SPIRIT IN THE ROOM + BrooklynVegan

"For the past decade, Spirit In The Room has been the main musical outlet for Dennis Sanders (who also is/was a member of Wes Borland’s band Black Light Burns), and if you’re unfamiliar, picture Josh Homme fronting Nine Inch Nails and doing Nick Cave covers, and that should give you a pretty good idea of what Spirit In The Room sounds like.”

- BrooklynVegan

Watch the video for “But It Do” and stream both tracks, via BrooklynVegan, here.

Originally started by Dennis Sanders (who has served as guitar tech as well as bandmember alongside Wes Borland) as a studio project in Oakland back in 2009, Spirit In The Room has since grown into an intense live experience. The band has been described by Kerrang! Magazine “as ‘a challenge to categorize’, their music taking in everything from Black Sabbath, Refused, and Nine Inch Nails to The Birthday Party, Jesus Lizard, and Joy Division.” Spirit In The Room has opened for Deftones and Crosses (Chino Moreno’s side project) as well as The Mentors and Scour (Philip Anselmo’s side project), and, securing a solid lineup after numerous changes over the years, plans to tour extensively in 2020.

The upcoming “But It Do” single was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Dennis Sanders at his home studio in Hollywood, CA. The b-side release, “Sunset Nightmare” features guest vocals from the legendary Keith Morris (Black Flag, Circle Jerks, OFF!). It will be released October 31st digitally. Preorder, here.

Accompanying dog-themed merch (shirts, stickers, patches) will raise money for Best Friends Animal Society.

Video and concept by Dennis Sanders. Shot and edited by Shawn Doster in Malibu, CA.

“But It Do” single:

1. But It Do

2. Sunset Nightmare (feat. Keith Morris)

Upcoming shows:

Oct 24 - Los Angeles, CA @ Harvard & Stone w/ Jesika Von Rabbit

LIVE SKULL - "Identical Skies"

Live Skull – icon of 1980s New York, active again now after 30 years – has premiered new song "Identical Skies" via BrooklynVegan.

Stream it, here:
http://www.brooklynvegan.com/stream-live-skulls-identical-skies-off-first-album-in-30-years-saturday-night-massacre

Together with Sonic Youth and Swans, Live Skull defined the term "noise rock" in the '80s. Its sound was influenced by British post-punk – Joy Division, Public Image Limited – but was located squarely in the depths of Downtown Manhattan. The band's '80s recordings buzz with the danger, depravity, and creative freedom that defined NYC in those years.

On songs with titles like "Mr. Evil," "The Corpse Also Rises," and "I'll Break You," Live Skull chiseled out its style and its worldview. Dual guitars chimed and slashed; basslines drove; drums pounded and hypnotized; male and female vocals intertwined to conjure serial-killer imagery to match the intensity of real life in '80s Gotham. The band put its stamp on the NYC scene, playing venues like CBGB and Danceteria, but also toured the country with the likes of Jane's Addiction.

Thirty years later, Live Skull is back, reformed by founder/frontman Mark C and drummer Rich Hutchins. The upcoming Saturday Night Massacre, out November 8th on Bronson Recordings, is the first new album since 1989. 

Saturday Night Massacre is an astounding comeback. The tension and dread of Live Skull's '80s output is intact, balanced by something strangely seductive. Founder/frontman Mark C's unmistakable vocals are as urgent now as in 1989, but they have warmed with age – gentle and ominous, all at once. 

"The reanimated crypt of Live Skull spawns a new brood of cheerful tunes sure to make your blood boil," he invites.

Pre-order the album:
https://liveskull.bandcamp.com/album/saturday-night-massacre

"Live Skull's music – a high-wire act played for keeps, without a net – is as challenging, as spiritually corrosive, and ultimately as transcendent as Albert Ayler's mid-60's free jazz or the implacable drone-dance of the early Velvet Underground. It's one of the essential
sounds of our time." –The New York Times

Tour:

Nov 7 - Queens, NY @ Feels (album listening party)
Nov 17 - Groningen, NL @ Vera w/ Jon Spencer
Nov 18 - Rotterdam, NL @ Rotown w/ Jon Spencer
Nov 21 - Ravenna, IT @ Transmissions Festival
Nov 22 - Ravenna, IT @ Transmissions Festival
Nov 24 - Lille, FR @ La Malterie
Nov 25 - Amsterdam, NL @ OCCII
Nov 26 - Berlin, DE @ Urban Spree w/ White Hills

Photo by Kirsten Thoen

NETHERLANDS - "Zombie Techno"

Kerrang! has premiered the incredible new animated music video for Netherlands' latest single, “Zombie Techno."

Watch it, here:
https://www.kerrang.com/the-news/netherlands-new-animated-video-will-make-you-feel-like-the-puny-human-you-are/

Kerrang! reports: “If you’ve never done psychoactive drugs in a big city, listening to Netherlands will give you an idea of what the experience is like... The band’s new animated video for the track ‘Zombie Techno’ comes at you with a two-headed approach of alt-comix psychedelia and existential terror.” 

The song will appear on the Brooklyn band’s next album, currently in the works for a 2020 release. 

Netherlands plays a crushing yet hook-filled brand of psych-sludge-pop, in semi-sync with the sounds of The Melvins, Torche, Mastodon, and Jane's Addiction. Of "Zombie Techno," frontman Timo Ellis states: “The theme of this song, as well as our entire new wave of material, is a comment on the illusion of community and civic participation that’s become the currency of all the new media platforms. Virtually everyone is constantly feeding overlapping algorithms that are sustained by a near-constant supply of curated narcissism, which while outwardly appearing to be ‘issue driven,’ much more often than not, don’t actually reflect any kind of real world action or real coalition-building or organization, whatsoever.” 

Catch the onslaught live, October 24th at Brooklyn Bazaar, with Flipper:
https://www.facebook.com/events/822633028115421/

Photo by Walter Wlodarczyk

BAD LOOKS + MetalSucks

"Any idiot who claims that rock is dead hasn’t heard Bad Looks. The Los Angeles trio — vocalist/guitarist Alessandro Pulisci (At Our Heels), drummer Denny Connolly, and bassist/vocalist Lafayette Kartchner — stir up metal, punk, sludge, and stoner metal into an irresistibly riotous package that feels at once timeless and wholly modern."
- Metal Sucks

Stream "A Wolf Knocks Once," the first track off of Bad Looks' upcoming EP II, via MetalSucks, here.

Bad Looks was founded in Los Angeles, CA in 2017 by vocalist/guitarist Alessandro Pulisci (At Our Heels) and drummer Denny Connolly, and was shortly thereafter cemented with the addition of bassist/vocalist Lafayette Kartchner. The trio released their first self-titled EP in 2018. More recently, Bad Looks contributed a track from this debut EP to the soundtrack of 2019 horror film, Bliss, which also features the likes of Doomriders and Electric Wizard, among others. Described by reviewer Nick Senior of New Noise Magazine as “furious, hooky, aggressively melodic, and perfect for those who long for the mid 2000s Southern metalcore boom,” the band plays heavy punk with a rock and roll swagger in the vein of Mutoid Man, Metz, Every Time I Die, and Queens of the Stone Age.

EP II will be released digitally on November 15th. Preorder, here.

Upcoming shows:

Oct 24 - Los Angeles, CA @ 5 Star Bar w/ Pissed Regardless

BODY STUFF - Body Stuff 3

BODY STUFF: new EP “Body Stuff 3” to be released by The Chain; details and artwork revealed

Body Stuff 3, the third EP by Body Stuff, will be released on January 10, 2020.

Pre-order: 
http://bodystuff.bandcamp.com

Based in New York City, Body Stuff is the duo of Curran Reynolds and Ryan Jones. Reynolds, the songwriter and vocalist, began the project in the early part of this decade, when both he and Jones were members of Today Is The Day.

Body Stuff 3 is the third in a trilogy of EPs: the self-titled Body Stuff (2013), Body Stuff 2 (2016), and Body Stuff 3 (2020).

Body Stuff 3 will be released by The Chain, the multi-faceted company founded in 2016 by Reynolds, Three One G Records owner Justin Pearson, and graphic designer Brandon Gallagher.

Reviews of the first two EPs singled out a few aspects of the Body Stuff sound. On the surface, there were crooning vocals, simple hooks, and an earnest spirit, nodding to the rousing rock songs that filled late-‘80s FM radio dials – U2, Billy Idol, et al. Underneath, something heavier: programmed drums and thick guitars conjured industrial-metal power in the vein of Godflesh or Killing Joke. And deeper in the mix was a dreamlike ambience that evoked the places the music was conceived – namely, the streets of New York City (the debut EP) and a lake in rural Maine (Body Stuff 2).

Of the lyrics, a review on Stereogum stated, “Reynolds’ lyrics are a focal point and tell snippets of stories in a hundred words or less that are as haunting as they are evocative.” Reflecting on memories of violence, death, poverty, and heartbreak, Reynolds sought to make sense of the past, while finding his place in the present. His lyrics depicted a protagonist who identified as an outsider to society, yet pointed toward a sense of oneness in all things.

Scheduled to be one of the very first releases of the new decade, Body Stuff 3 promises to expand on the musical and lyrical themes set forth on the first two EPs. Opening with these lines – “I can never go home, or so I’ve been told / Well, I am the world, the glance of every guy and girl” – Body Stuff 3 sees Reynolds continue to navigate the lines between individual and collective, isolation and connection. Featuring the most highly developed music the duo has created so far, the EP consists of five, intense, radiant anthems that take the Body Stuff style to the next level. 

Some new elements in the mix include: the prominent use of synth on multiple songs; a guitar solo by KMFDM guitarist Andee Blacksugar; acoustic guitar; and Jones' death metal vocals (which fans of his other band Mutilation Rites will recognize).

Body Stuff 3 was recorded and mixed by Jones and Reynolds at Jones’ studio, Growlhouse, in Queens, NY. The EP was mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege (Torche, Full of Hell).

The artwork was created by Reynolds and The Chain's Brandon Gallagher.

Tracklist:
1) Spies
2) On the Run
3) Inches
4) New York in the Rain
5) Words

Lineup:
Curran Reynolds - vocals
Ryan Jones - guitar, bass, programming, backing vocals on "New York in the Rain"

Guest musicians:
Andee Blacksugar (KMFDM) - guitar solo on “Inches”
Al Huckabee and Polly Watson (1-800-BAND) - backing vocals on “On the Run”

Discography:
Body Stuff EP (2013, The Path Less Traveled Records)
Body Stuff 2 EP (2016, The Path Less Traveled Records)
Body Stuff 3 EP (2020, The Chain)

Body Stuff has played live with Godflesh, Uniform, Psalm Zero, Tombs, Collapsing Scenery, TV Baby, Statiqbloom, Murderpact, and more.

Upcoming shows:
Dec 6 - Queens, NY @ H0L0 (w/ Aeviterne)
Dec 27 - Brooklyn, NY @ Gold Sounds (w/ Plaque Marks)

http://bodystuff.bandcamp.com
http://instagram.com/bodystuffworldpeace
http://facebook.com/bodystuffworldpeace

Photo by Justina Villanueva

Out today: SYNAPSES FIRING 'Ruining You'

Ruining You, the brand new album from Synapses Firing, is out today.

"a four-piece specializing in a crunchy sort of alt rock that has unmistakeable punk influences" - New Noise Magazine

"containing a mixture of songs both old and new that... hit "straight from the gut to the jaw." - Scene Point Blank

A collection of songs written by the Bronx, NY quartet with a focused moody sound similar to the likes of Rival Schools or Balance and Composure, Ruining You is an alternative rock throwback featuring rom-com soundtrack like hits. The record showcases great song writing and melodies matched with the stellar production of Adam Cichocki (Coarse, Gatherers, Thoughtcrimes).

“We all come from the Bronx hardcore/punk scene which sometimes had rough edges,” lead singer Sean Dowling says. “As we grew older, we all drifted towards musical influences outside of metal and hardcore and wanted a project to reflect that. Making a music scene work in the Bronx was always an uphill battle; there are very few places to practice out here, no house shows, and very few all-ages events. Cops and neighbors were never used to hearing a punk show down the block. There was never a culture or a model to follow.”

Stream the record Ruining You, here.

Follow the band here:

https://www.facebook.com/synapsesfiringbx

SEIZURES + OC Weekly

“Oftentimes, when bands cram unlikely styles together (for example, grindcore, ska and jazz), it comes across as unnatural or even novelty. But Seizures organically shift from angular melodies and odd time signatures to reverb-drenched ambience to angry hardcore and beyond.”
- OC Weekly

Read more insight into Reverie of the Revolving Diamond, via OC Weekly, here.

From the beach town of Dana Point, California, Seizures embodies the sounds behind the Orange County curtain with their own brand of surf, psychedelic, and shoegaze influenced Mathcore. Made up of members Albert Navarro and Nathan Najera (Guitar), Buddy Porter (bass), Cameron Miller (vocals), and Cory Blaine (drums), the band blends their adventurous and complex style to tell stories of old and new personal experiences and realizations with sci-fi fantasy undertones. Friends and listeners have coined their new sound as “Surf Core” or “Beach Math”, they call it Seizures.

The album was released October 4th digitally, on limited vinyl (100 transparent indigo/opaque aqua blue variant, 200 neon orange variant) on the band's own Sun Terrace Records, as well as a limited edition of 100 tapes via  Portrayal of Guilt. Order tapes, here. | Order vinyl, here.

Reverie of the Revolving Diamond LP:

1. Mazarine 2. The Cycles Unnumbered 3. In a Valley of Twilit Meres 4. Toxophola 5. The Ponds Have Dried Yet Still You Stare 6. Atollian 7. Of Indigo and Seven Crows 8. Severnaya 9. Bedlam Blues 10. On Saturnine Shores 11. Eru

Check out Seizures live at one of their upcoming shows:

Nov 8 - Santa Ana, CA @ FTG Productions w/ Ridgeway, No Sun, Mai, Wolves

Nov 9 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Offbeat w/ No Sun, Machinekit, Split Moon

MICROWAVES + BrooklynVegan

"The video is as mind-melting as the song itself..."
- BrooklynVegan

Watch the new video for Microwaves track, "Ex Moonwalker," via BrooklynVegan, here.

Of innumerable bands that traffic in dissonance, the musick of Pittsburgh, PA’s Microwaves shears clean and hot as an oxy-lance through the defenses of even the most cynical noise rock aficionado. The  trio plies a no-wave/prog-thrash scree that evokes the doings of today’s renegade wetware punks who shove glass-sheathed RFID chips and rare-earth magnets into fresh incisions - dimensions away from the bluesy shot-and-beer heartland rock of their local bar scene. Bursting forth with 2001’s “Professional Systems Overload” EP and the following year’s “System 2” (both featuring original bassist/vocalist Steve Moore, now of ZOMBI) John Roman (drums, formerly of the 1985, and current member of Night Vapor and Brown Angel) and David Kuzy (guitar, vocals) cycled through bass players for several years (including a stint as a synth/sampler-augmented duo) before joining with Johnny Arlett for their longest-running lineup to date. Over the years, Microwaves continued to pick up the loose ends left by Voivod, MX-80, Snakefinger, and some of their own Pittsburgh-area “math-rock” contemporaries, twisting them into a Gordian knot that at once rages and confounds.

Visuals and editing for Ex Moonwalker video by Johnny Arlett. Animations by David Kuzy.

The band's most recent album, Via Weightlessness, is available through Three One G Records on black vinyl as well as digitally via iTunes. Order here.

See the insanity live at one of their upcoming shows:

Nov. 1- Louisville, KY @ Kaiju

Nov. 2-  St.Louis, MO @ Schlafly Tap Room 

Nov. 3- Dubuque, IA @ Blu Room

Nov. 4- Iowa City, IA @ Gabe’s 

Nov. 5- Minneapolis, MN @ Part Wolf

Nov. 6- Milwaukee, WI @ Bremen Cafe

Nov. 7- Chicago, IL @ Burlington Bar

Nov. 8- Detroit, MI @ Kelly’s Bar

Nov. 9- Columbus, OH @ Spacebar

EP PREMIERE: DEAF CLUB + No Echo

"...the controlled chaos of Discordance Axis meets the spazzy-ness of Retox..."
-No Echo

Take a listen to the entire Contemporary Sickness EP, via No Echo, here.

Deaf Club is a savage sound bath dripping with sardonicism: a blastbeat-centric hardcore punk assault channeling crust, thrash, and grind (un)sensibilities. Succinct  pauses, surreal frequencies and effects, breakneck pace and sharply hurled vocals characterize the band’s aesthetic, which seems as though it is rooted in a sort of nasty-sound-meets-highbrow-message ethos. Fueled by the onslaught of society’s insanity and driven mad by tinnitus, Justin Pearson (The Locust, Dead Cross, Planet B), Brian Amalfitano (ACxDC), Scott Osment (Weak Flesh), Jason Klein (Run With The Hunted), and Leo Ulfelder (Fissure) approach music as an opportunity to confront our collective sicknesses. We’ve got to try to listen, lest we all frolic headfirst towards the bright side of death, dragging this pillaged planet down with us. So whether you think the music is a radical disruption to the airwaves or just headache-inducing noise, you can feel free to tell them the brutal truth-- they can't hear you anyway.

The Contemporary Sickness EP will be released October 4th digitally as well as on limited edition, specially printed vinyl through Three One G Records. Mixed and mastered by Brent Asbury (who has worked on albums by bands like Retox, Panicker, Dead Cross, Planet B). Vinyl/cover art by Jesse Draxler (who has done artwork for Nine Inch Nails, Daughters, The New York Times, Dita Eyewear, and MCQ Alexander McQueen, among others). Layout and design by Bran Black Moon. Pre-order the EP, here.

Contemporary Sickness EP:

1. Boyfriends of Christ

2. Bright Side of Death

3. Lofi Mono Tombstone

4. Bounced Reality Check

5. Days of Amusement Are Over

See the band live at one of their three record release dates, below:

Oct 4- Los Angeles, CA @ Factory DTLA

Oct 6- Las Vegas, NV @ Bunkhouse Saloon

Oct 8- San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar