New Noise Magazine Issue # 55

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THE DIRTY NIL

Fuck Art

January 1, 2021 thedirtynil.com

ISSUE 55

LIVE MUSIC WILL NEVER DIE. 6 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40

THE NEW WHAT NEXT ALPHA HOPPER THOU AND EMMA RUTH RUNDLE DUMA BEARINGS FEAR OF A QUEER PLANET DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS BOWMAN AUDIO ENDEAVORS CHARGED RECORDS JOAN OF ARC THE CASKET LOTTERY PROFESSOR AND THE MADMAN KILLER BE KILLED NOTHING HATEBREED THE DIRTY NIL THE DAMNED

42 46 50

LESS THAN JAKE VISIONS OF SKA VIAGRA BOYS

54 56 58 59 60 62 64 66 68 69 70 72

CRASS JELLO BIAFRA FEVER 333 WAR ON WOMEN ANTI-FLAG MY DYING BRIDE SEVENDUST DIRECTOR SPOTLIGHT - TONY WOLSKI FATES WARNING WORLD BE FREE THE SHORTLIST ANALOG CAVE

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LESS THAN JAKE COVER ART BY CHRIS SHARY VIAGRA BOYS COVER PHOTO BY MARCUS WILEN TOC SHOT OF THE DARTS BY ALAN SNODGRASS

BY NICHOLAS SENIOR PHOTO BY SUREN KARAPETYAN

BABY QUEEN

BOG BODY

COUCH PRINTS

Baby Queen, aka Bella Latham, has crafted six saccharine yet lethal doses of pure poppy bops. Latham’s lyrics reveal a self-deprecating sense of humor and personality that instantly connects with the listener, while her alto range keeps the songs grounded in the real world. That said, it’s Medicine’s “inactive ingredients” that really elevate this EP into something that plays with the conceptions of pop.

This isn’t anti-pop, but whether it's trap, house, R&B, or funk, there’s a ton of flavor here to savor. That singular focus took time and effort, as Latham notes:

Like many others, I’ve played more video games (and read more books) in 2020 than I have in any other year as an adult, in part because of the desire for escapism, but also because the thrill of accomplishment is now something that can legally only be accomplished at home, thanks to stay at home orders. While The Gate of Grief doesn’t sound anything like a video game, the pervasive, dripping atmosphere echoes the darkest journeys I’ve conquered this year. Bog Body’s rich, haunting take on what I can only call dungeon metal is a masterpiece in auditory horror. Mixing doom, black, death, and dark synth styles into something that oozes atmosphere, The Gate of Grief is a wonderful experience for those seeking asylum from the world for 20 minutes. It’s a masterclass in a band taking a vision and executing it.

Though conceived and written before COVID hit, Tell U’s neon-drenched fever dream feels like the perfect encapsulation of what it’s like to be alone in a populated area, even though the story is much more than that. The band even laugh at how poignant this album is:

Hometown: London, U.K. Album: Medicine EP out now via Polydor RIYL: Self-Awareness. Anti-Depressants. Dancing Alone.

Hometown: New York City, New York Album: The Gate of Grief out now via Stygian Black Hand RIYL: Catharsis. Despair. Video Games.

“I’ve been making music since I was about 10 or 11, and there’s a real journey you go on as an artist from mimicking other people’s art to actually finding something that is uniquely yours. I think it’s when I finally wrote the song that’s coming out at the start of next year and then ‘Buzzkill’ a little later on, that I discovered this sort of jaded and “We wanted to create something pitch black and absorbsatirical tone of voice that somehow just really worked. I’d ing,” the band collectively share. “Music that tapped into found this space that I knew was mine, and it was because the blood beating in your heart.” 💣 of the honesty. I think the honesty has always driven me and there’s something truly exhilarating about thinking ‘this is too honest; I can’t possibly say this,’ and then saying it anyways.” 💣

DOGHOUSE ROSE

Hometown: Toronto, Canada Album: The Harder They Fall out now via Stomp Records RIYL: Quirk. Blends. Good Songs.

Hometown: New York City, New York Album: Tell U EP out now via House Arrest RIYL: Loneliness. Discovery. Dichotomy.

“The EP is highly personal and a reflection on the strange feelings between the lines that can’t quite be put into words.

There’s a deep sense of melancholy and a want for true connection that so often today feels just around the corner, just out of reach.”

Couch Prints’ take on retro pop is steeped in the nostalgia of ’80s new wave and synthwave, but with a dark undercurrent.

That dichotomy was intentional, as the band note: “From the beginning of the group, we’ve always wanted to marry a sort of dark and intense energy with polished, HD productions. With this EP specifically, we aimed to capture this sort of lost-in-the-world feeling of life passing by, and the strange beauty in our everyday experiences the past year. When we wrote the first iteration of this EP, almost two years ago now, we had based it around this character who was hiding out in the desert and trying to make sense of who they were in the context of a new place that’s completely unfamiliar. Though the record is completely different now, that feeling still comes through a lot.” 💣

Doghouse Rose exist at the perfect intersection of great ideas and great execution. The Harder They Fall is filled with some of the catchiest punk I’ve heard in years, and reveals a wonderful depth and care behind the hooks. You know those people you know that can pull off all sorts of oddities about themselves because they own who they are? That sense of earnest (and not smug) self-confidence just oozes out of the speakers when listening to The Harder They Fall. Doghouse Rose truly are excellent at bridging sonic gaps without beating those disparities over the listener’s head on every song. That careful balance is key, notes drummer Jordan Zagerman: “We all just like a good song, love some bright colors and quirk, and are suckers for a good hook, at the end of the day! So, although there are a bunch of ideas happening at the same time, we are very much on the same page. At the same time, we don’t take ourselves too seriously. We’re silly people, and we’re not afraid to let that come through in the music and how we present ourselves. I think all of that is at the core what this band is all about: the sum of our favorite parts of all of our favorite things, presented in our own upbeat manner.” 💣

6 NEW NOISE

GHØSTKID

GIVE ME A REASON

The best part of alter egos is the ability to channel a different side of your personality or explore a part of yourself you didn’t know needed to be let out. It can also reveal a depth that others wouldn’t have expected. The self-titled debut for Sebastian “Sushi” Biesler, aka GHØSTKID, is all those things and more. The former vocalist for noted electronic-core act Eskimo Callboy has unearned the musical version of campy horror – all killer, no filler, and all fun. The name of the game here is a mix of modern metalcore (think post-Bring Me The Horizon) filtered through a ’90s industrial lens. It’s not designed for anything other than pure, unadulterated joy. An album that features guest vocals from members of Hollywood Undead and Heaven Shall Burn must be diverse, and GHØSTKID fits the bill beautifully. So how did this project come about? Sushi answers:

Fleetwood Mac’s famous words speak to why these Swiss upstarts excel at what they do well. While pop-punk is a path very well tread, Give Me A Reason really do go their own way on Vice Versa. That’s not to say that this is a revolution of the style, but rather a critical re-analysis of what makes the best pop-punk work, and how to make that winning formula your own. So much of what makes Give Me A Reason the most exciting new pop-punk band I’ve heard in years is this sincere understanding and appreciation for how to master the art of the pop-punk bop. Each of these six songs would end up in my best of 2020 pop-punk list (were I less lazy and actually made one), as there are no standouts when the quality is this consistently impressive. Traveling from Switzerland to California to record the album certainly helped solidify the sunny vibe, as the group note:

Hometown: Gelsenkirchen, Germany Album: Self-titled, out now via Century Media RIYL: Alter Egos. ’90s Industrial. Campy Horror.

Hometown: Zurich, Switzerland Album: Vice Versa EP out now via Self-Release RIYL: Fleetwood Mac. California. Traveling.

“I would say GHØSTKID is kind of like an alter ego of myself. I’m able to express thoughts and things I can't represent as the private person Sushi. It’s a different and really personal side of myself. Every- “Honestly, being in California and experiencing the West Coast pop-punk vibe firsthand thing started at the point [when] I couldn't identify anymore with the music I was doing with Eskimo led to the songs being how they are [in my words, massive]. We wanted to modernize Callboy. The idea to go solo is something I had in mind for many years, but last year there was that pop-punk. We tried to get the vibe, and everything we felt while listening to bands like moment where I realized I had to do something that makes me happy again.” 💣 Blink-182 for the first time, and mix it with the modern sounds that we love today.” 💣 PHOTO BY JUSTIN FRENCH

PHOTO BY BRIAN MIETZ

QUINTON BROCK

Hometown: New York City, New York Album: To The Moon out now via Self-release RIYL: Bounce. Beats. Heart and Soul.

Every bit of joy feels sacred right now, and it’s very clear from the first note that Quinton Brock knows how to make songs that speak to the heart and soul. The lead single, “To The Moon” puts garage rock, soul, and baroque folk in a Hometown: Austin, Texas, and Cincinnati, Ohio blender. The result is a song that feels timeless yet modern.

Album: Self-titled out now via The Flenser It’s got that almost spiritual groove that only the best music RIYL: Collages. Passion Projects. The Unexpected. knows how to conjure. That ability may have come from History is what happens when artists paint outside of their Quinton’s past, singing in the church choir in Buffalo, or just own creative box. Featuring a wealth of talent in duo Leo hanging and sharing songs with friends in New York City now.

Ashline (Street Sects) and Daisy Caplan (Foxy Shazam), Whatever the case, Brock’s aspirations are sky-high: History sound nothing like either, but retain the artistic bravado both bands revel in. Noisy, progressive, propul- “I want to change rock music forever. Musically, I wanted to sive, this is haunting, haunted, and surprisingly danceable make a song that my cousins could listen to and not feel heavy punk rock. So how did History, a record nearly a the energy change, because they mostly listen to hard shit. They like rock music, and stuff that sounds different decade in the making, come about? from what they know, it's just gotta have that bounce.”

“I was in need of an outlet for aggressive, wild ideas that my band at the time, Foxy Shazam, wasn’t willing to ex- The song itself has a buoyant theme that works wonders plore,” Caplan answers. “There was a lot of tension and with the bouncy music: uncertainty at the time, and I think that comes across on this record. It felt good to explore sounds, working with “We're all living in a strange time for sure, but I think it's layers of noise and rhythm until I felt like the song was the darkest times that we go through that really make us appreciate when times are good.”💣 served – or the song finally appeared!” 💣

HISTORY

RID OF ME

Hometown: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Album: Broke Shit Demos EP out now via Knife Hits Records RIYL: Friends. Fury. Amps.

One of the things I’m most appreciative this year is the realization of who my real friends are, and how empty my life feels when all I can see of them is a set of pixels on a screen. I tend to disagree with Ron Swanson’s opinions on friends – one to three isn’t sufficient. Life is too short to hoard the love you can give others. On the surface, this has absolutely nothing to do with the deliciously noisy demo from Philly newcomers Rid Of Me. Featuring members of Low Dose, Fight Amp, and Soul Glo, the punk fury and noise rock edge lives on in this new act. However, it’s the depth of songwriting and the themes of the music, both of which celebrate the power of friendship and sticking with each other through thick and thin. Vocalist Itarya Rosenberg concurs: “As far as what triggered the band, we all just need to be making music for our sanity and beyond. It's really just a mutual, powerful love that drives us all and together – like every time we play feels heavenly – some shit that brings you home.”

When we can be with friends and unfamiliars in music venues, I can’t wait to hear these songs live. Rid Of Me is real and here to stay. 💣

NEW NOISE 7

SCALP

Hometown: Southern California Album: Domestic Extremity out now via Creator-Destructor Records RIYL: Getting Weird. Coloring. Grind.

SEISMIC

Hometown: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Album: Self-titled EP out now via Self-release RIYL: Cosmic Horror. Atmosphere. Dooooooom.

To some, creativity means just coloring outside the lines. But it’s those artists that aren’t afraid to ask “why the hell does this line matter?” that really push the limits, because they aren’t afraid to get weird. The ingredients that make Domestic Extremity truly sing are familiar – noise, riffs, grind passages, full-throttle aggression. Yet these 10 songs blur the lines between sound and genre lines while forging a rather unique – and devastating – path. Guitarist Devan Fuentes acknowledges that their creative process helps fuel this delirious sonic concoction.

So much of 2020 has felt like the plot of a Lovecraft novel (unfortunately, with the gross racism parts...). There’s been this creeping, mounting dread of something unknowable and incomprehensible, all while some truly nefarious shit is going down below the surface. Without a voice, instrumental trio Seismic convey that dread masterfully on their debut release. They’re calling it an EP, but at over 24 minutes, it’s efficient and masterfully effective. Funny to call a record with three songs, none under six minutes “efficient” – however, that gets to where Seismic succeeds the most. They understand “I wanted to make the music on the record unpredictable,” he says. “I think of the record musical suspense and songwriting in a profound way, creating truly monolithic as a whole as I go, but the individual song is more important. We don’t pay any mind to doom in the process. When asked about how the record feels to him now in the midst dipping into multiple subgenres, we just strive for the hardest, most aggressive writing. of a chaotic year, bassist Ken Miller laughs: There are no rules with music! Try weird shit because some things just work.”

“These songs were written in 2018-2019. You could feel what was happening in the To that end, Scalp’s whole aim was delightfully off-kilter from the start, as Fuentes states: world, but no one could have expected where we’re at. Looking back, these songs prepared us emotionally. Now that the recording is done and the release is coming, “We started as a satirical Halloween black metal / death metal band one year and just we’re back to writing, in the thick of this horror shit-show now, and the music is taking a surreal turn.”💣 kind of turned it into something else.”

That something else is brilliant. 💣 PHOTO BY SARA SANGER

PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

SEIZED UP

Hometown: Santa Cruz, California Album: Brace Yourself out now via Pirates Press Records RIYL: Punk Legends. Righteous Anger. Being Energized.

STRANGELIGHT

Hometown: Oakland, California Album: Adult Themes out now via Self-release RIYL: Sculptures. History. Bangers.

I’m not one to buy into the myth of the supergroup. Albums Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder, but one rule that are valid when the members come together to make excel- always rings true is that you should always trim the fat. No lent music. So, what happens when a band is comprised matter what you do, cut the crap, and focus on what you do of a hilariously high level of talent churning out music that well. Featuring truly astounding talent (Transistor, Transistor; may even eclipse the names in the bio? Seized Up can Kowloon Walled City, Western Addiction, among others), name-drop Bl’ast, Good Riddance, The Distillers, and Fast Strangelight do one thing really well, and they demonstrate Asleep, but their composition isn’t what sticks with you – that keenly throughout Adult Themes: they craft some of the it’s how damn righteously awesome Brace Yourself sounds. best bangers in the business. Reminiscent of the best of ’90s This is throwback fast hardcore punk filtered through the post-hardcore, this record cuts all fluff to deliver outstandcollective perspective and punk aptitude of the band ing heavy punk rock that feels as timeless as it does fun. Guimembers – along with a seriously pissed off energy. Brace tarist and vocalist Nat Coghlan has a neat way of phrasing Yourself is easily the most purely intense and enjoyable the band’s mindset: hardcore punk record of at least the last five years. So how did the band’s talent work together? Vocalist Clifford “There’s that quote about how to carve a statue of an eleDinsmore explains: phant: you get a block of marble and chip away everything that isn’t an elephant. We tried to chip away everything that “I think we all just fed off each other’s energy and let our wasn’t a banger.” musical intuition steer the ship. As the songs took shape, we really started focusing on ways to build the tension and “One of the things that struck me about Nat's songs from make things tighter and heavier. I think we just wanted to the jump was how they appear to be these really straightmake a record that was relevant to the time period, yet forward punk songs,” bassist Ian Miller adds. “But they're timeless in its own right.” 💣 actually deceptively complex. I don't know how he does it, but I assume there's some kind of sorcery involved.” 💣

8 NEW NOISE

YOUNG CULTURE

Hometown: Albany, New York Album: Self-titled out now via Equal Vision Records RIYL: Fun. Russian Dolls. Growing Up.

Young Culture is a like a holiday present that keeps revealing a new gift underneath each layer of wrapping paper. On the surface, Young Culture are a sleek power-pop trio with a penchant for hooks. However, as their debut full-length continues, each song reveals a new wrinkle to their surprisingly multi-faceted sound. There are heaping doses of soul, R&B, pop punk, and even ’00s post-hardcore ready to pop up at any time. That sounds like Young Culture are a bit disjointed, however, that couldn’t be further from the truth. There’s a maturity and clarity of focus that belie these upstate New Yorkers’ relative youth. The thing keeping the record together – aside from some of the best choruses of 2020 – is the vibe-centric songwriting. These songs are meant to be played loudly and in places you are meant to smile – in the car, while cooking food, or even at 5 p.m. when you transition from work laptop to personal phone. Vocalist Alex Magnan reflects on how the album’s feeling came about: “This album is what we set out to make from the very start, it feels like we finally nailed it. It’s inspired by our youth and everything around it. My hopes are that the listeners can relate to these songs and that it can provoke the vibe that we were trying to create with them.” 💣

ENERGETIC EXPRESSION

ALPHA HOPPER INTERVIEW WITH DRUMMER DOUGLAS SCHEIDER AND GUITARIST RYAN MCMULLEN BY CALEB R NEWTON

O

n their tangy and refreshing new record, Alpha Hex Index, Buffalo, New York’s Alpha Hopper sound wild yet exuberant. The album, out now on Hex Records, is raw and noisy rock that centers on powerfully direct rhythms and overflows with vibrant bursts of energy that temporarily send the music spiraling into cathartically unhinged territory.

“I really think that we are probably Buffalo, New York’s premier jam band,” jokes drummer Douglas Scheider. “Like, there’s an hour of every band practice where we’re just sitting there noodling around, doing whatever, getting weird—and we almost never use that material, but it’s sort of just like this musical conversation we have, sort of getting out a lot of the non-songwriting stuff. We don’t do a lot of unintentional music-writing.

Alpha Hex Index definitely feels like letting loose—and at the same time, Alpha Hopper display serious rock chops. Their rhythmic strength gives them the platform to leap into their swirling pools of musical zaniness. From the noisily wistful opening track “In The Desert In The West,” to the jittery-yet-vibrant “Glows, Explodes,” Alpha Hopper consistently keep the energy up. The record feels like a turbulent plane ride through a colorfully convulsing storm.

The members of Alpha Hopper—including Scheider, Ryan McMullen, John Toohill on guitars, and Irene Rekhviashvili on vocals—draw from a strikingly diverse palette of inspiration for their music. The music reflects this vibrant diversity: Rekhviashvili’s caustic vocals sound reminiscent of riot grrrl punk, and on a few short tracks, ominous electronica takes over as if suddenly flipping into a sci-fi thriller.

All four of us are very detail-focused people in our professions. We have our lawyer; we have our graphic designer. We have very driven, focused people who are trying to cut “I think this sort of business-as-usual approach The sound of the record, Scheider adds, is a loose. I feel like we want to be this cool, slop- to songwriting, and then recording an album critical part of the album’s experience. whenever we reach that critical mass of py band, but we’re all a little too serious and a little too cerebral, so you get this weird di- material, allows for those influences— or “We’re real attached, I think, to how we whatever’s going on with us personally at the alogue where we just let whatever happens play our instruments as an expression of time— to kind of shine through subconsciously, ourselves. “We all really care about the happen and then get it back together and you know?” McMullen observes. pick it apart and critique each other.” idea and the intent of our actual perfor-

PHOTO BY MARK DUGGAN

mance, sort of like saying what we want to say. For the added agony of getting it out, and what few places might feel less professional or something, it had the upside of we can really say: that’s how we play that. That’s what we want you to hear when we perform that thing.”💣

THE BIG EASY O

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST/GUITARI ST STEPHEN BERTHOMIEUX BY J POET

n their debut album, A Long Year, The Big Easy ignores genres to deliver a bracing blast of low-fi energy driven by wailing guitars, relentless drumming, rumbling bass, and the energetic vocals of Stephen Berthomieux, the band’s songwriter, guitarist and producer. Elements of

punk, emo, R&B, hard rock, and folk come together with energy to spare, all in service of Berthomieux’s candid lyrics. He says that the tunes on the album were actually in the works for more than a year.

“This was going to be a solo project,” BerthPHOTO BY MARK JAWORSKI

omieux says, from his Brooklyn home. “I’ve been in bands and writing songs since I was 16. I’ve been around the scene in Brooklyn for a long time. I’ve always had a rotating cast of musicians around me for my solo projects, but for this record, I solidified the line up. We’ve been trucking along for a while.”

The current lineup includes Berthomieux on guitar and vocals, guitarist Stephen Adams, and drummer Pete Clark. Berthomieux also enlisted Tom Warren from The Front Bottoms to play second guitar and co-produce the album.

“Tom’s been my best friend for most of my life,” Berthomieux says. “I used to hang out in his family’s basement and play video games. His brothers were all in bands, and there were instruments all around. One day, I picked up the bass and started playing. I never stopped. So we demoed the songs together in his basement. Pete played drums.

No one can nail it like he can. Almost everything else was done by Tom and I, working together for a more than a year. Steve did some guitar here and there. We all have day jobs, so we worked when we could.”

“We set up the drum kit in Tom’s basement and played,” Berthomieux continues. “When

10 NEW NOISE

we wanted a boomy sound, we put a mic in the basement bathroom, while we recorded in the actual basement. We did that to record the guitars, drums and vocals, to get that basement, compressed, live, low-fi sound.”

The album does have a muddy sound, with guitar, bass, and vocals often blending into an intense full-frontal attack.

“I wanted to produce a low-fi, garage sounding album, but make it accessible for a larger audience,” Berthomieux says.

“Many people respond to lyrics being heard and crisp recording techniques, but I wanted people to know The Big Easy is a low-fi band. I think that distorted sound conveys a lot of personality. I wanted to find the middle ground between the two to make it basement-y, but digestible for a lot of people. The lyrics are all reflective on certain instances in my life, but they’re written more to convey emotions, more than any specific meaning.”

“Sometimes, I want to ram the emotion down your throat,” he continues. “On other songs, I want you to hear the riff or the feel the melody. My aspiration is always to make a strong connection with the listener.

I want the songs to resonate, musically and emotionally.” 💣

SONGWRITING LINEAGE

ANNA MCCLELLAN

pandemic hit. McClellan worked on crafting the songs for two years, before cutting them with a group of friends during two weeks of intense sessions.

INTERVIEW BY J POET .

O

n her third album, I saw first light, out now on Father/Daughter Records, Anna McClellan continues investigating the impulses that push us forward and hold us back, often at the same time.

“I had the songs and the vision, but the arrangements were collaborative. My friend Ryan McKeever was my co-producer and engineer. I feel like he’s my musical spouse.

We play on each other’s records and in each other’s bands. The bare bones were done live—drums, bass and my guitar or keyboards, whatever my lead instrument was. Then we did a lot of overdubs of vocals, lead guitar, percussion, sax, vocal harmonies, and strings.

“I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how we are all reliant on each other, and pulled into each other, and the lineage of songwriting,” McClellan says from her Omaha, Nebraska apartment. “I strive to put music out that views the world through my personal lens. I think that’s the point of art.”

PHOTO BY JCCWA FAYA

“I call the album I saw first light because of phrase and melodies that haunt you during the recording, we were staying The jittery dance between consciousness up all night a lot—witnessing dawn. I was and the temptation to embrace oblivion is a after a single listen. Elements of folk, rock, Latin music, and pop are spun together thinking of that time of day and beyond frequent subject in McClellan’s songs. They into a sound that’s all her own. the dawn, the metaphor of first light, or tango together in the album opener “Con S the awakening. It’s an addictive subject Sewer,” a dreamy plea for connection highand references how I think as a human. lighted by McClellan’s soft vocals. She dances “I don’t relate to the terms folk, rock, or most genres,” McClellan says. “There’s a There are several awakenings that have around the rhythm, her words drifting into the German term ‘dichterliebe,’ that loosely happened to me; then I fall asleep again, space between thought and expression. translates as the love of putting poetry to and then I really wake up. It’s like a cycle. music. I like that.”

I feel like my art often comes from a place “Pace of the Universe” is a slow ballad with of holding back, so I’m striving more and a subtle melody full of subliminal grace. more to let go into the light.”

McClellan has an uncanny knack for turns The record was made before the current

Another friend, Megan Siebe, plays all kinds of stringed instruments and can build a classical quartet out of the air. It’s very cool to watch. It was all done in our home studios, if you can call ’em studios.

They’re just rooms with gear in them. We wanted it to sound like a band, playing live.

I was a little worried before we started. I had to trust that everyone would be present in the process, but once we started it was amazing. I’ve never been so excited and present in the moment before. It was really dynamic.” 💣

THIS IS THE KIT INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST, SONGWRITER, GUITARIST, AND ACCORDION PLAYER KATE STABLES BY J POET

K

ate Stables, the woman who records as This Is The Kit, calls her music folk, but the songs she writes don’t fit easily into any category. The tunes on Off Off On, her fifth album, released October 23 on Rough Trade Records, are based on the sounds of acoustic guitars and banjos.

However, the music on the record draws just as much on pop, rock, mellow jazz, and R&B—although there is a hint of Celtic folk lurking in the background.

The album was recorded with Stables’ touring band at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios in Wiltshire, in England, but the ensemble crafted most of the arrangements during rehearsals in Wales.

“I had some things in mind, but the main bulk of what everyone plays was worked out in Wales,” Stables says. “We decided to get the band together for a week before going into the studio. We worked on the songs, all day, every day, until we knew what we were doing. I think it made everything quite different to times in the past, when it's just been us working on songs here and there, in between gigs and sound checks. To fully dedicate time to non-stop rehearsing really helped the sound and vibe of this record.”

The band includes long time collaborators Rozi Plain on bass and backing vocals, Neil Smith on guitar, Jesse D. Vernon on guitar

and keyboards, and Jamie Whitby-Coles on drums.

The songs deal mostly with ambivalent situations and the uncertain emotions they give rise to. “Found Out” floats along on an effervescent Celtic rhythm played on acoustic guitar. It describes the anguish one feels watching a long-time crush enter into a relationship with another person.

“Was Wizard” recounts the tale of a young woman discovering her personal power and wondering what she can do with it.

Minimal notes from guitar and piano carry the melody, while Stables murmurs the lyrics in a barely audible tone.

icated following, but she says she never “My composing and arranging happens in any old order. It's pretty chaotic and un- planned to be a musician. planned and accidental but also takes a lot of time and work and a lot of not knowing “My family always listened to a lot of music,” what the hell it is I’m doing. Somehow, she says. “Everyone sang and played inwhat I've been working on eventually set- struments, so I guess that's a good basis for getting into music, but I think no one, not tles itself down into a song shape of some even me, saw [this career] coming. I was kind. Then, I start playing them at gigs to really shy and wasn't really into people work out what needs to happen next.” looking at me, so it wouldn't have been an obvious career choice. Quite strange Stables has been playing as This Is the Kit for almost 15 years, slowly building a ded- really, but there you go.” 💣 PHOTO BY PH. LEBRUMAN

The title track describes someone lying in a hospital bed, hovering between sickness and health. Stables plays quiet banjo fills and sings almost inaudibly, exploring the inner dialogue of a patient wondering if getting better will be worth the effort.

“The song ‘Off Off On’ felt like the right title for the album for a few reasons,” Stables says. “The idea of moving forwards and then backwards, the flow of energy, or life, or light, the patterns we see in the world around us and the way we interpret those patterns.”

Stables says the dilemma described in the song mirrored her creative method.

NEW NOISE 11

COLLABORATIVE MAGIC

THOU & EMMA RUTH RUNDLE INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST ANDY GIBBS BY MARIKA ZORZI

PHOTO BY CRAIG MULCAHY

E

mma Ruth Rundle and Thou’s groundbreaking collaborative album, May Our Chambers Be Full, is out now via Sacred Bones. While their solo material seems on its face to be quite disparate, both prolific groups have spent their lauded careers lurking at the outer boundaries of heavy scenes, each having more in common with DIY punk and its spiritual successor, grunge.

“For me, this whole project was about writing stuff that would allow Emma Ruth to showcase her many strengths,” guitarist Andy Gibbs says. “And because Thou has been a band for so long, I knew that no matter how I wrote these songs that they would sound somewhat Thou-like. We’ve been a band for, like, 15 years, so writing something that ​doesn’t​sound like Thou would’ve been impossible, really. But Emma’s vocals and songwriting chops really took these songs to another level and elevated the emotional content in a stunning way.”

up having some pretty heavy conversations. “In an age where bands’ personalities are as present as their music online, I think people​ Basically, within a few hours of our first real should be aware of what’s going on and hangout, I was like, ‘Yep, we are going to be should fight the good fight,” he continues. good friends for a long time.’”

“Musically, eh. It doesn’t work for every band.

Even if May Our Chambers Be Full was com- Do we ​need ​political dungeon synth? Probapleted way before COVID hit the world, Sa- bly not. But every musician who is mildly succred Bones decided to release it in October, cessful has an audience, and if they choose to be ​completely apolitical in their personal life and it was the right decision. amidst all the shit that’s happening right now, then I think that’s extremely lame. You don’t The beauty of this project stands on the “By the time the pandemic started, we had friendship between Thou’s members and The debut straddles a similar, very fine already finished the record, but I was cer- have to write songs about trans rights or police murders to be a political band, and you Emma Ruth Rundle. line, both musically and thematically. While tainly happy to have it come out during all don’t have to fly an Antifaschistische Aktion Emma’s standard fare is a blend of post-rockthis madness,” Gibbs says. “In a year where infused folk music, and Thou are typically “We became fast friends,” Gibbs says. “The basically all of our plans had to be can- flag at your show to signal that you’re on the right side of history. You can just get involved known for their down-tuned, doomy sludge, first time we practiced in New Orleans, she celed, it was nice to have s​omething​good in your community. I think that’s way more and Evan were staying at a house right the two acts committed to considering other happen. I do think that we typically channel effective in 2020 than writing a song about it. around the corner from me, so we hung out, some of that emotion in our music, though. A ways of existing. went to my neighborhood bar, and talked a lot of Thou’s stuff deals with the uncomfort- And if you’re going to write a song about it, at least make it good.” 💣 lot when we weren’t at practice. We ended “I think we both touch on some of the same able, the unjust, or the ugly.” underlying moods, even if we express them in different ways,” Gibbs confirms. “There’s an anger and a sadness in both of our sounds. But, on a more concrete level, we definitely share some of the same musical jumping-off points, like Smashing Pumpkins or the Cranberries. Lots of ’90s music. And Emma is no stranger to heavy stuff and is well-versed in that language.”

MIZMOR & ANDREW BLACK “We started making it in March or April when we actually weren’t allowed to leave our houses, or advised to leave our houses, and friends since we were, like, 9 or 10 years old and have been making music together pret- so it still kind of did feel like I was making music by myself, because we would just ty much that whole time as well. It’s always make stuff in our home studios and kind of been part of our relationship. So, we’ve kind of been talking about finding a way email it back and forth, and make this sort to collaborate for a couple of years. Our of collage of our audio files,” A.L.N. says. “I genres are so different, though, that it took was surprised that it worked for me because a while to figure out what that would look of how independent I am as a recording like for us. I think if not for the pandemic artist. But if there is anyone I’m going to situation, we might not have done it yet, or do this with, it would be Andrew. So we just started kicking ideas around and it turned done it like this.” into something.”

Indeed, the collaboration began during the A.L.N. is known for writing all Mizmor’s alCOVID-19 pandemic, through file sharing. bums by himself, but this time, the process of creation was very different.

INTERVIEW WITH SONGWRITER A.L.N. BY MARIKA ZORZI

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n endless wave of sonic nostalgia—this is Dialetheia, the masterful collaboration album between Portland, Oregon black-doom powerhouse Mizmor and multi-instrumentalist (and live musician for Mizmor) Andrew Black, out now via Gilead Media. These are two massive and introspective tracks with an haunting and hypnotizing sound that emerges triumphantly through sirens of solace and meditative winds.

“Andrew and I are really close friends,” Mizmor songwriter A.L.N. explains. “He’s one of my oldest, closest friends. We’ve been

“Instead of, like, having some existential question brewing inside of me for a long time and then finally releasing it, I feel like that process was maybe sped up a bit,” A.L.N. says. “I was just home a lot, and this overwhelming feeling of life as we know it has suddenly changed, and a lot of our favorite things to do are becoming obsolete, and it made me feel really, really sad.

“I started to want to make something, but maybe didn’t have so clearly formulated a thesis as you might find on Mizmor full-length records, and it’s kind of nice to make a lyric-less album. It was like, ‘We have a theme; there’s something that we’re

12 NEW NOISE

meditating on here, but let’s just like, make the sounds that we feel in that regard.’ I was definitely overwhelmed by the pandemic situation and that was kind of the catalyst.”

Dialetheia is, indeed, about the current situation and the nostalgia for all the things we used to do before COVID-19.

“The second track on the album is called ‘Nostalgic Dystopian,’ which I think really encompasses the theme for me really well,” A.L.N. says. “It kind of felt like when the pandemic hit, a lot of our pastimes and favorite things to do, we couldn’t do them anymore.

Maybe even some of them will be completely obsolete. We will only know with time. But, I got the feeling that I was walking through an empty museum looking at these exhibits of the things that we like to do in society and in civilization, and feeling really nostalgic and sad about that, but then having this very strange sensation when I realized that I wasn’t just the person looking at exhibit of the museum, I was on the other side of the glass too, as the subject of the experiment, if you will.

“So the album is kind of about that weird contradiction, the feeling that that gives you when two things that seem to contradict each other are actually the same or actually true. It just gives you this cognitive dissonance, this nostalgia, this sadness, and that’s kind of where that all comes from, all the music comes from.” 💣

A DIFFERENT SPIN ON DEATH

LOMA

PHOTO BY BRYAN C. PARKER

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST EMILY CROSS

BY CHRISTOPHER J. HARRINGTON

“Obviously, that’s an incredible thing to even think happened,” laughs Cross.

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he tree speaks the language of the leaf. The leaf, as it drops to the ground, whistles the hymn of the bird, the dark matter encapsulating everything, the minor chord that defines existence. It’s all about environment, something Texas-based trio Loma manifest on their new record, Don’t Shy Away, released October 23 via Sub Pop.

“The most important thing we talk about is using the land,” says vocalist Emily Cross.

“All of our imagery comes from the ranch, so we’re physically realizing that space, and bringing that into our music.”

The ranch, a studio hidden in the opaque wilderness of Dripping Springs, Texas, serves as the command station for the band’s motives. There, they set coordinates left and right, gathering, feeling.

breezy Prickly Pear. It is very Brian Eno, in its attempt to capture that department of humanness that music typically banishes.

And it’s damn poetic that Eno produced the closing track on the new record, “Homing.”

As the album fades out, one is left transfixed.

It is soul-crushing music, and not in the typical soul-crushing way, no, it is soul-crushing in a good way, in the way that is about transformation, progression of the natural state of matter. Cross also works as a death doula, and her approach to communication, in the case of Loma, as a vocalist, is something that is calming. The music makes one forget time, and simply lets one be. Does death need to be so terrifying? it acts like the leaf that drops. Slowly, engaged in itself, and therefore engaged in everything. It is interconnected. “Of course, we want to make a cohesive kind of world,” Cross relays.

gathering than it is production and linear progression, or definition of a sound. It is very visual music, and in this sense it serves as a directionless feeling, a movement like a tribal awakening.

Loma is musical in a different sense. There “I love music so much, I really love it,” Cross says. “But I’m not sure what my relationship is as much physical heft to their sound, as “There’s lots of space around us,” Cross adds. there is abstract vibration. It makes a cer- with it is, really. I wish sometimes that I did “We’re outside a lot, walking around the land, tain amount of sense that Cross is slightly in- know more about music. But when I want taking breaks and things like that.” different to the notion of music as obsession, to listen to music, I really want to listen to it, and spend time with it, and do nothing else or as something strictly musical. but do that.”

And so, there’s a space between Loma’s music and the effort to project that music “Personally, I don't actually listen to a lot of When one sits down to listen to Don’t Shy that is not immediate. “There’s no pressure,” music in my life,” she quips.

Away, they are tangled into a connection.

Cross mentions. There is no exact hurry for One that grips softly like the light roots of a this sound to reach you. It does so because No, Loma is much more about community

SOFT KILL

“I really like working with people who are dying,” Cross explains. “It does give you a good outlook on life in general, just being reminded that life is going to end for you, and so there’s this kind of calm sense of urgency to life that I have. And also having a more relaxed approach to life, just knowing things are going to end makes things almost matter less. Things that don’t matter— matter less, like being afraid that someone’s not going to like something, or being afraid to fail or anxious to do something.”

In Loma, one can hear the way of nature.

From a small ranch in Texas, to the space gas wheezing around Mars, there is no effort to the way of things. 💣

PHOTO BY SAM GEHRKE

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST TOBIAS GRAVE BY THOMAS PIZZOLA

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hey say there are a million stories in the Naked City. Well, doom-poppers Soft Kill's new album, Dead Kids, R.I.P City, tells the stories of ten people who lived their lives on the outside of polite society in the "old" version of Portland, Oregon. These are people Soft Kill vocalist Tobias Grave knew at various points, and the album is a 10-song remembrance of the fierce souls he met during a certain period of his life.

"I can only speak for me, but I spent close to 17 years of my life finding new bottoms,” Grave says. “Descending into different rooms of hell that left me numb to my self-destruction, and in these rooms, I met people who showed me the brutal truths of that world, but also shared art, music, stories, and experiences as we navigated these blocks living a life of crime.”

these stories and proudly remembering so many of these incredible people is my way of finally standing up straight.”

These are stories that are important to him. The truth had to get out there. It's just like with the rest of their albums in that it doesn't deal with lightweight subject matter.

The new album's title is a morbid play on Portland's nickname of "Rip City,” which is in connection to the city's basketball team, the Trail Blazers. Once again, it's Graves way of referencing his city, as seen through his filter.

"We just started referring to this place as R.I.P. City due to all the friends we’d lost,” The music also had to fit the grand con- took place in. Dave Trumfio did a great he says. “To a lesser degree, it’s about job of making that happen." cept of the lyrics. They wanted to break the changes this city is going through. free from the confines of "lo-fi" and deIt’s hard for me to speak on it with any liver an enthralling sound for the listener. All this adds up to one emotionally resoentitlement because I’m not from here nant album. While there might be a milbut it’s been one of my homes since the “(This is) a complete and total rejection "There is something that I cherish, that lion stories in the Naked City, Dead Kids, early 2000s. It feels so different now, of the lo-fi, one dimensional production I find uniquely beautiful about living R.I.P. City, tells 10 of these stories with inhabited by those who never cared completely outside society’s norms, honesty and feeling. Now, with the album quality of so many records influenced even if it meant spiraling into the abyss,” about what was truly beautiful here. It by the same eras of music," Grave says. out, Soft Kill have to focus on the realities was just a cheap place to invest and "We wanted something that grew and he continues. “You see the true core of of life during the pandemic. They are grow ideas and visions that feel foreign people hidden behind the mask they making the most of this terrible situation bloomed as the album progressed. It had and contradictory to what makes this aim at the rest of the world. Losing by keeping busy and creative. to feel cinematic ... like the soundtrack to city so great. I don’t see any gain from those people to overdoses and suicide a film. So much time went into finding the it, but I’m gonna keep pushing. This is places this world of guilt and regret right sounds so that nothing felt redun- "(We are) writing a lot of music. Got the onto your back, which kept me crawl- where I’ll spend the rest of my life rais- dant. The track listing had to accurately next couple releases coming together ing my son." ing through life due to its weight. Telling already," says Grave. 💣 lay out the landscape that the stories

NEW NOISE 13

GLOBAL GRIND

DUMA INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST MARTIN KANJA AND GUITARIST SAM KARUGU

BY M. REED

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here to begin with Kenyan experimental grindcore band Duma? Well, you could start with their name.

“‘Duma’ means darkness in Kikuyu,” guitarist Sam Karugu explains. “We like making dark music, and the music is dark.”

Duma is not only the name of the band, but also the name chosen for their first album.

The reason for this selection was simple.

“It’s a good introduction [to who we are],” says vocalist Martin Kanja.

a huge punk scene here [as well]!”

Heavy metal may not be a genre that is often associated with Africa in the minds of many English-speaking and Eurocentric heshers, but as Sam and Martin explain, certain areas can be incredibly fertile for cultivating fiendish fruits of musical mayhem.

Karugu and Kanja agree that while talented bands abound, and enthusiasm for metal in Africa is ascendant, the lack of logistical infrastructure hampers meaningful discovery both on the continent and around the world.

“I would say it’s way bigger in Southern Africa because they have a lot of bands,” Karugu explains. “There are so many. There is a whole village of metalheads in Botswana.”

“I’m in Africa, and even for me, the distribution here, I think, is fucked,” Karugu says.

“The main problem is that there is not a good infrastructure for this kind of music in Africa,” Kanja adds. “You know, the distribution is After listing a string of bands whom he admires, including Borgasm, Overthrust, not that good. And these scenes are, like, far apart. There is no centralizing these things. and Skinflint, Karugu adds: “There [is] also

“Some of the sounds are familiar, and some of the sounds are not familiar,” Kanja adds.

“The influences are across the board. Metal, hip hop, spoken word, grind, and breakcore.

And for the most part, people get what we’re trying to accomplish, but they don’t This lack of distribution is truly to the det- get it at the same time. What we are doing is not normal. This way of making music is riment of metal fans everywhere, as Duma not conventional within the way that music are an exceptional band with a unique is created and shaped.” sound and willingness to experiment within the genre.

“If you give it more listens, you get more,” Kanja says. “Like reading a book twice. So, Returning to their self-titled debut, Karugu illuminates the band’s approach to recording. what we’re doing, it clashes, but it all still blends.”💣 “The thing was also, like, not to have some normal metal album,” he says.

Most of the [major] metal labels don’t put their tours to go through Africa. No one puts their tours through Africa. So, I think that’s why the Western world doesn’t really get African metal.”

OF FEATHER AND BONE INTERVIEW WITH BASSISTAND VOCALIST ALVINO SALCEDO BY MARIKA ZORZI

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e achieved what we really wanted: a good blend of black metal aspects, but it still has that grind effect; it has a little bit of crust to it, and it’s just death metal in its overall sense.”

Bassist and lead vocalist Alvino Salcedo has no doubts about Sulfuric Disintegration, the new album by his band Of Feather and Bone: “it’s the most honest and sincere work we've ever done.”

Sulfuric Disintegration is the band’s third album out via Profound Lore Records, and it follows 2018’s Bestial Hymns Of Perversion.

“We pretty much spent February to the last minute of July working on this whole record, writing it, refining it,” he continues. “We had scrapped an entire other record because we just weren’t happy with it. It felt like it was rushed. And this one just kind of just happened naturally, the writing process, the PHOTO BY ALVINO SALCEDO

fitting pieces together, and just being happy with what we were writing.”

“I think that’s where the honesty does come out. It’s just the fact that when you stop caring about what other people are thinking or saying, or worrying too much about that, you kind of just start throwing all caution to the wind, and you just write the most sincere music that you can write.

I think that’s the point that we finally hit, and I couldn’t be happier personally. I think we’re all just kind of relieved, happy [with] the way it sounds.”

Throwing away an entire album and writing another one during a deadly pandemic wasn't Of Feather and Bone's only challenge.

people can marinate in it and when it’s time to tour again, hopefully people will know the record a little better than if we had left right when it came out.”

Sulfuric Disintegration is coming out in a boiling moment of world history, and Salcedo did not spare himself in harshly criticizing how religion is contributing to the deterioration of our society.

“I was raised Catholic, baptized, confirmed, the whole nine,” he says. “My mom was a strict Catholic. My dad is from Mexico and he was kind of loose, more liberal about religion, but I went to an all boys Catholic high school for four years. That was the moment that changed me. I was like, ‘Man, this a bunch of horse shit. I hate all of this; don’t believe in any of it.’”

“The hardest part was just making sure we were happy with what we were writing,” “I think when it comes to death metal, we Salcedo says. “Just a lot of different pres- glorify death,” Salcedo continues. “We love it. We’re death-obsessed. All of us are. sures happening all at once, and then on That’s why we listen to this music. The one top it, yeah, it’s 2020. We’re not going to thing that equals all of us is the fact that be able to tour. We’re not going to play we’re all going to die, and there is nothing a show on it. We’re definitely not going to that any of us can do about it. The true play a live stream because we just don’t equalizer is the fact that we’re all going like that. So we’re just writing a record to to the same place. I’m going to die, and write it, or are we really just truly trying to I’m going to catch up on sleep for the first put something else out, or do we wait? I think for us, it kind of hit this point of like, time in my life. For me, that’s the light at the end. Once you accept that it’s going who cares? Let’s just put a record out. It to happen, it is peaceful. That’s where that doesn’t matter if it’s the right timing; it hope comes from.”💣 doesn’t matter if we can tour it. If anything,

14 NEW NOISE

BRINGING THE PAST INTO THE FUTURE

SPIRIT ADRIFT INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST AND VOCALIST NATE GARRETT BY MARIKA ZORZI

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he goal is always to write the greatest metal album of all time. I’m not saying we’ve achieved that, but at the very least, we want to make music that is honest, pure, and that stands the test of time.”

Spirit Adrift refuse be as any other band.

With Enlightened In Eternity, Nathan Garrett, alongside drummer Marcus Bryant, have created yet another monument to the timelessness of heavy metal that sets itself apart in formidable new ways, extending the scope of what Spirit Adrift can be.

learn and grow with every tour, show, On Enlightened In Eternity, Garrett again and album. That’s why, in my opinion, showcases an obvious evolution of his every Spirit Adrift album is better than already high-level ability as musician the previous album. Enlightened In Eter- and songwriter. nity is by far our best work. No question.

Better song writing, better singing, better “Making Spirit Adrift albums is very hard melodies, better lyrics, better drumming, on me, and it totally hijacks my life,” Garrett says. “So, my only rule was to have better energy. Everything is better than fun. This got me thinking about all the ever before.” most uplifting metal albums throughout history. Stuff like Screaming For VenEnlightened In Eternity carries the same enormous magnitude of the most sig- geance, Powerslave, Holy Diver, Heaven nificant metal records of every era, but and Hell, Vulgar Display of Power, and Garrett has carved out his own place among the greatest of songwriters, by crafting uniquely classic and instantly recognizable songs.

“It is important to us that we honor and preserve the tradition of metal and music in general. It is a sacred thing. But we have no interest in dwelling in the past. “Every single day for the past five or six We want to preserve the flame and carry years, I have learned a little bit about the torch into the future,” Garrett says. myself and improved myself incrementally,” he confesses. “My entire life is dedicated to being the best person, songwriter, What Spirit Adrift have mastered where and musician I can be. This is probably others have failed is to push their limits a reaction to the way I used to be, living without sounding like any other metal strictly for momentary pleasure and selfbands of the past. ishness. I was an incredibly selfish, fucked up person for a long time. So, now I want “From 2015 to 2017, Spirit Adrift was a solo to be better. And again, I learn from every effort,” Garrett explains. “The live band single experience, whether it’s related to didn’t come about until 2017, and even Spirit Adrift or not. I think that is reflected then, it’s pretty much been just Marcus in the evolution of the music.” and myself playing on the records. We

so many other albums that inspire and uplift. A common theme in metal is the underdog overcoming all adversity, the ‘us against the world’ type of camaraderie. It’s eerie that I wrote an album about all of this way before COVID-19 hit. I’m glad I did because the songs helped me through some very difficult times in 2020.

I hope it can help some other people as well, and I think it has.”

“2020 fucking sucks,” he continues. “At a certain point, you can take such a beating that you no longer feel it. I’ve experienced that in physical fights. You get hit so much that you don’t feel any pain anymore. That’s a pretty apt metaphor for this year. It’s crazy how much the themes of the album lined up with the situation of 2020. I could have never planned that.” 💣

PHOTO BY DILLON VAUGHN

STOLEN WHEELCHAIRS INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST, SONGWRITER, PRODUCER, AND GUITARIST OSC4R CAPPS BY J POET

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he blistering musical attack of Stolen Wheelchairs harks back to the roots of the punk rock movement. The songs on The America, the band’s debut album, out now on State Line Records, bristle with an irresistible energy. The lyrics, penned by Osc4r Capps, the band’s lead singer and songwriter, are intelligent, challenging, uplifting, political, and deeply personal.

capturing the frenetic power of the band’s live shows. It was recorded in his father’s basement in a series of daylong sessions.

“I bring the band demos I’ve made, playing all the instruments myself,” Capps says.

“Then, we flesh them out together and start playing them live. They add their own ideas to everything and help bring the songs to life. We practiced everything on the record “There is a sense of urgency in our music,” for about two months. That’s why is why we recorded them so quick. We did bass in one Capps says. “It’s not exactly what I’d call day, drums one day. The guitar parts took primal, but it’s beat-driven, and lyrically, it’s driven by a realistic perspective. I think peo- two days. Then, we added vocals and all the other stuff. The whole process took under a ple like honesty and integrity in their music.” month, but we paced it out so we didn't all go crazy.”

In a time when so many bands are locked in a mid-tempo groove, it’s refreshing and The band includes musicians of all ages— invigorating to hear 14 tunes taken at a breakneck pace. Waves of distorted guitar, Capps just turned 19, drummer Milo Effect is 23; bass player Lou Mongo is 30; and the pummeling bass lines, and pedal-to-thelead guitarist, Oscar Capps III, is 38. He’s metal drumming kick every tune into overalso Osc4r Capps’ father. drive. “Prove Yourself” advises you to stop complaining and fight for change. “Denial” suggests a jolt of reality will go a long way “My dad’s been in bands ever since I can remember. When I saw him playing live, I knew toward solving our personal and political what I wanted to do. I started playing drums problems, while the title track rips into the when I was 8. My dad played guitar with me deep-rooted problems that plague our country, referencing slavery, dead-end jobs, and helped me develop a good pocket. I learned guitar when I was 14. I wanted to and self-delusion. sing and play, but other people’s songs were too hard to learn and remember, so Capps produced the album himself, intent on

I started writing my own. My dad let me “We call ourselves the Robin Hoods of Healthcare. We imagine ourselves stealing play with his bands to get my feet wet, then wheelchairs from the people who make I started playing solo shows. My dad is part of Philadelphia’s amazing punk community, an obscene profit selling them and giving them to people who need them. When I was so I knew a lot of musicians who were willing thinking about a name for the band, I was at to play with me.” a show. There was a guy in a wheelchair in the crowd. People picked him up, chair and all, The current lineup solidified as Capps and helped him crowd surf—in his chair. That began planning his debut recording as made me proud of how inclusive the punk the Stolen Wheelchairs. He says the band’s community can be. It was really cool.” 💣 cryptic name was inspired by a real event.

PHOTO BY EDUARDO RUIZ

NEW NOISE 15

THE POWER OF POP PUNK

BEARINGS INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST DOUG COUSINS BY CALEB R NEWTON

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n their catchy new album Hello, It’s You—a November release from Pure Noise Records—Toronto’s Bearings carry a vibrantly invigorating pop punk torch. The group’s songs frequently hinge on upbeat and forward-moving riffs, and the tracks pulsate with emotionally dynamic waves of tension and relief that feel realistic and organic.

For instance, on the record’s opening track, “Better Yesterday,” Bearings smoothly switch between vivaciously chest-thumping portions and moments that lean into a more contemplative feel.

The songs’ wavering vibrancy makes the record feel like getting whisked through some of the real-life scenarios spelled out across Hello, It’s You, like the push-and-pull of romantic uncertainty.

because they have all these sorts of longer, more drawn parts,” Cousins says. “The way the vocal melodies are on a lot of their stuff, they’re stretched out. They have these kind of soaring chorus parts, and I was like, it’d be cool to do something like that on a song. I just kinda gotta see where the record goes, and luckily, our guitarist Fitz, he wrote pretty much all the instrumentation for [“Transient Colors”], and when I heard it, I was like, I think this is the one, you know?”

always written about, trying to see both swaying, prominent acoustic guitar part sides of things and life in general, in the on “Lovely Lovely,” and the emo rap across sense of trying to apply a bit more of a “Dreams.” Bearings also present a sizable broad scope on how fragile life is, and how helping of upbeat punk, and through it all, Cousins also cites The Beatles and The 1975 important it is, and why it’s also important Cousins’ singing sounds soulfully energetic. as inspirations. So, is there a thread of optito try and see the positives in it sometimes.” mism running through this Bearings record, Cousins and the other folks in Bearings— bringing together these disparate parts?

This perspective shines through in the guitarists Ryan Culligan and Ryan Fitz, sound of Hello, It’s You. The songs feel rich, bassist Collin Hanes, and drummer Mike “I don’t think it was necessarily incredibly with shimmering flourishes and a nice McKerracher—drew from a wide palette intentional, but I think there is,” Cousins breadth to the sonic experience that to- of inspiration on this album. “Transient shares. “I think I kind of have to be that way gether make the album feel a bit like walk- Colors,” for instance, hearkens back to the a little bit. I kind of have to write that way ing through a starlit park while mentally U.K. rock band Oasis. because I find it not very genuine to write working through the emotional turmoil the saddest, most unhopeful thing, and to at hand. Some of the poignant touches “I was listening to a lot of Oasis at the time, not try and see some positive, or some sort across Hello, It’s You include the gently and I was really like—I wanna do a chorus of silver lining in something.”💣

“I know a lot of bands go into the studio, and they kind of aim for a certain concept or a certain theme,” says Bearings vocalist Doug Cousins. “Usually, they try to do a good chunk of the writing, maybe lyrically, in that time, so that it all kind of ties together—but we don’t really do that. Some of the songs were written right after we put out Blue In The Dark [in 2018].

“But, I don’t know—I guess it’s a different record in the sense that generally we don’t do the whole breakup songs and things like that, but there’s a little bit more of that on this one. We also stay true to what we’ve

SUZIE TRUE T

he band that became Suzie True began in the bedroom of bass player and songwriter Lexi McCoy. “I started a little solo pop project with no expectations,” McCoy says. “I was really shy to share it with anyone. Since I met G [Leonardo, guitarist] and Sarah [Pineapple, drummer], it’s taken on a life of its own. Every song has

a piece of each of us in it. It’s turned into a full-on, loud-as-fuck pop punk band, which is really what I wanted in the first place.”

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST AND BASSIST LEXI MCCOY, GUITARIST GEE LEONARDO, AND DRUMMER SARAH PINEAPPLE BY J POET bass generates a surf/punk tidal wave that’s supported by Pineapple’s bedrock drumming and Leonardo’s slashing lead work.

“Lexi loves oldies,” Leonardo says. “When we're writing, she gives me reference songs to go off, but we tend to like the same surf The songs on their debut, Saddest Girl at the Party, released on November 27 on Get Better rock sounds, so it ends up bleeding into our Records, are all classic, pop-punk gems, music. In my opinion, if it can be loud and fast, why do it any other way?” equal parts Ramones and Ronettes. McCoy’s The 11 tracks on Saddest Girl sound like a greatest hits collection. “Bailey” kicks the album off with a breezy surf beat, Leonardo’s trippy lead guitar lines and McCoy’s playful vocals, describing everything she dreams of doing with her first crush. “Sixteen” is a cheerful jolt of pure punk energy, a full-on attack that lists off all the things kids do that aggravate their parents—riding skateboards, getting stoned, and watching bad movies.

PHOTO BY ANTHONY BIBIAN

16 NEW NOISE

A distorted guitar line, syncopated drumbeats, and relentless bass rhythms drive “Run” is a tale of teen love that could never work out. Even when they describe fractured relationships, the music is bright and upbeat. So, why does the band describe their music as "crybaby punk?”

“I started saying ‘cry baby’ to describe our music because I feel like my lyrics can be kind of whiny and annoying,” McCoy says with a laugh. “Even though a lot of our songs feel happy and upbeat, the lyrics are all about sad stuff.”

“Crybabies get this really bad rep of being weak and helpless, and we’re here to prove that wrong,” Leonardo adds. “Through being in this band, I've grown to see how crying and truly expressing your emotions is one of the strongest things that a person can do, for themselves, and for the people around them. Emotional honesty really is one of the bravest things I think a person can go through. Along the way you make all of these rich, warm friendships and relationships, which is what being in Suzie True and making this album has done for us.”

McCoy writes love songs to women as well as men, giving the album an ambisexual vibe.

“I don’t know if the audience realizes this or not,” McCoy says. “I feel like a love song is a love song, and gender doesn’t matter so much. I hope people of all identities can relate to them.” 💣

FRAYLE

RING OF FIRE

NATHANIEL SHANNON & The Vanishing Twin

BURNING TONGUE

Formats: Emphemeral Cassette Box, digital / streaming

Formats: Vinyl record, printed book, digital / streaming

“There are very few times that you listen to music & it’s something brand new with its own identity & style.

A dark dreamscape of life with faceless people & the distant sound of sirens.”–Steve Austin (Today is the Day).

Prisoner’s Cinema, is eleven new songs of crushing nihilism that nod to the shadowy side of hardcore punk– This is real hate, played real fast.

COMING SOON

PRISONER’S CINEMA

THE THREE MOTHERS

Formats: digital / streaming / T-SHIRT

“Haunting, hypnotic mix of crushing Sleep-style doom and cooing ethereal vocals à la Cocteau Twins' Elizabeth Fraser.”

–Revolver

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OBSIDIAN KINGDOM

INTERVIEW WITH KEYBOARDIST JUDIT BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

O

“YOU ARE VALID. YOU ARE LOVED. YOU ARE NOT ALONE.”

bsidian Kingdom came on course, what all humans have been the scene to shake things dealing with for the past year. up in many different ways.

Their music is unclassifiable, falling “It’s all kinda there in the record, so somewhere between sludgy doom and have a listen for a little piece of us,” proggy rock, with plenty of analog key- Judit says. Luckily, the record has been her. However, she tried to come out “You are valid. You are loved. You are board influence and retro flair, and received well, and so has Judit’s per- initially at 19, before being trans was not alone. I totally get it: it’s a leap of their latest record, MEAT MACHINE, out sonal journey as a trans woman. faith, and the void is scary. And we as accepted as it is today. She was now, is a surreal, neon masterpiece. faced with denial and went back into don’t wanna push you, rest assured.

“In my experience, since my transition, the closet until she turned 34.

You do you, on your own terms, at Another, often less-talked-about fact I've only received love and support your own pace. You don’t even have is that Obsidian Kingdom contain a from our fans,” she says. “I think the “But, at 34, things were different,” she to come out at all if you don’t want proud member of the queer commu- stereotypical, party-animal-misogynis- says. “After I transitioned, Edgar, Ob- to. But if you ever do, remember: you nity. Judit, the keyboardist, is a trans tic-macho trope is no longer dominant sidian’s singer, told me something are valid. You are loved. You are— woman and a badass. She’s stoked in the scene. It's still a very male-pre- like, ‘Now I can read you.’ I had been mark my words—not alone.” on MEAT MACHINE, which, in her dominant scene, and I would certainly this dark and hermetic character for words is “a beautiful train wreck bun- love to see metal bands with a more so long … coming to terms with my- “Haters are gonna hate, and there will dled with screams, sweat, explosions, relaxed approach to gender expression self and transitioning brought to life always be that misogynistic, transand identity in general, but it’s 2020, and a more honest, proud, and authentic meat, and nausea.” phobic, racist, or ableist comment, times are a-changin’. I’m sure it will get but I think they are less and less version of me, and that was noticed by Before releasing this latest album, the more diverse in the times to come.” cheered by the community, and it will many close people.” band went through a lot of changes. only get better,” says Judit. “Stay safe, They dealt with member changes, is- Judit admits that she’s privileged in a In terms of helping other people stay wild, rebel yourself.” 💣💣💣 sues with producers, a drummer who way, as her family, friends, coworkers, through the same journey, Judit has went sober, Judit’s transition, and of and bandmates have all supported a clear message.

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BOOK NOOK

Daughters of Darkness of shooting models in black metal makeup. Since then, he’s shot over 400 models from around the world wearing corpse paint.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JEREMY SAFFER

“It’s cool because all the models are huge fans of black metal. Some came to the project because they were fans who saw the initial stages and hit me up,” he says. “A lot of them are people who normally don’t model or don’t model in this capacity, but they are in the book because they are either fans of my work or black metal. There are models who shot for this 12 years ago and haven’t seen any of the photos, because I kind of kept a tight lid on the project, and now they’re so excited to see it.”

He also made sure to incorporate plenty of the metal world that inspired the book into its pages.

“Dani Filth [of Cradle of Filth] wrote the forward, which is awesome because his band inspired so much of the art that’s in the book,” Saffer explains. “The book contains over 250 models ranging from musicians, actresses, and friends, all wearing nothing but the corpse paint. And the cool thing is, a lot of the models did their own corpse paint.”

MODEL - SIERRA COLLEEN

INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR JEREMY SAFFER

BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

I

n an age when we truly need to cling to simple pleasures and the things that make us happy, it’s as good a time as any to release Daughters of Darkness, a gorgeous, glossy, full-color, coffee-table book featuring models in corpse paint, out via Rare Bird. We spoke with author Jeremy Saffer about the process behind the book and the long, fluid process that brought it to life.

“When I first got into metal, the first band I knew was Cradle of Filth, and then I started to get more into black metal from there,” explains Saffer. “Then, I started getting into Immortal, more bands with corpse paint, and I started going to the record store, and I’d flip through the albums, see cool logos and either nature scenery, a naked woman in the cold, corpse paint, or something like that. That’s how I discov-

20 NEW NOISE

ered so many black metal bands, just going through records and seeing what looked appealing.”

Like many metalheads, Saffer found a way to join his passion with metal with his day job of photography.

Soon, he was shooting both fine art magazine covers and metal shoots or album covers. Still, the two things existed in different worlds, not understanding or coming into contact with each other.

That all changed 12 years ago, when Saffer worked with a clothing brand that wanted to go for a hardcore or metal look with their branding. They decided to feature a woman in corpse paint on a shirt design using a professional model painted up for the shoot. From there, Saffer was hooked on the marriage of the beautiful to the macabre and couldn’t get enough

MODEL - ANONYMOUS

Although the book is already out, Saffer and his partner are immunocompromised, and are taking the time to be safe and careful, keeping their distance during the pandemic surge. His plan is to check in online and do Q&A sessions and signings, and then to eventually do gallery showings. He has also started shooting corpse paint again for the inevitable Volume II. Fans of his work can expect more soon. 💣 💣 💣

MODEL - HANNAH BLACK

BOOK NOOK

TREVER KEITH

who would have the ability to publish a book of poetry in and of itself.”

Another cool thing about having the lyrics in this book format is that they are presented not chronologically, but rather alphabetically.

The Complete Lyrics 1990-2020 INTERVIEW WITH TREVER KEITH

BY JANELLE JONES

I

Japan and all that. So, you might be reading lyrics that you think are for a new song, but it might be an outtake from 10 years ago.”

“It allows you to read the words on their own merit,” Keith says. “For better or the studio to record their latest LP. The for worse.” 💣💣💣 former, of course, couldn’t come to fruition, but they managed to complete the latter. However, they’ve decided they won’t release the new album until they can properly go on the road in support of it.

n September 2020, Face to Face frontman Trever Keith released a book, Trever Keith – The Complete In addition to the lyrics, the book also Lyrics 1990-2020 (Antagonist), which, features accompanying artwork by as the title suggests, compiles his Ray Tattooed Boy. The idea for doing songwriting body of work over this book came out of the uncertainty In this climate, Keith says that he was the past 30 years. Not only does it of what was possible for bands to do thinking: “What other cool projects include all of Face to Face’s vast in 2020. According to Keith, it was also can we come up with [to] keep us encatalogue—including lyrics to their “born out of me coming to the realiza- gaged with our audience?” forthcoming full-length, which will tion this was the 30th anniversary of be their tenth proper album—but me writing lyrics.”

He feels this book is “a cool, collectalso songs he’s written for his other ible, tangible piece of something to projects, like his solo album and Viva He had started writing material se- own because it’s not an album; it’s Death. In all, the book features a riously in 1990, for Face to Face’s something different.” whopping 150-plus songs. momentous, debut album Don’t Turn Away, which was then released in 1992. “It’s kind of weird to see the songs colKeith is quick to note that the book in- As for the fiasco year of 2020 having lected in a book rather than on flat cludes material that might not be so a hand in this project, Keith relates album sleeve or a CD booklet,” he easily accessible now. that the band had originally planned continues. “This is more like a book to celebrate the 25th anniversary of of poetry and makes me feel a little “There’s a ton of B-sides, and outtakes, their second album, Big Choice, with more legitimate of a writer, although and songs that were only released in a tour in the spring, and also go into I’m nowhere near the level of a poet

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BOWMAN AUDIO ENDEAVORS INTERVIEW WITH JAMES BOWMAN BY ROBERT DUGUAY

to try it out again, and it has become a lot more fulfilling ever since.

PHOTO - BOWMANAUDIOENDEAVORS.COM

“I first started a few years ago, just tinkering with stuff and working with fret boarding, circuit ideas, and stuff like that,” Bowman says. “Once I really focused on doing it, it was something to try to learn, but I honestly wasn’t very good at it. I got discouraged, and then traveling and touring kind of made it let go of it for a while. When all of the quarantining started because of the pandemic, I thought perhaps I could give it another shot, and I started getting back into it. I began to read stuff online while doing stuff in trial and error, trying to stay busy and learn something new.”

The price range for Bowman Audio Endeavors’ current lineup of effects pedals is between $115 and $165, with some enamel pins emblazoned with the company logo available for sale as well. It hasn’t been a profitable venture as of press time, but Bowman has started to break even on his investment. He currently looks at the business as a way to spend time while he’s not on the road, but if it becomes something bigger than that, he’ll surely welcome it.

“I’m definitely not making any money,” he laughs. “The money I initially invested into it, to build stuff with supplies and parts, I’m just about to break even, I think, with the few that I have left. It’s mostly been something to kill the time, work on stuff, and like I said, keep busy and try to learn something new while coming up with something cool. If it becomes a profitable business down the line, then it’s an added bonus.”

Looking ahead, Bowman doesn’t really know what the coming months and years will hold for his business due to the uncertainties that come along with the current pandemic.

He has hopes for Bowman Audio Endeavors to be a solid side gig, but only time will tell.

D

espite COVID-19’s elimination of live music for the time being, one of the few positives for musicians is that they have a lot more free time than usual. Nobody is touring these days, so the music makers are seeking other avenues of creativity to keep themselves occupied.

22 NEW NOISE

Against Me! lead guitarist and backing “Hot Potato!,” “Fuzz Lightyear,” “Stool vocalist James Bowman decided to Pigeon,” and “Hammer Of The Gods!” start creating handmade effects pedals while at home in the band’s home- Bowman initially explored making his town of Gainesville, Florida. From this, own effects pedals, but became dishe’s started a business named Bow- mayed by the process and not being man Audio Endeavors. Currently he able to create one that was up to his has an assortment of pedals available own standards. When things started for purchase under funny names like shutting down in March, he decided

“There are so many unknowns right now,” he says. “In the immediate future, I’m just trying to get things made, be happy with them, and hopefully make enough to eventually meet demand—if there ever is one. Hopefully people like the gear and whatever comes down the line.” 💣💣💣

atom splitter INTERVIEW WITH FOUNDER AMY SCIARRETTO BY BRIDJET MENDYUK

“CAN I CALL YOU BACK?” Amy Sciarretto says she has a meeting running over on the other line. No surprise, the mastermind behind the Atom Splitter publicity agency has had a crazy year, working overtime in 2020. Throughout her career, she has had a penchant for great ideas and making the most of her love for metal.

It’s true, Sciarretto has the “PR gene,” which is when you’ve got what it takes to be a persistent publicist with the gift of gab and a passion for publicity. Running on the “PR gene” is no easy task—the landscape of how we consume music has definitely changed over the years. From streaming to accessibility, the music industry has shifted tremendously since Atom Splitter started, and even in 2020 alone. Pivoting to a digital focus versus print and “vetting different blogs [and] music sites,” she’s also had to enter the realm of influencers, YouTubers, and Twitch stars.

A powerhouse veteran of rock journalism, Sciarretto has written for Kerrang!, Revolver, Alternative Press, Guitar World, Decibel, and CMJ New Music Report, where she “A lot of bands might not even was a metal editor for three years. know what they’re looking for in Moving from being a rock journalist the press,” Sciarretto says. “You to a publicity agent for RoadRunner have to be really good at having Records, Sciarretto helped bands open discussions about what their from Alexisonfire to We Came As expectations are, how the landRomans. When she broke the news scape is changing. Sometimes it’s of departure from her 11-year [something like] getting to know tenure at RoadRunner, bands like your artists better and how you can tell their stories better.”

Killswitch Engage followed.

“Not even realizing I was [starting my own company], it just kind of happened,” Sciarretto says. “These people were like family to me and still are.”

After launching Atom Splitter PR in 2012, Sciarretto had to hire help right out of the gate. Keeping up with appearances and press isn’t all a publicity company does— company compliance, payroll services, and executive decisions are all part of doing business.

In her free time, when she has had any, Sciarretto has written for Bustle, Beauty News NYC and even co-authored a book: Do the Devil's Work for Him. How to Make It in the Music Industry (and Stay in It!).

She’s a fan of Lucero, Hatebreed, and the true crime podcast Sword & Scale. Work aside, she walks dogs at a local shelter along with her English Bulldog rescue, Higgins. While tours have stopped, COVID-19 has artists and labels “getting creative,” since records releases are still happening, pandemic or not.

Having “learned so much in a short amount of time,” Sciarretto adapted quickly to the hustle of being a busi- For those aspiring to be the next ness owner. Yet her humbleness is Atom Splitter, Sciarretto says palpable, even though she was one of consistency is key, and this type of the driving forces behind enormous career is “a lifestyle, not a job.” feats like Slipknot selling out Madison Square Garden or bands getting the “Keep moving forward, and you elusive number one spot on the Bill- have to be positive,” she says. board charts. Something she still gets “Keep fighting the good fight; I think thrilled about is “when a small blog it’s important to not give up. It can writes about an up-and-coming artist be really tough; there are days I want to smash my head into the wall, that no one has heard of yet.” but I think I have the best job in the “I find that exciting,” Sciarretto says. world. A lot of my friends hate their “I find it as exciting as when some- jobs, and I never, ever feel that, so I thing that [our clients land] is in the never take that for granted.” 💣 💣 💣 New York Times.”

NEW NOISE

23

S

LE JONE

INTERV

H IEW WIT

NEL IS BY JA KOLAT E K A J OWNER

impressive release are old friends and Charged Records alum The Virus and Endless Struggle, alongside bands like CHUD, The Stickups, Corrupted Youth, and Starving Wolves.

“I got in touch with a bunch of bands that I thought were different styles but all very current and awesome in their own way, so that’s what kicked it off, the Punx Unite comp, and it fuckin’ killed it.”

mainstay of the late-’90s and 2000s street punk scene is back. In exciting fashion, Charged Records, headed by Casualties guitarist Jake Kolatis, relaunched this year with the release of the fourth installment of the Punx Unite compilation, followed by reissues of Monster Squad’s 2004 record Strength Through Pain and Antidote’s 1999 album My Life.

“I feel like we’ve got some cool shit coming out,” Kolatis says of the label, which was originally in action from 1998 to 2008. “Hopefully, I can put out some cool new bands. Punk rock is my life, so I really will take this label as far as people will allow it to go.”

About reviving the label, Kolatis explains that it was something he had already been thinking about doing and was also spurred by the bad situation we’re all-too-familiar with in 2020.

“No touring for bands, there’s no shows,” he says. “Everybody lives somewhere else, so we’re not getting together to practice; we’re not getting together to write songs.”

He puts it plainly: “I just had time.”

Another thing that pushed the idea forward was encouragement from Tony Cozzaglio at Boulevard Trash. He thought people would be interested in the label again.

The two guys thought putting out a new volume of the now-iconic Punx Unite compilation series would be a good idea.

“We got some current bands together and some that aren’t new but still current, still active,” Kolatis says.

Some of the bands included on the

24 NEW NOISE

In Kolatis’ signature, upbeat, passionate manner, he explains he wanted to do “something constructive and something that’s productive for not only music but also for the scene,” continuing: “It felt like, what

a great thing to do again, Punx Unite, because there’s so much division and people in different scenes and different little subgenres, which, at the end of the day, doesn’t make sense when you can get everybody together under one banner anyway.”

Of the label’s return, he says: “I still believe in punk rock very much, and I'm very happy to support it, and if I put out couple cool, kickass records, and people have a good time with it, then that makes me happy. And if I can help some bands, that’s what would make me happy. The 10 years I took off from doing the label, I think was much needed to come back to it and to feel so excited about it. I don’t know how long it’ll go for, but I'd like to give it a good shot.”

The other two releases he has put “I’m trying to do things that people out so far are the Monster Squad will hopefully find exciting,” Kolatis and Antidote reissues. He decided concludes. “I’m putting effort into to re-release material from these this, making my stupid little videos and trying to get people interested bands because they’re still active. in the label again. I think it’s working.

“These were bands I still really love and still get along with and … they’re I don’t know. I’m happy that many of still rockers, and they’re still punks,” the bands from the old days have Kolatis says. “So, it made sense for stayed in touch and we have stayed me to get these records back in cir- friends, and I’d like to make some space for some new bands.” 💣 culation so people can enjoy them.”

PHOTO BY JRAT BARNES

PHOTOGRAPHY BY PAUL SILVER

Tim Melina Theo Bobby

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST TIM KINSELLA BY JOHN SILVA

W

ith a career spanning 25 serves as a sense of closure, both for years and over 20 studio the band and their fans. albums, very few bands have been as prolific as Joan of “We did have this idea of, if we put Arc. But, while highly influential, the a punctuation mark on this thing, band never quite reached the same people might understand it,” Kinsellevel of commercial success as some la explains. "If it’s closed, and it’s a of their peers. They had a dedicated complete self-contained body of following, but their fanbase ebbed work, people might interact with it and flowed. in a different way than they do as an ongoing thing, if they have ex"The shows, attendance-wise, have pectations of what’s next. So, I would always bounced up and down,” says say that was another motivation for lead singer Tim Kinsella. "One year, ending it." we’ll play a room in a random city, and it’s full, and the next year, we’ll The band have a lot to be proud of. come back, it’s half empty, the next In the early years, they traded sleep year we’ll come back, there’s no one for band practice, juggling their muthere, the next year we’ll come back, sic career with school and work. and it’s half empty, and the next year, it’s full.”

“Our regular practice schedule would start at midnight and go till sound check, play the show, do mer- As for Kinsella’s future, he has alAfter over two decades of exten- 3:00 in the morning before we’d ch, load out. There’s just no time to ready begun turning his efforts tosive recording and touring, Joan of have to wake up at 7:00 to deal with actually be healthy." wards a band he’s in with his wife Arc decided it’s time to finally put a school and jobs. And we just wanted called Good Fuck. A lot can change bookend on the band. it so bad,” Kinsella says.

Joan of Arc are ending things as in 25 years. But one thing that hasn’t close friends. Through all the highs changed is Kinsella’s love of music.

"We didn’t arrive to the conclusion This work ethic didn’t end as the band and lows, they never stopped caring easily, and we didn’t arrive to the got older. They still had to cut their for each other, and this is reflected “When we started [Joan of Arc] I was conclusion quickly. We made the teeth through ruthless touring cycles. in the album’s title.

20 years old, and now I’m 46. It’s too whole record knowing it was our last late for me to get a new career. I’ve record,” Kinsella says.

“The physical exhaustion of tour “Just going with our names was also had a million jobs, but I’m not gonna is crazy on our scale,” Kinsella an intentional gesture of… It’s just have a new career. I’m not interestThe band’s final studio album, which says. "When you have to play every about us. It’s about our friendship. ed in that. I’m obsessed with playing is titled Tim Melina Theo Bobby and day, and you have to wake up ear- It’s about how we work together,” music,” he says. 💣 is out now on Joyful Noise Records, ly enough to drive that far, set up, Kinsella says.

26 NEW NOISE

THE CASKET LOTTERY ARE NOT MELLOWING WITH AGE

PHOTO BY CARINA SPENCER

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST AND GUITARIST NATHAN ELLIS BY BEN SAILER

M

ost emo and post-hardcore bands that start in their teens mellow out with age.

The Casket Lottery, on the other hand, have followed the exact opposite trajectory. While their initial trifecta of foundational full-lengths —1999’s Choose Bronze, 2000’s Moving Mountains, and 2001’s Survival is For Cowards—fit firmly within emo’s scrappier side in the late ’90s and early 2000s, their 2012 return, Real Fear, was decidedly darker and heavier than anything they’d released before. It was a seemingly unpredictable turn, but one that also felt like a band growing into themselves, free from external expectations while seeing no reason to turn the volume down.

“I think a lot of people, as they age, just feel more comfortable with a little bit of a lower energy thing going on,” says guitarist and vocalist Nathan Ellis. “I’m the exact oppo-

28 NEW NOISE

site. This is important for me to have a little catharsis here, a little something to get off my chest.”

working title in late 2018, it was too perfect not to stick. It’s a fitting summation of a record defined by focused tension, drawing its energy from the thoughtful push and pull between Ellis and Terrance Vitali’s guitarwork, underpinned by the driving rhythm section of bassist Stacy Hilt and drummer Jason Trabue.

four iterations before I felt like they were right.”

What’s next for The Casket Lottery Flash forward eight years, and the after the record’s release remains band’s timing for channeling that an open question. When Ellis was aggression into an even edgier folreached by phone, the band was in low-up couldn’t be better. With Short the middle of practicing for a video Songs for End Times (out now via live stream, explaining that while Second Nature Recordings, Wiretap the band is best experienced when Records, and Big Scary Monsters), packed into small, sweaty spaces, the Kansas City-based four-piece Abrasive yet accessible, it sounds they're figuring out how they can have crafted a punchy and appro- identifiably like The Casket Lottery, push Short Songs for End Times until priately titled soundtrack for the but without coming across like a touring is back on the table. Not a current cultural moment. Shedding repeat of anything they’ve done unique situation for any band these the unsettling synths prominent on before in their two-plus decades days, perhaps, but for an album Real Fear in favor of a denser ap- together. thematically tied up in existential proach, the album is unafraid to dread, maybe it’s fitting that the act put loud guitars up front, sonically “On Real Fear, I feel like I pulled the of promoting the record is itself an centered on the power of the riff. guitars back so much to make room act of defiance in the face of the for everything else, and this record, most fucked-up year in modern The record's cosmic collision with I didn’t do that,” says Ellis. “This history.

2020’s slow-motion, apocalyptic record started with guitar ideas, vibe was somewhat coincidental. and I just leaned into all of those. "We’re gonna figure it out as we go, While Short Songs for End Times was I demoed the hell out of all these but it’s definitely not something I first chosen as a tongue-in-cheek songs, and they each had three or was prepared for,” says Ellis. 💣💣💣

D

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST AND GUITARIST MIKAEL STANNE BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

ark Tranquillity, one of the world's foremost melodic death metal bands—and one of the only melodic death metal bands to successfully infuse electronic elements without losing the sad, heavy, quality of their sound—are back and better than ever, despite the inevitable pandemic blues.

of touring that took place after the release of their latest album, Moment, out November 20 via Century Media. The album was delayed from a summer release, and even now, there is no touring in site, a major change for a European band used to the constant touring circuit.

But they’re still excited about the new album and some of the deeper concepts they delve into on the record.

“We’ve been keeping ourselves very busy, just finishing up the record and making sure everything’s good “A lot of the lyrics are about how to go, working on the press and vid- our knowledge and background eos,” says Mikael Stanne, the band’s informs the decisions that we vocalist and rhythm guitarist. “And make in the moment, how that trying not to think about what hap- leads into the future and the difpens when it comes out—we drop it ferent paths that we could take, into nothingness, and then nothing and how wildly unexpected things happens.” can be,” explains Stanne. “This was a lot of what’s on my mind, He’s referring, of course, to the lack because I’ve been very frustrated

these last couple of years thinking In terms of recording, the process about where the world is headed, was similar to past records, but with how we got here, and who is re- a modern twist. sponsible for this. I’ve been looking at where we went wrong. And “We've done the last four albums maybe I’ll never find answers, or in the same studio, but we just I won’t provide solutions, but I’m switched everything up and made getting some of that frustration out sure all the equipment was kind of by writing about it, and screaming updated,” Stanne says. “New gear about it, and maybe somewhere, and new things to play with. I think the analog warmth and smooth someone feels the same way.” feeling we had this time around They also leaned into some re- really benefits the album. It’s not ally unique art for this album, a something we were after, but it was new direction featuring orange really cool.” and red, warm tones instead of the dark, blue tones on the last To celebrate the new album, Dark record. The new color scheme Tranquillity recorded a livestream was inspired in part by the vid- performance of the record. Howeo game Firewatch, an ironically ever, they are looking forward to appropriate theme here in the this summer, when, as we all hope, U.S., given the fires that ravaged live music may be possible again. 💣💣💣 North America last summer.

PHOTO BY DANIEL FALK

TRANQUILLITY NEW NOISE

29

PROFESSOR

PHOTO BY JOHN GILHOOLEY

and the

MADMAN

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST/VOCALIST/KEYBOARDIST SEAN ELLIOT

BY JANELLE JONES

P

rofessor and the Madman ing on a hopeful note. Musically, are back with their follow-up meanwhile, they span the gamut, to 2018’s Disintegrate Me – the we’ll just say, from punk (“Real Me”) intricately crafted, thought-provoking, to hard rock/hair metal bravado adventurous concept album Séance, (“Two Tickets to the Afterlife”) to the which came out in November on the quirky (“The Council of Purgatory”), band’s own Fullertone Records. Of making it a full sensory ride. the album’s (and band’s) insanely intrepid spirit, guitarist, vocalist, and So, what sparked the idea for an keyboardist Sean Elliot says: “The album of this magnitude? whole thing is our rules,” meaning they can do what they want and don’t have “If we’re gonna do something, I’d to answer to anyone. like it to be something I’d like to see and not just run-of-the-mill we put Once again, Elliot is joined by 12 songs together, we mix it really co-songwriter, guitarist, vocal- quick and spit it out and let’s hope ist, and keyboardist Alfie Agnew, we make some money on it,” Elliott and pair of Damned powerhouse says. “We’re the complete opposite. rhythm section alumni, drummer This is more of a passion than anyRat Scabies and bassist Paul Gray. thing. I think that’s what makes it so Elliot and Agnew, by the way, met real, that there’s no blueprint for it.” in the early ’90s playing in Southern California legendary band D.I. In greater detail, he recalls the days when artists would put out alTo make it clear, this isn’t saying bums that were truly an experience. this impressive collective were ever tame and predictable on “When you used to get an Alice Cootheir previous material, but this al- per record, it made you feel like you bum just seems even grander and were somewhere else when you lismore thoughtful, with its sweeping tened to it,” he says. “And I haven’t concept and immersive feel, both heard that in albums in a long, long lyrically and musically. In the lit- time. No concept, just 12 songs, kind erary sense, they take us through of the same style, same tempo, nothvignettes of the afterlife, from ing about it. No emotion.” conjuring up spirits in a séance, to everything in between, ending it all And Séance definitely delivers on with those spirits giving advice on the concept and emotion fronts. how to better the world and clos- This album has a total musical

30 NEW NOISE

“WE LIKE TO GO FROM POPPY TO HORROR SHOW IN TWO SECONDS FLAT.” feel—as in, the listener could to- “As far as the 'madness of our times,' tally imagine this being played out meaning the state of the world as on the theatrical stage. One par- far as idiocy and inequality, yeah, ticular moment on the record that it pisses me off,” he says. “I feel emillustrates this fact is the pairing barrassed for the fucking species of Agnew’s “Time Machine” and a lot of the time, but ultimately, I Elliot’s “The Man with Nothing to think this giant, slap-in-the-face, Lose,” which are basically fused wake-up call will do us some good together and captioned as “The collectively. Like, the car broke Lamenting Scientist and the Broken down, and now everyone’s like, Man.” And this fits with the band, ‘Wait, how the fuck did we end up where there is always a dichoto- here? Not only is the car broken, my and push and pull. The name but I’m in fuckville?’ Yeah it is, and of the band, after all, reflects the yeah you are; time to sort it out.” two frontmen: the “professor” Alfie, So, maybe it is the perfect time and the “madman” Sean. for a Greg Puciato solo record. ” 💣💣💣 “In true Professor and the Madman fashion, we like to go from poppy to horror show in two seconds flat,” Elliot says of the songs. “I think it’s fun and interesting. It’s basically an Alfie song and Sean song fused together.”

That encapsulates everything that is so special about this album and the band.

That said, Puciato also has a prescient take on dealing with the world as it exists in 2020.

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PHOTO BY VICTOR YEUNG

KILLER BE

Just because all three of them work in their own worlds, doesn’t mean they would all work together.”

INTERVIEW WITH BASSIST AND VOCALIST TROY SANDERS BY JAMES ALVAREZ

K

iller Be Killed burst onto will forge on, to be continued, so to the scene in 2014 with speak, when we all departed and their, forgive the pun, got back to our ‘main’ bands.” killer, self-titled, debut album. The band, a heavy metal super Of course, trying to wrangle the group of the highest order consisting singers of Mastodon, Soulfly, The Dilof thrash legend Max Cavalera, ex- linger Escape Plan, Cavalera ConThe Dillinger Escape Plan frontman spiracy, The Black Queen, and Gone Greg Puciato, Mastodon anchor Is Gone, along with the drummer Troy Sanders, and Converge drum- from Converge, Mutoid Man, and mer Ben Koller, played a series of All Pigs Must Die into the same room Australian gigs in 2015 before rotat- wasn’t exactly easy. ing back to their respective home worlds and vanishing into the ether. “Basically, we lived by the calendar,” Sanders explains. “Whenever we got Luckily for us, the fellas in Killer Be three, five, seven days, whenever we Killed managed to re-arrange time were all off at the same time, we would and space to accommodate their pencil in Killer Be Killed on our physiinsane schedules, and over the past cal calendars and would all commit five years, have slowly but surely to that. We were persistent.” recorded their highly anticipated follow up record, Reluctant Hero, out This resulted in one successful writnow on Nuclear Blast. ing session each year until 2019, when Sanders and the gang invad“When we left Australia, we were on ed Hybrid Studios in Santa Ana, Calsuch a high,” bassist and co-vocal- ifornia, and began recording their ist Troy Sanders shares. “We loved new album. each other’s camaraderie and each other’s friendship, and the crowd “We wanted more of a collaborawas just beyond anything we ever tive effort on this one,” Sanders says. expected; they went nuts for us. All “That’s why, instead of getting the alof that combined, we left Australia bum done quicker, working remotely with the mindset that we absolutely through file sharing, we opted to only

32 NEW NOISE

New songs like “Dream Gone Bad” and “Inner Calm From Outer Storms” quell any doubts about the band’s three-pronged vocal attack, resulting in some of the catchiest and gnarliest tunes of the year.

get together when we could physically all be in the same room together. We “We might work very sporadically, but feel that’s the best energy to feed off we are super proud of it,” Sanders says. “Max called me up and said, of, producing the best results.”

‘Dude, I love every song so much, I Reluctant Hero covers all the bases. can’t even think of a sequence. WhatThere are bludgeoning riffs, ridicu- ever you guys choose, I’m gonna be lously catchy choruses, blast beats, fine with it because I love this all so pianos, three iconic vocalists tossing much.’ How cool is that? Everything the ball back and forth, a veritable else that Max does in his career, he’s smorgasbord of metal delights. The the main guy. For him to graciously interplay between the unique voices relieve himself of that control shows of Sanders, Puciato, and Cavalera is that he appreciates and trusts us to what first broke people’s minds on make the right decision. That’s rare their smash single “Wings of Feath- and its super cool.” ers and Wax” six years ago.

“That type of cohesion isn’t guaranteed,” Sanders explains. “When we put Killer Be Killed together, one of the main objectives was that all three of us would contribute vocals to each song in some degree. When we went into the first record, we didn’t know if that was going to work.

“Greg and I were talking recently, and we both felt that this could stand up to anything that’s out there,” Sanders concludes. “We don’t feel like this is a side project anymore, even though this does take a backseat to our main bands. This is a full-on band.

We don’t need this band, but we really, really want this band.” 💣💣💣

“ WE DON’T FEEL LIKE THIS IS A SIDE PROJECT ANYMORE, EVEN THOUGH THIS DOES TAKE A BACKSEAT TO OUR MAIN BANDS.”

“The ones that survive, they wear it.”

PHOTO BY KEITH BAILLARGEON

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST AND GUITARIST DOMENIC PALERMO

BY MARIKA ZORZI

34 NEW NOISE

N

othing’s new full-length “I was just doing some research, and album, The Great Dismal, I somehow ended up kind of readexplores existentialist ing about the Great Dismal Swamp themes of isolation, ex- and the history of it,” Palermo extinction, and human behavior in plains. “The article was about a the face of 2020’s vast wasteland. small group of people that were Closing in on the band’s 10-year escaping slavery. They were moving mark, frontman Domenic Palermo through the Great Dismal Swamp, finds himself stringing together and they wound up staying put and songs of misanthropic tales of setting up a camp that stayed there Philadelphia with a refined and for almost a decade. They lived refreshed take on Nothing's clas- there because no one really wantsic sound. ed to enter there, so it was a safer

PHOTOGRAPHY BY KEITH BAILLARGEON

place, the lesser of two evils, which eye, and I still have problems lookis insane to think about, consider- ing at myself in the mirror. I started ing the conditions there. It’s so hard to think that this was bigger than to survive, especially as a human. just the music, that this was someThe type of person that could live thing that needed to be done.” in these conditions is very much reminiscent of the people in Phila- That process was therapeutic. delphia that I grew up around. The “It saved my life,” Palermo says. “I know ones that survive, they wear it.” that’s such a cliché thing to say, but There’s always a story behind a it’s still continued to do so. If I wasn’t Nothing record, and The Great Dis- creating this record during this point in time, I have to wonder what I’d be mal is no exception.

“Every time we’re writing a record, some awful thing happens to me or something,” Palermo confesses. “Besides our governmental issues and stuff like that, my biggest issues in front of me at that time were quite personal. I was staring at three records in and getting ready to reach that 10-year mark, and we were dealing with another lineup change.

I wasn’t really sure if I was going to open the book on a fourth record. I was contemplating whether I wanted to do this anymore.”

doing right now, especially all this quarantining and stuff. I can handle isolation probably better than a lot of people at this point, but I’ve developed ways to deal with that only because I’ve been thrown into this situation several different times. It’s tough for people to get through the day like this, and channel that stuff inside their head through creativity.”

Eventually, Palermo ended up writing one of the best records on 2020 on his own terms.

“There were questions of self-doubt,” “I want to make things difficult,” he conhe continues. “On whether I’d be cludes. “I don’t want to just get into line able to write a good record, or if I and do the things that are expected to was going to just write something ter- be done because I don’t think there rible and just throw the whole project are any rules with this. My only set of in the trash after 10 years. Also, do I rules has always been to try to be as want to open this book back up and kind as you can, and it’s not always get back into everything that comes worked, but never hurt another perwith writing and opening those son, and if you see another person doors? That’s kind of what pushed being treated unfairly, put yourself in me. Like walking against traffic, that’s between it. Besides that, it’s about— kind of what pushed me into it. I hav- what can I do to try to feel some sort of en’t addressed that stuff. I shined a beauty in the mess of all this pain and light on it, but I didn’t look it in the suffering?” 💣 💣 💣

NEW NOISE 35

INTERVIEW WITH DRUMMER MATT BYRNE

BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

PHOTO BY JEREMY SAFFER

“Every album is different for us,” says Byrne. “The process is different, recording, writing all that stuff, it's always a little different from the last. With this one, we didn’t really get into a room and jam out ideas.

The ideas already existed and were full songs in some cases. We were really just emailing ideas back and forth, with everyone putting their own stamp on it as we got into the studio and working toward the finished product.

“For my part, I was just coming into the room and recording my drum tracks and was in the studio by myself. It’s kind of crazy because you don’t necessarily have to be in the same room as each other, but the creativity can still be flowing.” 💣💣💣

PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

h

atebreed are excited to finally get another album out the door. As is now a familiar story in the metal world, the record was initially supposed to come out in May.

it shipped, but soon, we’re hoping fans will be able to order it directly.”

In addition to the beer, they’re enjoying fan reactions to Weight of the False Self which— in case you were wondering— is as heavy as anything the band have done. While they are quick to assure us that they are always going to make heavy music, they also agree that there’s something special for each album.

With the downtime before the November release of Weight of the False Self through Nuclear Blast the band came out with a beer in collaboration with Witchdoctor Brewing Company in Connecticut.

They’re currently in the process of “We’re a heavy metal band, a hardgetting the “Live For This Lager” out core punk band, so we’re not going to thirsty fans. to go acoustic or anything like that.

We’re not gonna start rapping or “It’s still in the infant stages, but we doing ballads,” he says. “We do keep are working on how to get the beer elements of all the previous albums shipped out to people now,” says as part of what we do, that’s part of drummer Matt Byrne. “We’ve had a our identity. We try and keep it fresh. great response so far, and it’s been We try some new things every album, keeping us busy. There are a lot of bringing in some kind of new eleloopholes to jump through to have ments or tidbits.”

36 NEW NOISE

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INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST AND VOCALIST LUKE BENTHAM

BY JOHN SILVA

“

W

e’ve been on the road for the last six or seven years of our lives, particularly in the United States,” says Luke Bentham of Toronto rock trio The Dirty Nil. “And, a lot of these places, both the brick and mortar and the staff that occupy them, are really special to us.”

The Dirty Nil’s live show is sight to behold. They can make a 200-cap club feel like a stadium with their larger-than-life brand of rock ’n’ roll that somehow manages to be both polished and gritty at the same time. One would think that a global pandemic that limits touring would be devastating to a band like The Dirty Nil. But, instead of moping around, they’re looking for safe ways to re-create the Nil concert experience.

smirk. It’s got a certain sense of celebration to it.”

If the message of Fuck Art is lost on anyone, the album’s cover will help clarify. With blue skies in the background, it displays a dog with its tongue out, grinning in that stupid way that only a dog can.

“A really important part of even just the sonics of an album is how the cover’s gonna look, because it really contextualizes everything,” Bentham says.

Fuck Art marks a sonic shift from The Dirty Nil’s previous album, Master Volume, something they’re not afraid to embrace.

THE DIR

“We’ve been extremely busy, putting all our efforts into what we

can do rather than what we can’t do,” Bentham says. “It’s pretty easy to sit around and lament the vacuum of live music right now, but it doesn’t really get you anywhere.”

The group recently filmed 14 unique sets, shot in front of a green screen, that are personalized to 14 different cities and venues.

“We’ve got this wonderful thing called the Dancing 2 Thrash Tour, which is a bit of a love letter to the North American concert industry,” says Bentham.

It’s on-brand for The Dirty Nil to seek positivity in an unfortunate situation. Even the title of their forthcoming studio LP, Fuck Art, which is out January 1 on Dine Alone Records, reflects this.

Bentham says of the album’s title: “On first glance, it seems rather nihilistic and empty, but to me, it’s the exact opposite. It’s a very jubilant and optimistic title. Through our lens, through our band’s brand of humor, it’s got a

38 NEW NOISE

“IT’S PRETTY EASY TO SIT AROUND AND LAMENT THE VACUUM OF LIVE MUSIC RIGHT NOW, BUT IT DOESN’T REALLY GET YOU ANYWHERE.”

“I think we basically started with Master Volume, we declared to ourselves out loud, I remember having it around beers, that we can do whatever we want, and we shouldn’t feel constrained at all by what we’ve done in the past, and we should completely explore what comes naturally,” Bentham explains. “This is just a very natural next step for us. At the time, we were touring all the Master Volume stuff which, to me, has more of a classic rock kind of feel. Like a Queen, Aerosmith kind of thing in certain areas.

PHOTO BY ALAN SNODGRASS

“When we were touring that stuff, we started just diving really deep into Cro-Mags, and we were listening to a lot of thrash, and learned how to play a bunch of Metallica and Slayer songs, ’cause that just felt like a lot of fun.

We were definitely listening to a lot of heavier music and a lot of throwback-thrash stuff.”

RTY NIL This tonal shift is clear from the opening notes of the first track, which sounds heavier than anything The Dirty Nil has done. But Fuck Art isn’t always aggressive— the band explored two different musical directions and wove them together onto the record in a way that flows nicely.

“We were also listening to a ton of Tom Petty and lighter stuff,” Bentham says. “I think both those extremes made their way into our music on this record.” 💣 💣 💣

NEW NOISE

39

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALAN SNODGRASS

them off, there would be even more of them the next day.”

During their time in the Welsh countryside, the band members were also exposed to experiences they never had growing up and living in the urbanity of London.

“Rockfield is also a working farm, though, and being a confirmed townie, I’d never been anywhere near a cow before or even a horse,” Captain Sensible says with a laugh.

“And the day I got helped onto one of them, backwards, was interesting. Of course, one of my comrades gave the nag a good hearty slap on the rump, whereupon I had to hang on for dear life while the bloody thing went galloping off across the fields with me

The Damned q uietly sitting just outside of the village of Rockfield, Wales, the aptly named Rockfield Studios has been the setting of many legendary albums and songs, including Black Sabbath’s Paranoid, Oasis’ (What’s The Story) Morning Glory?, and The Stone Roses’ self-titled debut. It’s also where Freddie Mercury finished a certain track called “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

Rockfield Studios is also where punk trailblazers The Damned got their sea legs, recording the sessions that birthed The Black Album, the Friday 13th EP, and Strawberries during the early ’80s. The band returned to their former stomping grounds in 2019 to record The Rockford Files EP, with three out of the four band members who were at the original sessions—David Vanian, Captain Sensible,

40 NEW NOISE

and Paul Gray. Released on INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST CAPTAIN SENSIBLE October 16, the new EP cap- BY GEN HANDLEY tures all the inventive magic of The Damned’s earlier work, as if it was absorbing the je ne sais quoi of the eminent studio.

The band’s guitarist, Captain Sensible, has nothing but fond memories of the place.

“Having had some nutters in over the preceding years, like Hawkwind, and Arthur Brown, the Rockfield's owners were OK with band hijinks, so we got away with loads,” he recalls with a chuckle. “Egging the kitchen walls, burning the furniture in the fireplace—the coal ran out—smashing windows, and blaming the studio dog. And local kids would get the treatment when they wandered in to get autographs, the timing of which often coincided with dinner, so they’d leave wearing whatever was left over—gravy, trifle, custard. But, instead of putting

looking at a swishing tail and my laughing bandmates.”

Back in those days, punk filled a gapping creative and social hole for youth like The Damned and other influential bands, Captain Sensible says, kicking back at the musical and political climate of the day.

“What is punk?” he posits. “In Britain, it was a reaction to circumstances at the time.

A grey country with mass unemployment and a threeday week—with Thatcher around the next corner! Music was dismal. Stadium and country rock bands singing songs about wizards and pixies, which meant nothing to unemployed youngsters like us. So, we put our own bands together—it was our way of fighting back, of trying to make something out of nothing in a rebellious DIY way, so punk was very much of its time.”

So, how does one age gracefully in a scene that is built on youthful energy and idealism?

“I think we were meant to crash and burn,” says the guitarist, who turned 66 in April. “One great album and snuff it, and not hang around and keep playing. But what can you do? Most of us didn’t kick the bucket, and if the music is fun, and people like it, why not go out and make a noise occasionally? The booze-fueled craziness is a thing of the past, though. The first thing I do on arrival at a venue these days is to see what brand of tea is in the dressing room rather than what whiskey is on offer.

And conversation at punk festivals between old lags is more likely to be about recent hospital visits than birds and fights.” 💣 💣 💣

NEW NOISE 41

PHOTOGRAPHY BY PAT GILRANE

42 NEW NOISE

S

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST AND VOCALIST CHRIS DEMAKES, BASSIST AND VOCALIST ROGER LIMA, TROMBONIST BUDDY “GOLDFINGER” SCHAUB, SAXOPHONIST PETER “JR” WASILEWSKI, AND DRUMMER MATT YONKER BY NICHOLAS SENIOR

ilver Linings is the first full- “This record was recorded last year,” pre-COVID thoughts is therapeutic “Hopefully, it is something new and length release on Pure DeMakes says. “It was pre-pandem- in pandemic times. It’s a strong per- fresh for a lot of people,” he says.

Noise Records for Less ic that we had it completed. We formance from the whole band.

“I'm excited for people to hear it. If Than Jake, but it’s the were hoping to release it earlier this you're a Less Than Jake fan, I think latest in a long line of full year, (in) late spring. It got pushed “I just think the new record in general, you're going to be stoked because brass, big fun, “ska-rockin’” for to summer; it got pushed to fall, and at this time, with all the depressing I'm basically bringing classic Less the band. It’s out everywhere on now it's December. We pretty ada- things that are going on in the world, Than Jake, but I'm just trying to December 11. mantly wanted the record to come is a great start,” new drummer Matt throw a ton more energy into it. I'm out this year.”

Yonker says. basically up there beating the crap Stuck at home and needing motivaout of things, and you can tell I'm tion? The latest tunes by Chris De- Silver Linings is a continuation of Less Longtime road partner Yonker, also having a good time.”

Makes, Roger Lima, and the rest of Than Jake’s bouncing vibes. Fans a touring member of Teen Idols and Less Than Jake are a kickstart. Laid can pogo their dogs to this album, The Queers, began keeping time Less Than Jake is spread out during to wax before the world shut down, the cat too, at a socially accept- after Vinnie Fiorello’s departure the pandemic across Connecticut, this album sets the body in motion able distance. Maybe keep six feet from the band. It’s a hard-hitting, Tennessee, and, of course, Gainesand the mind dreaming the best apart, but good luck being bummed heart-pounding fit. He brings a beat ville, Florida. Nonetheless, they are new realities, even if that reality is while this platter’s spinning. Cherry that old fans will respect, and new ready to weigh in together as a stuck inside four walls. picking lines from Less Than Jake’s fans will love. band on this release.

NEW NOISE 43

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALAN SNODGRASS

people get into the depth of the record. I feel like sometimes it’s really easy just to listen to the first couple of tracks, or the first couple of singles, and then you sign off on the rest of the record.

I feel like people consume music that way these days. I think that when we make an album, we really try to make all the songs as good and make the thing have a feel to it, and ebbs and flows, ups and downs. I feel like this album, as a collection of songs, is really strong and has some depth to it.” 💣 💣 💣

“I feel closer than ever because we can still communicate, talk, and text each other, but we don't have to smell each other's dirty laundry and feet across the hall in the bus,” trombonist Buddy Schaub jokes. “It's actually brought us closer together.”

distanced, outside things that we can possibly put on, because that stuff is happening,” Schaub says. “I think we'll probably do more live streams and stuff like that until it's safe to tour again.”

In the meantime, the record drops with an online performance that will be a little three ring circus and pure Less Than Jake— funny, thoughtful, and high energy.

“This is the longest time that we went without playing,” DeMakes says. “It's been different in that aspect, but we talk almost every day either by text or email. We “We're doing an online show on the have conference calls with one date of our release,” Wasilewski another, so we're talking about says. “It won't be the entire renew projects and things. We're cord, but we will be performing some new songs off the record, moving the band forward.” and it will be a Less Than Jake Less Than Jake are aching to get show, a 2020 version of a Less Than Jake show, online. I think back on the road, but safely. people are going to be really in“I think, realistically, what's going terested to see what we do.” to happen is in the new year, maybe we'll get offers to do some sort “The record deserves to be played of fly-out gigs that are socially live,” Yonker says. “I just hope that

44 NEW NOISE

LESS THAN JAKE

PUNK ROCK CROSSWORD PUZZLES:

I

Less Than Jake ACROSS 1. * Abandon ___ 5. * "Would you ___ by your convictions?"

10. Corporates honchos (abbr.)

14. Someone to look up to 15. Potentially dangerous mass of cell growth 16. Suffix with million- or billion17. Human rights lawyer Clooney 18. Suffix for the San Francisco Treat?

19. Pride letters 20. * Where the Hell is ___?

23. * "I'm a wreck, I'm a mess, but I couldn't ___ less."

24. Newsroom boss 27. Up, in baseball 30. * One of the people Al says goodbye to in Al's War 33. Turntable needles 34. Wobble 36. * The L in "Hell looks a lot like LA" 38. Oklahoma city named after a Tennyson character 39. Units on a metric ruler (abbr.)

40. * The Great American Sharp___ 43. * "___ been on that ledge countless times..."

44. Chooses 46. * "My very ___ flag."

47. * "It's either work at McDonalds or the ___ store" 49. Embroidered 51. * Life ___ Out Loud 53. Pub orders 54. Parched feeling 56. Long heroic tale 58. * Less Than Jake's 9th studio album, released in December 2020 64. Repeat in the Grand Canyon 66. * "There's been new starts and there'll be no ___" 67. Game on horseback or in a pool

am lucky enough to have been a Less Than Jake fan since their very early days. As a broke college student in the mid-1990s, I would often pick up the free student newspaper to see what was happening in town. After poring through the local show listings, I would flip to the crossword puzzle to de-stress between classes.

It was here that I first heard of a

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68. Place (of) 69. Make very happy 70. * "___ get that funny feeling that your future is not going to be bought cheap..."

71. * "Sometimes you just want to belong at any ___ or any cost."

72. Stories 73. * "But the message in these songs has kept me ___ all along."

DOWN 1. Hoax 2. Prefix with -sphere 3. Bagdad's country (var.)

4. Skunk 5. Step 6. * The Upwards War and the Down ___ Cycle 7. Haywire 8. * "He doesn't know what to do, ___..."

little band called Less Than Jake who were coming up from Gainesville to play a free show on campus.

According to the article, they had a ‘raucous punk rock sound’, mixed with something called ska— complete with a horn section. They were promoting a new album that was named after Pez candy, and for some reason it included the theme song from The Jeffersons. I knew I had to see this.

9. * Five State ___ 10. Stalactite material 11. * "Lying awake, it still feels like it's ___."

12. Spherical object 13. * "Welcome to my life.

So ___ to say I'm sorry..."

21. Fills to capacity 22. * "With fake ___ and fake passions of her best friends" 25. Twist from Dickens 26. Bus passengers 27. No more than 28. Vegan protein choice 29. * ___ to your Black Lung 31. * "But in the end, it's me ___ staring at my phone" (new song!)

32. * "Come join the Warner brothers and the Warner sister ___" (Channel 3) 35. Letter between pi and sigma

In the 25 years since that show, I have watched Less Than Jake evolve into a worldwide ska-punk beacon.

They became a staple in my life.

Every new song was a link between my nostalgic past and an unfolding future. No matter where I was in life, Less Than Jake were there to play a show or drop a new record.

In honor of their excellent new album, I took a trip back to my college

37. Part of a min.

41. Hooter 42. * "They're fighting the system like two modernday __ hoods." (Dukes of Hazzard cover) 45. * Sobriety is a ___ Business, and Business Isn't So Good 48. Cooking instructions 50. High speed internet letters 52. Get rid of 55. Boob tube 57. * "Glass ___ and tunnel vision" 59. Fitzgerald of jazz 60. * "In single file lines, is this ___ life?"

61. PBS science show since 1974 62. Small valley 63. Achy 64. 90-degree bend 65. AFL's union partner

days of crossword puzzles and punk rock. I constructed a puzzle full of Less Than Jake lyrics, spanning from pre-Pezcore to Silver Linings. Thanks to Less Than Jake for playing that same old song from years ago and keeping me sane all along.

For more fun punk rock crosswords, check out Kurt’s site: KurtMakesCrosswords.com

NEW NOISE 45

2020 VISION WHY SKA IS THRIVING IN THE TIME OF COVID This year, ska rose metaphorically from the modern jungle—in creative places like web streams and quarantine videos on YouTube and Instagram. It started early in March, with John Feldman of Goldfinger dropping positive vibes and fun, split-screen takes on two-and-a-half decades of classics. Goldfinger followed that up with a new record out now called Never Look Back. Ska is looking ahead and not showing any signs of slowing down.

Ska Punk Daily. The compilation aimed at promoting social justice and benefits the Movement for Black Lives, The NAACP Legal Defense Fund, The Alpha Institute, The Conscious Kid, and Black Girls Code.

Bad Time Records is also putting out the band Bad Operation with Community Records, featuring veteran musicians in a new project. After their first show was nixed due to COVID restrictions, and Fellow veteran ska band Kill Lincoln started the pandemic in the Brian Pretus’ tour with PEARS was cancelled, Daniel “D-Ray” Ray, studio and quickly turned their studio bubble into quarantine HQ. Greg Rodrigue, Dominic Minix, Robert Landry, and Pretus retreated They released Can’t Complain in August on Bad Time Records and to their practice space to make a record that is more ska than ska also dropped a lockdown dance party with their video for the track punk. Bad Operation is something they call “new tone.”

“Ignorance Is Bliss.”

Jeremy “Jer” Hunter runs Skatune Network, anchored by his YouKill Lincoln guitarist and vocalist, Mike Sosinski—also the guy from Tube page and website. The sometime-trombonist and vocalist Bad Time Records, followed this up in September with a compila- for We Are The Union shines with ska covers, livestreams, and his tion, Ska Against Racism, on his label, with Asian Man Records and “Superman” reverse cover.

PHOTO BY VINCE SADONIS

KILL LINCOLN

SKATUNE NETWORK J

er Hunter sees quarantine as an opportunity for the scene to grow in new ways and to a new generation of fans.

Hunter is honored to be working with bands that inspired him early and support ska.

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n the meantime, while stuck at home, why not plug the sounds of Mike Sosinski and Kill Lincoln into a 2020 playlist? It’s impossible to sit still with this banger on your turntable needle. Sosinski explains how ska is important in terms of both having fun and holding the world accountable.

people and needs to be accepting of people of all kinds, and that means races, genders, identities.”

Kill Lincoln were able to shelter in place in “The quarantine has been interesting, in “It’s really incredible because 10 years the studio, the perfect location for musigeneral,” Hunter says. “I’ve found a lot ago, when I was first getting into shows cians to create. Can’t Complain is a quaranof success on many platforms because and music, it was bands like Kill Lincoln, tine album, so that’s winning the lockdown. it has forced people, especially the ska We Are the Union, and the Flaming scene, to start to catch up. I’ve always Tsunamis who truly turned me on to ska,” “When I was a kid, the reason I got into ska focused on platforms like Twitter, TikTok, Hunter says. “To be playing in bands, music was because it was fun,” Sosinski “We managed to get it done right before baand Twitch. Because of the increased sharing labels with, and having support says. “I’d go to the shows, and it was not sically everything shut down,” Sosinski says. traffic on all these platforms, I’ve been from these same people years later, is just a fun atmosphere, but it was an “It was a pretty crazy situation, but we were able to see growth everywhere, except incredible! I have a platform now, and I atmosphere where you could kind of be in the studio as they announced the first Facebook because they destroy reach watched the ska scene sleep on the en- a weirdo, and be yourself, and express rounds of shelter-in-place and quarantine for artists. It helps a lot that all my tire millennial generation of ska bands. ideas that were maybe not okay to ex- across the country. We decided to just keep friends in music have built little home I watched none of the bigger bands or press in other places. Then, I'd put on a going. Our engineer was like, ‘Well, we're studios and have the means to record, labels really care to acknowledge them, record like (The Mighty Mighty Bosstones’) kind of already in a bubble, so let's just which has made collaborating all the so I knew that I didn’t wanna be the Let's Face It, and I'd hear them talking keep going.’ We all felt the same about it, easier. Because of this, incredible proj- thousandth influencer to hype the same about racism. I'm like, ‘Oh yeah, that is so we finished off the record, and I'm really ects and collabs have come forward ’90s bands. That’s really it. I’m not doing something we should be talking about.’ thankful that we got it done. It's really given via Skatune Network, which helps me anything special, but I’m glad people So, it all goes hand-in-hand. Music can us something to work on and work towards, expand to lots of people beyond the listen, and my peers feel the love from be upbeat; it can be uplifting; it can give and the album has been fantastic. It just regular ska radar.” the Skatune fans!”💣 people something to look to for hope in makes us eager to get out on the road and this time, and some good vibes. But also, it start playing some shows, when it's safe to should have a message. It needs to unite do so.” 💣

46

GOLDFINGER

PHOTO BY CALEB ALVAREZ

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ohn Feldman realized early into quarantine that he had to do something to keep his mind busy and positive.

there's something to be said about that vibrant drive that I had, that passion to make music when I couldn't do anything else.

‘Wallflower’ was the last song I wrote, which is the song that came out last month. A lot of “When this whole thing started back in marriages have broken up during quaranMarch, I think we were all like scared and anxious and angry and sad and everything,” tine. I feel like my marriage has been stronger throughout all this stuff. I kind of wrote it Feldman says. “I knew immediately that I about my wife, who I met at The Stone Pony had to stay busy, because they say an idle in New Jersey. I wanted to say how grateful I mind is the devil's playground. If I'm sitting am to have this great solid woman in my life, around thinking about the repercussions of and I wrote this song about her. And that Coronavirus, I'm not going to do very well song became the single, so you never know emotionally. It's such a weird time because what song is going to come, unless you just you hear all about domestic violence and keep writing.” suicide going up and all the crazy stuff that's happened since lockdown. I just needed to stay busy, so I filmed all those quarantine Feldman concludes with a reference to videos. Then when we were done doing the track “Tijuana Sunrise,” from their last them, I'm like, ‘What's next?’” record The Knife.

His advice, based on their “Wallflower” single, is simple.

What’s next was a Goldfinger single, fol- “A real-life story about getting arrested in lowed by a full-length record. This was Rosarito, down in Mexico,” he says. “Like, “The thing about songwriting is, you think easier as a thought in his mind than action everything that I've written about is kind of about memories that you have, and they in the world. firsthand experience. I feel like a lot of kids become timeless songs because you're I work with now are inspired by other peo- living your life. If there's anyone reading ple's music instead of living their life with “This record was made out of necessity for this that's an aspiring songwriter, go create their own experience.” me not to go crazy,” he continues. “I think memories because those are the things

BAD OPERATION B

ad Operation’s Ray and Rodrigue, who also run the collective Community Records, started 2020 by trying to cram a Bad Operation record into the tight space before a PEARS tour.

“When we first decided we wanted to do the project, we were basically just like, ‘Let's make a ska band to play one show before Brian goes on tour with PEARS, and that'll be it. Maybe that's all we'll ever do.’"

PHOTO BY DURADO BROOKS

for us,” Ray says. “Everybody in the band, we've been involved in ska music, and other genres and things, for so long. Even though this is a brand-new project, it's been this kind of incredible mix of things happening just this year, specifically within the context of releasing this record.”

It hasn’t all been joyful. Being part of the fabric of ska, singer Dominic Minix has referred to Bad Operation as “joyous retaliation.”

When their schedules cleared, they pivot- “I think that the sound of ska, especially ed. They went from playing their first show the ska that's willing to and wanting to before Brian Pretus went on tour with address the systemic problems, oppresPEARS to recording in the practice space sion, art, society as a whole, many issues, with him. you can have elements of addressing that stuff to a dance soundtrack,” Rodrigue says. “I think a lot of the best ska music has “I just feel, at least from the perspective talked about these things and had that be of Bad Operation, it feels really great to a central part of their music and of their be releasing this music now and having message. On one hand, it could be like, people respond to it. It's been really fun

This year, joyful music came back on a tidal wave, with an undercurrent of social justice.

The pictures are held in the mind and projected on the web, from Goldfinger and Kill Lincoln, to newcomers Bad Operation’s new tone, and Jeremy “Jer” Hunter taking his bedroom backdrop and covers to the world. It’s all new tone, wires, and ethernet cables

that I pull from to write some of the greatest songs I've ever written, is by living my life, and getting my heart broken, and having experiences that I can tap into. Just staying stuck in a room with a guitar isn't the answer.

Go out and live life, and then write songs about it.” 💣

connecting fresh eyes to solid, beautiful content. A tone captured in music, in video, played live on streams, recorded and broadcast in new, creative split-screen ways. When the club opens and the scene regenerates, there’ll be a lot to talk about when thinking of 2020 because artists and believers never failed to continue to draw on and paint new sonic visions.

'Oh, this is dance party music.’ But on the other hand, it's an opportunity to connect with and unite with people who are akin to you. Considering the pandemic and

considering our lack of ability to connect with one another, it actually makes ska ever more powerful as a sound, and a genre, and an idea.” 💣💣💣

“I think part of the genre that was promoted was the goofy, party atmosphere, right?”

Sosinski says. “And that was pervasive; you would see that at the shows. That's fine; it's fun to have a party; it's fine to have fun. That's all good. But the message needs to be there too, and I think especially now, with everything that's been going on in our country and the Black

Lives Matter movement, the pandemic, and just our current administration, we really need that voice of reason. And if ska can be that voice of reason, I think it's a good time for it.”

2020 is a year of ska. All kinds of ska. Pick it all up. 💣💣💣

NEW NOISE 47

IN DEFENSE OF SKA

book In Defense of Ska so necessary. The tome is being published by CLASH Books in early 2021.

“I had a band called Flat Planet,” says Carnes. “We were based out of Gilroy. We toured all over the country in our parents’ minivans. We played with bands of every genre: hardcore, pop-punk, crazy alt-rock, and people in those scenes generally dug us and ska music in general.”

But even Carnes feels the need to clarify his love of ska.

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST BRIAN ORTIZ BY JAMES ALVAREZ

“I was a big ska fan in the ’90s, particularly the early ’90s when it was still an underground, DIY scene,” he says.

“In the mid ’90s, I wasn’t wild about the mainstreaming of ska, though I did like some of the bands. It changed a lot of people’s perception of the music. And it remains that way. Now, decades later, for a lot of people, what ska means is those handful of goofy bands that were on MTV for a few years, and that’s it.”

Most music fans seem to have no idea that ska started back in 1950s Jamaica and has morphed greatly over the decades: from the 1970s British 2-Tone movement to the mid-to-late 1990s American wave, the genre has produced some truly great bands, and just as many unforgettable ones.

INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR AARON CARNES

BY JOHN B. MOORE

T

here are few genres that get as little respect as ska.

like “I really like original ska,” or “I don’t like a lot of stuff that was played on the radio, but groups like The Specials and Madness …”

Despite being around as far back as the 1950s—making it almost as old as rock itself— even diehard followers of the Ska is the perennial Rodney music still feel a need to justi- Dangerfield of music genres, fy their fandom with phrases which makes Aaron Carnes’

48 NEW NOISE

“In the U.S., it was a vibrant, really cool, underground genre with hundreds of diverse bands from all different walks of life, singing political, personal, silly, and just plain weird lyrics,” Carnes says.

“Every TV show now has a ska joke where one character is humiliated when their wacky ska past is revealed. That was such a small part of the scene, but apparently, it’s such an entrenched narrative that everyone laughs their ass off at the now-cool character once having a nerdy, ska past gag.

I don’t get it.”

Carnes, who had been working as a music journalist for the past decade, realized that ska had even become a joke amongst his fellow music writers.

“Yet, they love every obscure sub-sub-genre that no one else cares about,” he says.

So, in 2013, he decided to write a book about ska. At the beginning, he didn’t have a clear angle on the project, but started interviewing bands, which led to some great conversations but no clear direction. In 2018, he found the right angle for the book.

“I wanted to not just talk about these bands I loved, but to defend the genre, its culture, and all the different vibrant ska scenes that everyone acts like never existed,” he says.

After seven years of research and interviews—including some great ones with members of Fishbone and Operation Ivy—what was one of the big revelations Carnes came to?

“There were times when I wondered if maybe I was exaggerating in my mind that ska was universally mocked and needed defending,” he says.

“But, when I spoke with bands from different eras and places, I learned that every generation faces some version of ska-mockery.”

To prove his point, Carnes went down to Mexico, where ska is extremely popular. He witnessed one of their largest ska festivals and got to interview some of the bands, and he found that a lot of the ska bands in Mexico have lyrics that speak to the underprivileged kids in the ghettos.

“I asked the bands if people in Mexico made fun of ska, and they said, yes,” Carnes says.

“The joke in Mexico isn’t that ska is music for goofy, white dorks from the suburbs. The stereotype is that ska is the music of the poor and uncultured.” 💣💣

“It’s a hard living playing weird music.”

50 NEW NOISE

, PHOTO BY MARCUS WILEN

WELFARE JAZZ IS PRETTY MUCH THE TRUTH.

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST SEBASTIAN MURPHY

BY CHRISTOPHER J. HARRINGTON he music of Viagra Boys, a fusion of freeform and linear modernity, hangs atop the beatnik impressions of singer and lyricist Sebastian Murphy. Both are counterpoint, allowing for distinction and intoxication. The fusion sounds like something you’d make if you felt free as hell, where consequences were void, and life filled your lungs with purpose. The charm is the vitriol and the open dialogue.

through force and restraint. Maybe it’s something like a Jim Morrison punk ghola backed by a meaner Lounge Lizards. The point is it’s straight up, but also abstract, continually forging a new direction. We live in an age of simulation, and the record’s brutal honesty is refreshing. Viagra Boys are about as close to original as anything you’re going to get these days. And, you can feel that while listening to their songs.

Take “I Feel Alive,” an existential dose of reality-based struggle, tangling between two worlds, two possible futures. “It's not the way it is what it is,” Murphy says about the use of substances. “I definitely have a serious approach to drugs and alcohol, and I’m definitely trying to delete it from my life, slowly but surely. I recently turned 30 and started feeling like I had to get my shit together. These days I Welfare Jazz, the band’s newest re- don't romanticize it much.” cord (out January 8 via Year0001), is a patchwork of liberal styling Listen to “To The Country,” where with ends of free jazz smoke and Murphy dreams of the simple starts of barroom mania. A con- life, filled with health and vigtemporary beat holds the thing or, and then over there is that together, where Murphy croons song’s germination, “Creatures,”

“I kind of write it, and then I realize maybe two weeks later, oh fuck, this is too personal, and then I regret it,” Murphy laughs.

“But done is done. I think it’s therapeutic in a way too, you just have to get over it. And now, like, the fact I did it over a year ago, I don't give a shit at all. I’m in a completely different place now, so I’m totally fine with that.”

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51

“And you know, like fuck the American dream.”

, PHOTO BY MARCUS WILEN

a futuristic haze whose beauty in mode shades its utter emptiness.

“That song’s about being a speed freak,” Murphy explains. “And yeah, I don't know. Stealing bikes and shit, stealing bikes and messing around with electronics. I was in a long-term relationship with a really nice girl, but I spent most of my time in the kitchen, soldering and taking apart computers and shit like that, instead of caring about her. And I think that’s what the song is about.”

Viagra Boys are based in Sweden, where Murphy moved to from the United States when he was 17, and Welfare Jazz feels like a record born from two cultures. It is breezy and desert-born (see the country-fused cover of John Prine’s “In Spite Of Ourselves” and the

52 NEW NOISE

neo-psychedelic “Into The Sun”), old-Western hero aged (“Toad”), with Euro-club vibes (“Ain’t Nice”) and Berlin-house jaunts (“Secret Canine Agent”). It is introspective of attitudes without ever drawing any particular line.

I just felt like whatever happens, happens. I’m really glad it ended up the way it did. But I’m not politically active in any way, just because it makes me so fucking depressed. Sweden has a much better quality of life, that’s why I’m still here. That’s why I haven’t The recent United States election moved back to America, because was something Europeans and I don't want to have three jobs just Americans both closely moni- to pay for my fucking apartment. tored. Murphy’s take is particular, And you know, like, fuck the Amergiving his experience. He knows ican dream. It’s just such a weird the life of the working and low- outlook on life over there in my er classes from both angles. He opinion, especially on work. And knows the bullshit that America yeah, I can’t imagine having to feeds its citizens. pay a medical bill in America. I can’t imagine having that orange “I’ve definitely been following the fucker as my president, it’s just election,” he says. “But, it kind of crazy. It’s a crazy country. But, my got to the point, at least in the parents still live there. I love Calpast few months, where it was ifornia; it’s a nice place, but I’m way too depressing to follow, so never going to live there.”

And thus, Welfare Jazz feels like a record that cannot be made by American punk bands anymore. , The chances it takes, the directionless movements, the honesty and willingness to be itself at all times.

There is no superfluous genre hobnobbing here; it’s a street record, where punk is formless and heart is center point. It’s about a real feeling, a real connection to individuals living in social environments.

Welfare Jazz is pretty much the truth.

“It’s just kind of a name,” Murphy laughs. “And a lot of the guys in the band play in jazz bands and stuff like that. In a way, you can’t really do jazz without living on welfare, nobody pays for jazz gigs.

So, something like that. Yeah, it’s a hard living playing weird music.” 💣 💣 💣

PHOTOGRAPHY BY TONY MOTTRAM

PEACE, LOVE, AND ANARCHY

PENNY RIMBAUD OF CRASS

BY M. REED

54 NEW NOISE

v

rass were the genuine article.

The original anarcho-punk band, or at least the first to embrace the title and live by its tenets. If you’ve ever seen a band wear all black on stage, seen an album cover that embraces monochromatic depicts of State oppression, or if you’ve ever heard (or been a member) of a band living communally as a countermand to the edicts of the State and the demands of capitalism, then you’ve encountered the long, intellectual lineage that Crass has bequeathed to the artists and revolutionaries of the underground.

Working out of a collective living space known as Dial House, they lived and worked communally, creating some of the best-remembered sonic art and socio-political commentary of the era, while developing a dedicated audience of disaffected youth, eager to learn more about

how to confront State oppression “It all started about 10 or 12 years and capitalist imperialism. Crass ago, and it was quite simply because would eventually disband in 1984 I went into a record store, saw a rack following a final, fateful perfor- of Crass records and they looked tired. mance in support of a miner’s strike There was so much pastiche of Gee in Wales. The inability of the miners [Vaucher]’s artwork, and the general to overcome the aggressive, neolib- style that we had created, black and eral agenda of the Thatcher govern- white, a dead corpse on a beach, ment is often seen as the beginning stencil letters, all that stuff, it was basiof the end of organized labor’s role cally like parodies of our work,” Penny as an effective political force in the recalled when reflecting on the ori20th Century. Despite this, the battle gins of the Crassical Collection. “Back against the corrosive and inherently in the day black and white [album art] corrupt mechanism of capital con- was really radical.” tinues into the 21st Century, in new and varied forms.

Penny had previously produced the final Crass album Ten Notes on There is an increased interest in an- a Summer’s Day, but was famousti-capitalist and anti-authoritarian ly unhappy with the results. Seeing ideologies on the rise all over the these old records on the shelf stirred world. As serendipity would have it, something in Penny and he set out this increased reception to Crass’s to see if he couldn’t dowse the fires political message comes at a time of discontent that began to lick and when the group, spearheaded by singe the corners of his mind. the efforts of Penny Rimbaud, have reissued their back catalog in the “I managed to start work with the form of a box set with improved guy who did the mastering at Southmasters and newly redesigned art- ern and I got a really good result work. The box set, dubbed the Cras- because mastering techniques and sical Collection, is available through technology have incrementally grown Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek and grown and grown… I was very imBirkett’s label One Little Indepen- pressed with that, because it basically dent Records. sounded like it did when we recorded it.”

These attempts to remaster Crass’s You make as much as you give and back catalog also inspired to Gee to you give as much as you take. Like begin reworking the band’s album art the old Beetles song, ‘the love you as well, producing the covers and in- take is equal to the love you make.’ sert art for the current box set. These And I profoundly believe that. It’s a activities also invited objections and very simple exchange.” threats of litigation former band members, none of which ever materi- Further, Penny believes that there is alized. However, the project had to be overlap between the practice of Zen shelved as Southern Records wound Buddhism and Praxis of Anarchist down its operations and a deal was political projects, and as he sees it, worked out with One Independent this overlap has a focal point, that of “peace and love.” “And what that acRecords. tually means is that peace and love The motivation for this massive proj- are dependent on one thing, which ect to remaster Crass’s catalog and is kindness. I can’t claim compassion. reimagine their signature aesthetic It’s something that claims a person. was not the typical industry justifica- You can’t develop compassion. You tion for such monumental effort and can only develop kindness. Compasmarshaling of resources. As Penny sion is part of the very nature of life. explained, “[W]e don’t do things for So that’s why we have a whole system money, we do them because we be- of kindness— giving and listening.” lieve in them, and I won’t be persuaded otherwise… Nothing that Crass has As Penny relates, learning to act ever done, and nothing that I’ve done with kindness is actually a process since Crass… has ever been done with of calibrating one’s self to be able any sense of what we’re going to get to listen for a profound silence, “[T] out of it. The consideration is always: he real solution, effectively, is silence. Silence and the blank canvas What can we give with it?” is where real change comes about.

This ethos flows over into Penny’s There is no sense in trying to affect work at the collective living space a revolution while you’re halfway Dial House and is an extension of his through a painting. You’ve got to go personal and political philosophies. to a new canvas. Because if you start As Penny put it, “[At Dial House,] [n] with an existing painting, then the o one has ever asked for something, corruption that exists and the order they are simply given whatever we of political outfits is going to still be have to give them. And that is a good present. And it’s only by returning premise to start any relationship. to the blank canvas, to that silence, Then the stuff starts coming back. that any true spirit will grow.” 💣💣💣

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55

PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATTHEW KADI

Jello Biafra & THE GUANTANAMO SCHOOL OF MEDICINE INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST JELLO BIAFRA

BY DEREK NIELSEN

56 NEW NOISE

his year couldn’t be complete without a new album from Jello Biafra.

T

Punk rock’s semi-official diplomat and his band The Guantanamo School of Medicine (GSM) have been dropping singles sporadically throughout the year, culminating in the release of their third LP, Tea Party Revenge Porn. The album is now available on all streaming platforms with a physical release date in January 2021 via Alternative Tentacles.

“Sorry it’s only out online folks!” Biafra interjects. “I much prefer vinyl that I can hold in my fucking hand.

But we're still having manufacturing turnaround issues, and I had to get this thing out before the election. So, suddenly, the digital age turned out to be my friend!”

The former Dead Kennedys frontman and card-carrying member

“WHO NEEDS ANOTHER ‘BOOHOO, NUKES ARE BAD’ SONG WHEN YOU CAN WRITE IT FROM THE PENTAGON AND THE MILITARY INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX POINT OF VIEW, AND HAND THE WORLD ‘KILL THE POOR’?” of the Green Party wears many straight off of a Sandinista-era Extreme subjectivity has always San Francisco, for that matter?’” hats—singer, songwriter, actor, Clash B-side. So yeah, there’s a lot been Biafra’s bread and butter spoken-word activist, comedian, going on here—that was just the when it comes to songwriting—a At age 62, Jello has no plans on politician—so it only makes sense first single off the record. stylistic choice he has utilized since stopping anytime soon. Having that his songwriting is equally chaThe Dead Kennedys, and one that built his entire persona around otic and genre-hopping. It should “I wanted some kind of a move out allows him to really sink his teeth fighting injustice while thinking up also be noted that since his depar- of left field there, instead of just an- into whatever subject he might be new ways to lampoon the unjust is ture from The Dead Kennedys, his other straight hardcore song that singing about. On Tea Party Revenge the reason he’s stuck around for songwriting has only gotten faster, had kind of a Russian-music flavor Porn, he cranks the satire up to 11, long. While many of his colleagues heavier, and at times, darker. It’s to it already,” elaborates Biafra from social media-driven narcis- have either passed away or faded uncommon to hear a song from on his process. “I think it was Matt sism on “No More Selfies,” to climate into obscure curmudgeonry, BiGSM (or any of Biafra’s projects) Kelly—who did most of my stuff, ex- change in “The Last Big Gulp.” afra keeps walking that tightrope. that doesn’t utilize several distinct- cept for Lard and the stuff I do with ly different and seemingly conflict- The Melvins. He told a recording “I'm not really like a personal lyric, “I cannot stress enough how grateful ing musical genres. studio magazine that dealing with emo kind of guy at all,” he contin- I am that people dug our music in me was more like trying to work ues. “In no small part because I get the first place,” he concludes. “And “I'm really proud that no two of my for a movie director than a music so goddamn bored with people my spoken-word stuff, and everymusic albums have ever sounded producer. And there's the method who just can't stop talking about thing else, to the point where I'm alike,” says Biafra. acting training in my background themselves. Oh, boohoo! Some- still able to sustain myself on my too—being able to immerse myself body left you? OK, fine! Maybe big mouth and bad attitude. I don't For example, on “We Created Pu- in other scenarios, as some oth- you’ll write a good song next time! think anybody would give me a real tin,” the first two minutes kicks off er scenarios, other people, other Oh, boo hoo! We used our parents' job. Even if it was in a record store with classic ’80s, hardcore riffage characters, including writing from money to start a band! We bought or as a bartender. I don't know how combined with Soviet-style vocal their point of view. Who needs all this cool equipment, and now to make drinks! What good am I? harmonies over the chorus, ’cause, another ‘boohoo, nukes are bad’ we're signed with a major label, I went to UC Santa Cruz for one you know, Putin. But then the band song when you can write it from the and life is so hard! And I'm like, quarter, studying Beginning Acting pumps the brakes and hard-tran- Pentagon and the military industri- ‘Why don't you just go try and beg and History of Paraguay. And then sitions into a dub-reggae break- al complex point of view, and hand for change on Haight Street? Or went straight into punk and never down that sounds like it was ripped the world ‘Kill the Poor’?” see how long you last in a tent in looked back.” 💣💣💣

NEW NOISE 57

With his lyrics pointed at politics, statement from a two-year-old which Butler actively joins in on discussion stuck with Butler as he felt the energy panels on black culture and activism in the streets that day. in today’s world. Participating in the Walk In My Shoes Foundation and “We want solidarity,” Butler explains. discovering altruism through his “My son said that at 2-and-a-half children, citing, “anything we do years old. It really spoke to me in an that is positive for them should be intense and pure way.” positive for all youth,” Butler has never been shy about his activism. Harnessing the same power, Butler It’s one of the things which FEVER explains he wrote WRONG GENER333 was built on.

ATION without the notion of what others thought at the front of his “People are power,” Butler says. mind. The cathartic nature of baring his soul brought about action to educate and embolden listeners. After “STOP BEING SATISFIED BY THE the election, the war rages for justice RECOGNITION OF YOUR OPPOSER. WE rages on—luckily, it’s a way of life for FEVER 333.

ARE HERE TO REMOVE, ERADICATE, AND RESTRUCTURE THE OPPRESSION.”

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALAN SNODGRASS

With the U.S. election now over, Butler describes his thoughts on how we can move forward with this movement to harbor real systemic change.

Describing the most memorable moment of the movement this year, Butler recalls his son following a crowd, saying, “I want to go with the people.” A profound

FEVER 333 INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST JASON AALON BUTLER

BY BRIDJET MENDYUK

V

ocalist Jason Aalon Butler of Los May and the Black Lives Matter marches Angeles rapcore group FEVER for systemic change in equality, Butler wrote 333 holds enthralling, emotional WRONG GENERATION in eight days. Having power in his voice. A political figure in marched alongside his wife Gin Wigmore and the punk scene, he is an advocate for their two children for more than two weeks in progressive change. Finding magne- Los Angeles, the protests across the nation were tism in even the smallest acts, his con- a time for Butler to grieve. viction for unity is echoed through the group’s new record, WRONG GENERA- Black and POC culture has been divested for TION, out now on Roadrunner Records. years, Butler points out.

The last few years of FEVER 333 have been spent pushing the envelope on “We have to dedicate ourselves to the movewhat is expected of our government ment,” he says. “We have to lean into our and political system. The year 2020 is power and stop allowing these people to fool no exception. us because we have a little movement and they recognize it. We don’t need their recognition.

“I employed a lot of diplomacy on Stop being satisfied by the recognition of your [previous record] STRENGTH IN opposer. We are here to remove, eradicate, and NUMB333RS, and I put diplomacy restructure the oppression.” to the side,” Butler explains. “I am going directly for the succinct and WRONG GENERATION echoes disruption with heavdistilled messaging. I’m not sparing ily distorted guitars, biting vocals and booming the feelings of those who don’t un- drums. With a noticeable rhythm, the drums on the derstand right now.” record are by Travis Barker (Blink-182, Transplants), and the album is produced by John Feldmann After the killing of George Floyd in (Goldfinger, Good Charlotte, The Used).

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“I’m thankful, grateful, and hopeful with the energy shift and the language being used in order to describe the transition we are about to see in America,” Butler says. “We still have to be critical of all government and systems of power that positions itself above the people. That is inherently what government systems are supposed to do—they’re hierarchical. We can celebrate today, but Monday, we have to roll up our sleeves and put our leaders to work.” 💣

ON

PHOTO BY KEITH BAILLARGEON

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST SHAWNA POTTER

BY NATALEE COLOMAN

2

020 has been a year of so many different, chaotic factors in the United States, from the pandemic and lockdowns, job insecurity and health concerns, to social justice issues stemming from the presidential election and inequality. These issues are nothing new for War on Women—and their latest album, Wonderful Hell, released on venerable hardcore label Bridge Nine, takes a prescient look at the chaos.

The full-length LP was mostly finished before the pandemic began.

However, there are many eerie parallels to what the United States has faced post-writing. “White Lies” addresses the issue of systemic racism between the police and Black Americans. Vocalist Shawna Potter noted the similarities between the song’s lyrics and the reasons for the nationwide protests in June, and how close the line about police boots on someone’s neck were to George Floyd having a knee on his neck.

“It's a strange feeling to have your lyrics be so relevant months after an incident,” she says. “But frankly, because of what we write about, we have songs that are still relevant from our first EP. When you're talking about social justice issues, and our country is currently moving closer and closer to fascist authoritarianism, social justice issues are not improving right now. It's still totally relevant. So, it's a weird feeling, but it's one that is not new to me.”

Potter also brings attention to the song “Her,” and how relatable the content is to all women. Although the song primarily is about wom-

“IT’S TIME TO ADD OUR VOICE, ADD OUR BODY, ADD OUR MONEY, AND ADD OUR TIME TO THIS MOVEMENT.” en in politics, the song mentions knowing their time is up.” Potter also to resist the last few years, well, it's more generally the sexism of how mentions the fear the word “femi- time. It's time to pick yourself up. It's a woman is judged on appear- nism” brings amongst cis men, and time to get back into it and join the ance over qualifications. Potter how women get put into two cate- fight that's continuing to happen even addresses how it can relate gories: docile or feminist killjoys. without us. It’s time to add our voice, to members of War on Women not add our body, add our money, and being taken seriously.

“I'm just pissed about it all because add our time to this movement.” everything that we're fucking “People assume that I don't know talking about has been going on The lyrics to “Wonderful Hell” truwhat I'm talking about,” she says. if not for years, for decades even,” ly encompass this call to action: “Or that none of the women in the Potter says. “This country moves so “There's got to be a better way than band take part in writing. People al- slowly towards progress. It just ex- giving up and wallowing. Let's make ways want to ask us who wrote what, hausts me to keep up with it. And I some wonderful, beautiful hell, and and I feel like it's because it's like think that that's really apparent on make this world worth living in.” a quiz. Like it's a test, trying to see this record.” if any of the non-cis men actually “I just want people to know that there took part in the songwriting. I don't Wonderful Hell is Potter’s call to ac- is hope, and that they are needed in feel like that question gets asked of tion to fans and listeners. this fight,” Potter says. “No one can all cis-men bands.” do everything. But everyone can “It's time to get back to work,” Potter do something. So, if we all just do Frustrated, she says the sexism is says. “There is hope and there is a something, that can really add up.” derived from the power of the “last light at the end of this dark, dark 💣 💣 💣 groan of people on their thrones, tunnel. If you, like me, have been gripping on to whatever they can too exhausted to stay in the fight

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INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST AND GUITARIST JUSTIN SANE

BY JOHN B. MOORE

A

nti-Flag had started working on what would become a documentary about the band, when Donald Trump started his campaign. Trump, of course, would go on to become the most cruel, xenophobic President of the U.S. in its modern history.

“We were just coming to a point where everyone felt that both stories had been told and then—boom,” vocalist and guitarist Justin Sane says. “The presidential election was on the horizon. We decided that releasing this documentary beforehand might give some people perspective on what was to come.”

VEEPS, features interviews with the band as well as with musicians including Tom Morello, Billy Bragg, Rise Against’s Tim McIlrath, and Brian Baker of Minor Threat and Bad Religion, among others.

Sane jokes that the band basically took a box of random video tapes that they had shot over the years, drove them to Cleveland, dropped them on the director’s front porch and said, “Is there a story in here?”

Nix supplemented a lot of Anti-Flag’s own footage with video he tracked down from shows and older interviews posted online.

Surprisingly, looking back on the footage, Anti-Flag started working with director Jon Sane said he remembers just about all of it.

Nix on the documentary Behind Barricades: The Story of Anti-Flag, on a recommendation from A-F Records label manager, Chris “The first two to three years were just so intense, and we were so in it,” he says. “But I Stowe, about six years ago. was surprised to see the footage of us sitting with Andy [Flag, former bassist]. He’s “A lot of people told us over the years that they’d credible to me that someone would put the smoking a cigarette, and we’re laughing like to know more about the early years of the effort into videotaping an interview with us.” band,” Sane says. “At one-point, Chris men- while doing an interview. I remember that The documentary ends with people givtioned that if we ever wanted to do a docu- interview like it was yesterday because it ing testimonials about how punk and, in was maybe the first one we ever did. I re- many cases, Anti-Flag influenced who mentary, he knew someone he thought would member thinking, ‘Someone is filming this!’ they are today. be cool, and we were off and running.”

In those days, there weren’t a lot of video cameras around, so it was unreal and in- “We asked for those submissions, and that is The film, which premiered in October via

one of my favorite parts of the documentary because of the sincerity expressed by those people,” says Sane. “Also, because I could relate so well to the things they had to say because punk and certain bands did the same thing for me and are a large part of why I am who I am today and why I do what I do.” 💣 💣 💣

GRANDSON

when I first took that concept on, how relevant it would be for everyone this year, but once I had these characters and this clear narrative that I had been writing towards, I found the music got a lot better.”

INTERVIEW WITH PROJECT MASTERMIND JORDAN BENJAMIN

BY CALEB R NEWTON

ordan Benjamin—who performs as grandson—shares an urgent vision for the future on his debut fulllength album, Death of an Optimist, out now on Fueled by Ramen.

a single, captures this perspective when Benjamin sings alongside an exuberant, free-flowing rhythm: “Do you have enough love in your heart/ to go and get your hands dirty?”

Grandson’s music smoothly veers between “With this album, I just wanted to be honest hard-hitting rock, invigoratingly confron- about the challenges that I’m going through tational hip-hop, and exhilarating elec- as an artist giving you something to believe PHOTO BY JONATHAN WEINER tronics, relating a story of modern anxiet- in,” he explains. “I wanted to shed a light on the antagonist within myself telling me that ies with a feeling of pushing ahead through all this is for nothing— but also still conclud- “When I first started writing the album, I an emotional storm. Critically, there’s a ing on a message that inspires you to take real sense of large-scale triumph, like on was noodling around with kind of generic the energetic and somewhat bright track, on those challenges. That is the most honest songs—titles like “Okay Not To Be Okay”— story that I can tell in 2020.”

“Drop Dead,” which Benjamin crafted just kind of wading in shallow water crealongside Travis Barker of Blink-182. atively,” Benjamin explains. “I began fleshDeath of an Optimist conceptually hinges ing out that this is a project around optiSocial concerns weigh heavily on grand- on a struggle between Benjamin and a mism, it’s around hope, and it’s around this character whom the artist calls “X,” repre- tension I feel between being so deflated by son’s music, with lyrics that grapple with the struggles of facing off with the prob- senting the allure of apathetically ignoring the uphill battle of progress versus the allems that rip across underprivileged com- the problems that confront people across lure of apathy, or the ambivalence, that is the globe. munities. “Dirty,” which was released as so tempting. I never could have imagined,

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Death of an Optimist ultimately carries a kind of punk spirit via its frequently ferocious insistence on looking turmoil right in the eye.

“I believe what we do first and foremost is provide a commentary on, or a soundtrack to something that’s already happening,” Benjamin observes, discussing the connection between grandson’s music and social activism. “Do I hope that something from this project can spark some sort of movement? Of course, because it would just be the single most important thing I can do as an artist, to be able to contribute to a social awakening in some small form, towards a more progressive, more forward-thinking America, but it certainly won’t come from me alone.

This music came from what I’m seeing other people on the front lines of the causes that are closest to my heart doing, and it’s the courage that I see around me.” 💣 💣 💣

MY DYING BRIDE

couldn't decide which to put on the album and which to hold back for a later date,” Stainthorpe explains. “Everybody loves all the songs and wanted them all on there, so we left it to the record label. We told them, ‘Take three songs out of these 11 songs, and hold them back for whatever you want to hold them back for.’ We were thinking it might be an EP, and the label agreed. So, it was recorded at the same time as the album, but our engineer has tweaked it to give it a slightly different sound from the rest of the recording session.”

In terms of the lyrics on the EP, much like the lyrics on their last album, they revisit some triedand-true themes, themes that carry the intensity and depth of the music.

“There are always touches of religion and love, and grief and despair because I find those to be quite intense subjects, and I like my music to be intense, and I want the people who listen to it to be intense and to be involved,” says Stainthorpe. “And to invest their emotions in what we've crafted for them.”

Though they’ve managed well and kept a positive attitude during the pandemic, the band have their doubts about doing a livestream.

PHOTO BY JOHN STEEL

years dealing with the horror of his daughter being in the hospital for cancer. Thankfully, she is now doing better, and ike other bands, My Dying Stainthorpe and the band were Bride are dealing with the excited about 2020 being the usual COVID complaints: de- year they got back out there pression, lack of band activ- and started touring. Of course, ity, and delays. But, unlike other that wasn’t in the cards, but bands, this isn’t the first time the they aren’t ones to complain. group has been put under strain by serious life events.

“In a good year, we might play 12 or 13 shows, that’s all,” Aaron Stainthorpe, the band’s Stainthorpe admits. “So, not vocalist, spent the last few playing 12 or 13 shows in 2020

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST AARON STAINTHORPE

BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

L

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doesn’t really impact us the way it would a band that might do 150 shows in a year. A lot of bands are suffering a great deal more than we are, so I’m not going to complain.”

The band’s latest EP, Macabre Cabaret, released November 20 via Nuclear Blast, features the outtakes from their latest full-length, Ghost of Orion. However, the songs are by no means an afterthought.

“We recorded 11 songs, and we

“Do people really buy tickets for this? I mean, isn't it a bit like a DVD because you’re not really there? It’s weird. Also, before I go on stage, I'm incredibly nervous, and that nervous energy helps me to become the character that I am on stage, and the motions I go through are there because of the feedback from the audience. My mannerisms and persona would be vastly different outside of a live setting, so I'm a bit nervous about it, but if the pandemic does continue on, we’ll probably do it.”

There may not be a livestream anytime soon, but stay on the lookout for more music and tour announcements from My Dying Bride if things get better. 💣 💣 💣

FUCK THE FACTS INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST TOPON DAS BY M. REED

O

ntario, Canada-based ex- “We were very burnt out on doing what treme metal project Fuck we were doing,” he says. “It was probThe Facts have returned ably going to be our last tour. Maybe from the other side of the river Styx our last album [too].” with a renewed sense of purpose to match their freshly revived form. This A theme of weariness with the rock sense of purpose has manifested as a ’n’ roll lifestyle and its demands pernew album of dark, seething materi- vade the entire discussion of Das’ caal, that ruminates on the road behind reer with Fuck The Facts. while unflinchingly turning towards the one that lays ahead.

“When we started the band in the early 2000s, we went for 15 years, Pleine Noirceur is Fuck The Facts’ and we never stopped,” he explains. seventh LP, an album that captures “Everyone either had to leave their the band in a moment of transition, job, or we all kept jobs that we retaining their visionary approach could easily leave. It wasn’t 15 years while seizing the reins of the project of touring like Mötley Crüe! It was and wresting them from the momen- 15 years of touring in a van, pulltum that nearly drove the group off a ing up, and playing people’s basecliff a few years ago. ments or really small clubs, sleeping on floors, and eating whatever In 2015, the band announced they you can. Yeah, those things kind of would be going on hiatus following caught up with us.” the release of Desire Will Rot. Guitarist and lead songwriter Topon Das recalls one example of the crushDas recalls the time the album was ing nature of being in a hard-touring released. metal band.

“Back in the early days, the band ing and jamming as Fuck the Facts came before everything,” he says. turned out to be a necessary outlet “We toured when my girlfriend [lead for Das and company. singer Melanie Mongeon] was pregnant! She was over seven months “We were sitting and working on the pregnant, and we were out on tour, music, and it was a kind of release in and we did our last show in Las Ve- a way because I hadn’t played music gas, and after she gave birth, it was in so long. I hadn’t written any music only three or four months, and we or anything, so when we sat down to were back on the road. My first kid, write, it was kind of a release of all the first three or four years are just these emotions that had never gone kind of a blur.” away.” 💣 💣 💣 These experiences have drastically altered Das and his bandmates’ approach to the band as they emerge from hiatus.

“There were no expectations,” he says.

“No ‘Let’s get the band back together; we’re going to do all this cool stuff.’ It’s just like, ‘You want to jam?’ And if it’s fun, we’ll keep jamming, and if not, then we’ll just go back to whatever we were doing.”

Thankfully for extreme metal fans everywhere, the return to songwrit-

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INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST LAJON WITHERSPOON

BY ANGELA KINZIE

U

nlike so many of the hard rock and heavy metal bands of the mid ’90s, which exploded onto the scene and slowly faded away a few years later, Sevendust have managed to maintain their relevance while staying close to their roots and have simultaneously matured into one of the most complex and prolific rock bands of the last two decades.

Their new release Blood and Stone is the 13th studio album for the Atlanta-based five-piece.

“That’s us: Sevendust. We’re blood and stone,” vocalist Lajon Witherspoon says in regard to the title track. “The 13 albums, the 13 stones. We’re still together, man, and I feel like that’s a strong image. It’s us, everything we’ve been through. A testimony to life, the struggles, the loss, the love, death—just everything we’ve been through, and still standing strong together.”

SEVENDUST

Sevendust formed in 1994, and Witherspoon believes it’s a natural thing for the band to still be together making music. ber saying, ‘I feel like we were grown up with us who have kept destined to do this.’ And I think us in this business. Especially “I still feel like there’s so much we still owe it to each other. the people coming out to see more,” he says. “Years ago, And not just to each other, but us. That’s kept us alive. God when we first started, I remem- to all the people who have knows we wouldn’t be able to

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALAN SNODGRASS

be out on the road and touring and have this catalog of music that hopefully is still relevant in the music industry and this business. So, we owe it everybody out there.”

Blood and Stone’s opening track “Dying To Live” proclaims: “With all that we give, why am I dying to live?” “‘Dying to Live’ kind of fits in with what we’re going through right now, as we’re living,” Witherspoon says. “I don’t think we could’ve ever imagined our generation going through a regression, in a sense. You can’t deny what’s going on in the world. I just feel like we’re all dying to live. And when I say that, I mean, dying to live the right way. I’m dying to make it through this life and look back and be proud of the legacy we’ve left.” 💣 💣 💣

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SÓLSTAFIR

PHOTO BY ERIN LYNCH

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST AND VOCALIST AÐALBJÖRN "ADDI" TRYGGVASON BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

S

ólstafir are a band who rarely ever slow down; even with a few pauses, they’ve been releasing albums since 1995. But, it just so happens that right before COVID, they were actually taking a bit of a break.

“We’ve taken a bit of a break these past six months, as I had my first child in April, and our drummer had a child in July,” says Aðalbjörn "Addi" Tryggvason, the band’s guitarist and vocalist. “But we did start recording in February, which was when the shit finally started hitting the fan.”

As the band continued recording their latest album, it became even more clear that COVID was going to be serious. But despite the fact that this wouldn’t be a record that could be toured on normally,

the band were eager to have it see the light of day.

it came to us. Now, I don’t know anyone who has cut off anyone’s genitals in real life, but women The new Sólstafir record, Endless do suffer from sexual assault all Twilight of Codependent Love, re- the time, and it’s awful.” leased November 6 via Season of Mist, is laced with rock ‘n’ roll Fittingly, many of the other influence from all over the world, songs on the album are also from Americana and traditional about redemption, but of a Icelandic folk influence to more more personal nature. They contemporary stylings. There are about overcoming depresare also some elements of mur- sion, anxiety, and addiction, der ballads on the record. personal struggles and personal victories.

“I think everything you listen to, everything you breathe, and you Thus, the band went with an smell, and you read, and you empowering, feminist image inhale, it's gonna affect you,” ex- for the cover of their latest replains Tryggvason. “There’s one cord. The image showed up in song on the record, it's basically the newspaper when they were about a woman being sexually looking for cover images, a assaulted, and it's a devastating 150-year-old German painting thing. She gets even by killing featuring a strong woman with her attacker and chops off his a raven and bloody sword. genitals, watches him bleed to death. It’s morbid stuff. I don’t While the record is certainly know how that came to us, but a success, the elephant in the

room, COVID, still remains. The epic album currently can’t be toured on, and the band members are now family guys with jobs who have taken a break from playing together.

Still, they are in no way resting on their laurels.

“We're also working on a live album,” says Tryggvason. “That's to be shipped shortly after the release of the new album. So, in addition to making a new album, we've been working on the live album, and making two children, and doing promotion for the album. So, the to-do list is happening.”

To stay up-to-date with Sólstafir, snag Endless Twilight of Codependent Love, out now on Season of Mist, and be on the lookout for a live album and more announcements soon. 💣 💣 💣

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65

Director Spotlight

al narratives. His videos are short films that dismiss the rote cutaways to band and “stage-rocking” shots.

“If I could come up with a way where the dual narrative or stage-rock edit seemed novel or original to me, I absolutely would try it,” Wolski says. “In the meantime, 99 percent of the time, it just seems like a trope that wouldn't service the ideas I’m trying to realize. I do understand from a marketing standpoint, sometimes people need kind of a ‘commercial for the band’ thing in there. It just doesn't super appeal to me most of the time. Never say never, though!”

Wolski’s confidence is echoed in his projects.

INTERVIEW WITH TONY WOLSKI

BY HUTCH

M

usic is one of the most intimate and personal expressions of the human experience. From Beethoven to Behemoth, Portishead to Poison Idea, lyrics are often malleable to the listener’s individual trials and experiences. Whether delivered over triumphant harmonies or discordant dirge, whether dubbed punk or hardcore or blackened-thrashsludge or whatever hyphenated tangential combination is your favorite sub-genre, music— especially in the underground— elevates the idiosyncratic experience for an audience. So, when Tony Wolski grabs a camera and attaches his distinct vision to bands like Converge and their musical babies, the permanent pairing of specific visuals is sure to be daunting.

As vocalist for The Armed (also Old Gods and Genghis Tron), it might not have been difficult for Wolski to attain his first gigs as director of their music videos. But he eschewed the predictable tropes of live group shots or band performance intercut into a loosely literal interpretation of lyrics. The resulting videos for The Armed established Wolski as a director in command of vibrant and stunning visuals, one with control of actu-

66 NEW NOISE

“I tend to only take projects where the band is open to some sort of outside vision,” he says. “Ones where I can basically interpret the visual from scratch. Then, I'll hone in on little details with them after putting together a treatment. I do always want audio first because I think pacing and vibe of the audio is integral to choosing an appro-

vision and intent from the get-go.”

The most striking and egregious strokes of Wolski’s palettes are his bright and highly saturated colors. Wolski enjoys high contrast in some instances, with realistic textures, but often he utilizes vibrant neon monochromatic solids. This is a stark contrast to his muted earth tones that envelop the character in a drab reflection of their psyche.

broad sense, it's fun to use color to inflect mood via lighting, a la [Nicolas Winding] Refn. And it is even more fun to use big, physical color-blocking to indicate mood or emotion, and then use very neutral, bright, or clinical lighting to create a dissonance between those visual cues a la [Stanley] Kubrick. Color is everything!” 💣💣💣

“Well, color theory is quite a big topic!” he says. “But I think, in a very

priate story to tell. Lyrics can be hugely helpful, too. But, I rarely try to do too many literal interpretations. Oftentimes, I use them for little Easter eggs and stuff.”

Wolski’s amorphous visions grow, as the process develops, and the work on set is executed. But planning is his cornerstone.

“Pre-production is everything,” he says. “Especially on music videos, which tend to be pretty low-budget labors of love where everyone involved is wearing many hats.

Having time to get all your ducks in a row tends to be completely necessary to achieving your vision within the budgetary constraints.

Storyboards are lovely when you can afford them. Most of the music videos I do are narrative. I have a very clear, editorial path in mind before we start shooting. So, storyboards can be amazing tools of communication with your director of photography, and then in post [production] with your editorial team as well, if you have a clear

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PHOTO BY STEPHANIE CABRAL

FATES WARNING INTERVIEW WITH DRUMMER BOBBY JARZOMBEK AND VOCALIST RAY ALDER

BY ADDISON HERRON-WHEELER

F

ates Warning, notorious for being a band that shine in the studio and conquer distances with their connection, are still being impacted by the harsh reality of COVID, but luckily, they are no strangers to making the magic happen in the recording booth.

“I’ve done three studio records with the band, and our process has been pretty much the same,” explains drummer Bobby Jarzombek about the band’s latest record, Long Day Good Night,

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Jarzombek adds. “You would work on a song together, and once it was kind of finalized, you’d go in the studio together and play. That’s the way it was done in the ’80s, but today, the way things are done, it’s pretty much sending files back and forth, a lot of emails, texts, and phone calls.”

The band are currently focusrecording process. “Jim and I ing on promoting this record have written remotely for the and holding off on more moves better part of 20 years, so we are until travel restrictions are very used to it. But, being locked clarified. up during quarantine meant having less distractions, so we “No plans as of yet,” says Alder. were able to write more songs.” “We're still waiting for the world to re-open so that we can begin Admittedly, with this kind of making plans, hopefully, for a process under their belt, the tour in 2021. As for live streamband are no strangers to hav- ing, it isn't possible, since we all ing to work remotely. live very far apart. The worst part is the travel restrictions.

“The same as always really,” “Today’s process isn’t like years Not being able to tour is very confirms drummer Ray Alder, ago when bands all played frustrating. As I'm sure it is for vocalist, when asked about the in the same room together,” most every band.” 💣 💣 💣 out now via Metal Blade. “Jim Matheos [guitar] writes most of the material, and then he sends the songs out. He’ll send them with drum tracks, and I’ll listen to the drum programming and see what parts I like, and he’ll mention what parts he really liked. We’ll send notes and files back and forth, and we usually work on a few songs at the same time.”

PHOTO BY ATIBA JEFFERSON

WORLD BE

INTERVIEW WITH VOCALIST SCOTT VOGEL, GUITARIST ANDREW KLINE, AND DRUMMER SAMMY SIEGLER BY M. REED

orld Be Free is a hardcore sound like it’s been taken. And we ribbing delivered by his bandmates. give them something that is a little short band with a singular mis- were having a little bit of back and and sweet, and deliver it with what I sion: to make the world forth and not getting anywhere, but World Be Free first came together think are the most impactful songs.” a better place for having existed in it. when Sammy came up with that, I in 2014 and released their debut The band assembles the talents of Ter- knew he was really on to something.” album Anti-Circle in 2016, with Arthur Beyond writing great songs, World Be ror vocalist Scott Vogel, guitarist Joe Smilios of CIV on bass. In the fall of 2020, Free is about putting positive energy Garlipp of Envy (US), guitarist Andrew In case you were curious, the name is they came out with their second album, into the universe.

Kline of Strife and Berthold City, drum- in fact inspired by the legendary Phil- an EP called One Time for Unity, released mer Sammy Siegler, who has kept time adelphia 76ers player, World B. Free. through Revelation Records. Vogel ex- “This is a fun band,” Kline says. “We’re and provided motivating propulsion in plains why the band decided to release not looking for the reaction from like a the past for Judge, CIV, Rival Schools, “That was just always in the back of my an EP instead of a sophomore LP. Terror, Strife, or Judge. It’s going to be and, last but not least, bassist Alex Barre- mind, like ‘Wow, that would be a cool a different kind of positive energy. It’s to of Chain Of Strength and Excel fame. band name,’” Siegler explains.

“My thought process was that people’s always been reflected in the artwork “Super” may actually be an understateattention spans are so short right now,” and in some of the lyrics. A different ment when applied to this group. Writing It certainly beats the alternative, as he says. “I love the first record, but I vibe. Still hardcore but a fun take on solid hardcore music with a group this Kline recalls. feel like we could have cut off a few it. That’s where we wanted to go, and I talented is a given. The hard part was songs and made it more impactful. I think we did a good job.” coming up with a name.

“Sammy wanted to call the band Satin came at it as, ‘let’s make a record that is digestible to people in 2020.’ People Vogel affirms this sentiment and adds: ‘n Lace,” he laughs.

As Vogel relates: “It definitely is a don’t listen to full lengths anymore. “[I]t’s a cool artistic outlet that is one challenge these days to come up “Satin ‘n Lace is cool man,” Siegler They listen to a song or two, and then hundred percent based in hardcore, with a name that’s fresh and doesn’t retorts, unfazed by the good-natured they are on to the next thing. So, let’s and friendship, and vibes.”💣 💣 💣

“WE’RE NOT LOOKING FOR THE REACTION FROM LIKE A TERROR, STRIFE, OR JUDGE. IT’S GOING TO BE A DIFFERENT KIND OF POSITIVE ENERGY.”

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DON’T SLEEP ON THESE SPECIAL RELEASES...

PHOTO BY ANDREW CORRIGAN

REBIRTH OF THE GHOST: RENEE HEARTFELT PHOTO BY CHARLIE FLEXON

INTERVIEW WITH GUITARIST AND VOCALIST PETE APPLEBY, GUITARIST AARON BARTH, AND 6131 RECORDS CO-FOUNDER SEAN RHORER

BY BEN SAILER

In retrospect, Renee Heartfelt seem like they should have been massive. Featuring members from Count Me Out, American Nightmare, Cloak/Dagger, and more, the mid-2000s supergroup of sorts had the name recognition to immediately find a fanbase, and they backed it up with the sharp songwriting sensibilities needed to confidently carry the torch for luminaries like Texas is the Reason and Seaweed. So, when they released their 2004 EP Magdalene and its 2005 full-length follow-up Death of the Ghost, all the pieces appeared to be in place for the band to lead a full-scale revitalization of the purist, melodic hardcore sound that had faded from the forefront.

Instead, they were met with widespread indifference. Too tuneful for hardcore kids but too heavy for the indie/emo set at the time, they struggled to find their fit on tour routings, and often played sets for no one else except the other bands on the bill.

Burnout ensued, and soon enough, they called it a day, looking destined to disappear into a forgotten corner of scene history.

come out on wax back then, they’d likely be prohibitively expensive on eBay today). They were the definition of a band ahead of their time.

Now, 6131 Records are rereleasing Renee Heartfelt’s entire discography on vinyl.

For a patient fanbase that has waited years for these records, it’s a moment that has been a long time coming (and from the sounds of it, an open secret of sorts amongst those on the inside). Better late than never, and even if they weren’t well understood in their own time, it would appear the scene has finally caught up with what Renee Heartfelt tried to do 15 years ago.

“Once word got out we were working on this a couple years ago, the people I know who were excited have never stopped asking when it was going to be released,” 6131 Records cofounder Sean Rhorer says. “Renee Heartfelt has more diehard fans in 2020 than they probably ever did in 2005.”

Far from coming across like a historical rehash, the band’s body of work doesn’t feel “We ended up spending the remainder out of step with the scene surrounding it in of the band money getting Thanksgiving 2020. In fact, if this were a new band with dinner at a Denny's in Breezewood, Penn- a new album, it probably wouldn’t feel sylvania, on our way home at the end of misplaced alongside the rest of the 6131 Records roster. In a year marked by untour,” says guitarist Aaron Barth. certainty in nearly every aspect, what may No one could have predicted what would have once seemed like the least likely re-rehappen next. Just a few years later, lease for a prominent label to consider just bands like Title Fight would lead a wave might have found the perfect time to arrive. of bands bringing back similar sounds, and Renee Heartfelt would develop an “I'll say it doesn't feel like 15 years,” says impassioned following after their lone guitarist and vocalist Pete Appleby. “I'm EP and LP had gone out of print on CD honestly humbled there is still interest in without a vinyl release (and if either had the band.” 💣 💣 💣

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GANG OF FOUR: ENTERTAINMENT!, SOLID GOLD, SONGS OF THE FREE, ANTI-HERO (MATADOR) Shortly after the abrupt and incredibly sad passing of Gang of Four co-founder Andy Gill from complications due to pneumonia early this year, the band released a fivetrack EP, This Heaven Gives Me Migraine, in February. That didn’t mark the last of the band’s output, though. Two different projects carry on the legacy of this insanely influential band that started out in Leeds in 1976, with the original line-up of guitarist Gill, vocalist Jon King, bassist Dave Allen, and drummer Hugo Burnham (the initial line-up performed on the first two albums; the third featured Sara Lee as bassist). First, Matador announced that they are making the first three of the seminal post-punk band’s full-lengths available again on streaming services. These include the monumental 1979 debut Entertainment!, ‘81’s equally awesome Solid Gold, and ‘82’s Songs of the Free. Also included in this batch of newly-available material are 14 live releases of performances spanning from 1979 to 1984.

As for the latest release of new material from the band, Anti Hero is a four-song EP that features two all-new tracks, “Forever Starts Now” and “Day Turns to Night,” the latter of which vocalist John Sterry penned very shortly after Gill’s death. This song will actually be the first single for his new solo project named JJ Sterry. The other two songs featured on the release are new recordings of “Change the Locks” and “Glass.”

Proceeds for the sale of this EP go to Guy’s and St Thomas’ Charity. -Janelle Jones

GERMS: (MIA) THE COMPLETE ANTHOLOGY (PORTERHOUSE RECORDS) After setbacks due to the COVID crisis, Porterhouse’s release of the Germs compilation (MIA) The Complete Anthology, which was supposed to be out earlier this summer, is now seeing the light of day. And what a release it is.

This double LP, pressed on black and blue vinyl, marks the first time this vital collection, which was first put out as a CD in 1993, has been released on vinyl. The tracks presented herein were remastered from the original tapes and perfectly encapsulate the revolutionary, late-’70s L.A. punk progenitors in all their blistering, raw, chaotic glory.

This comprehensive piece of history includes the band’s landmark sole studio album, 1979’s (GI), along with material from the Forming/Sex Boy single; the Lexicon Devil EP, 1981’s What We Do Is Secret EP, and a duo of tracks that were recorded for the 1980 film Cruising (“Going Down” and “Lion’s Share”). The release also features the original liner notes and full lyrics sheet. -Janelle Jones

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

GRIDFAILURE: SIXTH MASS-EXTINCTION SKULDUGGERY I: NEFARIOUS INDUSTRIES David Brenner’s GRIDFAILURE is the beast that waits in the clouds. There is calm to the project that is like the ocean before a storm, a distant wave like a dream, and then the destruction, the terror, the full onslaught. Sixth Mass-Extinction Skulduggery I, the first of a five-record Sixth Mass-Extinction Skulduggery concept series, which Brenner says, “is a series of albums which predict a grim, rapidly-approaching reality,” is ruled by the currents that zoom underneath our legs, the invisible monoliths that bend human will, perverting the truth, creating an unstoppable destiny. It is a recording that is dense, with layers upon layers of minds and visions. Dimensions burst like light bulbs in slow motion, a decayed atmosphere that imprints itself onto the original, thus creating the simulation. Yet, the simulation is played backward, and the abstraction runs deep. “Sandy” opens the record with an inverse pace, a sort of death walk. You know the world you’re entering is encapsulating, haunted. Brenner wrote much of the material under apocalyptic movements, “including lyrics and themes written during a long blackout during super storm Sandy, before the band’s inception.”

The compositions perpetually teeter on the brick of madness but perform a precarious master dance, perpetually balancing between two worlds, two infinite universes.

Check out GRIDFAILURE at gridfailure. bandcamp.com. Enter the dark.

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ORCALUV: MORGENTAU DEMO: LAND OF DA OCEAN Orcaluv mixes the dark with the everyday.

In other words, the artist makes sure to center their presentation on something structured deep within the human experience: that of the earth and the universe, and the connection of everything that exists. And yet, there is a restraint to Morgentau Demo, a sort of wall that is never breached, and in this pre-conditioned space, one is face-toface with the repetition that is essential to its survival. Techno, hip-hop, and black metal (which this music owes a specific nod to, and not just appearance or aesthetic; rather, it’s the minor tone of said repetition, the underlying sadness that is also happiness), are all funneled through an imaginary landscape that is as still as a mountainside cabin, and as sinister as the cabin’s nighttime basement rituals. But it's rap that is the diamond, the key to its construction. “Der Singvogel” highlights this, and in many ways, backs up the album’s thesis: this is music that is personal and owes nothing to its seeds of inspiration because that would mean it couldn't move that way it does, in its claustrophobic space and narrowing headway. But then, of course, it’s a dedication to its inspiration, a strange combination of hip-hop and black metal aesthetics that focuses on reverberations of the mindscape. It’s a terror lurking, and a peaceful walk through the woods. It is life, and it is contradiction.

DENISE CHAILA: GO BRAVELY: SELF-RELEASED Go Bravely is Denise Chaila’s newest mixtape, a collection and flow with immediate presence. The Ireland by-wayof Zambia rapper/poet is never subtle in her delivery—it’s as honest as the sky is blue and grey. This is a record about self, and relationship to un-self, which is self-extended, and Chaila uses the rapsoul lexicon to interweave and ride that momentum to distinction. The changes in form correlate to mood and reaction, from island groove (“Rí Rá”), to hardsmooth hip-hop (“All That”), to post-pop (“Pieces”), the artist uses texture to describe the unknown, to explain to oneself the dynamic of creative-self in relation to the world one lives in. “Anseo” takes the rhythms of abstraction to stimulate a counter narrative, a continuous synthesis.

Synthesis being the output, which circles back to the thesis, where “Can’t Stop Me Here” is the counterpoint, another blunt reaction to a possible revelation.

Go Bravely is an example of great underground contemporary hip-hop. Ever flowing, not afraid of showcasing a voice that is as unfiltered as straight noise, Chaila’s flow is her secret weapon; unlike her delivery (which is not subtle), her flow is as subtle as can be, because it sneaks up on you, and then you can listen again to masterpieces like “CHALIA” and “Holy Grail” and see the big picture: damn this is great stuff!

CHEF MIKE: ZERKALO, ICY PALMS RECORDS The underground market is awash in beat-centric productions, churning out thousands of cassette tapes. Naturally, there’s a mode to a lot of the stuff that’s dry, repetitive, and one could say, made simply to fill the void. Chef Mike is the exception: a maker of beats that bypass convenience, and goes straight to the heart/brain nexus. You immediately recognize you’re in the presence of a master, of a figure who knows what the beat means, and why it is the human center, life force eternal. Whether it's cutting up Inspectah Deck/Wu-Tang tracks (“Rec Room Remix”), lifting space centric (“Ethiopian Nights”), or pulsing night waves circular (“Stemple Joint”), the Chef splices and arranges with subtle handles, always sure the beat is the focus/un-focus, which is to say, the whole of the compositions are fully-formed, breathing things that exist as specific entities, and never cut short for effect. Zerkalo runs through 24 tracks as both soundtrack and high-art function.

You lose yourself, like imagination that runs wild, hyper-focused on moments that are realized perfectly. Like first urban impressions, the sea breeze on a sparkling night, and culture-rich experience. Being a part of something is important; on Zerkalo, the listener is paramount.