As Friends Rust "Lightless"

LP - $17.25
STREET DATE: 11/1/24
CAT#: EH099
LABEL: End Hits

The 'Lightless' EP sees AS FRIENDS RUST confronting existential and cosmic loneliness with intensity, imagination and, of course, hooks. Picking up where 2023's Any Joy LP left off, and now joined permanently by bassist Andrew Seward (Against Me!), the band presents five urgent rockers that rage through both inner and outer space, leaving only earworms in their wake.

Writing for Lightless began immediately upon the band's return from their tour of Europe in support of 2023's Any Joy LP. Picking up where the album left off, the Lightless EP is a massive, catchy work focusing largely on cosmic loneliness - a theme echoed in its airbrushed, 70s/80s sci-fi artwork. The EP was mixed by long-time collaborator James Paul Wisner (Further Seems Forever, Paramore, Dashboard Confessional), and mastered by Will Killingsworth at Dead Air, and will be released on November 1st, just days ahead of the band's tour supporting QUICKSAND and HOT WATER MUSIC.

TRACK LISTING:
01. Skimming
02. The Full Armor
03. Lightless
04. Scene Report
05. Lost In Space

MARKETING POINTS:

  • On tour with Hot Water Music and Quicksand this Fall
  • Mixed by long-time collaborator James Paul Wisner (Further Seems Forever, Paramore, Dashboard Confessional)
  • Mastered by Will Killingsworth at Dead Air

FOR FANS OF:
Hot Water Music, Quicksand

Planes Mistaken For Stars "Do You Still Love Me?"

LP - $18.15 / DELUXE CD - 17.25
LP UPC: 791689665580
INDIE LP UPC: 641956287116
DELUXE CD UPC: 791689665597
STREET DATE: 11/1/24
CAT#: DW229
LABEL: Deathwish Inc.

A harrowing document of life, death and transcendence, Do You Still Love Me? is the fifth album from Planes Mistaken for Stars (PMFS), the band’s second outing for Deathwish Inc. and first new music since 2016. It is also the first PMFS release since the death of frontman Gared O’Donnell, whose cancer diagnosis loomed heavily over the recording and whose ghost guided the mix. Chemo and radiation would not stop him from making this masterpiece, in which the band finds itself reeling from the gut-wrenching horrors of their leader’s unimaginable absence.

Written in Peoria amidst the forced isolation of a global pandemic and recorded by Sanford Parker in Chicago, these thirteen songs burn the ears to listen. Album opener “Matthew is Dead” wastes no time with niceties as Planes mourns the 2017 death of founding guitarist Matt Bellinger — Gared’s throat-shredded rasp seethes as if taunting himself: You’re dead, you’re dead, you’re dead— guttural human screams unbottled and broken glass shattered as transcendental meditation and musical catharsis, for band and listener alike. These acute and raw moments are found throughout the record, audible wounds you can hear, see, taste and almost touch. We’ve only got the night, as Gared knew and preached and lived. Just one last drink, shall we begin?

Do You Still Love Me? carries forward Planes’ natural evolution beyond post-hardcore and metal-tinged rock n’ roll, unveiling new layers with each listen. Intertwined vocals and infectious melodies simmer beneath the surface and occasionally boil over, shards of guitar strike like lightning as the rhythm section pounds its marching orders. Whether pummeling mercilessly or tenderly relenting, Do You Still Love Me? shows a band unafraid to lose itself in the musical maelstrom. I don’t have the shakes, the shakes have me — it’s not an easy listen, yet offers immense rewards with time, alchemizing a unique beauty from the pain and tragedy of its creation. It’s an emotional bloodletting for Planes and their extended family around the world, a collective primal scream of coping with life and last breaths, and eternal proof that death is truly not the end.

TRACK LISTING:
01. Matthew is Dead
02. Fix Me
03. Further
04. The Arrow
05. Modern Logic
06. Punch the Gauge
07. Do You Still Love Me? No1
08. Run Rabbit Run
09. Peace
10. Put Your Heart on the Fire
11. The Calming
12. In Hell
13. Do You Still Love Me? No2

MARKETING POINTS:

  • The final studio album for the band as vocalist/songwriter Gared O’Donnell passed away before the album was complete
  • Produced by Sanford Parker (YOB, Voivod, eyehatecod)
  • Full service PR by Stephanie Marlow (Converge, Deafheaven)

FOR FANS OF:
Against Me, Rise Against, Texas Is The Reason

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Leaving Time "Angel In The Sand"

LP - $17.90
LP UPC: 843563181218
STREET DATE: 11/1/2024
CAT#: SDR-128
LABEL: Sunday Drive

"Angel In The Sand" illustrates a virtue, having failed or fallen to the ground--and rather than just noting 'the ground', 'sand' is used instead, suggesting the terrain of beaches in Leaving Time's hometown of Jacksonville, Florida. On their debut LP, the Jacksonville band expresses this image throughout the ten tracks. Lyrically, vocalist Reed Cothren details sorrow, regret, and loss, with each word reinforced by the vast and dark sounds of distorted guitars, heavy cymbals and drums, and melodic leads.

Since 2020, Leaving Time has created a distinct sound in the alternative rock realm, heard on their self-titled EP, and again on their 2022 follow-up, "II". The band plays incredibly heavy both in recordings and live settings. With a foundation in hardcore bands, their attitude and expression transfer perfectly to this setting. Like their previous recordings, Leaving Time returned to local Florida engineer John Howard (Magnitude, Ecostrike) for their LP, primarily written throughout 2023. With the support of new master engineer Zac Montez (Cloakroom, Turnover, Nothing), this collection of songs sounds massive. The intro track builds a tense feeling with minimal guitar leads and heavy bass with toms. Later songs continue building on this feeling, like the explosive single, "Arm's Length". The flow of the songs allows listeners to reach these pressure release moments, like in "Waiting," where drummer Jarod Whalen plays a mournful piano outro paired with an acoustic guitar. Small moments like these contrast the heaviness of the songs, showcasing Leaving Time's dynamic songwriting.

With the heaviness portrayed on "Angel In The Sand," the band closes with the song "And On," about acknowledging pain but moving on. It's not purely optimistic, but it again has a dynamic of contrasting emotions, brushed with dense yet beautiful sounds and melodies.

TRACK LISTING:
01. Fading
02. Choke
03. Only Forever
04. Wish
05. Arm’s Length
06. Angel In the Sand
07. Burn
08. Untitled
09. Waiting
10. And On

MARKETING POINTS:

  • Debut LP from Leaving Time
  • Upcoming tour with Glare in November
  • Vinyl is housed in a DJ sleeve insert, with full-color, matte-varnish jacket

FOR FANS OF:
Hum, Smashing Pumpkins, Sunny Day Real Estate

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