Thursday, June 26, 2025

KING YOSEF - Spire of Fear


KING YOSEF: industrial-hardcore auteur announces new album Spire of Fear; "Molting Fear" music video streaming now

King Yosef announces new full-length album Spire of Fear, to be released August 15th via Bleakhouse.

Pre-order Spire of Fear, here:

Stream the official music video for the album's first single, "Molting Fear," here:

Initially earning acclaim as a hip-hop producer, Portland, Oregon-based auteur Tayves Yosef Pelletier has been self-releasing music under the King Yosef name since 2017. Having worked with some of the most notorious rappers of the 2010s, he founded the King Yosef solo project as a space in which to explore his other musical obsessions. As King Yosef, Pelletier has been gradually perfecting a searing brand of industrialized hardcore that marries electronic and metallic elements in stunning fashion and seeks catharsis through deeply personal lyrics.

The passion and intensity have been on display since from the very start, expressed through a slew of self-released music, including a collaborative album with Youth Code and the 2023 breakthrough, An Underlying Hum, which Revolver Magazine championed as "a scathing onslaught of heavy hardcore chugs a la Code Orange and wire-sparking industrial-metal fuckery."

But, within the past two years, a transition has occurred; the intensity has ramped up sharply. Without a manager or booking agent, Pelletier transformed King Yosef from a bedroom project into a formidable live act, dominating stages across the globe. In the wake of An Underlying Hum's release, King Yosef completed North American tours with Converge and HEALTH and ventured to Australia, Japan, Europe and the UK. Playing the coveted Roadburn in 2024, King Yosef received these words from the festival's organizers: "A dizzying yet coherent amalgam of sticky beats, chilling interludes and scathing vitriol... As a festival, we like to push boundaries and embrace heavy music in all its forms. We see a kindred spirit in King Yosef."

"The role of King Yosef in my life transformed," states Pelletier, "from a place I went when I was waiting for production projects to release, to becoming my main source of creative fulfillment." Now, in the summer of 2025, Spire of Fear marks the next chapter. Spire of Fear is the album that shows King Yosef to have progressed, from a mere project, to a full-fledged, full-time commitment. 

Written, produced, and performed by Pelletier, Spire of Fear was recorded and mixed at the legendary GodCity Studio with longtime King Yosef collaborators Kurt Ballou and Zach Weeks. The album was mastered by Alan Douches. 

The album's first single "Molting Fear" is a mosh anthem that goes straight for the throat, delivering titanic bursts of metallic hardcore laced with squelching electronics. Like a great fighter, "Molting Fear" shifts gears unpredictably, disorienting as it pummels. An underlying tone of pure dread is the unifier. 

“The idea of this song was to try to push the King Yosef thing as far as I possibly could, without any guitars," Pelletier reveals. "There’s no traditional instrumentation on this, other than drums. I wanted to make something where it got bigger in a shorter span of time than anything I’ve done before. It was about blurring the lines of 'what is this instrument, what is that sound,' and taking it to a very terrifying place.”

The song's official music video, directed by George Douglas Peterson, was shot on location inside a monolithic, abandoned nuclear power plant near Kurt Cobain's hometown of Aberdeen, Washington.

Throughout Spire of Fear, the belligerence of tracks like "Molting Fear" is balanced by murky balladry, evoking the chronically gloomy landscapes of Pelletier's native Oregon. Comprising King Yosef's most gentle and most lethal work to date, the album synthesizes Pelletier's wide array of influences, a list that includes artists ranging from Godflesh and Nails, to Portishead, Aphex Twin, and The Stone Roses.

Where An Underlying Hum was about the past – a deep dive into Pelletier's own childhood trauma, inspired by his time spent in therapy – Spire of Fear addresses the present and future. 
"After An Underlying Hum, I answered a lot of my own questions and then had to look forward and figure out what navigating the rest of my life was about," he says. "Turns out, it's about showing up, being accountable and not turning away from the things that I fear, because the implications of turning away are far worse than the fear."

Where An Underlying Hum dug into Pelletier's own personal story, Spire of Fear looks beyond the self, toward broader human experience: 
"Zooming out of the context of your own life, you realize that things have gone on before you and will go on after. So as long as you can face something head on and move through it, you’re probably going to be alright and the path shows itself from there."

The selflessness of Spire of Fear is reflected in Pelletier's real-life actions of the past two years. Through tireless work, Pelletier has risen to become a central figure of the Portland, Oregon scene, building a community of musicians and artists around his label, Bleakhouse, and his annual festival, Bleakfest. He refers to Spire of Fear as "a community-based record."

"Spire of Fear is influenced by Portland, because I am inspired by my friends," he states. "Between the time you spend together hanging out, going to each other’s shows or being at the studio when each of us record, it sort of all bleeds together into this amazing thing that creates a sound for where we are at. Portland’s DIY scene is consistently growing and transforming into the best version of itself I have seen since moving here 10 years ago."

Tracklist:
1) Feoil
2) Molting Fear
3) Glimmer
4) Vi Coactus
5) Lichen
6) Doomtown
7) Wither
8) Blue Morning
9) Walter
10) Spire of Fear
11) Everything's Point of Origin


All music and lyrics by Tayves Yosef Pelletier
Produced by Tayves Yosef Pelletier
Engineered by Kurt Ballou and Zach Weeks
Mixed by Kurt Ballou
Mastered by Alan Douches

Tayves Yosef Pelletier - vocals, guitar, programming
Kameron Tyler - live drums
Ryan Osterman - guest vocals on "Glimmer"
The Bleakhouse Choir - backing vocals on "Doomtown"

Photos by Harper King

Friday, June 20, 2025

Out today: JOLIETTE - Pérdidas Variables


Pérdidas Variables, the new album by Mexico City post-hardcore dynamo Joliette, is out today on Persistent Vision Records.

A pillar of the Mexican scene, the quartet takes the urgency of screamo and laces it with brooding, post-metal grandeur. The band has stated that the new album is a meditation on their home of Mexico City. Vocalist Gastón Prado screams in his native Spanish yet his earnest voice transcends language barriers, transmitting universal angst.

Stream the album, here: https://joliette.bandcamp.com/album/p-rdidas-variables-2

Pre-order the album, here: https://persistentvisionrecords.com/products/joliette-perdidas-variables-lp

"In classic screamo fashion, Joliette are able to convey that sense of longing and beauty with music that scans as harsh and aggressive on the surface. If you find yourself gravitating towards heavy/beautiful stuff like Envy, Deafheaven, and Touché Amoré, make sure you’re keeping your ears peeled for the new Joliette album."
–BrooklynVegan

"Founded in 2011, Joliette has long operated in the blurry space between emotional hardcore, chaotic screamo, and post-metal—moving with the surgical heaviness of bands like Cult of Luna, while channeling the raw urgency of groups like Raein or Saetia. On Pérdidas Variables, the quartet once again pulls tension from opposites: chaos and order, collapse and control, private loss and collective trauma."
–Idioteq

"A rabid post-hardcore onslaught... Progressive and twisted but always charging forward at full fucking force."
–Louder

"A kind of revelry, bursting at the seams with energy. The drums set up a vivid clatter; the big bass-throbs feel like the pulse of the earth beneath our feet; the guitar sizzles and slashes through the tumult in piercing and sometimes stridently dissonant tones; the high-pitched hardcore vocals spray blood."
–No Clean Singing

Photo by Alejandra Juangorena

Monday, June 16, 2025

HEAVY HALO - "Bloodrush"


HEAVY HALO: alt-industrial alchemists channel Depeche Mode on new single "Bloodrush"; summer tour with Light Asylum announced


Heavy Halo has revealed new single "Bloodrush" from its forthcoming album, Damaged Dream.

Stream the track, here: 
https://youtu.be/RWHCUqkZqEg

Pre-order the album, out July 25th on Silent Pendulum Records, here: 
https://silentpendulumrecords.com/collections/heavy-halo

Based in New York City, Heavy Halo is the duo of vocalist/guitarist McKeever and producer Gosteffects. Working out of Spellsound Studios, located inside a historic, 19th-century Brooklyn hospital building, the pair meld metallic guitars, frenetic beats, and yearning vocals into industrialized alt-rock anthems for the next generation. Reference points include Nine Inch Nails, Smashing Pumpkins, and HEALTH. 

New Noise describes the new single, "Bloodrush," as "a pulse-pounding, fast-paced industrial rock track that brings together the power of rock, the slickness of electronic elements, and McKeever’s clean, crisp vocals."

McKeever states: "'Bloodrush' embodies everything we want a Heavy Halo song to be: shot through with adrenaline and sexuality and searching for an alchemy of industrial noise and melody. We took a cue from our heroes Depeche Mode’s 'Enjoy The Silence' which warns about how words can ruin the moments of intoxicating desire... 'Words are very unnecessary, they can only do harm.' But because we lack British charm, we expressed it way less elegantly: 'Don’t talk just touch, don’t think just fuck.'"

Heavy Halo will tour the East Coast in July with darkwave powerhouse Light Asylum. Purchase tickets, here: https://linktr.ee/lightasylum_heavyhalo_tour

July 15 - Brooklyn, NY @ TV Eye
July 16 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Dolphin
July 17 - Baltimore, MD @ Mobtown Ballroom
July 18 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Spirit
July 19 - Richmond, VA @ Cobra
July 21 - Raleigh, NC @ Kings
July 22 - Washington, DC @ Pie Shop
July 23 - Medford, MA @ Deep Cuts
July 24 - Providence, RI @ Gettie’s
July 25 - Kingston, NY @ Tubby’s
July 26 - Montreal, QC @ Cabaret Fouf’s

Photo by Tori McGraw



Friday, June 13, 2025

PYGMY LUSH - "It Wasn't a Compliment (Martial Law Blues)"


PYGMY LUSH: reunited Pageninetynine offshoot releases rocking new single "It Wasn't a Compliment (Martial Law Blues)" from long-lost masterpiece "TOTEM"

Virginia collective Pygmy Lush has revealed new single "It Wasn't a Compliment (Martial Law Blues)" from its upcoming album TOTEM.

Stream the song, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uZQh9q87VE

Founded in the mid-2000s as an experimental offshoot of the band Pageninetynine, Pygmy Lush has existed as an outlier from the start, following no script, with output ranging from Pageninetynine-caliber screamo to fragile Americana. After a long hiatus, the band is active again, making recent appearances at festivals such as Roadburn, Dark Days Bright Nights, and Prepare the Ground.

Recorded with Converge's Kurt Ballou at GodCity Studio in 2016, TOTEM was initially shelved by the band and never saw the light of day until now. The album will finally be released for the first time, July 11th via Persistent Vision Records. Pre-order the album, here: https://persistentvisionrecords.com/products/pygmy-lush-totem

Although it was recorded nearly a decade ago, TOTEM is a monumental work of art that feels absolutely fresh and vital in 2025. A feast for the ears and the heart, TOTEM is an engrossing display of musical freedom, backed by authentic emotion. There are songs that rage, songs that rock, and songs that cruise hypnotically. From bruising noise rock, teetering on the edge of hardcore, to meditative refrains that roll along like trains through moonlit valleys, it moves in its own ways, unhindered by genre.

Pygmy Lush guitarist Mike Taylor describes the new single, "It Wasn't a Compliment (Martial Law Blues)," as "a noise rock grunge laden punk ripper by a bunch of punkers who were on a steady diet of Sebadoh, Born Against and Nirvana in 1994" – a contrast to the album's first single, the lush, melancholy "February Song."

With TOTEM set to be released to the world on July 11th and effectively closing the book on that chapter of the band's history, Mike Taylor states: "Yes, we will be writing new music ASAP."

Photos by Elulu Photos

Friday, June 6, 2025

CAR BOMB - Tiles Whisper Dreams


CAR BOMB: extreme metal innovators celebrate 25th year with new EP "Tiles Whisper Dreams"; first single "Paroxysm" streaming now; tours of Europe and Australia announced

Founded in 2000, Car Bomb celebrates its 25th year with the August 1, 2025 release of new EP Tiles Whisper Dreams.

Consisting of three new tracks, Tiles Whisper Dreams is the band's first new music to be released since 2019's Mordial album.

Stream the EP's first single, Paroxysm," here: 
https://carbomb.bandcamp.com/album/tiles-whisper-dreams

In a genre built on shock and awe, it is tough to be shocking or awe-inspiring these days. With metal in its sixth decade, making an impact is an increasingly difficult feat. The ceiling is red with the blood of straight-line shredders futilely competing for the attention of desensitized ears.

Car Bomb is that rare metal band that has found a pathway through the ceiling – a wormhole, if you will – and has occupied a position of radical transcendence for a quarter-century now. In its 25 years of existence, the New York City-area quartet has been sculpting its own signature sound and cementing its identity as an outlier, above the fray, inspiring a legion of younger musicians in the process.

Car Bomb's sound is that of perpetual transformation: a spiraling flurry of rhythm and texture that congeals, fleetingly, into planet-pulverizing death-grooves and fragments of haunting melodies. Baffling rhythmic modulations and deep-space guitar effects appear to warp time completely. Disorientation is the rule, not the exception. 

"Their psychotic turbo-thrash is disgustingly disorienting," reads one Kerrang! review. "One relentless onslaught of time-chopping violence."

A Stereogum review describes the style as "a rhythmically abstruse variety of extreme metal... hallucinatory time-stretching."

Car Bomb guitarist Greg Kubacki puts it like this: "When someone asks me what we sound like, I always ask them ‘what’s the heaviest band you listen to?’ and then I say it’s either 10x, 100x, or 1,000x crazier than that, depending on their answer. We aspire to create our own style of heavy music by bending everything: the notes, time signatures, tempos, sonic quality of the guitars, etc. We’re always pushing and pulling everything, ripping ideas apart and then squashing them back together. And as a result our songs might sound chaotic at first, but as they progress the patterns, grooves, and motifs embedded inside all of the mangling and warping will reveal themselves and evolve in unexpected ways. Most people won’t get that deep into our stuff and will just hear a pile of noise, which is fine with us. We’re creating the kind of music we want to hear and that’s all we care about.”

"Paroxysm," the first single from the new EP, Tiles Whisper Dreams, reveals a revitalized Car Bomb, seemingly chomping at the bit with all the fury of a band half its age. "This is our first release since before COVID," states Kubacki, "and we really tried to put our 100% into these songs." 

In under 3 minutes, the aptly-titled "Paroxysm" delivers a barrage of semi-automatic drum-fire and viscous guitars, conjoined in inscrutable patterns. Vocalist Michael Dafferner mostly roars but lets his singing voice shine in one brief, glistening moment. The song is about "the never-ending struggle with power and control," he says.

One could spend weeks trying to calculate the twists and turns of Car Bomb's compositions but, zoom out, surrender to the chaos, and there is another experience to be had: complete catharsis. While there is joy in trying to dissect the elite chops and maniacal arrangements that Dafferner, Kubacki, bassist Jon Modell, and drummer Elliot Hoffman put forth, there is also joy in reveling in the ineffable, unknowable spaces their confounding music explores. The fact that this band continues to explore, 25 years in, makes it one of the real treasures of today's metal scene.

Drum tracking and vocal pre-production for Tiles Whisper Dreams were done at Silvercord Studio in Queens, New York, the studio owned by Joe Duplantier of Gojira. Kubacki describes Silvercord as "our home away from home." Guitars, bass, and vocals were recorded at the band members' respective home studios. The album was mixed by Johann Meyer at Silvercord and mastered by Grammy Award winner Ted Jensen (The Eagles, Green Day).

Car Bomb will tour Europe and the UK in August, including dates with Gojira, Between the Buried and Me, and Imperial Triumphant, followed by a September tour of Australia, supporting Animals as Leaders – Car Bomb's first time ever in Australia.


Aug 7 - Jaromer, CZ @ Brutal Assault Fest
Aug 8 - Berlin, DE @ Cassiopeia
Aug 9 - Karlsruhe, DE @ P8
Aug 10 - Utrecht, NL @ Pandora *
Aug 12 - Oberhausen, DE @ Turbinenhalle Δ
Aug 14 - Nottingham, UK @ Rock City Beta
Aug 15 - Bristol, UK @ ArcTanGent Fest
Aug 16 - London, UK @ Oslo
Aug 18 - Copenhagen, DK @ Vega #
Aug 19 - Stockholm, SE @ Bar Brooklyn #
Aug 20 - Oslo, NO @ Goldie #
Aug 21 - Aalborg, DK @ SH35 #
Aug 22 - Kiel, DE @ Kieler Schaubude #
Aug 23 - Haarlem, NL @ Complexity Fest #
Sep 12 - Adelaide, AU @ Hindley Street Music Hall ∞
Sep 14 - Brisbane, AU @ The Tivoli ∞
Sep 18 - Melbourne, AU @ Forum ∞
Sep 19 - Sydney, AU @ Enmore Theatre ∞
Sep 21 - Perth, AU @ Magnet House ∞

* = Between the Buried and Me
Δ = Gojira
# = Imperial Triumphant
∞ = Animals as Leaders

Tiles Whisper Dreams tracklist:
1) Blindsides
2) Paroxysm
3) Tiles Whisper Dreams

Lineup:
Michael Dafferner - vocals
Greg Kubacki - guitar
Jon Modell - bass
Elliot Hoffman - drums

Discography:
Tiles Whisper Dreams (2025, Self-Released)
Live in Santa Cruz (2023, Self-Released)
Mordial (2019, Self-Released)
Meta (2016, Self-Released)
w^w^^w^w (2012, Self-Released)
Centralia (2007, Relapse Records)

Friday, May 23, 2025

JOLIETTE - "Limítrofe"


JOLIETTE: Mexico City post-hardcore dynamo reveals new single "Limítrofe"; European tour enters UK


With its new album, Pérdidas Variables, coming June 20th on Persistent Vision Records, Mexico City-based post-hardcore dynamo Joliette reveals the album's second single, "Limítrofe."

Stream "Limítrofe," here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UGAKmvySWk

Pre-order the album, here: https://persistentvisionrecords.com/products/joliette-perdidas-variables-lp

Founded in 2011, Joliette has become a force in the Mexican scene, playing shows with the likes of Converge and Touché Amoré and releasing music via Zegema Beach Records. On the upcoming new album, Pérdidas Variables, the quartet takes the urgency of scene heroes like Saetia and Raein and laces it with the brooding, post-metal grandeur of Neurosis or Cult of Luna. Screaming in his native Spanish, Gastón Prado's earnest voice transcends language barriers, transmitting universal angst.

Announcing the new album last month, BrooklynVegan praised Joliette's "ability to fuse passion, aggression, and melody in classic-yet-fresh screamo fashion." The band has revealed that the album is a meditation on their home of Mexico City. 

Of the new single, guitarist Juan Pablo Castillo states: "'Limítrofe' is about the feeling of living on the edge, both physically and emotionally. It captures that moment of uncertainty when you're caught between two spaces, unsure of where you stand. The lyrics reflect the tension that comes with being on the threshold of something new, yet also trapped in the pull of what’s familiar. It’s a track that wrestles with personal, societal, and even geographic boundaries, while asking the listener to consider where they belong and how they navigate that liminal space."

Joliette is currently entering the final stretch of a month-long tour of the UK and Europe, with these dates remaining:

May 22 - Norwich, UK @ Voodoo Daddy’s
May 23 - Nottingham, UK @ JT Soar
May 24 - London, UK @ Portals Festival
May 25 - Bristol, UK @ Exchange Basement
May 27 - Paris, FR @ Le Klub
May 28 - Aromas, FR @ A la Vieille Ecole
May 29 - Cassano d´Adda, IT @ Solidar Rock Fest
May 30 - Zurich, CH @ Ebrietas

Photo by Alejandra Juangorena
Live photo by Alberto Rondin

Tuesday, May 20, 2025

CATERWAUL this weekend


CATERWAUL: 2025 festival kicks off Friday in Minneapolis;
Pissed Jeans, Uniform, Young Widows set to perform

After months of planning, the fourth installment of the annual Caterwaul is here, kicking off Friday, May 23rd in Minneapolis. 

Across four days and three Minneapolis venues – 331, Mortimer's, and Zhora Darling – Caterwaul promises a full immersion into the noisy, iconoclastic fringes of rock, with performances by Buildings, Deaf Club, FACS, Kowloon Walled City, Pissed Jeans, Uniform, Young Widows, and dozens more.

In a new feature about the festival, posted this month, New Noise Magazine states: "Caterwaul season is upon us... The fest brings together some of the best underground rock acts in existence today."

Interviewed by New Noise, Young Widows’ Evan Patterson enthuses: “All non-corporate festivals are vital for all music scenes. Caterwaul is bringing together bands with similar aesthetics that may or may not be aware of one another. It’s exciting.”

The Minnesota Star Tribune placed Caterwaul on their "Critics' Picks" list this week, stating: "This fourth annual, four-day noisemakers’ fest is proof positive weird things can still thrive in the music biz... Genres range from sludgy metal to experimental electro-punk and basically anything loud and on the fringe."

Local Minneapolis scene authority Racket reports: "The noisiest music fest in the North returns on Memorial Day weekend, serving up a plethora of loud guitars and great band names."

Caterwaul founders Conan Neutron, Rainer Fronz, and Melanie Thomas say they are intent on fostering a sense of community that transcends any one musical genre, viewing Caterwaul as a means to unite all people on the loud and eccentric side of the fence. "In a world of Coachellas, be a Caterwaul," they proclaim.

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

This year's official poster was created by Minneapolis designer Miss Amy Jo.

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 - Virga
7:30 pm - Blacklighter

Saturday, May 24 @ Zhora Darling

1:15 am - Naw
12:15 pm - ¿WATCHES?
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