Out today: SET AND SETTING - Reflectionless

Set and Setting's new album Reflectionless is out today.

Listen, here:
https://noisey.vice.com/en_us/article/set-and-settings-reflectionless-offers-beautiful-music-during-dark-times

Buy, here:
Vinyl and CD - http://setandsetting.merchnow.com/
Digital - http://awal.lnk.to/Reflectionless
Exclusive color vinyl (US) - http://scienceofsilence.limitedrun.com/
Exclusive color vinyl (EU) - https://shop.dunkfestival.com/collections/dunk-records

Further info, here:
http://thechainworld.blogspot.com/2017/01/set-and-setting-noisey.html

"Gorgeous and unexpectedly heavy... There is a quiet joy held within its tangle of notes... There are metallic moments coursing underneath... Now more than ever, we need beautiful music – and Set and Setting has delivered."
–Noisey

"Melancholic beauty suspended in the clouds with a birds-eye view of epic terrain... Soul-searing leads and shimmering, bending guitars that convey feelings of wonder and introspection."
–Stereogum

"Set and Setting bring a unique sound... The post-rockers throw a hint of psychedelia and even a metallic edge... The result is a captivating, wordless, genre amalgam."
–Decibel

"Metallic chug to trippy psychedelia to soaring post-rock beauty... Like Russian Circles teaming with early Pink Floyd."
–BrooklynVegan

"Foregoing the genre's typical ebb and flow in favor of a rumbling drive toward the unknown... Songs shift and morph like fragments of a particularly vivid dream."
–Exclaim!

"From start to finish, Reflectionless delivers with chugging melodies followed by anthem-like swells of guitar. This is an album that pulls you in, holds you tight, and doesn't let go."
–Pure Grain Audio

"Set and Setting have finally put out a great album that matches the promise of their best previous work."
–Heavy Blog Is Heavy

"Somewhere between the metallic crush of Cult of Luna and the atmospheric glory of Mono."
–No Echo

"Set and Setting create a stunning addition to the instrumental rock canon... a near perfect balance between introspective atmospherics and bludgeoning heaviness."
–Svbterranean

"Their most triumphant and boisterous release to date."
–Echoes and Dust

"I love this album wholeheartedly and I would recommend it to literally anyone who has an ear for instrumental anything."
–Arctic Drones

"Labyrinth-like depth... An adventurous, well-crafted record."
–Heavy Music HQ

"The drum work on this album is executed with phenomenal precision... The dual guitar work of Shane Handal and Ryan Fugate is extremely fluid, building soft ethereal tones while simultaneously dropping seriously heavy '90s prog riffs..."
–Metal Assault

"Without a doubt, the band has raised the bar..."
–Creative Loafing Tampa Bay

AXIS in the studio

Axis has entered Bricktop Recording in Chicago to record its next full-length album with producer Andy Nelson (Weekend Nachos, Exalt).

The album will be released this year on Good Fight Music.

"We wanted these new songs to represent how we sound live and Andy is doing an amazing job of capturing that," says Axis drummer Tommy Cantwell.

Good Fight's Rick Barnhart states "We began our relationship with Axis by putting out Show Your Greed, which was originally meant for another label and we were lucky enough to have fall in our laps. Show Your Greed was arguably one of the top releases in metal and hardcore of 2015, and definitely a personal favorite of ours, but we are excited to finally have Axis go in the studio to lay down a record that was meant for us. We were very pleased with the results that Exalt got with Andy Nelson so we are pumped to see what Axis leaves Bricktop with."

Stereogum has summed up Axis like so: "If you think fondly of hateful Philly bands like Starkweather and Turmoil; if you were down with Converge and Coalesce back when they played mathy chugga-chugga-stop breakdowns; if you wish Botch, Burnt By The Sun, and Kiss It Goodbye had released more music: congratulations! You have the chutzpah to appreciate the good kind of metalcore... Axis pretty much stick to the established template for this kinda thing on Show Your Greed, but they are so goddamn good at it..."

Axis' most recent release was a collaborative EP with Memphis band Seraph the Light, produced by Jon Nunez of Torche, which saw the two bands team up to write and record together as one eight-man supergroup. Buy Axis / Seraph the Light, here:
http://goodfightmusic.merchnow.com/products/v2/244652/axisseraph-the-light-collab

A European tour with Good Fight labelmates Of Feather and Bone kicks off in February.

Axis, Of Feather and Bone:
Feb 17 - Brussels, BE @ Magasin 4
Feb 18 - Hannover, DE @ Bei Chez Heinz
Feb 19 - Osnabruck, DE @ Bastard Club
Feb 20 - Mannheim, DE @ JUZ
Feb 21 - Cottbus, DE @ Chekov
Feb 22 - Prague, CZ @ Klub 007
Feb 23 - Budapest, HU @ Durer Kert
Feb 24 - Vienna, AU @ DasBach
Feb 25 - Zurich, CH @ Klubi
Feb 26 - Genf, CH @ L'Usine
Feb 28 - Dijon, FR @ Les Tanneries
Mar 1 - Montpelier, FR @ Secret Place
Mar 2 - Rennes, FR @ Mondo Bizarro
Mar 3 - Reims, FR @ La Cartonnerie

Mar 4 - Koblenz, DE @ Jamclub
Mar 5 - Hengelo, NL @ Innocent

SET AND SETTING + Noisey

"Gorgeous and unexpectedly heavy... There is a quiet joy held within its tangle of notes... There are metallic moments coursing underneath... Now more than ever, we need beautiful music – and Set and Setting has delivered."
–Noisey

"Melancholic beauty suspended in the clouds with a birds-eye view of epic terrain... Soul-searing leads and shimmering, bending guitars that convey feelings of wonder and introspection."
–Stereogum

"Set and Setting bring a unique sound... The post-rockers throw a hint of psychedelia and even a metallic edge... The result is a captivating, wordless, genre amalgam."
–Decibel

"Metallic chug to trippy psychedelia to soaring post-rock beauty... Like Russian Circles teaming with early Pink Floyd."
–BrooklynVegan

"Somewhere between the metallic crush of Cult of Luna and the atmospheric glory of Mono."
–No Echo

"Set and Setting create a stunning addition to the instrumental rock canon... a near perfect balance between introspective atmospherics and bludgeoning heaviness."
–Svbterranean

"Their most triumphant and boisterous release to date."
–Echoes and Dust

"I love this album wholeheartedly and I would recommend it to literally anyone who has an ear for instrumental anything."
–Arctic Drones

With new album Reflectionless officially released tomorrow, January 27th, Set and Setting have teamed with Noisey to present a stream of the entire album.

Listen, here: 
https://noisey.vice.com/en_us/article/set-and-settings-reflectionless-offers-beautiful-music-during-dark-times

As Noisey's Kim Kelly states, Reflectionless is "gorgeous and unexpectedly heavy... There is a quiet joy held within its tangle of notes... There are metallic moments coursing underneath... Now more than ever, we need beautiful music – and Set and Setting has delivered."

The band's metallic post-rock sound is equally melancholy and majestic; with two drummers propelling the beat, it drives forward with purpose.

Reflectionless was recorded by Ryan Haft (Torche, Wrong) at Black Bear Studios in Gainesville, Florida, and mastered by Ed Brooks (R.E.M., Death Cab for Cutie) at Resonant Mastering.

The cover, created by Samantha Muljat (Earth, Pelican), was inspired by the artwork of Storm Thorgerson of Hipgnosis, as seen on Pink Floyd's album covers.

Set and Setting plays a record release show tomorrow in its hometown of St. Petersburg, Florida. A European tour is in the works for the spring, including a slot on Dunk!festival in Belgium.

Jan 27 - St Petersburg, FL @ The Local 662
May 27 - Zottegem, Belgium @ Dunk!festival 2017 

Buy Reflectionless, here:
Vinyl and CD - http://setandsetting.merchnow.com/
Digital - http://awal.lnk.to/Reflectionless
Exclusive color vinyl (US) - http://scienceofsilence.limitedrun.com/
Exclusive color vinyl (EU) - https://shop.dunkfestival.com/collections/dunk-records

Photo by Ryan Zarra

DRIP-FED - Under the Wave Blanket

"A shambolic rager... Black Flag-ish riffing to post-hardcore screaming to some prog-ish stunts."

–PunkNews

From Austin, Texas, comes Drip-Fed, a new force of heavy punk that belongs right at the top of the list of Texas bands tearing it up right now – Wiccans, Impalers, and Power Trip, to name a few.

Formed in 2014, Drip-Fed absolutely slays on upcoming new seven-inch Under the Wave Blanket, to be released March 3rd, 2017 on Red Flag Records.

Listen to new song "The Shivers," from Under the Wave Blanket, via PunkNews, here: 

https://www.punknews.org/article/62894/drip-fed-the-shivers-punknews-exclusive

On Under the Wave Blanket, light meets dark, melody meets anguish, as bright, upbeat riffs conjoin with severely bummed vocals. Loose, almost-surf guitars, descended from OGs like Greg Ginn and East Bay Ray, lay down anthemic stomps, while frontman Jeffrey Blum bears his soul via gut-wrenching screams. 

The band has described its duality as "intense, melodic punk in the vein of Hidden World-era Fucked Up, with a driving howl more spiritually akin to the despair of Modern Life is War." Under the Wave Blanket's three songs perfectly embody Drip-Fed's split-personality – uplifting, yet as intense as a broken tooth in a clenched jaw. 

Blum explains the seven-inch's title to mean "living at rock bottom." His lyrics come from his own personal experiences with depression, and from the lives he has witnessed through his day job as a social worker:

"I work for the Department of Family and Protective Services in Texas. I spend 40 hours a week on the phone taking reports about the worst kinds of abuse and neglect to children, disabled adults, and the elderly. This can range from a concerned teacher reporting a child being hit, to an FBI agent reporting a giant sex trafficking ring, and anything in between. Sometimes we get suicidal people that call in and I have to talk to them and keep them on the phone until someone can go help them. I also talk to a lot of people with mental illness who live in psychiatric hospitals. The range of people and situations we deal with is huge. No call is the same."

Under the Wave Blanket was recorded and mixed by Keith Hernandez at Suite 2E in Austin, Texas, and mastered by Brad Boatright (Nails, Full of Hell). It marks the debut of drummer James Beveridge, also of San Antonio's superb Illustrations. Bassist Nathan Helton does time in Mothman, while Blum and guitarist John Nichols are both ex-members of Blurry Vision.

Under the Wave Blanket will be released in digital, vinyl, and cassette formats.

Tracklist:
1) Desperation Growing
2) Under the Wave Blanket
3) The Shivers

Lineup:
Jeffrey Blum - vocals
John Nichols - guitar
Nathan Helton - bass, vocals
James Beveridge - drums

Reference points: 
Black Flag, Dead Kennedys, Fucked Up, Modern Life Is War, Culture Abuse, Ghostlimb, Wiccans, Illustrations

Photo by Bryan Taylor

HOLLOW EARTH tour

With new album Dead Planet released last month on Good Fight Music, Hollow Earth announces an extensive North American tour for March and April.

Kicking off March 2nd in Chicago, running through Canada to the West Coast and back, the tour sees Hollow Earth team up with an awesome array of acts, including Trial frontman Greg Bennick's spoken word set, and bands such as Great Reversals, Withdrawal, Heiress, Wake of Humanity, and Outlet.

Reviewing latest album Dead Planet, MetalSucks hailed Hollow Earth as "moody, tribal, and groovy... one of the finest metallic hardcore acts on the scene today." Metal Injection called the album, "between profound beauty and earth shattering tribal hits... sonically precise and larger than life... a benchmark for future releases on Good Fight Music." A sci-fi concept album, Dead Planet uses crushing, Neurosis-level assaults and radiant melodies to paint pictures of outer space grandeur and horror. 

Listen, here:
http://www.metalinjection.net/av/stream-hollow-earths-crushing-dead-planet-album-in-full-right-now

Buy, here:

https://goodfightmusic.merchnow.com/catalogs/Hollow-Earth

Mar 2 - Chicago, IL @ Cobra Lounge ∆ *
Mar 3 - Indianapolis, IN @ The Gear ∆ *
Mar 4 - St Louis, MO @ Worker's Education Society ∆ *
Mar 5 - Galesburg, IL @ Glory Days ∆ *
Mar 6 - Des Moines, IA @Vaudeville Mews ∆ 
Mar 7 - Minneapolis, MN @ Reverie Cafe and Bar ∆ 
Mar 8 - Fargo, ND @ The Aquarium ∆ 
Mar 9 - Winnipeg, MB @ The Handsome Daughter ∆ †
Mar 10 - Regina, SK @ The Club ∆ †
Mar 11 - Edmonton, AB @ The Sewing Factory ∆ †
Mar 12 - Calgary, AB @ Kensington Commons Church ∆ †
Mar 15 - Kelowna, BC @ Munnins Post ∆ $
Mar 16 - Vancouver, BC @ 333 Clark ∆ $ %
Mar 18 - Portland, OR @ Post 134 ∆ $ %
Mar 19 - Tacoma, WA @ Real Art ∆ $ %
Mar 22 - Seattle, WA @ Black Lodge ∆ $ %
Mar 23 - Spokane, WA @ The Observatory ∆ 
Mar 24 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Beehive Social Club ∆ #
Mar 25 - Pocatello, ID @ Elks Lodge ∆ #
Mar 26 - Reno, NV @ Holland Project ∆ #
Mar 27 - Chico, CA @ House Show
Mar 28 - Sacramento, CA @ The Colony
Mar 29 - Gilroy, CA @ The District Theatre
Mar 30 - Fresno, CA @ Dynamite Vinyl
Mar 31 - Fullerton, CA @ Programme Skate and Sound
Apr 2 - Phoenix, AZ @ The Underground
Apr 7 - Laredo, TX @ The Dugout
Apr 8 - Dallas, TX @ Three Links Deep Ellum
Apr 9 - Memphis, TN @ Rock House Midtown
Apr 10 - Nashville, TN @ That '70s House
Apr 11 - Louisville, KY @ Highlands Tap Room
Apr 12 - Columbus, OH @ The Summit

∆ - w/ Greg Bennick of Trial (spoken word)
* - w/ Great Reversals
† - w/ Withdrawal
$ - w/ Heiress
% - w/ Wake of Humanity
# - w/ Outlet

"Between profound beauty and earth shattering tribal hits... Sonically precise and larger than life... A benchmark for future releases on Good Fight Music."
–Metal Injection

"Moody, tribal, and groovy... One of the finest metallic hardcore acts on the scene today."
–MetalSucks

"Slow motion otherworldly sludge jams. They delicately toe the line between Neurosis' psychedelic mantras and Dangers' incisive diatribes on the absurd modern condition."
–Exclaim!

"Sometimes sounding like a hardcore band who accidentally stepped on a phaser pedal, and other times like Slowdive getting beaten up in an alley, it surprisingly plays to the strengths of both ideas – big hooks but also a focused approach that still delivers the riff."
–Decibel

"A fascinating new take on post-metalcore, one where riffs and atmosphere can coexist somewhere in space."
–New Noise

SET AND SETTING + Decibel

"Set and Setting bring a unique sound... The post-rockers throw a hint of psychedelia and even a metallic edge... The result is a captivating, wordless, genre amalgam."
–Decibel

"Melancholic beauty suspended in the clouds with a birds-eye view of epic terrain... Soul-searing leads and shimmering, bending guitars that convey feelings of wonder and introspection."

–Stereogum

"Metallic chug to trippy psychedelia to soaring post-rock beauty... Like Russian Circles teaming with early Pink Floyd."
–BrooklynVegan

Decibel has premiered new Set and Setting track "...The Idyllic Realm," off the St. Petersburg, Florida band's upcoming third album Reflectionless.

Listen, here:
http://decibelmagazine.com/blog/2017/1/17/track-premiere-set-and-setting-the-idyllic-realm

As Decibel describes, Set and Setting operate in a zone of their own, creating a psychedelic, metallic version of instrumental rock that captivates. Emotional swells are pushed along by the band's double-drummer thunder and climactic guitar leads.

Reflectionless was recorded by Ryan Haft (Torche, Wrong) at Black Bear Studios in Gainesville, Florida, and mastered by Ed Brooks (R.E.M., Death Cab for Cutie) at Resonant Mastering.

The cover, created by Samantha Muljat (Earth, Pelican), was inspired by the artwork of Storm Thorgerson of Hipgnosis, as seen on Pink Floyd's album covers.

Set and Setting will self-release Reflectionless on January 27th, 2017, on vinyl, CD and digital formats. The band has teamed up with AWAL (Kobalt) to handle the digital release, and with two labels for exclusive color vinyl options in addition to its regular vinyl pressing: Science of Silence Records (US) and Dunk!Records (EU).

Pre-order Reflectionless, here:
Vinyl and CD - http://setandsetting.merchnow.com/
Digital - http://awal.lnk.to/Reflectionless
Exclusive color vinyl (US) - http://scienceofsilence.limitedrun.com/
Exclusive color vinyl (EU) - https://shop.dunkfestival.com/collections/dunk-records

Having played recent shows with Nothing and True Widow, and tours with Mouth of the Architect, Inter Arma, and Kayo Dot, Set and Setting will be touring throughout 2017. A hometown record release show is booked for January 27th in St. Petersburg.

Photo by Ryan Zarra

GREAT AMERICAN GHOST - US tour

Great American Ghost will embark on a headlining tour of the Eastern half of the US in February, with support from Until We Are Ghosts and Bungler.

The Boston band deals in dark, smothering hardcore that crushes like Converge at its heaviest. Latest video, "Destroyer," made its debut here in the fall: 
http://www.metalsucks.net/2016/11/11/exclusive-song-video-premiere-great-american-ghosts-destroyer/

A new album is slated for release later this year on Good Fight Music. Debut full-length, Everyone Leaves, is available here:
http://goodfightmusic.merchnow.com/catalogs/great-american-ghost

Great American Ghost, Until We Are Ghosts, Bungler:
Feb 18 - Providence, RI @ Fete Music Hall
Feb 19 - Philadelphia, PA @ Voltage Lounge
Feb 21 - Baltimore, MD @ Sidebar Tavern
Feb 22 - Lemoyne, PA @ The Champ
Feb 23 - Woodbridge, VA @ Fearcliff Skate Park
Feb 24 - Ringgold, GA @ Cloud Springs Deli
Feb 25 - Brandon, FL @ The Noise Box
Feb 26 - Margate, FL @ Inkwell Pub
Feb 28 - Orlando, FL @ The Backbooth
Mar 3 - Buffalo, NY @ Studio Waiting Room
Mar 6 - St Louis, MO @ Lemp Brewery
Mar 7 - Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen
Mar 9 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Diesel
Mar 10 - Poughkeepsie, NY @ The Loft
Mar 11 - Manchester, NH @ Bungalow

"Fueled by jagged-edged shiv stabs of a main riff and a trampling chorus, 'Destroyer' is an aural smack in the face that will have you begging to be hit again. It doesn't hurt that the song is catchier than fly paper, either; this song will get stuck in your head like a nail hammered into your skull."
–MetalSucks

Photo by Sergio Necoechea

HOMEWRECKER 2017

Homewrecker stage-dives right into 2017 with a slew of live dates, starting January 13th in Chicago with Weekend Nachos' final show, and including a two-week run with Expire as part of their final tour, slots on Midwest Blood Fest, Modified Ghost Fest, and 71 Grind Fest, shows with Nails, and more.

Homewrecker will record its new album this year with Andy Nelson at Bricktop Recording in Chicago, to be released on Good Fight Music.

Latest EP Extinction by Design is out now on Good Fight and represents some of the most thrilling, raw, Slayer-worship in existence today. The Ohio band brings a hardcore punk realness to the table as it dishes out ultra thick death-grooves and whiplash thrash attacks.

Stream the full EP here: 
https://goodfightent.bandcamp.com/album/extinction-by-design

Buy it here:
https://goodfightmusic.merchnow.com/catalogs/homewrecker

"Unholy fucking hot damn! This record just erupts in your brain, then stage dives off your rage into the mosh pit of Hades! Homewrecker brings the chaotic breakdowns and their riffs are fucking unreal!"
–Cvlt Nation

"Homewrecker have cast off their shackles of servitude to their influences, and have begun to napalm a path all their own... So concussive and so jam-packed with madness, it'll take at least a dozen listens before you even understand what's laying you low."

–Decibel

Jan 14 - Chicago, IL @ Subterranean - w/ Weekend Nachos (final show)

Jan 20 - Milwaukee, WI @ Triple Zero

Jan 21 - Gary, IN @ 500 S. Lake St

Jan 28 - Tiffin, OH @ The Viaduct w/ Freedom

Feb 2 - Louisville, KY @ Spinelli's Downtown - Midwest Blood Fest pre-show

Feb 3 - Louisville, KY @ The Cure Lounge - Midwest Blood Fest

w/ Expire (final tour):

Feb 24 - Oklahoma City, OK @ 89th St Collective

Feb 25 - Nashville, TN @ The End

Feb 26 - Jacksonville, FL @ Nighthawks

Feb 27 - Tampa, FL @ Local 662

Feb 28 - Charlotte, NC @ Drunk Horse

Mar 2 - Montclair, NJ @ Meatlocker

Mar 3 - Amityville, NY @ Amityville Music Hall

Mar 4 - Cambridge, MA @ Cambridge Elks Lodge

Mar 5 - Albany, NY @ Trickshots

Mar 6 - Cleveland, OH @ Foundry

Mar 7 - Cincinnati, OH @ Northside Yacht Club

Mar 8 - Detroit, MI @ Sanctuary

Mar 9 - Chicago, IL @ Subterranean

Mar 27 - Columbus, OH @ Park St Saloon - w/ Nails, Toxic Holocaust, Gatecreeper

May 27 - Vancouver, BC @ Modified Ghost Fest

May 28 - Vancouver, BC @ Modified Ghost Fest

Jun 2 - Colorado Springs, CO @ 71 Grind Fest

Jun 3 - Colorado Springs, CO @ 71 Grind Fest

Photo by E. Aaron Ross

OLD WOUNDS 2017

Old Wounds officially kicks off 2017 tonight in Saginaw, Michigan, for its first show of the year. Tonight's show is the first stop in a series of weekend jaunts that takes the Wounds across North America this month, hitting venues from Brooklyn's Saint Vitus to Berkeley's 924 Gilman St, and supported by bands like Exalt and Seizures.

Tonight also sees the live debut of new vocalist Brandon Gallagher, who has stepped out from behind the drum kit to lead the band after the departure of former frontman Kevin Iavaroni. Gallagher was the band's original vocalist in its earliest days.

Old Wounds' next full-length album, the follow-up to 2015's The Suffering Spirit, is currently in the works and will see a 2017 release on Good Fight Music.

This teaser video gives a little glimpse of what's in store:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BO7jb0-l_4P/

Old Wounds, Exalt, Safe to Say:
Jan 6 - Saginaw, MI @ Counter Culture
Jan 7 - Toronto, ON @ The Cave 
Jan 8 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Smiling Moose 

Old Wounds, Exalt, Lost Souls:
Jan 12 - Worcester, MA @ Palladium Upstairs
Jan 13 - Albany, NY @ Trickshots
Jan 14 - Philadelphia, PA @ Voltage Lounge
Jan 15 - Brooklyn, NY @ Saint Vitus

Old Wounds, Seizures, Poison Headache:
Jan 19 - Sacramento, CA @ The Colony 
Jan 20 - Berkeley, CA @ 924 Gilman St 
Jan 21 - Kingsburg, CA @ Bullfrogs 
Jan 22 - Anaheim, CA @ Chain Reaction 

Photo and video by Aaron Kudler