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
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