There’s only one snippet posted on Instagram, and I couldn’t even manage to embed that properly — for what it’s worth, the track is called “Daylight in the Dark” — but SoftSun is a new trio featuring guitarist Gary Arce of Yawning Man, Big Scenic Nowhere, Zun, Ten East and copious others on the branches of one of desert rock’s broadest-reaching family trees, bassist/vocalist Pia Isaksen, aka Pia Isa for her solo work, of Norwegian atmospheric heavy nodders Superlynx, and drummer/recording engineer Dan Joeright, who in addition to playing in Earth Moon Earth runs the helm at Gatos Trail Recording Studio, where Yawning Man, Blasting Rod, The Freeks, Behold the Monolith and many more have recorded.

The roots of the collab would seem to be Arce‘s appearance on Pia Isa‘s 2022 album, Distorted Chants (review here), but either way, SoftSun have already been picked up to release their yet-untitled debut LP through Ripple Music sometime in the next however long, and if you do chase down that brief glimpse of “Daylight in the Dark” (which I’d suggest as your next stop), you’ll likely understand quickly why that’s something to look forward to.

Some background and label comment, from socials:

Says Ripple Music: Stoked to be bringing you this amazingly cool project! Please welcome SoftSun to the Ripple family!!

SoftSun is, left to right:

Dan Joeright (drums) who also plays in cosmic rock collective Earth Moon Earth, is a former member of The Rentals and has toured with many bands including Sasquatch and Ed Mundell. He is also the owner of the amazing Gatos Trail – Recording Studio in Yucca Valley where SoftSun record their music, and does the recording and mixing.

Pia Isaksen (bass/vocals) from Moss, Norway has played and written music most of her life and has spent a decade in heavy psych band Superlynx. She also has a dronegazey solo project called PIA ISA, and will release her second solo album this year.

Gary Arce (guitar) from La Quinta, California, known from Yawning Man, FATSO JETSON, Ten East, Dark Tooth Encounter, Big Scenic Nowhere, Yawning Balch etc. Since playing in the desert as young punk kid he has developed a unique style of playing and is known to create the most beautiful and dreamy sounds and melodies that sound like no one else. And he can never get enough foot pedals.

Photo by @aaronfarinelli

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61557870166741
https://www.instagram.com/softsunofficial/

https://www.facebook.com/theripplemusic/
https://www.instagram.com/ripplemusic/
https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/
http://www.ripple-music.com/

SoftSun, “Daylight in the Dark” snippet

 

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I guess at some point between the first announcement and now, Spirit Adrift and Fistula dropped off the lineup for Mutants of the Monster 2024, but fair enough for Cancerslug and Left Lane Cruiser to sign on and Little Rock, Arkansas, hometown post-sludge heroes Rwake — whose frontman Chris “CT” Terry is behind the fest — to make a return appearance along with a slew of others from the Southeast US and beyond. Anytime Deadbird show up just about anywhere, it’s notable, never mind tour-buddies Weedeater and Telekinetic Yeti stopping through or John Garcia doing a solo set that pretty much guarantees everyone in attendance will be able to go home saying they watched him do Kyuss‘ “Whitewater” in person.

Also known as Mutants Fest for short, the three-dayer is set for May 16-18 in North Little Rock, and looks like a good, intermittently harsh time. The PR wire brought the final lineup and ticket links so you still have some time to get your travel plans together:

MUTANTS OF THE MONSTER FEST 2024 Reveals Final Lineup, Announces Special Sale for National Concert Week

Featuring John Garcia (Formerly of Kyuss), Weedeater, Telekinetic Yeti, Rebelmatic, Cancerslug (Just added), Deadbird, Rwake (Just added!), Flummox + more!

Taking place in North Little Rock, AR at the Argenta Community Theater and Four Quarter Bar from May 16-18!

Get passes here: https://www.lastchancerecords.com/

MUTANTS OF THE MONSTER FEST will return in 2024 to Little Rock, AR from May 16-18! The multi-day festival will take place in the Argenta Arts District and has revealed the final lineup, which now includes the new additions of CANCERSLUG and RWAKE. The full lineup can be found below!

In honor of National Concert Week, the festival is now offering a special discount on tickets and passes that will run until this Tuesday, May 7 @ 11:59 P.M. EDT. Currently, fans can score single day tickets for Friday and Saturday for only $20 while a full festival pass is temporarily discounted at $95! Passes are now available HERE and will cover both stages for all three days of the event.

The full lineup is as follows:

JOHN GARCIA (Formerly of Kyuss playing all of the hits!)
WEEDEATER
DEADBIRD
TELEKINETIC YETI
DEEPSTARIA ENIGMATICA
MEDICINE HORSE
ADAM FAUCETT
REBELMATIC
FLUMMOX
WHETHER
SEAHAG
OROROR
CRANKBAIT
MAMMOTH CARAVAN
SPORTS
DIREWOLF
RWAKE
CANCERSLUG

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100057305925445
https://www.instagram.com/mutantsofthemonsterfest/
https://www.lastchancerecords.com/

Rwake, Live at Mutants of the Monster 2022

With a June 7 release date impending, preorders are open through Majestic Mountain and Interstellar Smoke Records for the third album from Sweden’s Void Commander, Alien Queen (review here). The Karlskrona-based trio will post the new single “Sweet Depression” tomorrow, May 3, but that’s hardly the first preview they’ve given of the record to come, having previously unveiled “The Night Took My Name” (premiered at the link above), “Dyke Blues,” and “Bloodred Knight Alright.” Following the seven-minute psych-doom transfixion of “To the Grave” at the record’s outset, “Sweet Depression,” with its turn toward harmonica-laced heavy blues nod, makes it four of the total seven tracks available for the digging.

A bit more directly fuzzed on average than, for example, reignited countryman outfit Mammoth Volume, as Void Commander celebrate their 10th anniversary in 2024, they remind a bit in their organic range and tonality of that troupe, which is to say don’t go into “Sweet Depression” after checking out “The Night Took My Name” below thinking you’re going to get the same thing twice. Tricks up sleeves and all that. Assorted mini-vibes, packed in a box marked ‘handle with volume.’ It’s an easy record to enjoy if you’re willing to follow where it leads.

The PR wire brought links and info:

Void Commander -“Alien Queen”

Single “Sweet Depression” out May 3 (Digital); “Alien Queen” LP out June 7 (Digital, Vinyl)

Majestic Mountain Records Vinyl preorder: https://majesticmountainrecords.bigcartel.com/product/void-commander-alien-queen

Interstellar Smoke Records Vinyl preorder: https://interstellarsmokerecords.bigcartel.com/product/void-commander-alien-queen-isr-mmr-vinyl-edition

Sweden’s history of top-notch stoner rock is a well known one, and the latest addition to the country’s legacy is trio Void Commander’s new album, “Alien Queen”. Their third album, the band dig ever deeper into their blues and classic rock sound, creating a hazy, cosmic journey that drifts and drawls just right. If Creedence Clearwater Revival time traveled to the future, got their hands on some extra fuzzy pedals, and lit up with All Them Witches, Void Commander would emerge from the smoke, harmonicas held high.

From the throbbing low-end groove of “To The Grave” to the laidback, tasty southern blues of “Sweet Depression”, Void Commander navigate their breadth of sound on “Alien Queen” locked-in and wholly committed to the sonic world they’ve created.

Retro yet pushing their craft ever further, the band have created an album that oozes an easy confidence and undeniable identity front to back. Void Commander arrive on their flying saucer from the past to plant their flag in the murky stoner of today.

Their latest and final single, “Sweet Depression”, is out streaming May 3, and the full album “Alien Queen” lands June 7.

IN THE BAND’S OWN WORDS:

“Inspired by the mystique of space travels intertwined with the enigmatic allure of witchcraft and occultism, Alien Queen is more than just an album; it’s an expedition across the sonic universe, designed for those who dare to explore the edges of Stoner Metal and Hard Rock.

Dive into the cosmic depths with Void Commander as we unveil our latest creation, Alien Queen. This stellar journey is brought to you by the combined forces of Majestic Mountain Records and Interstellar Smoke Label, ensuring an otherworldly auditory experience.”

Tracklist:
1. To The Grave (7:46)
2. Sweet Depression (4:54)
3. Dyke Blues (3:22)
4. Bloodred Knight Alright (5:34)
5. Alien Queen (7:13)
6. Jam in C (8:17)
7. The Night Took My Name (5:45)

Void Commander is:
Bobbie – Vocals, Guitar
Jimmy – Drums
Linus – Bass

https://www.facebook.com/voidcommander/
https://www.instagram.com/voidcommander666/
https://voidcommander.bandcamp.com/

http://majesticmountainrecords.bigcartel.com
http://facebook.com/majesticmountainrecords
http://instagram.com/majesticmountainrecords

https://www.facebook.com/Interstellar-Smoke-Records-101687381255396/
https://www.instagram.com/interstellar.smoke.label/
https://interstellarsmokerecords.bigcartel.com/
https://linktr.ee/ISR666

Void Commander, “The Night Took My Name” visualizer

From the kingpins Monster Magnet placed at the top of the poster to lumberwizards Monolord, British sludge-chargers Raging Speedhorn, the darkly crushing Morne and the deathly extrapolations of Inter Arma and whatever on earth Spaceslug might get up to when they take the stage, the latest announcement from Desertfest Belgium 2024 expands the scope of the Antwerp-based three-dayer in multiple directions at the same time. I suppose that could be said even if the only band joining the lineup was Green Milk From Planet Orange, but perhaps it’s that much truer with Dutch heavy rockers Drive by Wire listed alongside Portland, Oregon, extreme proggers Lord Dying, and so on, and as this batch of 15 acts is added to the glut of those already confirmed, the shape of the festival seems set up to benefit from playing all these different takes off each other. They’re announcing the day splits tomorrow, and it should be interesting to see who ends up where and how it all fits together under the headliners.

They say there’s more to add, so I guess that timetable will have a few TBAs. Still, in geographic and aesthetic reach, Desertfest Belgium has become a standout among the busy October festival season in Europe, and a point of convergence for a slew of tours besides. Even if they weren’t bringing anybody else on board, it would already be one to remember.

Dig it:

As promised we quench your thirst for new DF24 names with this divine batch of bands! 👁️

Monster Magnet / Monolord / Black Tusk / INTER ARMA / Spaceslug / Raging Speedhorn / Lord Dying / MORNE / Your Highness / KARKARA
Drive By Wire / Five The Hierophant / Norna
Green Milk From The Planet Orange / Hell Valley High

This Friday (May 3rd) our day ticket sales starts at 11:00am CET.

Check out our website this Friday to find out which of your favourite bands is playing when.

https://www.desertfest.be/antwerp/information/ticketing/

We’ll be back with more news very soon…🤘

http://www.desertfest.be/
https://www.facebook.com/desertfestbelgium/
https://www.instagram.com/desertfest_belgium/

Monster Magnet, Live in Berlin 2023

Athens classic-heavy purveyors Bus — aka Bus The Unknown Secretary — move deeper into the metallic with their third full-length, We Are the Night. Set to release June 21 as their first offering through Sound Effect Records and the follow-up to 2019’s Never Decide (review here), the tight-knit 33-minute eight-songer LP manifests influences that have been at work in their sound since their 2016 debut, The Unknown Secretary (review here), but it is as refined in its focus as it is brazen in the proto-thrash shove of “Amass Empathy” or the Judas Priest-style careening chug of “Somebody Spits on You,” so perhaps it’s fair to say they’re leaning into the harder, rawer, and less boogie-prone side of their collective persona.

They do so with immediacy resultant in part from a generally stripped-down feel in the material. It’s not all as outwardly speedy as the opening title-track (video premiering below) and initial single and album-closer “Under My Skin” — to wit, the penultimate “Rise of the Fallen” pulls back on the throttle to give its lead guitar all the more space to establish a sinister atmosphere leading into the finale, with organ melody adding some light to its own crescendo — but the forward charge is nonetheless definitive, and bolstered by the divergence into garage-doom lumbering of “Rumours” and the returning production work of John Vulgaris keyed for warmth as well as clarity enough to let the changes shine through.

But it also helps that Bus aren’t trying to hide where they’re coming from or play coy in stylistic terms. Whether it’s “I’ll Be Dead for You” with a riff so ’80s that even Mötley Crüe’s AI would be impressed, or the way “Nevermind/Realise” complements its twisting guitar leads with a cyclical rhythm on drums and extra punch in the bass, the four-piece hold fast to the classic-metal foundations driving them. They don’t dwell too long in any single movement, but each piece adds something to the overarching flow and contextual dynamic, as when “Rumours” redirects the momentum after the speedier “Somebody Spits on You” or “Amass Empathy” kicks off side B with such pointed intensity. We Are the Night isn’t as broad in its reach as some of what Bus have done in the past, but in trade, its specific focus becomes a strength that makes it hit that much harder.

With “Rumours” and the chunkier riffing of “Rise of the Fallen” offsetting the sheer thrust that surrounds and “Under My Skin” capping with not-the-record’s-first nod to the NWOBHM in the guitar and a bookend to the title-cut, We Are the Night isn’t hyper-simplified or just a half-hour-plus of Bus doing the same thing eight times over. Instead, they bring pretense-free homage to the metal of eld and present songs varied in character but united in purpose, efficient in craft and rife with aesthetic intent. That’s not the most “get those horns up!” sentence I’ve ever written, for sure, but amid all the brash riffing and hairpin turns they pull off, they’re making a declaration of who they are and what they want to do at this stage in their tenure.

Will it be the same going forward? Hell if I know. But if you’ve followed Bus at all to this point or if they’re completely new to you, the vitality with which they execute We Are the Night invites you to be in the moment with it, and maybe let later worry about later later. Garage metal? Freedom metal? Trad metal? Call it whatever you want, it’s no less exciting to take on front to back.

Enjoy the video for “We Are the Night” below, followed by more from the PR wire:

Bus, “We Are the Night” video premiere

Doomed by the cruelty of the new world, we’re once again ready to smash the bridge of the imperial vision, right here – right now! A truly independent and irreverent album has landed! “WE ARE THE NIGHT” came to seal the extraordinary music attitude of the extreme classic rock quartet from Athens. Through the difficulties of the recent years BUS got more motivated and the result is a true solid rock/metal album. Compact! Powerful! All killer, no filler! Just bangers such as the self-titled song “We Are the Night”, “Somebody Spits on You”, ‘I’ll be Dead for You” and “Under My Skin”.

The album was recorded live in three days at Electric Highway Studios in Athens, engineered once again by John Vulgaris. It’s the second time the band trusts John Vulgaris for his creativity and input in the creative process, like singing and playing various instruments. So, let’s find the reason for tonight and bang our heads with heavy metal, sex and rock n roll.

“We Are the Night” is due out on June 21st on vinyl and CD! Pre-sale shall be announced soon.

Tracklisting:
1. We Are the Night (5:14)
2. Somebody Spits on You (2:36)
3. Rumours (4:46)
4. I’ll Be Dead for You (3:53)
5. Amass Empathy (3:14)
6. Nevermind/Realise (3:02)
7. Rise of the Fallen (5:39)
8. Under My Skin (5:03)

First single “Under My Skin” streaming now on youtube and bandcamp: https://bustheunknownsecretary.bandcamp.com/album/under-my-skin

Bus, “Under My Skin”

Bus on Facebook

Bus on Instagram

Bus on Bandcamp

Sound Effect Records on Facebook

Sound Effect Records store

What do we know about Arizona’s Fuzz Evil? They’re songwriters. No matter what the Sierra Vista-based troupe led by brothers Joey and Wayne Rudell get up to on a given release — whether it’s their new single “Wanderer’s Wake” below, issued ahead of their Desert Records label-debut, Smear Merchants, or the 2023 full-length that preceded it, New Blood (review here), or anything else they’ve done over the eight years since their 2016 self-titled debut (review here) — they have songs. They’ve never been an overly self-indulgent band, never left their audience behind, and their catalog is that much stronger for it.

Even as they pivot to heavier fare with “Wanderer’s Wake” and introduce the lineup they revealed in January alongside their cover of The Cars‘ “Just What I Needed” (speaking of songwriters…), the song remains the priority, and that’s also what lets them pull off the dive into gruff vocals and harder-hitting tones without losing the plot. It’s a less friendly sound on the surface, but still very much Fuzz Evil in the underlying groove and structure. I would say it meets the stated intention toward more of a stoner-doomed feel, and not that I wasn’t already keeping an eye for Smear Merchants — not sure if it’s an EP or LP at this point, but it’s a title, which is more than you sometimes get — but I hear all the more reason to do so in the single’s sub-five-minute stretch.

TL;DR: New Fuzz Evil track mixes it up with a little bit o’ nasty to go around. Dig it:

“Wanderer’s Wake” is the first single from Fuzz Evil’s fourth studio record “Smear Merchants” to be released in late 2024 on Desert Records.

“We are always trying to evolve our music each record and with “Smear Merchants” it will be our take on more doom metal/stoner.” -FUZZ EVIL

As purveyors of chug-heavy, fuzz-laden riffs, this heavy rock ensemble unleashes a monolithic fuzzpocalypse that reverberates through your ears and straight to your soul. With raw, gritty Fuzz and unique tones, FUZZ EVIL combines baritone fuzz, extraordinary riffs, and heavy bass tones to create a sound that’s as soulful as it is earth-shattering.

To stay updated on Fuzz Evil’s latest releases and upcoming shows, follow them on handles here: https://linktr.ee/fuzzevil

Song written by Fuzz Evil
Song Recorded, Produced, and Mixed by: Joseph Rudell
Art by: Joseph Rudell

Fuzz Evil is:
Vocals & Guitar: Wayne Rudell
Bass & Backing Vocals: Joseph Rudell
Baritone Guitars: Preston Jennings
Drums: Cajun Adams

https://www.facebook.com/FuzzEvil/
https://www.instagram.com/fuzzevilaz/
https://fuzzevil.bandcamp.com/
https://linktr.ee/fuzzevil
https://www.fuzzevil.com/

https://www.facebook.com/desertrecordslabel/
https://www.instagram.com/desertrecords/
https://desertrecords.bandcamp.com/
https://desertrecords.bigcartel.com/
https://linktr.ee/desertrecords

Fuzz Evil, “Wanderer’s Wake” (2024)

So here’s what happened. All of a sudden, toward the end of last week or whenever it was, a bunch of cool bands started to announce they were touring with other cool bands. Package tours are a long-held tradition, especially for times when money’s tight in various spots around the world, and a decent way for acts to sometimes share road expenses as well as give club crowds more reason to leave the house. Whether it’s Greenleaf and Slomosa or Dopelord and Red Sun Atacama in Europe, Mars Red Sky and Howling Giant or — the subject at hand — Austin, Texas, trio The Well and Seattle duo Year of the Cobra; none of these sounds like anything other than a killer night in the making.

But for The Well and Year of the Cobra, there are a bunch of other shows both bands are playing in addition to those they’ll do together, with the former heading to Tennessee later in August for Muddy Roots and the latter with a few dates in the Pacific Northwest in early June, and so on. There wasn’t one general announcement for the tour that I found on socials, so I took the dates that were posted by each band, the Branca Studio art that accompanied, and I decided rather than try to parse out who’s where for one broader list, to just have them as they are.

The Well‘s dates are under the band’s name, and ditto that for Year of the Cobra, whose new album I think is recorded — another announcement to wait for — and will hopefully be out in the coming months. Both their latest LP and The Well‘s were in 2019, so if you said they’re due, fair enough. Do I honestly believe I needed to tell you about organizing two posts into this single one? No. But I did anyway, because that’s how it is when you’re neurotic. Now you know.

From social media as noted:

THE WELL

YOU KNOW WE CANT STAY AWAY FOR LONG! STOKED TO HIT THE ROAD WITH @yearofthecobra THIS SUMMER!

More dates to come; here’s a teaser with some killer artwork by the goat @branca_studio

7.19 – Tulsa, OK – Mercury Lounge
7.20 – OKC, OK – Blue Note Lounge
7.21 – KC, MO – recordBar
7.22 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th St. Entry (18+)
7.23 – Chicago, IL – The Empty Bottle*
7.24 – Youngstown, OH – Westside Bowl* (all ages)
7.25 – Albany, NY – Fuze Box*
7.26 – Providence, RI – Alchemy (all ages)
7.27 – Manchester, NH – Jewel Music Venue*
7.28 – NY, NY – The Bowery Electric*
7.29 – Philadelphia, PA – Kung Fu Necktie*
7.30 – Chapel Hill, NC – Local 506* (all ages)
8.4 – Dallas, TX – Ruins*
8.6 – Scottsdale, AZ – Pub Rock*
8.7 – LA, CA – Permanent Records*
8.8 – Long Beach, CA – Alex’s Bar*
8.9 – Sacramento, CA – Cafe Colonial*
8.10 – SF, CA – Kilowatt Bar*
8.31 – Cookeville, TN – Muddy Roots Festival
* – w/ Year of the Cobra

YEAR OF THE COBRA

Yo! Excited to announce our US tour with @thewellband. More dates coming soon, but for now…we feast!!!

6.1 – Bellingham, WA – The Shakedown
6.2 – Vancouver, BC – The Cobalt Cabaret
6.9 – Portland, OR – Polaris Hall
7.20 – Libby, MT – Montvana Festival
7.23 – Chicago, IL – The Empty Bottle*
7.24 – Youngstown, OH – Westside Bowl* (all ages)
7.25 – Albany, NY – Fuze Box*
7.27 – Manchester, NH – Jewel Music Venue*
7.28 – NY, NY – The Bowery Electric*
7.29 – Philadelphia, PA – Kung Fu Necktie*
7.30 – Chapel Hill, NC – Local 506* (all ages)
8.2 – Lafayette, LA – Freetown Boom Boom Room*
8.4 – Dallas, TX – Ruins*
8.6 – Scottsdale, AZ – Pub Rock*
8.7 – LA, CA – Permanent Records*
8.8 – Long Beach, CA – Alex’s Bar*
8.9 – Sacramento, CA – Cafe Colonial*
8.10 – SF, CA – Kilowatt Bar*
8.11 – Santa Cruz – Moe’s Alley*
*w/The Well

http://www.facebook.com/thewellband
https://www.instagram.com/thewellband/
http://thewellaustin.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/ridingeasyrecords/
https://www.instagram.com/easyriderrecord/
http://www.ridingeasyrecs.com/

https://www.facebook.com/yearofthecobraband/
https://www.instagram.com/yearofthecobra/
https://yearofthecobra.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/prophecyproductions/
https://prophecy-de.bandcamp.com/
https://en.prophecy.de/

The Well, Death and Consolation (2019)

Year of the Cobra, Ash and Dust (2019)

Floridian sludge metal mainstays Hollow Leg are set to self-release their new EP, Dust, this Friday, May 3, and with just 21 minutes at their disposal, there’s a palpable no-time-to-waste vibe as the four-piece dig into “Poison Bite” (video premiere here) in a tight encapsulation of the willful stylistic growth the band have undertaken since 2019’s Civilizations (review here), their most recent LP. Like a lot of what Hollow Leg have done since the tail end of the MySpace era, “Poison Bite” is a ripper.

It’s got a massive, rolling grove led by Brent Lynch‘s guitar, with due weight pushed through Tom Crowther‘s bass and the nod punctuated by John Stewart‘s drumming, and with vocalist Scott Angelacos finding a Matt Pike-y delivery somewhere between a shout and cleaner singing, with effects-laced backing in the chorus presumably from Lynch, as well as the condensed runtime, it also defies expectation in how it digs in. For a sound that remains plenty filthy, one hesitates to use words like “refined,” but on their own terms, Hollow Leg very much are that on Dust.

“Poison Bite” begins a salvo of three sub-four-minute cuts, with “Sick Days” adding a thrashier shove to its abiding nastiness, bringing the not-screamed backing vocals in the chorus closer to the front of the mix alongside Angelacos‘ harsh-throated gnashing, and EP centerpiece “Funeral Storms” hints toward patience as it moves toward its later solo and in its relatively restrained earlier verses. These aren’t the first short songs Hollow Leg have offered, by any means, but they’re presented with a maturity and confidence coinciding with an evolutionary drive that can’t be faked.

That is, they’ve always grown from one release to the next, and they still are, but that growth feels more directed toward specific ideas on Dust than it has in the past, and that’s part of how they’re developing at this point. While “Another Day Dying” feels sharp in its early riffing, the back end with sitar-sounding effects and a muddied-up kind of psychedelic flourish is a purposeful contrast and expansion of scope, and yeah, the brooding, mostly-clean-sung Southern heavy swamp atmosphere of closer “Holy Water” hits into heavier riffing at around two and a half minutes in, but it still carries the initial mood forward, pairing its partial departure with a consistency unto itself that underscores the crafted feel of the EP as a whole.

The notion of Dust as another step in Hollow Leg‘s ongoing progression undercuts some of how than manifests throughout the five songs included, but while they remain in no small part defined by the crash-and-bash aspects of their approach, it’s worth considering just how much they’ve found their place in sludge over their years, and how their balance between extremity and accessibility plays out in this material. Its malleable nature alone, the band’s emergent considerations of ambience alongside their entrenched rawness, would be enough even if the songs themselves didn’t remain so intentionally kickass as they do.

But among the messages Dust most clearly sends is that Hollow Leg aren’t done exploring this path they’re on, and one hopes that, whatever form their next round of discoveries might take upon release, they find ways to continue forward in melding influences from within and beyond their genre. Keep getting weirder, dudes. I don’t think you’ll regret it.

Enjoy the full EP stream below, followed by some perspective from the band courtesy of the PR wire and that “Poison Bite” video, links and the rest:

In the band’s own words: “We’re always writing and playing and working on new music is just what we do, always trying to build on our sound and make the next piece a more clearly defined vision than the last. We have such a wide range of musical and artistic influences that it’s challenging to wrangle them, but we try our best to work within the ‘Hollow Leg’ mainframe and pump out something different than what we’ve done before, but also something that’s still obviously Hollow Leg. Hollow Leg is about freedom though. That’s been the mantra since the first record and we’ve always stuck to that! It’s about pushing ourselves and finding ways to simultaneously party with Metallica, Steely Dan, EyeHateGod, Wu Tang Clan, Stevie Wonder, and Pink Floyd and it somehow makes sense to us!”

Tracklisting:
1. Poison Bite (3:34)
2. Sick Days (3:59)
3. Funeral Storms (3:47)
4. Another Day Dying (4:51)
5. Holy Water (5:46)

Hollow Leg is:
Scott Angelacos – vocals
Brent Lynch – guitar/backing vocals
Tom Crowther – bass
John Stewart – drums

Hollow Leg, “Poison Bite” official video

Hollow Leg on Instagram

Hollow Leg on Facebook

Hollow Leg on Bandcamp

Hollow Leg’s Linktr.ee