BRONSON ARM - "Permitted to Be Omitted"

BRONSON ARM: noise rock minimalists drop anthemic new single "Permitted to Be Omitted"; music video streaming now

Bronson Arm has released "Permitted to Be Omitted," the second single from its upcoming album, Casket Schwagg.

Casket Schwagg will be released May 9th on Learning Curve Records. Pre-order the album, here: https://bronsonarm.bandcamp.com/album/casket-schwagg

Stream the official "Permitted to Be Omitted" music video, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udMgPpeopL0

"This track was the first to be written for the new album," says Bronson Arm baritone guitarist and vocalist, Blake Bickel. "It explores feelings of confusion and dread… being lost, and building up the nerve to start over on a monumental task."

Set in one location – a white room in the duo's hometown of Kalamazoo, Michigan – the "Permitted to Be Omitted" video commands attention without bells and whistles. Clean and minimal, just like the band's sound, the video captures the interplay of Bickel and drummer Garrett Yates as they pound through the song with intention and control.

Just one year ago, Bronson Arm rattled the underground with the release of their self-titled debut album on Learning Curve. Using only baritone guitar, drums, and voice, the Kalamazoo, Michigan pair boldly introduced its singular style: austere anthems that swelled with tension before bursting open into cathartic hooks. Ominous like Sonic Youth, explosive like Fugazi, Bronson Arm's songs penetrated deep and ultimately sounded like no one else's.

Recorded by Addison Eilers at Analog Time Machine in White Hall, Michigan, mixed by Brandon Eggleston (Swans, Helmet), and mastered by Bickel himself, whose mastering credits include Soft Kill and King Dude, Casket Schwagg is a glorious follow-up that sees this unique band come into full bloom. Across nine hard-rocking songs, Bickel and Yates fully mesmerize with a mix of martial rhythms, doomy tones, and euphoric melodies.

Bronson Arm, live:

April 04 - Grand Rapids, MI - Pux Cider
April 05 - Kalamazoo, MI - Papa Petes
May 15 - Kalamazoo, MI - Bell’s Back Room
May 16 - Minneapolis, MN - Cloudland Theatre
May 17 - Milwaukee, WI - MKE Ultra
June 07 - Michigan City, IN - Burn ’Em Brewing

Photo by Brady Olson

Out today: MERCY TIES - Reflections and Criticisms

Reflections and Criticisms, the new album by Mercy Ties, is out today on The Ghost Is Clear Records.

Reflections and Criticisms is the Pacific Northwest band's first new music in 10 years. Regrouped and revitalized after a hiatus that saw one member relocate to Europe and another commit himself to competitive powerlifting, Mercy Ties has returned with its strongest work yet. Engineered and mixed by Scott Evans (Kowloon Walled City, Sumac) and Chris Common (These Arms Are Snakes, The Mars Volta), the new album is a slab of supremely intense, rain-soaked hardcore that Revolver Magazine compares to "a more brooding Botch."

Stream the album, here: https://mercyties.bandcamp.com/album/reflections-and-criticisms

Buy the LP, here: https://theghostisclearrecords.limitedrun.com/products/863124

Mercy Ties will hit the road in April for a West Coast tour with Throes:

April 18 - Boise, ID @ Realms
April 19 - San Francisco, CA @ Neck of the Woods
April 20 - Fresno, CA @ Destructive Warehouse
April 21 - Los Angeles, CA @ Genghis Cohen
April 22 - Merced, CA @ The Partisan
April 23 - Sacramento, CA @ Cafe Colonial
April 24 - Eugene, OR @ Wandering Goat
April 25 - Portland, OR @ Commonwealth
April 26 - Seattle, WA @ The Black Lodge

"Mercy Ties’ new album, 'Reflections and Criticisms'... [RIYL] original wave screamo ragers Pageninetynine, evil math rockers Botch and French noiseniks Birds in Row."
–Decibel

"With their return, Mercy Ties brings a potent and gripping blend of intense hardcore, infused with elements of sludge and a deep, brooding darkness which permeates their sound."
–Destroy//Exist

"Are you keeping up with The Ghost Is Clear Records? Last year they were voted, by a panel of one, Record Label of the Year, here at Getting It Out, and this year they seem to be doing everything they can to retain that title, as the deluge continues and Mercy Ties is another piece of that."
–Getting It Out

"Tension and release, packed with raw, biting energy... Honesty is the core of 'Reflections and Criticisms,' a work that unpacks themes of human frailty, societal collapse, and existential reckoning."
–Idioteq

"A particular kind of Pacific Northwest-made heaviness (think a more brooding, less mathematically groove-driven Botch)."
–Revolver

Out now: SPIRITWORLD - Helldorado

Helldorado, the third album by SpiritWorld, is out now on Century Media Records. 

The band hits the road April 18th for a North American tour with Obituary, Nails, Terror, and Pest Control.

Purchase the new album, here: https://spiritworld.lnk.to/Helldorado-AlbumPR 

Visit the band's official merch store with exclusive vinyl and Helldorado merch, here: https://spiritworldprophet.com/ 

Stream the latest music video, "Waiting on the Reaper," here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlVkav1Sf9s

"'Helldorado' is just fun as hell. SpiritWorld’s riffage is front-and-center, but you’ll also be singin’ these songs into the moonlight with a clunky guitar and a cup o’ cowboy coffee, pardner."
–Angry Metal Guy

"As concepts go, SpiritWorld's is rock solid. 'Helldorado' is the Las Vegas crew's third album, and the most potent demonstration yet of their unique blend of brutish thrash and sun-scorched Americana."
–Blabbermouth

"Heavy, hard-rockin’ Western twang."
–BrooklynVegan

"No one else out there is blending rockabilly, metal, horror films and quality prose in one place... 'Helldorado, the third album, is a cultural mash-up perfect for these apocalyptic times."
–Decibel

"'Helldorado' is just a ton of fun. The story is packed with mature philosophical asides and campy B-movie allure, like the Coen Brothers collabed with Robert Rodriguez. The heavy instrumentation calls back to the death and thrash metal pantheon, accented extraordinarily well with a keen, finely executed country music aesthetic."
–Everything Is Noise

"Thrash metallers SpiritWorld are back... ['Helldorado'] blends H.P. Lovecraft and Western pulp for one hell of a wild ride."
–Fangoria

"Combining country music and bedazzled outfits with punk aggression and thrash metal riffs, the Las Vegas act are a sight to behold and they return with a vengeance on third full-length album "Helldorado.'"
–Ghost Cult

"Helmed by mastermind Stu Folsom and visualized by artist extraordinaire James Bousema, 'Helldorado' stands tall as a journey navigating all ends of the metal, punk, Western, and hardcore arenas, never settling on linear conventions."
–Heaviest of Art

"'Helldorado' ruthlessly delivers a collection of groovy, raw riffs that ignite the bloodiest mosh pits while also bravely exploring Western themes through folk-punk and alternative country tunes."
–Heavy Music HQ

"Functioning as the completion of his overarching, acid western headtrip, the album bookends what Folsom began with 'Pagan Rhythms' and further built with 'Deathwestern.' More importantly, 'Helldorado' seems to showcase Folsom as a songwriter in the truest sense of the word."
–Knotfest

"The third in what's their calling their 'death-western trifecta' has plenty of twang but is able to dip a toe in a lot of metal flavors still. If you've ever been curious about this band's deal, this would be a great place to sample them and them travel backwards into a whole unique world."
–Metal Injection

"Proudly displaying the dichotomy of his Native American heritage with his old west cowboy lineage as part of the band’s iconography, Folsom braids this seamlessly into the band’s sound that takes from outlaw country, early crossover, and filthy hardcore. Buckle up, buckaroo, because this here’s the wildest ride in the wilderness!"
–New Noise

"I’ve always had a soft spot for Westerns... And, I love me some abrasive deaththrash. So imagine my elation upon finding SpiritWorld who puts these things together as effortlessly as breathing... The band’s third full length 'Helldorado' finds them supremely comfortable with their brand but comfortable enough in their own skin to try new things and shed their bulletproof exterior."
–Nine Circles

"Their ability to churn out absolutely disgusting riffs and fuse them with their Old West aesthetic makes them the most relevant cowboys from Hell since Dimebag did it 30 years ago."
–No Clean Singing

"While Spiritworld’s new 'Helldorado' concludes the band’s gothic-horror-themed album trilogy with some of the most tumbleweed-tumblin’ country sounds of their career thus far, the Las Vegas, Nevada, genre-hoppers are still metal and hardcore kids at heart."
–Revolver

"On their first two albums, 2020’s 'Pagan Rhythms' and 2022’s 'Deathwestern,' Stu Folsom’s Las Vegas punk-metal crew SpiritWorld explored the darker, grimier side of the cinematic myth of the American West. Both records are full of twangy, guttural riffage and demonic cowboys, and they’re a lot of fun... Stu Folsom has long sought to find room for old-school country music influence in his kitsch-damaged hot-rod metallic roar, and 'Helldorado' [steers] further in that direction."
–Stereogum

"Reverend Horton Heat one moment, the next second Slayer. But the beauty of Spiritworld, never more evident than on 'Helldorado,' is that you don’t hear the static between the musical styles. They flow so seamlessly, your head doesn’t spin a millimeter."

–Treble

Out today: SPIRITWORLD - Helldorado

SPIRITWORLD releases third album "Helldorado"; cinematic new "Waiting on the Reaper" music video streaming now

Helldorado, the third album by SpiritWorld, is out today on Century Media Records.

Purchase the album, here:
https://spiritworld.lnk.to/Helldorado-AlbumPR

Visit the band's official merch store with exclusive vinyl and Helldorado merch, here:
https://spiritworldprophet.com/

With the album officially released today, the band has revealed its latest music video. Directed by longtime collaborator Todd Hailstone, the "Waiting on the Reaper" video is a delightfully cinematic clip that brings SpiritWorld's nefarious Western narrative to life. In the spirit of Sergio Leone and Quentin Tarantino, the video depicts a cursed preacher's bloody escape from from an Old West jail. Fans will recognize the clip to be a prequel to SpiritWorld's recently released "Abilene Grime" video, which illustrates that same preacher's ultimate descent to hell.

Stream "Waiting on the Reaper," here: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlVkav1Sf9s

Led by iconoclastic frontman Stu Folsom, SpiritWorld thrives in its own realm, purveying a sound and vision entirely its own. A Las Vegas native whose grandfather worked as a rodeo clown and ranch hand, Folsom has built a universe where thrashy hardcore and country-western stylings coexist in macabre harmony, bonded by a supernatural horror storyline. Stereogum has described the unique project with these words: "A gory symphony that owes as much to Slayer as Cormac McCarthy... A whole fleshed-out universe of pulpy sonic violence inspired by Westerns, horror, outlaw country, the occult, and the heavy metal classics of the late 20th century."

Third album Helldorado sees SpiritWorld indulge in metallic hardcore blitzes, world-weary country-punk stomps, and even a wistful, finger-picked lament. Folsom explains the diversity of the music: "This record, more so than the last two, I think you hear way more fearlessness and confidence in the choices... Maybe it is a risk to incorporate things that will be pretty far out there for the casual punk or metalhead, but having the opportunity to make a record comes with a responsibility to me. I dreamed of making records for so long. I only want to do things in life that I am all in on. If that makes me an outcast or even more fringe than your average underground music act then that's okay. The stench of being genuine is beautiful." 

Guests on the album include Sgah’gahsowáh (Black Braid), Zach Blair (Rise Against), and Frederic Leclercq (Kreator).

Clad in matching Western suits, Folsom and his boys will tour North America this spring with Obituary, celebrating the 35th anniversary of the death metal legends' Cause of Death album.

Obituary, Nails, Terror, SpiritWorld, Pest Control:

Apr 18 - San Antonio, TX @ Aztec Theatre
Apr 19 - Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
Apr 21 - Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theater
Apr 22 - Mesa, AZ @ The Nile Theater
Apr 23 - Las Vegas, NV @ Fremont Country Club *
Apr 24 - San Diego, CA @ House of Blues
Apr 25 - Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues
Apr 26 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Bellwether
Apr 27 - Berkeley, CA @ The UC Theatre
Apr 29 - Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
Apr 30 - Seattle, WA @ The Showbox
May 01 - Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Hall *
May 02 - Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
May 03 - Denver, CO @ The Oriental Theater
May 04 - Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room **
May 05 - Minneapolis, MN @ Varsity Theater
May 06 - Chicago, IL @ House of Blues
May 07 - Detroit, MI @ The Majestic Theatre
May 08 - East Islip, NY @ AMVETS Post 18 **
May 09 - Montreal, QC @ Club Soda
May 10 - Toronto, ON @ The Concert Hall
May 12 - New Kensington, PA @ Preserving Underground
May 13 - Covington, KY @ Madison Live **
May 14 - Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl
May 15 - Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
May 16 - Tampa, FL @ The Orpheum *
May 17 - Jacksonville, FL @ Underbelly **
May 19 - Louisville, KY @ Mercury Ballroom
May 20 - Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel
May 21 - Harrisonburg, VA @ Golden Pony **
May 22 - Maspeth, NY @ Knockdown Center
May 23 - Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church *
May 24 - Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
May 25 - Reading, PA @ Reverb
May 26 - Baltimore, MD @ Baltimore Soundstage +

* Nails headline, no Obituary

** Terror headline, no Obituary

+ Memorial Day Meltdown w/ Nails, Terror, Incendiary, Drug Church, Soul Blind, Pest Control, Doubt, Out To Destroy

Photo by Jasmine Garcia

TONGUECUTTER - Minnow

TONGUECUTTER: thrash and grunge collide on "Minnow," the towering debut album by Michigan power trio; first single "Urgency" streaming now

Learning Curve Records announces the May 2nd release of Minnow, the debut full-length album by Tonguecutter.

Stream the official music video for the first single, "Urgency," here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1W0WDQDE1FA

Pre-order the album, here: 

https://tonguecutter.bandcamp.com/album/minnow

A power trio hailing from the remote lakeshore town of Muskegon, Michigan, Tonguecutter initiates a spectacular collision of thrash and grunge on its debut full-length, Minnow. Meaty riffage and sly rhythmic shifts lay a base over which vocalist/guitarist Chantal Roeske lets loose an irradiant display of angst. The jubilant riffage of Suicidal Tendencies, the progressive bent of Voivod, and the almighty howling rage of Hole are all present. But the real greatness lies in Roeske's melodic sensibility, as a singer and songwriter, with each song taking unexpected twists and blooming with unforeseen hooks.

The album's opener and first single, "Urgency," opens with grumbling bass, uppercutting drums, and a bouncing riff that might easily boost the global sale of Pepsi this year. Roeske then takes charge with a voice that commands like the best wailers of the grunge era, culminating in a powerhouse six-second scream that sends the song into a new dimension of odd-time signatures and mesmerizing melodies. Casual listeners might have no idea that the band has cruised discreetly from 12/8 to 11/4 to 5/8 to 7/8, but they will certainly feel the power of Chantal's soaring voice in their chests as she brings the song toward its heart-melting conclusion.

Reflecting on "Urgency," Roeske states, "Last year we had a chemical spill in Muskegon and it inspired us to write this song about escaping chemical warfare." Her lyric, "Pull me out of it before we get sick," delivered with maximum conviction and repeated twice, is especially haunting in the context of the song's story.

"Urgency," along with the other ten songs on Minnow, reveal Roeske to be a rare musical talent with a fully-formed aesthetic. While it is initially shocking that a debut album could be this good, Roeske has in fact been honing her craft in relative obscurity for decades. She gives a glimpse at the long road that led here, as she discusses the mix of influences that initially fueled her more than 30 years ago: "I started my first band as a teenager in 1994, with influences like DRI, Anthrax and Babes in Toyland. It was fast as hell but had a lot of grunge and riot grrrl flavor. Guitar was always really important for me. I loved bands like Seven Year Bitch and L7. I've been a Pixies and Breeders fan since the beginning of time too. Kim Deal is the reason I picked up a guitar."

In Tonguecutter, Roeske is flanked by two strapping collaborators – bassist Addison Eilers and drummer Cam Polidan – whose muscular playing provides the perfect foundation on which to build. The three are proud to be part of a thriving Michigan scene that includes bands such as Cloud Rat, Bronson Arm, and Them Teeth and, despite occasional chemical spills, they have pride in their hometown, a municipality containing less than 40,000 people and a surprising wealth of punk lore. "Muskegon is the jam," declares Roeske. "It’s gritty, real and accessible. It might be small but the people here are legit and authentic. We have an incredibly beautiful lakeshore on Lake Michigan. We’ve got quite a punk legacy here with legendary clubs like The Ice Pick whose owner played drums in GG Allin's band. And Iggy Pop was born here in 1947!"

Minnow was recorded and mixed at Analog Time Machine and mastered by Bronson Arm's Blake Bickel at Dynamic Sound Service. Also making an appearance on the album is Something Is Waiting frontman Eddie Gobbo, who lends his unmistakably sassy, snarling vocals to the track "Antipode."

Tracklist:
1) Urgency
2) Dust Collector
3) Tupperware Party
4) Big Ol' Tree
5) Minnow
6) Do You Play Leads
7) RATAP
8) Bitch Ass Energy
9) Antipode

10) Yarn Horse

11) Bone to Pick

Lineup:
Chantal Roeske - vocals, guitar
Addison Eilers - bass
Cam Polidan - drums

Discography:

Minnow (2025, Learning Curve Records)

Tupperware Party EP (2023, self-released)

Photo by Viki Stark

MERCY TIES - "A New Hell Every Day"

MERCY TIES: reunited Pacific Northwest crew evokes 90s mathcore, demands class consciousness, on seething new single "A New Hell Every Day"

Mercy Ties has revealed "A New Hell Every Day," the third single from its upcoming new album, Reflections and Criticisms.

Stream the track, here: https://www.decibelmagazine.com/2025/03/06/track-premiere-mercy-ties-are-bringing-a-new-hell-every-day

Pre-order the new album, Reflections and Criticisms, out March 28th on The Ghost Is Clear Records, here: https://theghostisclearrecords.limitedrun.com/products/863124

Decibel's Kevin Stewart-Panko describes "A New Hell Every Day" as a mix of "original wave screamo ragers Pageninetynine, evil math rockers Botch and French noiseniks Birds in Row."

Mercy Ties vocalist Andre Sanabria, also frontman for Neurot Recordings rippers Ex Everything, delivers devastatingly blunt lyrics: "Trapped in a world legislated by zealots that believe in mystic realms and fables / Thousands of children slaughtered / Now say to us that any god worth serving would condone such atrocities / We’re condemned to watch it all unfold."

Sanabria discusses the motivation behind the seething track: "The moment we wake up we learn of a new hell every day. We're complicit, like digital serfs toiling and sharing atrocities, catastrophes, scandals with one another, gathered throughout the various fields of social media — while those living in Gaza, Sudan, Yemen, Ukraine, even here in the US, experience it in real time as their daily existence. It’s easier for others to just tune it out, focus on themselves, their loved ones, an empty pursuit of wealth. That's exactly what the ruling class wants: supplication, division and overall anti-intellectualism. The essential message in this song is that class consciousness is the only weapon we have, and if we as a collective will not rise up against the parasitic billionaire class and death driven crypto-fascist evangelicalism, we’re doomed; not as a nation, or a culture, but as a species."

Reflections and Criticisms is Mercy Ties' first new music in 10 years. After a strong start in the 2010s, the Seattle-born band went on hiatus, with some band members migrating away from the Pacific Northwest and away from music. Guitarist Trevor Bebee immersed himself in the world of competitive powerlifting; drummer Chris Pereira relocated to Europe. With the spark reignited now and the band members regrouped, Mercy Ties returns. Engineered by Scott Evans (Kowloon Walled City, Sumac) and Chris Common (These Arms Are Snakes, The Mars Volta), and mastered by Brad Boatright (The Armed, Necrot), Reflections and Criticisms is not only a comeback, it is the band's strongest work yet.

Mercy Ties will hit the road in April for a West Coast tour with Throes:

April 18 - Boise, ID @ Realms
April 19 - San Francisco, CA @ Neck of the Woods
April 20 - Fresno, CA @ Destructive Warehouse
April 21 - Los Angeles, CA @ Genghis Cohen
April 22 - Bakersfield, CA @ 415 BKFD
April 23 - Sacramento, CA @ Cafe Colonial
April 24 - Eugene, OR @ Wandering Goat
April 25 - Portland, OR @ Commonwealth
April 26 - Seattle, WA @ The Black Lodge

Guitarist Trevor Bebee gives this statement about the tour: "When the band began talking about potential shows this year, our good friend Rich Hall — always a strong supporter of our band — stepped in to help us book a tour. We’re grateful for everything he did, not just for us but for the entire live music industry and scene; in honor of his memory the band will be donating a portion of our proceeds from this tour to his family. On this trek we will be joined by some of our oldest buds Throes and we can’t wait to get in the van with them. We hope to see many friends, old and new."

HEAVY HALO - "New Blood"

HEAVY HALO: NYC alt-industrial hitmakers drop "New Blood" single and vampiric music video

Heavy Halo presents "New Blood," the fifth single to be released from the band's forthcoming new album, Damaged Dream.

Stream the official "New Blood" music video, here: https://www.revolvermag.com/premiere/heavy-halos-new-blood/

Pre-order Damaged Dream, set to be released on July 25th via Silent Pendulum Records,
here: https://silentpendulumrecords.com/collections/heavy-halo

Heavy Halo is the Brooklyn-based duo of vocalist/guitarist McKeever and producer Gosteffects. Based out of their studio, located inside a historic 19th-century hospital building, the pair mixes elements of alt-rock and industrial, creating memorable songs that are full of yearning vocals and layered electronics. Reference points include The Cure, Nine Inch Nails, Smashing Pumpkins, and HEALTH. 

Revolver Magazine describes the new single, "New Blood," as a blend of "chorus-effect-watery guitar lines, nervously propulsive drum-machine hits, and darkly romantic lyrics."

The official "New Blood" music video was directed by Brendan McGowan, director of videos for Lamb of God, Mastodon, Imperial Triumphant, and more. It is an homage to vampire films of the silent film era.

Heavy Halo's McKeever states: "The simplest and most direct song on the record, 'New Blood' is about live-wire desire, the belief that intoxicating romance can strike like a bolt from the blue and pull you out of the doldrums of stagnancy. The music video, directed by Brendan McGowan, draws on vampire silent film classics as inspiration. We filmed it in the basement of our favorite goth haunt Talon Bar, casting musicians, artists, and fashion designer friends from across the New York underground."

Director McGowan adds: "Of all the iterations of cinema vampires, it's hard to beat the aesthetic of the 1930s Universal Monsters era. That, juxtaposed against the thoroughly modern Heavy Halo sound, makes for a fun video about the perils of eternal life. Thanks to all the NYC goths who showed up and donned fangs for our shoot."

Photo by Michelle LoBianco

PLQ MRX - Cumgitsum

PLQ MRX: acid-fried noise rockers (Unsane, Ecstatic Vision members) announce Cumgitsum EP; first single streaming now

From Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the masked collective known as PLQ MRX announces the April 25th release of its debut EP, Cumgitsum.

Cumgitsum will be released via three labels: Reptilian Records (US), Totem Cat (EU), and Fuzzed and Buzzed (Canada).

Stream the visualizer for EP's first single, "Laugh to Death," here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqMXvlyqOmU

The track is streaming now on all platforms: https://found.ee/plaquemarks_laughtodeath

Boasting stage names such as Cleetus Alreetus Alrightus and Midnight Moses, the five mysterious members of PLQ MRX are a motley crew of self-proclaimed "acid freaks, sex addicts, dealers, pimps, and clowns." Somewhere between Flipper and Funkadelic, the quintet's grimy wall of rock churns forward with an air of lysergic jubilance.

First single "Laugh to Death" is a walloping dirge whose swirling squalls of guitar are peppered with detuned trombone, clown samples, and drunken howls. Across five and a half minutes of cacophony and swagger, the track evokes the chaotic rites of Butthole Surfers' early years. 

Gallows humor pervades the lyrics, as demonstrated in these lines: "You bring the mask / I’ll bring the knife / Johnny come lately / We’ll take his life / With laughing gas and a solid routine / We’ll make his ass laugh to death."

Connoisseurs of the dangerous and depraved might recall a Philadelphia band known as Plaque Marks which surfaced initially in 2017, releasing one EP, Anxiety Driven Nervous Worship, and touring the US with Unsane. Stereogum's review of that EP described it as "primitive and feral... smashed-to-shit vocal distortion, gravel-throated bass tone and a couple guitars that sound like they're being picked with glass shards." Decibel Magazine characterized the sound as "nasty in all the right ways" and Bandcamp Daily stated: "The whole thing feels like being hit in the chest with a medicine ball full of bacon fat."

Like a crazed phoenix rising from those ashes, PLQ MRX picks up where Plaque Marks left off. Consisting of one or two members of the original gang, the identities can only be guessed at, but rumors point to musicians who have played in bands such as Unsane, Swans, Foetus, Author & Punisher, and Ecstatic Vision, as well as to the owner of one of Philly's most notorious rock dives, Kung Fu Necktie.

Amidst a surge of noise rock, exemplified by the ongoing success of Chat Pile and festivals such as Caterwaul, PLQ MRX puts forth a spectacle that pushes the genre into a more theatrical and psychedelic realm. "Noise rock was the base when we started," states vocalist Alrightus, "but I feel more aligned with '70s funk and obscure European rock than anything else. Funkadelic is universal. If you can't dig that, you don't deserve to live. LOL. A sense of humor is very important."

Cumgitsum was engineered and mixed by the band and Joe Boldizar. It was mastered by Tim Green (Melvins, The Fucking Champs).

Tracklist:
1) The Drink Up Genie
2) Lead Poisoning
3) Elevator of Pain
4) Sugarsmack Jack
5) Laugh to Death

Lineup:

Cleetus Alreetus Alrightus - vocals
Midnight Moses - guitar, vocals
Lord Calvert - keyboards, samples
Bob Nohope - bass
Vinnihana - drums

Pre-order the EP, here: 

US: https://reptilianrecords.bandcamp.com/

EU: https://totemcatrecords.bigcartel.com/

Canada: https://fuzzedandbuzzed.com/

Cover art by Carlos Bonilla

Photos by Gene Smirnov

CATERWAUL schedule

CATERWAUL: Uniform confirmed for 2025 festival; full schedule revealed

With the fourth installment of Caterwaul scheduled for May 23-26th in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the festival's organizers have revealed the full schedule for the four-day event.

Newly revealed additions to the stellar lineup include NYC's industrial noise-metal powerhouse Uniform. 

Other highlights include Buildings, Deaf Club, Eye Flys, FACS, Kowloon Walled City, Pissed Jeans, and Young Widows.

Spread across three Minneapolis venues – 331, Mortimer's, and Zhora Darling, Caterwaul 2025 offers a full immersion into the noisy, iconoclastic fringes of rock, and promises to serve as a haven where all denizens of the underground can coalesce for a long, communal weekend.

BrooklynVegan has described Caterwaul as a "unique mix of noise rock, punk, metal, post-punk and beyond." New Noise Magazine has called it "a gathering of some of the best underground bands existing today."

Festival founders Conan Neutron, Rainer Fronz, and Melanie Thomas state: “In a world full of Coachellas, be a Caterwaul.”

Tickets can be purchased now at this location: https://www.ticketstripe.com/caterwaul2025

The full schedule is as follows:

Friday, May 23 @ Mortimer's

1:00 am - FACS
12:00 am - Eye Flys
11:15 pm - Pinko
10:30 pm - Wipes
9:45 pm - Violenteer
9:00 pm - Something Is Waiting
8:15 pm - Mugger
7:30 pm - Blacklighter

Saturday, May 24 @ Zhora Darling

1:15 am - Naw
12:15 pm - Open Head
11:30 pm - In Lieu
10:45 pm - Plot

Saturday, May 24 @ 331

9:15 pm - Young Widows
8:15 pm - Kowloon Walled City
7:25 pm - Fotocrime
6:30 pm - The Cell Phones
5:45 pm - Bridesmaid
5:00 pm - Upright Forms
4:15 pm - Vincas
3:30 pm - Fashion Week
2:45 pm - Moon Pussy
2:00 pm - Pillcutter

Sunday, May 25 @ 331

8:15 pm - Pissed Jeans
7:15 pm - Buildings
6:30 pm - Big'n
5:45 pm - Suckling
5:00 pm - Conan Neutron & the Secret Friends
4:15 pm - Lung
3:30 pm - Tonguecutter
2:45 pm - Unstable Shapes

Monday, May 26 @ 331

9:15 pm - Uniform
8:15 pm - Deaf Club
7:30 pm - Elephant Rifle
6:45 pm - Mr. Phylzzz
6:00 pm - Vile Bees
5:15 pm - Gaytheist
4:30 pm - powertakeOff
3:45 pm - Mr. Clit & the Pink Cigarettes
3:00 pm - Miracle Blood
2:15 pm - Spit Takes

Photo of Uniform, by Joshua Zucker-Pluda and Sean Stout
Caterwaul 2025 logo, by Withney Does

BRONSON ARM - Casket Schwagg

BRONSON ARM: minimalist noise rock powerhouse returns with sophomore masterpiece "Casket Schwagg"; title track's music video streaming now

Learning Curve Records announces the May 9th release of Casket Schwagg, the stunning sophomore album by Bronson Arm.

A macabre, hallucinatory fantasy, evoking the late David Lynch, the official music video for the song's title track is now streaming, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sP6Uk0EPx1I

Pre-order the album, here: https://bronsonarm.bandcamp.com/album/casket-schwagg

Just one year ago, Bronson Arm – the duo of Blake Bickel and Garrett Yates – rattled the underground with the release of their self-titled debut album on Learning Curve. Using only baritone guitar, drums, and voice, the Kalamazoo, Michigan pair boldly introduced its singular style. The attack was as hard-hitting as hammers on anvils, with Yates' austere bludgeoning locked in unison with the thrumming of Bickel's dark, moody, baritone strings, yet the two understood that the spaces in between the notes can be as powerful as the assault. They honored emptiness as a haunting force all its own, resulting in minimalist anthems that swelled with tension before bursting open into cathartic hooks. Ominous like Sonic Youth, explosive like Fugazi, Bronson Arm's songs penetrated deep and ultimately sounded like no one else's.

UK outlet Louder Than War reported: "The self-titled full-length from Bronson Arm is an unstoppable flex of muscles we never knew existed."

Poland's Idioteq declared: "Anthemic noise-punk songs that are a study in controlled chaos... Bickel’s heavy, haunting baritone guitar intertwines with Yates’ powerful drumming, creating a soundscape that is simultaneously minimalist and monumental."

Recorded by Addison Eilers at Analog Time Machine in White Hall, Michigan, mixed by Brandon Eggleston (Swans, Helmet, Pelican), and mastered by Bickel himself, whose mastering credits include Soft Kill and King Dude, Casket Schwagg is a glorious follow-up that sees this unique band come into full bloom. Across nine hard-rocking songs, Bickel and Yates fully mesmerize with a mix of martial rhythms, doomy tones, and euphoric melodies. "I feel this record accurately captures our sound," says Bickel. "Raw and noisy with a huge bottom end that you can feel just as much as hear."

First single "Casket Schwagg" is a driving, bare-bones, noise rock banger that sets the tone. Baritone guitar and drums barrel forward in machine-like harmony as Bickel's tuneful shout soars above. Bickel gives this statement about the song: "For the title track of the album, I wanted to write a relatively straightforward, anthemic 'curse' of a song, that demands a narcissistic bigot to do what they will never do on their own – take responsibility for their actions. For a long time I have felt that a band using music as a means for calling out corrupt political powers was kind of 'low hanging fruit' and it seemed like a cheap gimmick. But frankly, someone has to do it. There needs to be a sea change. We are not a politically charged band, but this is a politically charged album."

Situated in the small city of Kalamazoo, Bronson Arm is part of a thriving Michigan scene that includes bands such as Cloud Rat and Tonguecutter. In addition to their roles in Bronson Arm, both Bickel and Yates are central members of the scene in other capacities – Bickel as a mastering engineer and Yates as the owner of DIY venue The Run Off.

Tracklist:
1) Permitted to be Omitted
2) Casket Schwagg
3) Wrong Energy
4) To Live Deliciously
5) Supine Twist
6) Flaming Pram
7) Drain the Coffer
8) Vestigial Tail
9) Obscenity in the Milk

Lineup:
Blake Bickel - vocals, baritone guitar
Garrett Yates - drums

Discography:
Casket Schwagg (2025, Learning Curve Records)
Bronson Arm (2024, Learning Curve Records)

Live:

March 06 - Chicago, IL - The Burlington Bar 

March 13 - Kalamazoo, MI - Shakespeares Lower Level 

March 15 - Battle Creek, MI - The Music Factory 

April 04 - Grand Rapids, MI - Pux Cider 

April 05 - Kalamazoo, MI - Papa Petes 

May 15 - Kalamazoo, MI - Bell’s Back Room 

May 16 - Minneapolis, MN - Cloudland Theatre 

May 17 - Milwaukee, WI - MKE Ultra 

June 07 - Michigan City, IN - Burn ’Em Brewing

Photo by J. Ludeker

SPIRITWORLD - "Oblivion"

SPIRITWORLD: members of Rise Against and Blackbraid join cowboy thrashers on anthemic new single "Oblivion"
 
With its new album, Helldorado, coming March 21st on Century Media Records, SpiritWorld reveals the album's third single, "Oblivion."

Featuring guest appearances by Zach Blair (Rise Against) and Sgah'gahsowáh (Blackbraid), "Oblivion" is another anthemic slab of the Las Vegas band's signature sound: thrashing hardcore, laced with Wild West stylings and a supernatural horror storyline.

Stream the official "Oblivion" visualizer, here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URZmb6DhJ2g

Pre-order Helldorado, here:
https://spiritworld.lnk.to/Helldorado-AlbumPR

Visit the band's official merch store with exclusive vinyl and Helldorado merch, here:
https://spiritworldprophet.com/

SpiritWorld founder/frontman Stu Folsom gives this statement about the song: "'Oblivion' is one of my favorite songs off Helldorado! It was the song that took the most work to finish, but I am so glad that I kept pulling it back out of the dumpster to chip away at. It has a great mid-tempo headbanger groove that reminds me of growing up listening to early Obituary/Six Feet Under records full of Alan West riffage in my headphones, walking home from my graveyard shift selling booze and tampons at a 24/7 SAV-ON in East Las Vegas. We also got some help from our friends to polish it off. Zach Blair (Rise Against) tracked a blistering guitar solo and Sgah'gahsowáh (Blackbraid) put down vocals that really lift the song to a whole different level. It is an honor and very flattering to have people from bands I love, willing to collaborate and add their style to this project."

The iconoclastic Folsom has been building the SpiritWorld universe since 2020, beginning with the band's debut, Pagan Rhythms, and blossoming on sophomore album Deathwestern, both released on Century Media. More than a musician, Folsom is an author too, and SpiritWorld's music goes hand in hand with Folsom's writings. The first two albums were soundtracks to his book, Godlessness, a series of Lovecraftian horror tales set in a fictional Old West.

Third album Helldorado cements the band's brand, while making new moves that show the breadth of the potential in store. Across the album's ten tracks, SpiritWorld indulges in metallic hardcore blitzes, world-weary country-punk stomps, and even a wistful, finger-picked lament. Folsom acknowledges the diversity of the music: "This record, more so than the last two, I think you hear way more fearlessness and confidence in the choices... If that makes me an outcast or even more fringe than your average underground music act, then that's okay. The stench of being genuine is beautiful."

Assessing the anomaly that is SpiritWorld, Stereogum has hailed it as "a gory symphony that owes as much to Slayer as Cormac McCarthy" and as "a whole fleshed-out universe of pulpy sonic violence inspired by Westerns, horror, outlaw country, the occult, and the heavy metal classics of the late 20th century." Revolver Magazine has stated: "Their cinematic cowboy outfits, the Wild West lore in their songs, their off-the-wall music videos — all of it feels more like a multi-disciplinary art project than a mere metal band."

Clad in matching Western suits, Folsom and his boys have traveled the world, on tours with the likes of Municipal Waste, Sepultura, and Stick To Your Guns. Coming up this spring, the band will tour North America with Obituary, celebrating the 35th anniversary of the death metal legends' Cause of Death album.

Obituary, Nails, Terror, SpiritWorld, Pest Control:

Apr 18 - San Antonio, TX @ Aztec Theatre
Apr 19 - Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
Apr 21 - Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theater
Apr 22 - Mesa, AZ @ The Nile Theater
Apr 23 - Las Vegas, NV @ Fremont Country Club *
Apr 24 - San Diego, CA @ House of Blues
Apr 25 - Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues
Apr 26 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Bellwether
Apr 27 - Berkeley, CA @ The UC Theatre
Apr 29 - Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
Apr 30 - Seattle, WA @ The Showbox
May 01 - Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Hall *
May 02 - Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
May 03 - Denver, CO @ The Oriental Theater
May 04 - Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room **
May 05 - Minneapolis, MN @ Varsity Theater
May 06 - Chicago, IL @ House of Blues
May 07 - Detroit, MI @ The Majestic Theatre
May 08 - East Islip, NY @ AMVETS Post 18 **
May 09 - Montreal, QC @ Club Soda
May 10 - Toronto, ON @ The Concert Hall
May 12 - New Kensington, PA @ Preserving Underground
May 13 - Covington, KY @ Madison Live **
May 14 - Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl
May 15 - Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
May 16 - Tampa, FL @ The Orpheum *
May 17 - Jacksonville, FL @ Underbelly **
May 19 - Louisville, KY @ Mercury Ballroom
May 20 - Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel
May 21 - Harrisonburg, VA @ Golden Pony **
May 22 - Maspeth, NY @ Knockdown Center
May 23 - Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church *
May 24 - Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
May 25 - Reading, PA @ Reverb
May 26 - Baltimore, MD @ Baltimore Soundstage +

* Nails headline, no Obituary

** Terror headline, no Obituary

+ Memorial Day Meltdown w/ Nails, Terror, Incendiary, Drug Church, Soul Blind, Pest Control, Doubt, Out To Destroy

Photo by Jasmine Garcia

MERCY TIES - "Survivor's Guilt"

MERCY TIES: reunited Pacific Northwest hardcore unit reveals new single "Survivor's Guilt" and music video; West Coast tour with Throes announced

Mercy Ties reveals new single "Survivor's Guilt," from the forthcoming new album, Reflections and Criticisms. The band's first new album in 10 years, Reflections and Criticisms will be released March 28th on The Ghost Is Clear Records.

Stream the song's official music video, consisting of footage shot on tour in 2017 during the band's European tour with French powerhouse Birds in Row, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwT89jAbZIM

Pre-order Reflections and Criticisms, here: https://theghostisclearrecords.limitedrun.com/products/863124

Founded in Seattle, Washington in 2010, Mercy Ties emerged as a standout of a new wave of West Coast hardcore, citing bands like Breather Resist, Converge, Pageninetynine, and hometown heroes Botch as reference points. Mercy Ties' intense brand initially bore trademarks of screamo, then quickly spiraled into something darker and more lethal, indulging freely in elements of noise rock, math, sludge, and grind. A review from Invisible Oranges in that early period described the sound as "contorted, noise rock-indebted metalcore"; Decibel Magazine called it "unsettling, unpredictable and distinctive."

With a bright future ahead, Mercy Ties then promptly faded from view. "We needed to take a break," says vocalist Andre Sanabria. "We were all facing tensions for various reasons and needed some space. Other aspects of life were pulling us away." In the latter part of the decade, some band members migrated away from Seattle and away from music. Guitarist Trevor Bebee immersed himself in the world of competitive powerlifting; drummer Chris Pereira relocated to Europe.

With the spark reignited now and the band members regrouped, Mercy Ties returns. Engineered by Scott Evans (Kowloon Walled City, Sumac) and Chris Common (These Arms Are Snakes, The Mars Volta), and mastered by Brad Boatright (The Armed, Necrot), Reflections and Criticisms is not only a comeback, it is the band's strongest work yet. Revolver Magazine had these words for the album's first single: "A quick, glumly swung crush that speaks to a particular kind of Pacific Northwest-made heaviness (think a more brooding, less mathematically groove-driven Botch). Our overall reflection and criticism for Mercy Ties... The album couldn’t come soon enough."

Along with the release of the "Survivor's Guilt" single and music video, the band announces its "Reflections and Criticisms Tour," hitting the West Coast in April with Boise crushers Throes.

April 18 - Boise, ID @ Realms
April 19 - San Francisco, CA @ Neck of the Woods
April 20 - Fresno, CA @ Destructive Warehouse
April 21 - Los Angeles, CA @ Genghis Cohen

April 22 - Bakersfield, CA @ 415 BKFD
April 23 - Sacramento, CA @ Cafe Colonial
April 24 - Eugene, OR @ Wandering Goat
April 25 - Portland, OR @ Commonwealth
April 26 - Seattle, WA @ The Black Lodge

Photo by Kayla Tarkalson Bebee

CATERWAUL update

CATERWAUL: Buildings, Deaf Club, FACS and more revealed for 2025 festival lineup

With the fourth installment of Caterwaul scheduled for May 23-26th in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the festival's organizers issue their second major lineup announcement.

Representing the noisy, iconoclastic fringes of rock, punk and hardcore, the new batch of artists to be revealed includes: 

Chicago veterans Big'n; a reunion set by Minneapolis bruisers Buildings; Southern California supergroup Deaf Club, featuring members of The Locust and ACxDC; Chicago's FACS, who have the distinction of being the final band recorded by the late Steve Albini; Louisville unit Fotocrime, led by Ryan Patterson of Coliseum; Boston howlers Miracle Blood; San Antonio's Pinko, Chicago eccentrics The Cell Phones; and Unstable Shapes and Upright Forms, both hailing from Minneapolis.

The complete list of artists announced for the 2025 festival, thus far, is as follows:

Big'n
Buildings
Deaf Club
Elephant Rifle
Eye Flys
FACS
Fotocrime
In Lieu
Kowloon Walled City
Lung
Miracle Blood
Mr Phylzzz
Open Head
Pinko
Pissed Jeans
Suckling
The Cell Phones
Unstable Shapes
Upright Forms
Young Widows

Tickets can be purchased now at this location: https://www.ticketstripe.com/caterwaul2025

BrooklynVegan has described Caterwaul as a "unique mix of noise rock, punk, metal, post-punk and beyond." New Noise Magazine has called it "a gathering of some of the best underground bands existing today."

Beyond the curation, Caterwaul has come to represent a cooperative, familial spirit within the underground. Through their decades of work in the trenches of independent music, serving in the roles of musician, label owner, show booker, podcaster, and more, founders Conan Neutron, Rainer Fronz, and Melanie Thomas are deeply tied to the artists and fans whom Caterwaul pulls together. With its fourth installment approaching, Caterwaul is the epicenter of its own scene – not limited to any one specific genre, but dedicated to uniting all people on the loud and eccentric side of the fence.

Asked to deliver a statement about the fest, Neutron, Fronz, and Thomas recently offered these nine words: “In a world full of Coachellas, be a Caterwaul.”

Look out for more lineup announcements in the upcoming weeks.

Caterwaul 2025 logo, by Whitney Does
Photo of Buildings, courtesy of the band

Photo of Deaf Club, by Becky DiGiglio

Photo of FACS, courtesy of the band

HEAVY HALO - "Justified"

HEAVY HALO: alt-industrial hitmakers target religious hypocrisy on new single "Justified"

Heavy Halo has revealed new single "Justified."

"Justified" is the fourth track to be released from the NYC duo's new album Damaged Dream, slated for a summer 2025 release on Silent Pendulum Records.

An official visualizer is streaming now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSBppB3iNrQ

Based out of their studio, located inside a historic 19th-century hospital building in Brooklyn, Heavy Halo mixes elements of alt-rock and industrial, creating memorable songs that are full of yearning vocals and propulsive electronics. The authority on all things dark and dramatic, Post-Punk.com says this about the new single: "New York City’s Heavy Halo delve deep into the fire of personal reckoning with 'Justified,' a track that thrashes, aches, and demands release. Built on a backbone of industrial-techno rhythms, its serrated guitars slash through raw electronics, a collision of sweat and circuitry. The track surges forward, a machine with a beating heart, nodding to Nine Inch Nails and KMFDM with the raw urgency of Smashing Pumpkins and the aching howl of The Cure. The ghosts of ‘90s rebellion flicker in its DNA, yet its spirit is welded to the digital age, where raw emotion fuses with cold machinery. In this, Heavy Halo also finds kinship with HEALTH and Poppy, reveling in that chaotic crossroads where flesh meets electric power."

Heavy Halo vocalist McKeever gives this statement about the song: "My therapist kept telling me I had Catholic guilt and I kept denying it. But after spending time thinking, I found something there and wrote "Justified." I had gone to Catholic middle school and it was a nightmare. There was a hypocritical priest making little kids confess their 'sins' while stealing money from the congregation to fund a secret lavish lifestyle. Kids in my grade were deplorable meatheads scrawling Nazi symbols in the bathroom. The vibe was the furthest possible thing from the doctrine preached. Beyond this, I had larger problems with the institution of religion as a whole, the self-righteousness, the fear-mongering, the centuries of violence... I wanted no part of any of this. So I ran as far away as I could into the embrace of dark music and art where I found magic and solace. This song is a justification for anyone who turns away from these institutions to carve their own path. Your truth is within you and you can find your own transcendence and raise up your flag."

Pre-order the new album, here: https://silentpendulumrecords.bandcamp.com/album/damaged-dream

Heavy Halo plays February 15th at Elsewhere Zone 1 in Brooklyn, with Louisahhh. Tickets are available here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/louisahhh-debasement-heavy-halo-tickets-1207855962699

Photo by Wrekluse

CATERWAUL 2025

CATERWAUL: annual festival of the noisy and iconoclastic reveals Pissed Jeans, Suckling (member of Scratch Acid), Young Widows and more for 2025 lineup; tickets on sale now

“In a world full of Coachellas, be a Caterwaul.”

With the fourth installment of Caterwaul scheduled for May 23-26th in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the festival's organizers have revealed ten of this year's confirmed artists. In alphabetical order:

Elephant Rifle
Eye Flys
In Lieu
Kowloon Walled City
Lung
Mr Phylzzz
Open Head
Pissed Jeans
Suckling
Young Widows

The full lineup will be revealed in the upcoming weeks.

Tickets can be purchased now at this location: https://www.ticketstripe.com/caterwaul2025

With such greats as Brainiac, Chat Pile, Flipper, and Oxbow having graced Caterwaul's stages in years past, the fest has come to serve as a beacon for the heavy, experimental fringes of rock. The 2025 lineup promises to cement Caterwaul's reputation as an annual destination for the noisy and iconoclastic, with the initial announcement including the following: psychedelic punkers Elephant Rifle; noise rock beast Eye Flys; neo-grungers In Lieu; doom rock stalwarts Kowloon Walled City; cello rockers Lung; the new wave of Amphetamine Reptile, Mr Phylzzz; angular punk innovators Open Head; hardcore punk kings Pissed Jeans; Suckling, led by Brett Bradford of the legendary Scratch Acid; and post-hardcore transcenders Young Widows.

BrooklynVegan has described Caterwaul as a "unique mix of noise rock, punk, metal, post-punk and beyond." New Noise Magazine has called it "a gathering of some of the best underground bands existing today."

Beyond the curation, Caterwaul has come to represent a cooperative, familial spirit within the underground. Through their decades of work in the trenches of independent music, serving in the roles of musician, label owner, show booker, podcaster, and more, founders Conan Neutron, Rainer Fronz, and Melanie Thomas are deeply tied to the artists and fans whom Caterwaul pulls together. With its fourth installment approaching, Caterwaul is the epicenter of its own scene – not limited to any one specific genre, but dedicated to uniting all people on the loud and eccentric side of the fence.

Asked to deliver a statement about the fest, Neutron, Fronz, and Thomas offer these nine words: “In a world full of Coachellas, be a Caterwaul.”

Caterwaul 2025 logo, by Whitney Does

Photo of Pissed Jeans, by Ebru Yildiz

Out today: CKRAFT - Uncommon Grounds

Uncommon Grounds, the new album by CKRAFT, is out today. 

From Paris, France, CKRAFT melds metal, jazz, and medieval music into new shapes. Decibel Magazine describes the band’s compositions as “expansive and otherworldly” and as “bridging the gap between djent’s chugging thunder and the scattershot melodic freedom of jazz.” Founder/accordionist Charles Kieny freely name drops Gojira, Meshuggah, John Coltrane and Allan Holdsworth, while using Gregorian chants of the Middle Ages as the basis of CKRAFT's melodies. Uncommon Grounds is the quintet's sophomore album, following 2022's Epic Discordant Vision.

"With members hailing from various outposts of the musical universe, having a synth-accordion and saxophone as featured instruments, and the members’ declared bond over polyrhythmic metal, Middle Age Gregorian chants and ancient architecture, CKRAFT... blew convention out the window with their 2022 debut, the appropriately titled 'Epic Discordant Vision.' Bridging the gap between djent’s chugging thunder and the scattershot melodic freedom of jazz, the band have returned with album number two, 'Uncommon Grounds.'"
–Decibel

"French instrumental progressive metal act CKRAFT, whose jazz-informed take on heavy riffage feels right at home when mentioned alongside the likes of Ex Eye or Yakuza, with a bit of a more Gojira/Car Bomb-inspired modern metal twist on that established niche... Progressive in all senses of the word, CKRAFT are pushing boundaries both in- and outward by borrowing from the past and pushing those elements into the future through their combined efforts."
–Everything Is Noise

"Ripping through the headphones like a cross between early Don Caballero, T.R.A.M., Mahavishnu Orchestra, and… Pantera... We’re willing to believe Charles Kieny might be a reincarnated medieval magician of some kind."
–Fecking Bahamas

"Intensely progressive but also bone-crushingly rhythmic in that Meshuggah way, CKRAFT truly make music that sounds like itself and nothing much else."

–Heavy Blog Is Heavy

"Their use of odd-timed chugs and alt-metal should appeal to fans of Meshuggah and Gojira... ‘Uncommon Grounds‘ is moody yet playful, occasionally letting loose with a breakthrough tangent or strange interruption which helps to characterize their work from the first listen."

–Mystification

"Medieval sounds meld with bone snappin’ metal and unorthodox jazz culminating into of the most unique and refreshing things I’ve heard in a mighty long time."
–Nine Circles

" I got flashes of Meshuggah, King Crimson, Gojira, and Miles/Coltrane... This group deploys synth-accordion, saxophone, guitar, bass, and drums as their tools, and they display both impressive virtuosity and considerable eccentricity in doing so. "
–No Clean Singing

"The Paris band brings a diverse mix of influences, melding metal, jazz, and medieval music with instrumentation that includes synth-accordion, saxophone, guitar, bass, and drums."
–Scene Point Blank

"Album of note."

–Stereogum

"Album of the week."

–Tinnitist

"French jazz metal... A magical new space between Gojira and John Coltrane."

–V13

Stream and buy the album, here: https://linktr.ee/ckraft.music

Stream the new music video, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4n-b2p6px9g

More info: https://thechainworld.blogspot.com/2024/10/ckraft-uncommon-grounds.html

SPIRITWORLD - Helldorado

SPIRITWORLD announces third album, Helldorado; new single "Abilene Grime" and official music video streaming now

From Las Vegas, Nevada, SpiritWorld announces the upcoming release of its third album: Helldorado.

The follow-up to 2022's acclaimed Deathwestern, Helldorado will be released March 21, 2025 on Century Media Records.

Pre-order Helldorado and stream the album's opening track, "Abilene Grime," here: 

https://spiritworld.lnk.to/Helldorado-AlbumPR

Stream the official "Abilene Grime" music video, here: 

https://youtube.com/watch?v=vbuFWWmfoOc

Visit the band's official merch store with exclusive vinyl and Helldorado merch, here:

https://spiritworldprophet.com/

SpiritWorld founder/frontman Stu Folsom offers these words: "I am thrilled to share that our new album, Helldorado, will be available everywhere, March 21st. We took most of last year off from playing shows, to hunker down and make this record with Sam Pura at the infamous Panda Studios."

Helldorado is the third chapter in SpiritWorld's infernal saga. The iconoclastic Folsom has been building the SpiritWorld universe since 2020, beginning with the band's debut, Pagan Rhythms, and blossoming on sophomore album Deathwestern, both released on Century Media. Distinct from any other band in the scene, SpiritWorld thrives in its own aesthetic realm, a place where thrashing hardcore, Wild West stylings, and supernatural horror dwell in macabre harmony. Clad in matching Western suits, Folsom and his boys have traveled the world with the likes of tours with Obituary, Municipal Waste, Kreator, Sepultura, Stick To Your Guns, and Agnostic Front. More than a musician, Folsom is an author too, and SpiritWorld's music goes hand in hand with Folsom's writings. The first two albums were soundtracks to his book, Godlessness, a series of Lovecraftian horror tales set in a fictional Old West. 

Assessing the anomaly that is SpiritWorld, Stereogum has hailed it as "a gory symphony that owes as much to Slayer as Cormac McCarthy" and as "a whole fleshed-out universe of pulpy sonic violence inspired by Westerns, horror, outlaw country, the occult, and the heavy metal classics of the late 20th century." Revolver Magazine has stated: "Their cinematic cowboy outfits, the Wild West lore in their songs, their off-the-wall music videos — all of it feels more like a multi-disciplinary art project than a mere metal band."

Now, with Helldorado, Folsom will demonstrate that everything thus far was merely the prelude. SpiritWorld is just getting started. Helldorado cements the band's brand, while making new moves that show the breadth of the potential in store.

A 3-minute hellride, opening track "Abilene Grime" begins as a feisty honky-tonk shuffle then transforms into a Slayer-strength fist-pumper that thrashes straight into the abyss. The official "Abilene Grime" music video brings the song to life with cinematic grandeur, depicting a doomed preacher's descent into the underworld.

"When I wrote the demo for 'Abilene Grime,' it felt like the album really found its identity and materialized out of the ether," says Folsom. "It twangs, it bangs and it has a sick video, directed by our dear friend Todd Hailstone, which we filmed in Las Vegas a few weeks ago. Enjoy, everybody!"

Across Helldorado's ten tracks, SpiritWorld indulges in metallic hardcore blitzes, world-weary country-punk stomps, and even a wistful, finger-picked lament. Folsom explains the diversity of the music: "This record, more so than the last two, I think you hear way more fearlessness and confidence in the choices. Things that were showing up as interludes have manifested into fully fleshed out pieces. At its heart, Helldorado is a punishing, unrelenting masterclass in crossover and hardcore thrash. But in a scene where every riff has been played before and every great band has thirty contemporary acolytes mining their catalog and doing worship albums, there is something in the strangeness of Helldorado that makes it endearing." Guests on the album include Sgah’gahsowáh (Black Braid), Zach Blair (Rise Against), and Frederic Leclercq (Kreator). 

Folsom continues: "Maybe it is a risk to incorporate things that will be pretty far out there for the casual punk or metalhead, but having the opportunity to make a record comes with a responsibility to me. I dreamed of making records for so long. Way before I could play guitar or do any of the practical things you need to be able to do. I take it very seriously to follow my gut and let my style hang out on these records. I only want to do things in life that I am all in on. If that makes me an outcast or even more fringe than your average underground music act then that's okay. The stench of being genuine is beautiful."

Lyrically, Helldorado explores new territory as well. While SpiritWorld's first two albums were companion pieces to Folsom's book, Godlessness, Helldorado moves beyond that book's pages, to tell the story of what happens next. "Godlessness leaves off in a cliffhanger where all the surviving characters have managed to arrive at a villa in Mexico near where a rumored gateway to hell is said to exist," says Folsom. "Helldorado is the first glimpse that fans will get into some of what is unfolding in the next novel that I am working on, that tells the story of what happens with these characters and the gates of hell."

Helldorado tracklist:
1) Abilene Grime
2) No Vacancy in Heaven
3) Western Stars & The Apocalypse
4) Bird Song of Death
5) Prayer Lips
6) Waiting on the Reaper
7) Oblivion
8) Cleansing
9) Stigmata Scars
10) Annihilism

Helldorado lineup:
Stu Folsom - vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, back ups, MIDI drums, sampling, synths, percussion
Preston Harper - drums

Nick Brundy - backing vocals
Matt Schrum - backing vocals

Randy Moore - lead guitar
RJ Demarco - saxophone, acoustic guitar
Jerico Horca - organ, keyboard
Sam Pura - bass, backing vocals
Theresa Brown - backing vocals
Sgah'gahsowáh - vocals on "Oblivion"

Zach Blair - electric guitar solo on "Oblivion"
Frederic Leclercq - electric guitar solo on "Stigmata Scars"

Helldorado credits:

All music and lyrics written by Stu Folsom

Engineered and mixed by Sam Pura
Mastered by Alberto de Icaza
Additional engineering by Stu Folsom and Theresa Brown
Cover art by James Bousema

Layout and design by Stu Folsom
Band photo by Jasmine Garcia