Weekly Roundup: April 18th
Featuring Dead Tired, Ceremony, Primitive Man, and more.
MOSH PITHY:
A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to.
Dead Tired – “Domestic”
Hamilton, Ontario rockers Dead Tired are roaring back with a brand new album, the creepily titled Satan Will Follow You Home, out July 8th through New Damage Records. The last time I heard from the group, they popped up on the second season of the anti-superhero series The Boys. The first taste of their latest record comes in one half of double lead single “Domestic / New World Pigs,” which takes a slightly more meditative stoner rock detour away from their full-throttle hardcore punk roots. Watch the video for “Domestic” below:
Temple of Void – Summoning The Slayer
2020’s The World That Was was one of my favourite death-doom records of that eternally cursed Plague Year, so I’m stoked to see that Detroit metallers Temple of Void are back with another slab of brutal, existential skull-crusher anthems. Produced, mixed, and mastered by engineer extraordinaire Arthur Rizk (Power Trip, Sumerlands, Candy), Summoning The Slayer is set for release on June 8th through the Michigan quintet’s new label home at Relapse Records. Stream the LP’s pre-release single here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Dear Seattle – “Feel The Weight”
Aussie alt-rockers Dear Seattle have unveiled details surrounding the forthcoming release of their sophomore LP. With producer/engineer Scott Horscroft (Silverchair, Dune Rats, Middle Kids) behind the helm, Someday (out June 17th via Domestic La La) sees frontman Brae Fisher exploring anxiety and internal criticism through the quartet’s anthemic blend of alternative, indie, and pop-punk. I’ve always had a soft spot for these guys, and they know how to write a world-class sticky hook, so I’m hoping their new LP has some new angsty bangers in the mix. Listen to “Feel The Weight” here.
Ceremony – Vanity Spawned by Fear
Listening to Vanity Spawned By Fear, it’s wild to think that this is the same band who once performed tracks like “My Hands Are Made Of Spite” and “Open Head”. I mean, it’s hardly controversial to say, but Ceremony have never made the same record twice, and their nearly two-decade-long career includes everything from powerviolence and grindcore to garage rock, post-punk, and new wave. On their latest 7-inch, the band offer up two more tasty morsels, this time pivoting into brighter, more uplifting soundscapes with shades of glam and shimmering synths. Stream the two-track single here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
High Vis – “Talk for Hours”
Proving that the London punk scene is the epicentre of cool shit right now, Brit punks High Vis have announced their signing to Dais Records and are hinting at the possibility of a new album release later this year. In the meantime, they’ve dropped a new single in the form of “Talk for Hours,” a churning mid-tempo rocker that showcases the band’s knack for crafting pub-floor melodies and swirling urban textures perfect for staring into the foamy bottom of an empty pint. Listen to “Talk for Hours” here.
Primitive Man – Insurmountable
In 2020, I reviewed Primitive Man’s Immersion LP for Exclaim!, describing it as “the sonic equivalent of a black hole—dark, violent, unfathomably dense—rapaciously devouring all light and matter, ripping apart the very fabric of spacetime. It’s about as close as we can get to hearing the entropic heat death of the universe and our slow, inexorable march to nothingness.” The Denver trio is the very definition of H.E.A.V.Y. and their new four-track EP for Closed Casket Activities, Insurmountable (out May 13th), is nothing less than sheer aural hatred and disgust. Stream the EP’s pre-release single here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Loss Becomes – “Demons”
Described as a “metal band with hardcore tendencies,” NYC bruisers Loss Becomes sound like something ripped straight from a Trustkill/Ferret Records CD sampler circa 2006: coarse, shouted vocals, chunky beatdown moments, southern fried rock riffage, the occasional cheeky pinch harmonic, and a locked-in rhythm section. The quartet have recently dropped a handful of singles, and a new full-length album may also be on the cards. Watch the performance video for “Demons” below:
Warthog – S/T
One of the truisms of music writing is the inevitability of comparison. No one really wants to say that XYZ band sounds like “AB meets CD,” but it’s an easy linguistic shorthand that sacrifices uniqueness for the utility of the familiar. This is all just a fancy way of saying that when I read a description of Warthog as “sounds like Mötorhead and the Ramones,” I was instantly sold on the prospect of the band without even needing the music. Thankfully, the NYC metal-punk juggernaut more than live up to such a bold proposition, and I can’t wait to dive into their upcoming self-titled EP, out May 6th on Toxic State/Static Shock. Stream the EP’s pre-release single here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Listen to all these tracks and more on the TPD 2022 TUNES playlist, updated weekly.
HEAVY METTLE:
A closer, more in-depth look at a new record that ticks all my boxes.
Puffer – Live and Die in the City (Demo 2022)
Despite my best efforts, I know very little about Puffer. I can glean from their Bandcamp profile that they’re a quintet who recently recorded their five-track demo in Montreal. They’re also playing a sold-out show at Turbo Haüs in Montreal at the end of the month, so my hunch is that they're at least based in Montreal. But again, this is entirely a hunch.
However, what I do know is that their new demo—Live and Die in the City—absolutely rules, and it’s some of the most infectious, no-frills dive bar hardcore punk I’ve heard this year. The EP’s excellent title track crackles with energy that feels like The Bronx mainlining adrenaline, especially with the track’s simplistic and penetrating hook. It’s a spectacular earworm and also something that you could easily picture yourself getting shivved to. (I’ve listened to it at least twenty times this week, and it’s since been on constant repeat in my head, completely uninvited.)
Other tracks like “Puppet,” “Suffering,” and “Wicked Boys” launch into jangly leads and scattershot snare fills, going straight for the throat with unrelenting tempos and clench-fisted performances. Fans of R’n’R, The Chisel, Chubby and the Gang, Spiritual Cramp, and any sort of Oi!-adjacent punk rock should definitely seek this EP out.