Lifesick "Misanthrophy"

LP - $15.95 / CD - $9.60
LP UPC: 305390598138
CD UPC: 305390598145
STREET DATE: 2/11/22
CAT #: ISO034
LABEL: Isolation Rec.

Pure misanthropy – and true and utter disgust for humanity. Three years after the release of ‘Swept In Black’, Lifesick from Fredericia, Denmark are back with their third studio album ‘Misanthropy’ out February 11th, 2022 via Isolation Records.

After releasing their debut album “6 0 1” on Southern Lord Recordings and it’s follow up ‘Swept In Black’ on Isolation Records in 2018, Lifesick are set to release ‘Misanthropy’ into the world. Whilst perfectly blending raw death metal sounds with a punk attitude and extreme rage, Lifesick manage to retain an outstanding texture to their music which goes to show that the Danes know exactly what they are doing. The new album consists of no-nonsense and to the bone metallic hardcore that the band will soon bring to the stages of Europe at Impericon’s Never Say Die Tour in Europe alongside Nasty, Cabal and more as well as Copenhell Festival 2022.

TRACK LISTING:

  1. Wolf Among Rats
  2. Misantrophy
  3. Dies Irae
  4. Enslavement Method
  5. Necessary Evil
  6. Death Stays Close
  7. Good For Nothing
  8. Ill Will
  9. Idolising Crooks
  10. Hellmouth

MARKETING POINTS:

  • Mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege
  • Playing Impericon Never Say Die Tour with Nasty in November 2021
  • Playing Copenhell 2022
  • Previous releases on Southern Lord

FOR FANS OF:
Xibalba, All Pigs Must Die, Entombed

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Hundreds of AU "A Briefing On The Human Condition"

12"EP - $13.35
STREET DATE: 3/25/22
CAT #: PROTAG072
LABEL: Protagonist

Coupling impassioned, melodic crescendos and progressive, technical screamo hardcore, Hundreds of Au are back again with another album of pure energy.

The band has become known for its razor-sharp playing, waves of chaotic sound, and emotional exposure. Moments of desperation and catharsis are woven into the varying layers of these intricate, yet propulsive tracks, all anchored by the stellar musicianship. Each record in their growing catalog is an event, and "A Briefing..." is certainly nothing short of another momentous occasion.

Featuring ex and current members of You and I, Working Through Rust, Hell Mary, The Assistant, Capacities, Estella, Lesser Minds, and more!

TRACK LISTING:

  1. 100 Year Test
  2. Objective Party
  3. Afloat
  4. Ancestor Reality
  5. Return

MARKETING POINTS:

  • Ex and current members of You and I, Working Through Rust, Hell Mary, The Assistant, Capacities, Estella, and more.

FOR FANS OF:
Frail Body, Capacities, Touché Amoré, Respire, For Your Health

Helpless "Caged In Gold"

LP - $16.60 / CD - $8.00
STREET DATE: 3/25/22
CAT #: CRR113
LABEL: Church Road

Just short of five years on from their acclaimed 2017 debut album, Debt, HELPLESS return with their sophomore album - titled Caged In Gold, due for release on March 25 via Church Road Records. Furthering their sonic blueprint of grindcore and discordant noise, the South West, UK trio’s second full length shows that time has not blunted their penchant for extremity in the slightest.

Following tour and standalone show support slots alongside acts such as Full of Hell, Nails and Gatecreeper, as well as festival appearances at Download and Dreadfest, Dan Couch (guitar / vocals) found himself as the sole founding member of HELPLESS before bringing Caged In Gold to life. Fortifying their line-up with the additions of both Simon Walker on bass and vocals and Sam Trenchard on drums and vocals, the three-piece’s second full-length’s gestation period was a complicated but fruitful one.

Caged In Gold is the pith of all that HELPLESS are, as they lay down a gauntlet of ill-natured grind and vitriolic blackened riffs alongside cacophonously inharmonic rhythms. In less than 30 minutes, HELPLESS affirm their growing reputation as masters of callous brevity on cuts such as the jarring The Empty Gesture and frenzy-inducing Unseen Servant, before closing proceedings with complete despondency on the four-minute monolith The Great Silence.

As chock-full of technicality and cohesive malevolence as their sophomore effort is, there’s a starkness to HELPLESS’ sound that is captured in sobering fashion by Chris Nicholls’ painted artwork - a primal terror that lurks in all of us. Which, below the surface of all of HELPLESS’ fury, lies at the heart of the trio’s savage virtuosity.

TRACK LISTING:

  1. Wraiths of Memory
  2. The Empty Gesture
  3. Suppression
  4. Another Sunlight
  5. Single File
  6. Time Worship
  7. Focus Group Extraction
  8. Unseen Servant
  9. Simulacrum
  10. The Great Silence

FOR FANS OF:
Nails, Trap Them, Pig Destroyer

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Sundowning “In The Light Of Defeat, I Cease To Exist”

LP - $17.25
LP UPC: 305390598213
STREET DATE: 3/25/22
CAT #: ISO033
LABEL: Isolation

“In The Light Of Defeat, I Cease To Exist” came to life as a humble, even shy idea. Could you trace back the initiating moments of this album, you would probably find an intimate, honest conversation between friends much rather than a musical scenery. Publishing the songs that were written in erratic, explorative songwriting sessions wasn't given much thought – at least in the beginning of the process. Now, ten years after releasing their last studio album "Seizures Of The World", a new understanding of the same musical vision that they shared all along brought the band Sundowning back together.

The Band that is now living scattered in Berlin, Hamburg and the Ruhr-Area was founded in May 2009 by lead vocalist and guitarist Christoph Wietzorek and has existed as the same outfit ever since 2010. Starting out young in the hardcore scene of the Ruhr-Area, Sundowning soon evolved into a solid institution within the European Doom-Metal scene. After several tours and releases, the members focused on other personal projects and the band entered hiatus in 2014.

While Sunn O))), Cult Of Luna and Amenra are still very recognizable influences, “In The Light Of Defeat, I Cease To Exist” is a much more independent and less constricted work than the earlier releases of the band. The soundscape is more consciously chosen and benefits from the individually acquired musical skills of each member. Wind instruments now support heavy, pressing guitar riffs. String sections underline choral, perpetuating vocals. Samples and electronic sounds provide the necessary contrast. All while the thematic subject is more centered and visible: the album continues the narrative of "Seizures Of The World" and tells us about moments of failure, our own weaknesses und unfulfilled longing and hope. Mercilessly, the conflict of living in a steady discrepancy of intention and feasibility is discussed and the adaption to these circumstances is disputed. The blunt honesty of the lyrics is the product of a matured and naturally grown intimacy within the band, that always infused the process that is Sundowning. The album could not have been made in any other constellation.

"In The Light Of Defeat, I Cease To Exist" is the second album of the band Sundowning and will be released into the world on March 25th 2022 via the band’s own label, Isolation Records. The Album was written and composed by the band, consisting of Christoph Wietzorek, Pascal Thönnißen, Markus Uhle and Sebastian Busch. It was recorded and mixed by Nikita Kamprad (Der Weg Einer Freiheit) inside the studios of Ghost City Recordings in the summer of 2021. The record was mastered by acclaimed audio engineers Keith Souza and Seth Manchester at Machines With Magnets, known for their work with Lingua Ignota, The Body and Full Of Hell, among many others. Full Of Hell also provided actual content to the record with singer Dylan Walker immensely contributing to the song “Imminent Ache”. The album artwork as well as the video to the first single “Imminent Ache” was directed by Sven Harambašić (Lingua Ignota, Soft Moon, Duma).

TRACK LISTING:

  1. Exits Don't Exist
  2. Imminent Ache
  3. A Prison, A Cage
  4. Armor Of Indifference
  5. In The Light Of Defeat, I Cease To Exist

MARKETING POINTS:

  • First album in 10 years
  • Album artwork and music video directed by Sven Harambašić (Lingua Ignota, Soft Moon, Absent In Body)
  • Additional vocals contributed by Dylan Walker (Full Of Hell, Sightless Pit, Sore Dream)
  • Produced and mixed by Nikita Kamprad (Der Weg Einer Freiheit)
  • Mastered by Keith Souza and Seth Manchester at Machines With Magnets

FOR FANS OF:
Swans, The Body, Cult Of Luna, Amenra, Neurosis, Primitive Man

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Mad Honey "Promo '22"

CASSETTE - $6.00
STREET DATE: 3/25/22
CAT #: SDR074
LABEL: Sunday Drive

"Chasing, seeking, hiding, silhouetting lies" creates a hazy, dark, and yearning visual. It's the opening line from Oklahoma City's indie/dream-pop band, Mad Honey, and is the most accurate way to describe the band's sound. The band's earliest formation started in 2018 with members Tiff Sutcliffe and Branden Palesano writing music together. The band later came to fruition with members Lennon Bramlett, James Tunell and Austin Valdez joining the band and continued writing and releasing singles such as "Good Grief" and "I Won't Go Easy" most recently in 2021.

In 2022, the band has continued to evolve in their songwriting with more straight-forward indie-rock, but still stays true to their roots with a darker, dream-pop sound—mostly from the distinct voice of Tiff Sutcliffe, who arranges some of the catchiest melodies heard on their new promo tape, with singles, "Odds" and "Euphoria".

Influences from early ’90s dream-pop/shoegaze bands like Lush and My Bloody Valentine, with a mix of contemporaries like DIIV and Beach House can be heard on these new singles, especially from the whirling guitar leads and dual-vocal harmonies. The two tracks easily stay on an endless loop while we look forward to hearing more from what Mad Honey has in store in 2022.

TRACK LISTING:

  1. Odds
  2. Euphoria

MARKETING POINTS:

  • Featuring members of Cursetheknife

FOR FANS OF:
Lush, Beach House, My Bloody Valentine

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Various Artists “Release The Bats: The Birthday Party as Heard Through the Meat Grinder of Three One G”

2xLP - $22.50
LP UPC: 787269113992
STREET DATE: 3/25/22
CAT #: 31G034
LABEL: Three One G

Spawned from the Cave that set the standard for mischievous, perverse, raucous punk music in the form of Australian band The Birthday Party, Three One G Records has set out to pay tribute with Release the Bats. This album is a compilation of covers by varied acts from Cattle Decapitation to Some Girls to Ssion, each undoubtedly influenced in one way or another by The Birthday Party’s wildly entwined goth-punk-jazz-blues sensibilities. Hidden in Das Oath’s feedback and Rah Bras’ unsettling synth lines lie curious, well-written, dark stories, and it’s fascinating to hear them told through the collective distorted echo of the Three One G family. Featuring artwork by Mark McCoy.

TRACK LISTING:

  1. Plot To Blow Up The Eiffel Tower – Pleasure Heads Must Burn
  2. Das Oath – Friend Catcher
  3. T Cells – Deep In The Woods
  4. Cattle Decapitation – Sonny’s Burning
  5. Year Future – Blundertown
  6. SSion – Nick The Stripper
  7. Ex Models – Mutiny In Heaven
  8. Les Georges Leningrad – Riddle House
  9. Rah Bras – Mr. Clarinet
  10. Melt-Banana – Faint Heart
  11. The Chinese Stars – The Plague
  12. Celebration – King Ink
  13. Kill Me Tomorrow – Junkyard
  14. Get Hustle – A Dead Song
  15. Numbers – Cry
  16. Error – Wild World
  17. Daughters – Marry Me (Lie Lie)
  18. Some Girls – Release The Bats

MARKETING POINTS:

  • Originally released in 2006, the vinyl has been out of print for many years.
  • Limited to 500 on color vinyl

FOR FANS OF:
Nick Cave, The Birthday Party