the emotion.” feelings so that you can be more record, and only the two of them present with them and look them perform across this new full-length. “So, this record emotionally is pretty in the eyes, like look that fear, raw and exploring some deeply and sadness, and grief in the face, “We had so much fun recording painful things, and I wanted to go and then know it, and understand this album,” Rose shares. “I think there emotionally,” Rose says, “Also, it, and then you can move on.” 💣

INTERVIEW WITH NANDI ROSE BY CALEB R. NEWTON

O

n Mythopoetics, a July release from Anti- Records, New York synth-pop artist Nandi Rose—as Half Waif—shares a musical portrait of strained yet resilient longing, depicting a gradually brightening search for relief from burdens that are more-than-physical.

“I think a lot of people can relate, but my family, we have a long history of alcoholism and addiction, so I was helping someone through that,” Rose explains, discussing the background of Mythopoetics.

“But because that’s a genetic thing, I also was looking at myself and how those tendencies might show up in my own life. So, it was both caretaking someone else and then taking the mirror to myself and saying, ‘OK, how might I also have fallen into these patterns, and how can I break that?’ This is not the kind of lineage that I want to continue on. This is a family story, a history that we have carried.

It’s a myth that has shaped our family, and that was something I

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NEIGHBORHOOD BRATS PHOTO Alan Snodgrass

“This is a family story, a history that we have carried.” started in 2010, feature vocalist Jenny Angelillo and guitarist George Rager, the two ever-present members, who, after different line-ups and some chaotic times, have been joined by Aguilar and bassist Mike West for the past three years. This stable line-up is a welcome change, according to Rager.

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST JENNY ANGELILLO, GUITARIST GEORGE RAGER, AND DRUMMER NICK AGUILAR BY JANELLE JONES

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eighborhood Brats have just released their third fulllength, Confines of Life (Dirt Cult Records). The 12-track album features hard-hitting, lyrically serious songs (“Miss America Pageant,” “I Weep for the Future,” “Harvey Weinstein (Is a Symptom),” “Transitional Housing,” to name but a few) that are still incredibly fun, continuing in the footsteps of the best punk and hardcore bands who couple socially-aware lyrics with straight-up killer music.

And, as drummer Nick Aguilar

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explains, in addition to lyrics that really relate to the times, there’s a good mix going on musically.

“I don’t think anyone’s going to think any of them are throwaway songs,” he elaborates. “We really busted our ass to make sure there was a little bit of depth in each one. There’s some elements of hardcore on there; there’s some elements of surf on there. Classic-style Clash, Ramones punk rock that we all love.”

The band, who are dispersed around California and initially

play shows. [We] balance each other out really well.”

The four-piece finished tracking Confines of Life while L.A. was shutting down because of COVID. Rager, who always has a hand in producing duties, explains how the process differed this time around, namely that he took about 10 months to finish the mix.

“Once we got the current rhythm section, it was like, this is a band that is going to be able to tour; this “I was under no pressure, for the first is the band that we can write with,” time in the band’s career, to get the he says. record out,” he says. “It was totally different.”

“We’re a good unit,” Aguilar concurs.

“We’re not going to be touring to But about the founding duo, Ange- support this,” Angelillo continues. lillo illuminates on their awesome “We weren’t slamming things out like chemistry and how they have aug- we were for [2014’s] Recovery. That mented each other so well over the was bonkers. We slammed that out years. In addition to being great so quickly. This time, we got our song-writing collaborators, Ange- time to really listen to mixes and not lillo says their differences really feel stressed out. I think it shows becomplement one another and add cause the mixes sound really good.” a cool dynamic to the band.

“I’m really stoked that I think it’s “I’m the performer person,” says An- going to be coming out at the right gelillo. “I’m the one who gets nuts time for people to be hyped, to be about performance, and George like, ‘’hat album came out a couple gets nuts about recording stuff. of months ago, and I’m going to see This is just why I think we work well them in a couple of months, and I as a band. We’re not one of these can’t wait,’” adds Aguilar. “That’s bands who are like, let’s just slam just the right amount of saturation out some garbage so we can have time for people to get used to the an album, and then we’ll tour and sounds in their earholes.”💣

NEW EP OUT JUNE 25, 2021

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PHOTO Adelle Barlow

LOU BARLOW INTERVIEW BY DEREK NIELSEN

“I wanted to be too quiet for the aggressive people and too angry for the acoustic people—I just wanted to sit somewhere no one belonged.”

Lou Barlow has never felt at ease within just one setting. Like his previous solo efforts, the soft-spoken, grizzly-faced singer/songwriter’s new album, Reason to Live, is framed within the context of acoustic folk sensibilities, a noticeable contrast to the bombastic and abrasive delivery of “This is just a fucking fact,” he says. “I do a fair amount of travelling. The only place in the world that even approaches the exotic urban beauty his other band Dinosaur Jr. of Los Angeles and much of California is Rio De Janeiro, for god’s sake!”

“I think that was my initial inspiration and introduction to underground music was really extreme noise music,” Barlow says. “But at the same time, With his constant tour cycle put on indefinite hiatus in 2020, Barlow had more I’ve always really loved acoustic music. You can hear it on ‘Poledo’—a time to workshop the material that would go on the album, even going so far song I kind of tape-collaged together on the second Dino Jr. record—and to make almost 400 handmade sleeves for the album art. But like many of us in the last year, it didn’t take long for the existential dread to start creeping in. on early Sebadoh.”

“Something I’ve really loved about hardcore is that I was a really confes- “During this last year there were times I just found myself having some rough sional, emotionally raw music,” Barlow continues. “Some of it was a more periods of extreme paranoia,” he reflects. “I would get up and would be wordy and politically angry—like The Clash and Sex Pistols. But a lot of in such a state of anxiety and developed that kind of COVID-insomnia, what I found in domestic hardcore, stuff like Black Flag, I found it to be where I’d be awake every fucking night from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. There are this very lonely and emotionally vulnerable music. Really talking about several songs on the record that touch on it. I had to really sit and have being alone and feeling alienated—I wanted to take that raw sensibility these soul-searching talks with my wife. But it’s good too, because I had to talk myself down, and really had to develop some real coping mechaand apply it to acoustic music.” nisms that weren’t chemically derived.”

Now 54 years old, Barlow has spent decades learning how to reconcile the contradictions between his internal and external surroundings. Drop- Paranoia and isolation have become such recurring themes as of late, it ping on May 28 via Joyful Noise, Reason to Live was written and recorded seems silly to forget that when we were kids, these emotions practically in his home in Massachusetts, where he now lives with his wife and three ran our daily lives. For many of us, it’s what made discovering music so crucial in the first place. In writing Reason to Live, Barlow channeled his children. inner teenager for inspiration—sometimes literally, as was the case with “Moving back to this part of the country has been good for my creative life the album’s third single “In My Arms.” because it’s just not as epic as California,” Barlow says, laughing. “There’s something about the epicness of the conditions that I was living in that “It was about high school,” Barlow recalls, looking back on the single. “I almost robbed me of my ability to describe it! So, I’m out here now and I found as I was singing it and ruminating on it, I realized I needed to write about music. And about discovering music and the comfort—music gave have to create mine. My creative life has blossomed out here.” me so much comfort during those times, in high school when I was feeling Though he was raised in the Bay State, Barlow and his wife still yearn for pretty alienated. I was a pretty isolated kid. Music was really what embraced me, so that’s what I ended up writing about.” 💣 Southern California, a place they called home for over 17 years.

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PHOTO BY JOE CALIXTO

PHOTO samipic

STREET EATERS

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/DRUMMER MEGAN MARCH AND VOCALIST/BASSIST JOHN NO BY JANELLE JONES

S

imple Distractions is the latest release from Street Eaters, a vital, four-song seven-inch that marks the Bay Area mainstays’ first foray into recording with guitar, after spending over a decade as a two-piece vocals, drums, and bass unit.

Released on the band’s own Nervous Intent label, Simple Distractions came out April 9 as a limited-edition picture disc of 200 copies, which promptly sold out a month before its release.

“We were like, ‘jeez, internet!’” laughs vocalist and bassist John No of the record’s awesome reception.

Vocalist and drummer Megan March says, “I really appreciated that. I think people are really trying to be supportive of music right now, and I think people miss going to shows. I miss going to shows.”

and becoming part of our sound, and now we’ve really incorporated that. As we’re getting into the newer writing and recording, that’s going to become more and more seamless.”

Interestingly, the seven-inch closes with a cool live rendition of Gang of Four’s “Love Like Anthrax,” which was recorded Halloween night They recorded this seven-inch with 2017 at the Pinhook in Durham, guitarist Stevo (also of Tony Molina North Carolina, and features Band) and have since recruited Screaming Females’ vocalist and Joan Toledo for guitar duties. She guitarist Marissa Paternoster. It was had been playing with March and the first time the duo had played No in the band DIFFICULT, and with guitar. hence was a great, natural fit. Likewise, she’s been injecting a lot of “It was a good fit,” March says of excitement into the group. including this cover on the release.

“I basically think this seven-inch is “We have a really strong creative really symbolic for us, in the sense bond with her. She knows where that it shows a pivotal growth we’re going, and we know where moment where we can show we’re she’s going,” says No. playing with guitars.”

Street Eaters had previously been All four songs “sound good togeth- playing as a duo for over a decade er, and they’re all songs that need and, according to No, “were all to come out now because they all about minimalism.” really make sense at the certain stage we were at and that we are “The tension of the two instruments,” still growing from,” explains No. adds March.

certain people in our lives who would be perfect to collaborate with and to play with. We’ve been a band for 10 years; we can do whatever the hell we want.”

And they’ve been following that mantra, doing what they want, since their inception, crafting exciting, moody, thought-provoking songs.

“We have a lot of fun experimenting with interesting sounds,” No says. “I think for a long time, we kind of let ourselves go pretty wild on it, left field because we kept the basic formulation of the band so simple that we didn’t fear that it was getting into self-indulgence because we were into keeping it rhythmically tight and locked. It kind of created a weird aesthetic that we’ve done and continued to build on.”

“I think that ties into having been a two-piece for so long,” March elaborates. “Because there’s no room to fuck up when there’s only two people.”

“It was cool to get it out because “And try to make it as loud as possiThe record features three original it was a snapshot of a particular ble,” says No. “And as full as possi- “And also, just playing so many tracks that brilliantly showcase moment of introducing a guitar in ble without going beyond that. But shows, there’s no room to … it’s not the band’s gloriously urgent, tense, the band,” No continues. “It showed we started to realize we’ve been a cute if you’re super sloppy,” she and immediate post-punk style. how we were sort of easing into that band for a long time, and we had says with a laugh. 💣

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PHOTO Jason Galea

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST STU MACKENZIE

BY DOUGLAS MENAGH

R

eleased months apart from one another, K.G. and L.W. are interrelated yet self-contained albums from King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard.

bass, some harmonicas, and a keyboard just so we could play together in this new tuning,” says Mackenzie. “It’s funny; when you pick up a microtonal instrument, even if it’s guitar, which is an instru“They’re sort of like one big project,” ment I’ve played for so many years, says singer and guitarist Stu Mack- you just feel really scared on it. It’s enzie. “I didn’t want it to be like a like, ‘What the fuck is this thing? I Harry Potter movie split in two.” can’t play it! I can’t do this.’”

On K.G. and L.W., King Gizzard re- Mackenzie regards this disorienting turned to making microtonal music, feeling as a source of inspiration. as they did on Flying Microtonal Banana.

“It’s actually super inspiring to go back to basics on an instrument “We became interested in this idea you’re pretty familiar with,” he says. of the notes between the notes, and “And it does kind of inspire a lot of [to] try and write some music that creative choices and writing ideas is microtonal, that has extra notes and stuff.” that aren’t usually accessible in Western music.”

Writing and recording K.G. and L.W. occurred in isolation.

To play these extra notes, King Gizzard used customized instruments “We wrote both of those records which they had made for Flying and recorded almost all of it in a Microtonal Banana. pretty strict Melbourne, ‘iso’ kind of period where we couldn’t see each “We modified a bunch of guitars, other,” says Mackenzie. “It was defi-

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nitely strange. We just had to learn “[With] ‘If Not Now, Then When?’ the to work in a new way, which we had ultimate message is, ‘This is disapnever done.” pointing.’ You know what I mean?”

Mackenzie explains. “‘Automation’ is While this process was different for about being paranoid about AI and King Gizzard, the band managed the future. ‘Supreme Ascendancy’ is to make it work. about being insanely shocked and appalled about the Catholic Church.

“It took a while to get the knack of, That is the rough lyrical theme that but I think we learned some things just happened. ‘Minimum Brain Size’ along the way,” Mackenzie says. “I touches on toxic masculinity.” think it colored K.G. and L.W., and it helped make those records sound Like Infest the Rats Nest, K.G. and L.W. the way they do.” also address climate change.

K.G. and L.W. offer truly diverse lis- “There’s definitely a handful of entening experiences, as albums and vironmentalist-type things as well,” within the tracks.

Mackenzie says. “Which is another thing we’re failing dismally at as a “The original idea when we were group, as a collective.” first starting out was to widen the palate, make it sonically more free While K.G. and L.W. contain elethan Flying Microtonal Banana,” ments of psych-rock, the next King says Mackenzie. “It’s allowed to go Gizzard record is supposed to be heavier. It’s allowed to go softer. It’s psychedelic. a bit more of a rainbow palate.”

“It’s definitely, like, a psychedelic Unlike on some previous albums, record,” says Mackenzie. “It’s kind there is not necessarily an overar- of bright and psychedelic and ching narrative in K.G. or L.W.. Nev- melodic, which is not something I ertheless, the narrative elements would have described many of our within the songs are powerful. records as, so that’s fun.” 💣 💣 💣

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MANNEQUIN PUSSY M INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARIST MARISA DABICE BY JASON SCHREURS

annequin Pussy vocalist and guitarist Marisa Dabice, who goes by the name Missy, is scrambling to find a quiet place in her friend’s house to chat about the band’s new five-song EP, Perfect.

PHOTO Phobymo

While the band, rounded out by drummer Kaleen Reading, have always thrown stylistic variations into their albums— 2019’s Patience, also on Epitaph, is a prime example— the new EP covers lots of ground in five songs.

She resorts to a pair of pink kitty-cat gaming headphones, but isn’t able to connect by Bluetooth, laughs, and gives up.

“We’ve never limited ourselves to one genre or one specific sound— that’s not true for the human experience, that we continually express ourselves in the same way,” Dabice says.

“These are pretty sick, but I don’t know how to work them,” she says.

Formed by Dabice in 2010 as a two-piece, Mannequin Pussy have since released three albums, the latest on punk institution Epitaph, and now this new EP.

Although its five songs weren’t meant to have a common theme, in retrospect, Dabice can spot similarities, at least lyrically.

When Dabice and the band decided that “digital band practice” wouldn’t work for them, they booked a week in studio to pump out some new tunes, hoping they’d come away with a cohesive EP. “We didn’t go in there thinking, ‘Oh, let’s write a whole record,’” Dabice says. “Let’s just hope we can write a few songs and by the end of the second day, we had five songs we were sure were going to be at a younger age that what on the finished EP.” we do has a very big impact on the way that we feel Dabice hasn’t shied away mentally and ignoring what from writing songs about her happens in our life has an traumatic past and feelings adverse effect on us.” of isolation, including beating a rare form of cancer on Dabice started talked about her face when she was young, playing guitar when she was coming out the dark tunnels 15, and says she let depresof toxic relationships, and sion get in her way until she seeing her life through the was 23. Just as she was gainlens of depression. ing momentum with music, her mom had a stroke, and “These things can be very she moved back home to be traumatic, and it numbs you a caregiver with her dad. out to the world,” she says. “[The cancer] changed my “Just I was trying to underperception of how we pro- stand this one experience, I cess these big events in our was thrown into another that lives. It made me understand was very painful, and again

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dude, what? You have to have a song!’”

“Examining it in a rearview way, it’s obvious there are many types of loss all over the record,” she says. “Loss of control of your life, the actual loss of human life, the loss of people in our life that used to be very present, and not getting to be with them anymore, the loss of people from state-sanctioned violence. It just pops up in a lot of different ways in our lives.” made me feel isolated from the people around me,” she says.

Like most of us, time alone over the past year has given Dabice ample chances to spend time with her thoughts.

Perfect is a wild ride through She used what was “piling wall-of-sound, ’90s, alterna- up in my mind” as fodder for tive rock; angry-as-fuck punk; recording the new songs. With contemplative, indie rock; the Perfect EP serving as anand shoegaze-y slow burn. other signpost to Mannequin It even includes a ripping Pussy’s more-than-a-decade hardcore song called “Pigs Is lifespan, Dabice’s songwritPigs” about police violence ing arc, and the band’s traagainst black people, with jectory, could go a number of bassist Colin “Bear” Regisford different ways. behind the mic.

“I used to predict the future “I love Bear’s hardcore voice,” and now I don’t,” she says.

Dabice says. “He has a great “For now, all I have is hope scream. I saw him screaming and caution. I just know I’m one time in his old hardcore really proud of the EP and band, and I was like, ‘Whoa, very excited.” 💣💣💣

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“As with most things about our band, our entire career has been beholden to dumb ideas we had as 22-year-old punks who hated the music industry”

FUCKED UP INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST MIKE HALIECHUK BY JOHN SILVA

“

W

e ended up with a longer song, what that animal represents in the by chance, for Year of the Dog, collective consciousness. [Year of back in 2005, and we’ve been the] Ox is about flying and fighttrying to one-up ourselves ing against what holds you down, with each release ever since,” says since oxen are generally seen as Fucked Up guitarist Mike Haliechuk. load-bearing animals. With [Year of the] Horse, I wanted to tell a westThe band have certainly one- ern type story, but with the animal upped themselves this time. Year of as the focus.” the Horse, the latest in their series of LPs inspired by the Chinese Zo- Haliechuk goes on to explain how diac, is just one song. One 90-min- the story changed as it grew from ute-long song. an initial idea to the final product:

“As with most things about our band, our entire career has been beholden to dumb ideas we had as 22-year-old punks who hated the music industry,” Haliechuk says.

“Originally it was going to be a horse whose rider got shot and killed, and the horse had to spend the story trying to get the saddle off its back. But when we realized how boring a 90-minute-long story just Each of Fucked Up’s Year of about a voiceless horse would be, the… LPs contains its own story arch we embellished it with more of a inspired by the animal in the title. narrative.”

“The stories are all meant to be stand-alone kind of fables,” Haliechuk says. “Morality plays that use an animal as the structure for whatever the story ends up being.”

The animal can play a part in each story in a variety of ways, ranging from metaphorical to literal.

The 90-minute song is broken into four acts that incorporate a wide variety of genres, from hardcore to classical and everything in between. Fucked Up dedicated the album to Riley Gale of Power Trip and Wade Allison of Iron Age, both of whom passed away last year.

“Because we love them and miss “Normally [we] take a look at the them, and we wrote the song with common characteristics of each both of what they gave to music in animal and consult the zodiac,” mind.” Haliechuk says. 💣 Haliechuk says. “Or we imagine

66 NEW NOISE

PHOTO Dan Rawe

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INTERVIEW BY J POET

S

uzi Moon has been wreaking havoc on the L.A. rock scene since she was 15 and started her professional career playing guitar, singing, and writing songs with her sister, Liza Graves, in Civet.

“I’ve been writing songs since I was a ‘tween,” Moon says. “In Civet, I primarily co-wrote with my sister.

I’d write the guitar riff, the shape of the song, and she’d put lyrics to it. There were a few Civet songs I wrote lyrics and music to, like ‘Handgun & Cocaine,’ but mostly, it was a collaborative process.

That’s where our special something came from.”

“I didn’t have a band before I recorded these songs,” Moon says. “I wanted to get new music out into the world. I was ready to take full ownership of my art by transitioning to the solo thing.

Due to COVID, Rikki, Drew and I were never in the studio at the same time. Everything was done during different sessions. Moving forward, Drew will play guitar and I’ve enlisted Sean Peterson from The Split Seconds to play drums and Patti Bo from River City Rebels to tackle bass. Our first show together is in September, then we’ll be hittin’ the road, hard.”

The music on Call the Shots is played with a ferocious energy.

Champion’s blistering guitar attack, the powerhouse drumming of Styxx and Moon’s out of control vocals and bass playing contribute to the hedonistic force “In Machina, Michelle Balder- of tunes like “I’m Not a Man” and rama would email us her songs, “Special Place in Hell.” and we’d learn them,” Moon says.

“When we started the band, I was “I have a lot of religious tattoos,” totally new to bass. I played it like Moon says. “I grew up in a Chrisa rhythm guitar. It was challeng- tian home, but as I’ve gotten olding to do something out of my er, my beliefs have expanded—I comfort zone, learning another vibe with a lot of Buddhist ideals, woman’s songs and not be the too. I think there’s good and bad boss, ya know? But I love being in all religions. I’m not here to tell the boss because I am back at it people what to believe. There’s now with my own solo project.” nothing particularly religious about ‘Special Place In Hell.’ In Moon’s new, self-titled trio fea- that song, Hell is Los Angeles. tures her on bass and vocals, Drew When I sing ‘There’s a special Champion on guitar and Rikki place in hell … and it’s with m e…’

Styxx on drums. Pirates Press will I’m telling my guy to come join me soon release their first recording, in L.A., and let’s fucking go down Call the Shots, a three song EP. in flames together!” 💣 When Civet stopped playing gigs, Moon started Turbulent Hearts, a power trio, moving on after a few years to play with the all-woman stoner punk band, L.A. Machina.

68 NEW NOISE

ROLLIN’ COFFIN “RUNAWAY” Rollin' Coffin is the brainchild of Bloodsimple & Vision of Disorder frontman Tim Williams. vinyl coming soon!

PHOTO Dan Rawe

DARE INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST ANGEL GARCIA BY MICK R.

S

hort and devastating shots of The band was signed to the legrighteous fury, in the form of endary Revelation Records on 120-second caliber rounds the strength of their 2018 self-tidelivered in rapid succession to tled EP and the 2019 Welcome the heart, soul, and ear canal. to the OC tape, and were set to That’s the promise that Orange release their first LP through their County straight-edge hardcore new label in the fall of 2020. band DARE have been delivering on since their inception.

As you can imagine, things did not

70 NEW NOISE

go according to plan. Recalling how COVID delayed the writing and recording of his band’s first major release, lead vocalist Angel Garcia recalls: “Unfortunately, just as we were getting into it, is when COVID started. It all came just as we were starting to get our momentum.”

has expanded while writing their new record, and that he’s grown as a song writer in the process.

“For the first time, I had to write choruses and verses and all that kind of stuff,” he says. “I’ve never had to do that before, because our songs are like 45-seconds long. There is no chance for anyAfter unsuccessfully attempt- thing to repeat. So, I had to figure ing to write and rehearse via out stuff that’s going to work.”

Facetime and by trading GarageBand files, the album was DARE’s debut LP is now set to put on hold until the band was drop in August 2021, with tenable to meet in person again. tative tours being planned for Thankfully, it did not take them September and November. long for the group to get back their groove once they had the “Hopefully we’ll have a record opportunity to reconvene. release show too,” Garcia optimistically confides. “We’re trying “Once we could all play together to get back out there but I’m not again, it came together pretty too sure what’s happening.” easily,” Garcia relates, with audible relief. “We could talk and fig- It’s not clear what the future ure out what we actually wanted holds for live events this year, but to do. It made it so much easier.” one can dare to dream. In fact, if Garcia and co. didn’t, they may While Garcia still holds up the want to consider a name change. work of Uniform Choice and Ter- Although, for the record, Cynic is ror as the band’s primary inspi- already taken. 💣 rations, he feels that their sound

PHOTO Remi Juliebo Deformat

INTERVIEW WITH BASSIST HVÀLL (JARLE KVÅLE)

BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

V

reid are no strangers to unveiling heavy hitting, classic, and slightly symphonic black metal with a historical flair, but they’ve outdone themselves this time with Wild North West. Out now via Season of Mist, the record is paired with a short film, both of which tell the story of a soldier returning from war to meet a harsh, unforgiving homeland.

“It started off because I had some ideas for music videos, and we did some livestreaming last summer, and I had a really good connection with a producer there, so I presented him with the idea of doing something we’ve never done before, and setting up a full, music movie,” says Vreid bassist Jarle Kvåle, stage name Hvàll. “I always wanted to do something like this I haven’t done before and find new obstacles and challenges. We kind of just wanted to dive into the unknown and see where it leads.”

72 NEW NOISE

While Kvåle points out that you can also just listen to the record without the accompanying music video and get a lot out of it, he claims that if you watch the film, it will “open up a new dimension” in terms of the imagery and atmosphere that come with the music.

“I usually base my writing on historical themes, but I like to blend that with my own thoughts and fiction, so it kind of becomes my own story,” he says.

“For this one, my main source of inspiration was sailors coming back from the war. Those who were in the Second World War went out and had all kinds of traumas, all kinds of horrible experiences, and then coming back to their home country, they weren’t prepared at all. Soldiers were put into mental institutions and treated in horrible ways. So, that was the backbone of the story, and then we kind of wrote our own story based on historical

events, and it turned into histori- went after the Second World cal fiction.”

War. The stories I’ve heard and read about the people who “I’ve always been interested were there or who worked there in history; that’s something kind of stuck with me, and led that’s been with me my whole me to think there are so many life, and just a couple miles stories out there that need to from where I live, there is this be told. It’s kind of inspiring to big, abandoned asylum where write a story about something some of these people actually in my own backyard.” 💣

DON’T SLEEP ON THESE SPECIAL RELEASES ... BY HUTCH REISSUES:

BOX SET/COLLECTIONS: NEON CHRIST

USELESS ID

1984 SOUTHERN LORD/DVL RECORDINGS JUNE 12 Cali hardcore kids Neon Christ formed in the fall of 1983, with William DuVall on guitar, Jimmy Demer on drums, Danny Lankford on bass, and Randy DuTeau on vocals. DuVall and company were writing these songs when he was 16, he describes the sound as “quintessential youth music from a tumultuous time, both in our own lives and in the world at large.” He had been itching to remaster the band’s music, and, serendipitously, Greg Anderson of Southern Lord called, looking to do the same. To resurrect Neon Christ’s recorded tunes, William DuVall made a pilgrimage to Welcome to 1979 in Nashville who, DuVall reports, “does recording, mixing, mastering, lacquer cutting, and lacquer plating all under one roof.” As if that’s not enough, they also manufacture and refurbish tape machines. Side one of 1984 features the original Neon Christ 7-inch EP, and side two contains the four songs of the Labor Day session, all on heavyweight vinyl at 45 RPM for maximum fidelity. The package includes a full-color gatefold sleeve. 1500 pressed on Translucent Red vinyl, with 12-page booklet showcasing an oral history booklet featuring dozens of never-before-seen photographs. 💣

CHRISTIAN DEATH

ATROCITIES SEASON OF MIST JULY 9

Christian Death represented America in the glory days of death rock and goth. Coming out of sunny Los Angeles, unlike the gloom and banality of Manchester, U.K., Christian Death brings daunting melancholy and grim atmosphere to artistic perfection. In 1979, Rozz Williams and crew released their debut album, Only Theatre of Pain (1982), and then genre-defining Catastrophe Ballet (1984), and Ashes (1985). 1998 saw Williams’ death, projecting Valor Kand into the forefront, singing and playing guitar, piano, Hammond organ, violin, cello, and percussion. Atrocities, whose subject matter exclusively hones-in on the Holocaust, was recorded at Rockfield Studios Monmouth, Wales, U.K., in a remote farm village, one of which, according to local tradition, is allegedly haunted. Valor also produced this release, and is heading the reissue, supplying the cover concept and design.

Pressed on standard black vinyl and a limited-edition sun yellow 12-inch vinyl.💣

SPLITS:

MOST USELESS SONGS FAT WRECK CHORDS OUT NOW

Abstaining from fretting about compiling a ‘best of’ record, Israeli punks Useless ID wanted to catalog their arc as a band. “It just took a look at a set list,” says songwriter, bassist, and vocalist Yotam Ben-Horin. They simply took their live set and re-recorded to exhibit their progression as musicians over their near three-decade span. They also added two new songs to punctuate the point, totaling sixteen tracks, 300 pressed on colored vinyl.

Ben-Horin adds: “We never stuck to one sound in punk rock, and I think that’s what defines our band as well. We can do a simple pop-punk song like ‘Night Shift,’ and still be able to play something like ‘Isolate Me,’ and it won’t be weird because it’s the same band with the same sound.” 💣

ENGINE KID

EVERYTHING LEFT INSIDE SOUTHERN LORD OUT NOW Southern Lord is going all in with a heavy hand as they release a six-LP box set of Engine Kid. In the days of Shellac, Into Another, Stillsuit, Quicksand, and Lungfish, Engine Kid was a platform for hardcore kids learning to twist minds with their growing musicianship and create something new and challenging. From 1991 to 1997, these dudes from Seattle started to explore jazz and take hints from Slint, and got comfortable with amorphous songwriting yielding four-, six-, and seven-minute songs.

Post-hardcore capitalized on tension and frenetic anxiety, and Engine Kid’s albums and EPs manufactured explorations of sound and contemplation.

Everything Left Inside, features the Novocaine and Astronaut 12-inch EPs (eight songs total), Bear Catching Fish double LP, Angel Wings double LP and split with Iceburn. 💣

COVERS:

MONSTER MAGNET

A BETTER DYSTOPIA NAPALM RECORDS OUT NOW

Napalm Records offers this platter of Mon-

PRISONER/ WITCHCAKE

SPLIT 7-INCH DEAD BROKE REKERDS

Dead Broke presents this fun split for fans of

ster Magnet delving into their favorite covers of psychedelic and proto-metal royalty (and obscurity) for the first time. Here, trapped in the fetters of a global pandemic and political intensity, the band explored not simply favorite tracks, but ones which speak of “the paranoia, dystopia and revolution of both now – and then.”

quality garage punk with a pop sense, a la Ramones, The Briefs, or Conmen. Leaning more to the garage heritage, there is no pop punk polish here. Part snarl, part grit, “We all agreed that we would be bored out of part infectious equals all punk rock ’n’ roll. our minds within a month of lockdown,” vocalThe EP contains two tracks from each band, ist Dave Wyndorf says. “Monster Magnet loves the road. It’s a lifestyle. So … rather than panhaneach side under six minutes. A dark tone dle on the internet, hawking masks and Zoom-rocking practice sessions for dollars, I suggested oversees Prisoner’s offerings, the second of we record a ‘bunker record’. A total DIY affair (band only) recorded and mixed in Bob Pantella’s which is an acoustic, atmospheric, psychesmall but potent Freak Shop Studios and rehearsal space, right here in New Jersey.” delic wandering piece. Witchcake employs more of a psych/mod approach, with a heavy Hammond along with their ’60s producPrepare to enjoy covers of Hawkwind’s “Born To Go,” Poo-Bah’s “Mr. Destroyer,” Table Scraps’ tion style. Their second track pounds a little harder. Think Duffys Cut, British Invasion, “Motorcycle (Straight To Hell),” The Scientists’ “Solid Gold Hell,” Morgen’s “Welcome To The Void,” The Scientists, The Uraniam Club. and Dust’s “Learning To Die.” Two-LP Gatefold Pink Transparent, Napalm Mailorder only, 300; Curacao with Side D etching, 500; Purple with Side D etching, 300; Black with etching.💣 350 total pressed (100 on blue/white swirl, 250 on black) 💣

74 NEW NOISE

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