Weekly Roundup: August 26th
Featuring Wildheart, Frost Koffin, Squint, and more.
EDITOR’S NOTE: I'm sorry for the late newsletter. I went for 41 hours without sleep (don’t ask) and forgot to schedule this one for yesterday. My bad.
ERRONEOUS BOTCH:
Last week, Sydney fuzz-fiends Regionals celebrated the launch of their debut full-length Spoonbender, an exceptional album four long years in the making. Guitarist, songwriter, and backing vocalist Aaron Costello joined the show to chat about the group’s intentional progression from urgent alt-rock and emo to a more experimental, triple-guitar, wall-of-sound shoegaze approach. We discuss the challenges of writing and recording during the pandemic and how meaningful connection with art transcends the fleeting chase of fame. It’s a fun one. Check it out below:
Additionally, if you like what I do here, signing up for the TPD Patreon is the best way to support me, support the show, and help keep the lights on.
We’ve got perks and fun stuff over there, with more on the way, so please do me a solid and check it out. *salute emoji*
Now, on with the words…
SIDE A:
A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to.
Foxing – “Hell 99”
I honestly didn’t know St. Louis alternative trio Foxing had this in them. Both teasers (the eight-minute slowburn “Greyhound” and the track below) from their upcoming self-titled record sound utterly at odds with 2021’s slick and poppy Draw Down The Moon LP, yet I’m strangely here for it.
More left-turns and sonic about-faces in contemporary music, please. More weird shit. More big, swing-for-the-fences type risks. Let’s make something worth talking about, shall we? Watch the video for “Hell 99” below:
Thy Catafalque – XII: A Gyönyörü Álmok Ezután Jönnek
Starting in 1998 as a fiery black metal outfit, Tamás Kátai’s Thy Catafalque project has evolved into something more wide-ranging and creatively rich. A Gyönyörü Álmok Ezután Jönnek (English translation: Beautiful Dreams Come After This), the band's sprawling twelfth full-length, out November 15th through Season of Mist, was recorded in Kátai’s native Hungary, across the world (United Kingdom, Romania, Ukraine, Italy, Spain, Greece, North Macedonia, Israel, U.S.A., Colombia, Brazil), and features 20+ guest musicians, including familiar faces from inside and outside of the Hungarian metal scene. Stream the LP’s pre-release singles here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Wildheart – “Withered”
A metalcore band with member changes? Stop the presses! All jokes aside, Meanjin/Brisbane outfit Wildheart have retooled their lineup as they enter an exciting new chapter. Byron Bay figure Dane Evans (Crime Scene, Deceiver, Sink or Swim) has stepped up to the mic, with their former vocalist and Yugambeh man Axel Best moving to guitar, a position better suited to ease his growing anxiety. Their first single with this lineup bangs and fans of melodic metalcore acts like the underrated It Prevails will surely dig what’s on offer here. Listen to “Withered” here.
Belle Haven – Something New
Speaking of underrated, Naarm/Melbourne-based alt-rockers Belle Haven announced a new EP titled Something New, which will be released on October 4th through independent release. The first single off the record, “fauxlove,” was produced by Jack Newlyn (Between You & Me, Bukowski) and mixed by James Paul Wisner (Paramore), with frontman David De La Hoz exploring the “intricate and conflicting emotions of craving love and intimacy while simultaneously fearing it.” Stream the EP’s pre-release singles here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Fuse – “War”
I’m excited to check out Lion City hardcore flag bearers Fuse this week, with the Singapore quintet making their Australian debut on tour with local legends SPEED, Pain of Truth (US), and High Vis (UK). The full line-up is insane, and Fuse have a new track to add to the set, so that’s another perk right there. It’s got fast rhythms, a sick groove, and pissed vocals—aka, it rips. Listen to “War” here.
SIDE B:
More tracks for you. Deep cuts for the real heads. Still cool.
Squint – Big Hand
I’ve been following St. Louis punks Squint for years, and they’re finally coming through with their much-anticipated full-length debut. The Big Hand LP will arrive on October 25th through the good folks at Sunday Drive Records. According to the press bio, the record’s title references “the constant moving of time on a clock—[which] can gather a sense of anxiety, excitement, hope and hopelessness. In a more literal sense, a big hand can pack a punch, swell, break and recover.” Stream the LP’s pre-release singles here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Frost Koffin – “BREAKIN FINGAZ”
Texas has a tremendous death-thrash-inspired metal lineage (Power Trip, Iron Age, Creeping Death, Frozen Soul, to name a few), and I was stoked to find a new band in that tradition through Dallas quartet Frost Koffin. From what I can tell, they’ve been laying low since 2022 but perked back up recently with their “MASS MANIPULATOR” single, which snuck into my YouTube algorithm some time ago.
The group’s latest single is similar: lightning-fast thrash licks, punchy drums, and gravelly vocals with just a dash of alt-metal sheen on the hooks. It’s a potent mix, and the whole package rocks. Watch the clip for “BREAKIN FINGAZ” below:
Homebody – New Heaven b/w Cold Shoulder
Last year, I shouted out Tuscaloosa post-hardcore project Homebody for two excellent singles, “Hindsight” and “Universal Language”. Jordan from the band reached out once again last week and sent through a preview of their newest release: the two-track single, New Heaven & Cold Shoulder. This is for you if you’re into urgent post-hardcore with great production and catchy vocal lines. In the meantime, I’ll keep my fingers crossed for an LP on the horizon. Stream the two-track in full here (Spotify).
FEATURE ALBUM:
A closer, more in-depth look at a new record that ticks all my boxes.
Fontaines D.C. – Romance
It’s an all-too-common trope to say that “love is pain”. But stay with me here: Do we really think such a frivolous observation wouldn’t persist if it weren’t based on a small, subconscious kernel of truth?
As anyone who’s been in a romantic relationship with another human being—sexual or otherwise—can attest, love is hard (won), and sometimes the presence and/or absence of it in your life can be genuinely painful and debilitating.
After exploring the dislocation they felt as part of the Irish diaspora on their phenomenal third LP, Skinty Fia, indie outfit Fontaines D.C. have turned to Romance and the extrapersonal desires that shape our sense of self. And without burying the lead too much, the result thrillingly catalogues the many complicated contours of pain and ecstasy (“Here’s The Thing”), lust and loneliness (“Desire”), belonging and failure (“Death Kink”).
Stream here: Bandcamp | Spotify