Exclusive Song/Video Premiere For Psych/Noise/Space Rockers DEAD SEA APES New Song SEVERANCE From Upcoming New Album

Dead Sea Apes are back with a fierce new album Psychic Tension – an urgent soundtrack for the nerve-shredding times we live in. Our collective psyche is under attack, reeling from the chaos of a modern world under siege: from war, death, destruction and climate catastrophe to political decay, media manipulation, growing inequality and the rank depravity of the so-called elite. Do we overload ourselves with anxiety, vent our frustration at others, make token gestures to ease our conscience, or just try to carry on regardless? Dead Sea Apes have wrestled these dilemmas – this Psychic Tension – into sonic/musical form, creating catharsis from the chaos.

Psychic Tension picks up where the previous album Rewilding left off, carrying forward the momentum of massive riffs, juggernaut rhythms and squalling sonic overload. Noise-rock, Japanese psych, minimal dub and Electric-era Miles are all part of the mix: each member of Dead Sea Apes brings decades of musical exploration to bear on the music. The iterative repetition of Can meets the telepathic mind-meld of the power trio; the deceptive simplicity of Crazy Horse is pulled through the sonics of PSF Records; the live-in-the-practice-room energy is bolstered by layered landscapes of sound - from ethereal echoes to feedback drones to transistor-torturing lead lines.

Dead Sea Apes have always followed their own path, the music instinctively wired into the world around them. On Psychic Tension, they have once again cooked up a sound that is wholly their own, speaking directly to the turmoil within us and surrounding us in these wild times.

Thanks to the cool folks over at Shamedia, we're excited to premiere the new song/video for Severance from their upcoming new album Psychic Tension

Brett Savage from Dead Sea Apes says this about the song:

"Severance’ is one of the heaviest songs we've written - and one that we really love playing live. It's like a guided missile - I know that when we get to that part of the show, ‘Severance’ just pulls us through to the end. The title isn't a reference to the TV show BTW (which I've

since watched), it's just a word that we felt was as heavy as the song."

Biography

Dead Sea Apes are a Manchester-based three-piece psych-noise band. Taking influences from across the full spectrum of psychedelic rock, noise-rock, krautrock, Japanese psych, dub, and elsewhere, they create a sound that is wholly their own. A vital fixture of the UK rock underground, Dead Sea Apes have shared stages with seminal acts such as The Heads, Part Chimp, Carlton Melton, and Acid Mothers Temple.

Formed in 2009, the band have become a cornerstone of the independent scene, releasing over 10 albums – including collaborations with artists such as The Band Whose Name Is A Symbol and Black Tempest. Much of their catalogue has found a home on the widely celebrated UK psychedelic label Cardinal Fuzz, alongside stateside partnerships with the legendary Feeding Tube Records.

Psychic Tension Tracklist:

01. Damn Your Eyes
02. Psychic Tension
03. Severance
04. Ursa Minor
05. Deathless

Photo by Lee Edwards

Dead Sea Apes is:

Brett Savage - Guitars
Jack Toker - Bass, Guitars
Chris Hardman - Drums

Dead Sea Apes new album Psychic Tension releases 18th September 2026. Pre-sales will start imminently via Cardinal Fuzz in the UK and Feeding Tube Records in the USA.

Links

Website | Bandcamp | Instagram | Facebook

Thanks tot Lee Edwards at Shamedia for the details

Chat Pile - Who Loves The Sun (Album Review)

Release Date: September 04th 2026. Record Label: The Flenser. Format: CD/DD/Tape/Vinyl

Who Loves The Sun - Tracklist

1.Creature
2.Deep Blue
3.Same Rules
4.PEN I S MALL
5.Shrine
6.Intruder
7.Christabel ‘26
8.Influence
9.Family Funeral
10.October All The Time

Members

Ray B. - Vocals
L. Manhole - Guitar
Stin - Bass
Drums - Cap’n Ron

Review

Noise/Sludge Metallers Chat Pile return with their highly anticipated third album Who Loves The Sun which once again highlights why they’re one of the most unpredictable, original and most important bands to emerge from the Heavy Metal scene in years. This record shows once again how the band incorporates new elements of music into their ever-growing sound such as Alt Rock, Indie Rock, Shoegaze and Trip-Hop.

Chat Pile demonstrates why they’re so highly thought of with ten tracks that captures the raw essence of the Sludge Metal scene with a grimy and seedy attitude most bands cannot capture. The moody Noise Rock theatrics keeps everything grounded and allows Chat Pile to reinvent themselves yet again with a mixture of Industrial Metal and Post-Punk beats which has a mighty Eighties Rock presence especially within the lyrics and the more somber parts of the record. There’s a great style of vicious melody and rhythm developing which is more focused compared to their previous two albums.

Who Loves The Sun even has brilliantly refined commercial aspects which can easily launch these guys further into the mainstream. The despairing Noise Rock quality reminds me of The Jesus Lizard jamming with the likes of The Melvins and Kowloon Walled City but with Chat Pile keeping their own unflinching approach with bleak lyrics holding everything together. The shift in minimalist Post-Rock, Post-Punk and Sludge Metal is quite refreshing with a subtle Grunge and Psychedelic flavour emerging which adds a real chameleon like effect to the whole journey.

The “Doom & Gloom” essence is stripped apart and rebuilt within the band’s image which they incorporate into almost every track with a filth ridden attitude that can be quite buoyant and gleefully upbeat at times. The raw sounding production values allows Chat Pile to play at their own destructive slow-to-mid paced grooves with a level of sheer heaviness only appearing when it’s really needed.

The first half of the album allows Chat Pile to explore a decaying style of Grunge, Noise and Alt Rock with songs Creature, Same Rules and PEN I S MALL adding a heap of Blackened Sludge themes for a subversive experience. This allows the lead vocals to demonstrate a politically charged energy that really does hammer the points home that Chat Pile are providing this album.

Chat Pile are fully committed to exploring different areas of music for this record on other tracks such as Shrine, Intruder, Family Funeral and October All The Time which have some of the most rewarding moments on the album. The whole mood is constantly engaging with intense progressive musical passages being quite hypnotic and brilliantly surreal. 

Who Loves The Sun isn’t an easy album to listen to but it’s one that offers a must have experience where Chat Pile doesn't even offer any easy answers or solutions. As they leave this up to the listener’s own conclusions. What is guaranteed is another masterful record from Chat Pile that once again cements their status as one of the most important Heavy Rock bands in the world currently playing today. 

This is an absolute masterpiece and is a record everyone needs to own right now!!!

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Rarely Unable PR for the promo.

Who Loves The Sun is available to buy now on CD, Digital, Tape and Vinyl.

Links

Official | Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram

KEVIN - It Is What It Is (Album Review)

Release Date: July 24th 2026. Record Label: Riot Season Records. Format: CD/DD/Vinyl

It is What It Is - Tracklist

1.Wood Grain 07:47

2.Point 03:02

3.Potter's Wheel 06:02

4.Murphy Is Buried 08:49

5.It Is What It Is 06:20

6.Yagura 04:08

Members

Yutaro Umemoto (guitar/vocals) 

Yuichi Umemoto (drums).

Review

Experimental Psych Kraut-Rockers KEVIN release their second album It Is What It Is and it’s quite a vivid collection of tracks that have quite a fractured and disjointed approach to them. The record isn’t the easiest thing to listen to but I was expecting this challenge as the record is being released by the equally weird and amazing record label Riot Season Records. KEVIN bring an aggressive Post-Punk and Noise Rock delivery to their music which is quite different to their 2022 debut album Aftermath since the band are now a duo instead of a dedicated power trio. 

The sound is very lo-fi and quite surreal within the excellent opening track of Wood Grain. This is the type of track I could easily be playing in the background of a David Lynch, Gus Van Sant or Steven Sodenbergh film. The song is definitely it’s own thing with warped instrumental passages that bursts into sudden scenes of intense screeching violent guitars that remind me of The Melvins and BORIS at their most experimental. The vocals can only be described as WTF but they’re brilliantly addictive that draw you into KEVIN’s dark world

The atmosphere is quite hallucinogenic with KEVIN blurring the lines between fantasy and reality with sludgy psychedelics and warped noise rock sounds that are surrounded by that delicious Krautrock delivery and intense experimental vibes. KEVIN apply that same experimental and creative logic to the rest of the album where everything once again becomes freakishly weird and demented with experimental Jazz sounds moving straight back into Krautrock territory on tracks such as: Point, Potter’s Wheel, Murphy Is Buried and Yagura. 

The album does have a sense of isolation as one of its most dominant themes which gives KEVIN a unique and perspective take within the psychedelic movement. The whole record really comes alive when KEVIN play a more straight forward style of conventional Rock and Roll whilst keeping true to their core Experimental sound which allows some areas of Garage Rock and Industrial sounds to emerge from the darkness.

This is a record that has its own dark moral code which allows the music to be quite deliriously seductive and threatening at the same time which you can ultimately feel on the standout track of Murphy Is Buried. The lo-fi production values once again add a menacing attitude which KEVIN run amok with until the dying seconds of the whole album.

It Is What It Is can be considered an offbeat and hip record which manages to be completely original and superbly different in its own right. KEVIN are another great band to discover from the Japanese Rock underground scene.  

Words by Steve Howe

You can buy It Is What It Is on CD/DD/Vinyl now via Riot Season Records

Links

BandCamp | Instagram

Louse - Buyer's Remorse (Album Review)

Release Date: August 14th 2026. Record Label: Riot Season Records. Formats: DD/Vinyl

Buyer’s Remorse - Tracklist

1.Best Laid Plans 03:44

2.Buyer's Remorse 02:39

3.Rags And Tatters 03:38

4.The Wastepipe Ripper 02:29

5.Comfort 03:43

6.Legal Loophole 03:01

7.Wheel 02:32

8.Meatslide 03:48

9.The Deer Caller 04:24

10.Potato Diet 03:20

Members

The Captain - Vocals

Septic Pete - Guitar

The King of Sting - Guitar

Uncle Brutus - Guitar

Mister P. - Drums

Dieta Di Patate - Slide Bass

Review

Buyer’s Remorse is the sophomore album from Noise/Sludge/Doom/Stoner Rockers LOUSE who call their music SCUM ROCK and they’re a band I haven’t come across before which is quite surprising since they are from my hometown of Newcastle Upon Tyne. The record itself is a Noise Rock offering with LOUSE adding filthy and highly mean strands of Sludge, Doom, Alt Rock, Psych and Stoner Rock melodies.

Louse do remind me of their fellow Geordie Noisemakers - PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS - though this record has a more warped and abstract Punk Rock energy which feels inspired by the likes of The Melvins and The Hives in the early stages of the record. There’s a gloomy Garage Rock sound that emerges from the seedy catacombs that have echoes of The Stooges, MC5 and even At The Drive-In being felt on tracks such as Best Laid Plans, Buyer’s Remorse and Rags And Tatters.

The sludgy and stripped back sounds have a grim “Kitchen Sink” effect especially with The Captain’s vocals battling against the epic rhythm section from Mister P on Drums and Dieta Di Patate on Slide Bass. Mister P and Dieta Di Patate have a great understanding amongst each other by building up the filthy rhythms from the ground up with the excellent guitar work played by Septic Pete, The King Of Sting and Uncle Brutus. 

As you can tell by their band names, LOUSE don’t take themselves too seriously and have a ton of fun especially with the bleakly charged lyrics which have some extra bite between them. Sometimes the record can go leftfield with disjointed grooves, fractured vocal passages and gloomy experimental noise effects allowing that subtle Noise Rock and Sludge Rock energy to have a killer Punk Rock swagger. 

Other great tracks to check out are: The Wastepipe Ripper, Legal Loophole, Meatslide and The Deer Caller which allows LOUSE to spread their filth ridden and downbeat message to even greater heights with that lo-fi energy allowing screeching guitars to reach massive levels of distorted volume. Buyer’s Remorse is seriously fucked up but you can’t help be swayed and mightly impressed by the sheer filth ridden danger that Louse will put you through. There is some great riffs to fully lose yourself in with that MELVINS influence being put to great use towards the end of the album.

Buyer’s Remorse is perhaps described as a “CULT ODDITY” which manages to fit alongside some of the more impressive Sludge/Noise/Doom Rock bands currently making a name for themselves. I seriously enjoyed this album and it becomes better with each repeated listen. Louse are a great band to discover for yourselves if you like something way more grimy and experimental with that dominant NOISE ROCK theme that will drive you absolutely insane at the same time.

Yeah, Buyer’s Remorse is an absolute slice of RIOTOUS FUN!!!

Superb. End Of.

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Riot Season Records for the promo.

Buyer’s Remorse is available to buy now on DD/Vinyl via Riot Season Records.

Links

BandCamp | Instagram

Psych/Noise/Space Rock Collective Dead Sea Apes Announce New Album 'Psychic Tension' - Immersive Title Track Unveiled

Photo by Lee Edwards

Manchester’s heavy psych cosmonauts Dead Sea Apes return on the 18th September 2026 with their new album, Psychic Tension. A sprawling cosmic journey, the record arrives via a transatlantic partnership between Cardinal Fuzz and Feeding Tube Records.

Immerse yourself in the first transmission with the title track on The Sleeping Shaman

Artist: Dead Sea Apes
Title: Psychic Tension
Label: Cardinal Fuzz / Feeding Tube Records
Release Date: 18 September 2026
Format: Vinyl / CD / DL

Dead Sea Apes are back with a fierce new album Psychic Tension – an urgent soundtrack for the nerve-shredding times we live in. Our collective psyche is under attack, reeling from the chaos of a modern world under siege: from war, death, destruction and climate catastrophe to political decay, media manipulation, growing inequality and the rank depravity of the so-called elite. Do we overload ourselves with anxiety, vent our frustration at others, make token gestures to ease our conscience, or just try to carry on regardless? Dead Sea Apes have wrestled these dilemmas – this Psychic Tension – into sonic/musical form, creating catharsis from the chaos.

Psychic Tension picks up where the previous album Rewilding left off, carrying forward the momentum of massive riffs, juggernaut rhythms and squalling sonic overload. Noise-rock, Japanese psych, minimal dub and Electric-era Miles are all part of the mix: each member of Dead Sea Apes brings decades of musical exploration to bear on the music. The iterative repetition of Can meets the telepathic mind-meld of the power trio; the deceptive simplicity of Crazy Horse is pulled through the sonics of PSF Records; the live-in-the-practice-room energy is bolstered by layered landscapes of sound - from ethereal echoes to feedback drones to transistor-torturing lead lines.

Dead Sea Apes have always followed their own path, the music instinctively wired into the world around them. On Psychic Tension, they have once again cooked up a sound that is wholly their own, speaking directly to the turmoil within us and surrounding us in these wild times.

Biography

Dead Sea Apes are a Manchester-based three-piece psych-noise band. Taking influences from across the full spectrum of psychedelic rock, noise-rock, krautrock, Japanese psych, dub, and elsewhere, they create a sound that is wholly their own. A vital fixture of the UK rock underground, Dead Sea Apes have shared stages with seminal acts such as The Heads, Part Chimp, Carlton Melton, and Acid Mothers Temple.

Formed in 2009, the band have become a cornerstone of the independent scene, releasing over 10 albums – including collaborations with artists such as The Band Whose Name Is A Symbol and Black Tempest. Much of their catalogue has found a home on the widely celebrated UK psychedelic label Cardinal Fuzz, alongside stateside partnerships with the legendary Feeding Tube Records.

Psychic Tension Tracklist:

01. Damn Your Eyes
02. Psychic Tension
03. Severance
04. Ursa Minor
05. Deathless

Dead Sea Apes is:

Brett Savage - Guitars
Jack Toker - Bass, Guitars
Chris Hardman - Drums

Live Dates:

17/07/2026 - Outpost, Liverpool w/ Mugstar, Shoun Shoun [Info]
09/08/2026 - Kozfest, Penmaenau Farm, Builth Wells [Info]
13/09/2026 - Golden Lion, Todmorden [Album Release Party]

Dead Sea Apes new album Psychic Tension releases 18th September 2026. Pre-sales will start imminently via Cardinal Fuzz in the UK and Feeding Tube Records in the USA.

Links

Website | Bandcamp | Instagram | Facebook

Thanks tot Lee Edwards at Shamedia for the details

Exclusive Premiere Of Noise Rock/Sludge Metallers BLEETH Stunning New EP Lázara

Drive through the neighborhoods of Southwest Miami and you’ll see him: San Lázaro, standing in a glass enclosure among the manicured lawns and palm fronds. Eerily positioned between the divine and the mundane, he is a constant, quiet fixture of the city.

For us, the origin of this EP traces back to one of those statues in particular. While we were writing in a cramped side room, a human-sized San Lázaro stared back at us. At first, it was just a joke—a creepy visitor crashed our sessions. But over time, the image of Lazarus became a sort of talisman, a presence that wove itself into the fabric of these songs.

That shift didn't happen in a vacuum. With the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community feeling more precarious by the day, these sessions became a necessary outlet for our collective rage. We needed a way to process the uncertainty and the weight of the current political landscape.

In that pressure cooker, Lazarus took on a new meaning. Through a queer lens, he became a figure marked and cast aside, only to be brought back to life. That tension between collapse and renewal, death and resurrection, is the heartbeat of Lázara.

This set of songs is a new beginning for us. After a period of turbulence that could have easily ended the band, we came out the other side with the heaviest, most eclectic music we’ve ever made.

You can here the blistering new EP Lázara below thanks to the cool folks over at Good Boy PR.

Lázara - Tracklisting

1.Pretty on the Inside 02:44

2.Porcelain 03:46

3.Bent 02:15

Members

 

Lauren Palma (vox,guitar)

Ryan Rivas (vox,bass)

Hector Mojeno (drums)

Links

Official | BandCamp | Instagram

Thanks to Good Boy PR for all of the details.

Bleeth - Lázara (EP Review)

Release Date: May 29th 2026. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD

Lázara - Tracklisting

1.Pretty on the Inside 02:44

2.Porcelain 03:46

3.Bent 02:15

Members

 

Lauren Palma (vox,guitar)

Ryan Rivas (vox,bass)

Hector Mojeno (drums)

Review

Miami-based queer Sludge Metal/Noise Rock band Bleeth latest EP Lázara is meant to be a rebirth for the band after a period of tough challenges and experiences they’ve faced or currently facing within this hostile world. Being part of the LGBTQIA+ community and what they're currently going through allows Bleeth to re-invent their music with a new found style of aggression and maturity which is quite refreshing from their 2025 album Marionette. 

Lázara opens with a blistering and brutal cover of the HOLE classic Pretty On The Inside with the original’s Punk and Alt-Rock energy being replaced by a primal mix of Noise Rock, Sludge Metal and Harsh melodies. The stripped back sound of the original track is still there but it’s a stripped back style of crushing sludgy guitars with a ferocious Post-Punk sound allowing Bleeth to fully move into an Industrial and Experimental direction.

The EP does contain two original tracks of Porcelain and Bent which offers six minutes of abstract Sludge Metal and Noise Rock melodies with raw sounding production values. Bleeth are quite rightly pissed off on this EP with the whole creative flow surrounded by intricate Post-Punk and industrial beats. The lyrics hit pretty hard with a solitary and emotionally wrought experience hidden behind them. Bleeth inject that legendary brutal MIAMI underground vibe into their music throughout both of these tracks that remind me of CAVITY and FLOOR.

Lázara maybe on the short side but it gets shit done by allowing the LGBTQIA+ community to have a unique voice within the scene where we usually pride in saying “everyone is welcome” but sadly that isn’t always the case. Lázaras is a genuine gut-wrenching, pissed off and brilliantly heavy EP that allows Bleeth to have a real voice within the underground Sludge Metal scene. 

If this is the new musical direction that Bleeth will be taking then I can’t wait to experience what they have in store for future releases.

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to Good Boy PR for the promo..

Lázara  is available to buy now on Digital Formats from all good stockists. 

Links

Official | BandCamp | Instagram

Red Beard Wall - FTW (EP Review)

Release Date: June 05th 2026. Record Label: Snake Piss Records. Formats: DD

FTW - Tracklisting

W.A.N.T.S.

FTW

Members

Drums: Red Beard Wall

Guitar: Red Beard Wall

Vocals: Red Beard Wall

Review

Sludge/Stoner Metallers Red Beard Wall return after a five year absence and I thought the band had called it quits ages ago as things have been fairly quiet from the band. However, the band are back with this two track EP called FTW which sees Aaron flying solo this time and venting his pissed off aggression at the current state of the world and perhaps with their most politically charged and pissed off release to date. FTW only contains two tracks but there’;s a mixture of pounding Sludge, Doom, Stoner, Noise and Noise Rock sounds that Red Beard Wall made their name with.

There’s a sudden influx of Hardcore passages with their trademark streetlevel “DOOM-POP” sound being kept to a minimum that’s set against harsh realistic lyrics with Aaron venting out against the world mostly within the track W.A.N.T.S. That track still has a certain TORCHE based influence towards the end of the song but most of the time Red Beard Wall plays a highly volatile mix of down-tuned Fuzz/Sludge instrumental surroundings with socially aware lyrics to make this track an extra spicy level of pure heaviness.

The remaining track FTW is pure Red Bead Wall through and through with a stripped back Psych/Punk Rock groove exploding into a wall of heavy PISSED OFF noise which takes aim at more the dreaded enemy of Artificial Intelligence which sees Aaron taking aim at the perhaps the most dangerous threat known to man at this moment in time. The stripped back production values is obviously free of any A.I/ involvement with Aaron playing a more grounded style of Noise, Punk, Psych and Stoner Metal carnage with down-tuned Sludge Metal riffs that destroys everything within sight.

FTW is quite short running under ten minutes but it’s always great to have new material from Red Beard Wall and I’m hoping there’s a longer release in the long term. As this proves that the world of Sludge/Stoner Metal need RED BEARD WALL more than ever!!!

Words by Steve Howe

Links:

Facebook | BandCamp

FATIMA - Primal (Album Review)

Release Date: February 03rd 2026. Record Label: Black Robes Records. Formats: DD

Primal - Tracklisting

1.Sassquatch 04:05

2.Mammoth Graveyard 04:17

3.Killer Wart Hog 05:06

4.Dog Ham 03:34

5.Chilled Monkey Brains 04:50

6.Gazelle Horns 04:55

7.Primal 06:00

8.Waters of Babylon 03:07

9.Chilled Monkey Brains (Single 2026) 04:50

Review

Doom/Grunge/Stoner Rockers FATIMA release their fifth album Primal which is perhaps their heaviest and most progressive release yet that builds upon similar themes heard within their 2022 album Fossil. FATIMA has a great way of blending classic Grunge soundscapes against a backdrop of Sludge Metal, Psych Rock, Noise Rock and Post-Punk attitudes. The whole sound is quite direct with FATIMA taking influence from the likes of Soundgarden, Nirvana, Alice In Chains, High On Fire and Mastodon with the multitude of different musical styles forming very early on through the excellent opening tracks of Sassquatch, Mammoth Graveyard and Killer Wart Hog.

There’s a heavy reliance on “MONSTER” folklore within FATIMA’s lyrics and how the album forms against these types of mythical beasts and the legends they provide. However, FATIMA have used this style of storytelling on previous albums though with the lyrics being more grounded despite the FANTASTICAL element they’re originally from. The switching to Post-Punk and Post-Doom surroundings allows the seedy GRUNGE aesthetic to generate a moody atmosphere which does become quite dominant with Post-Metal and Heavy Psychedelic attitudes holding everything together.

The added use of down-tuned and slightly dirty FUZZ ROCK grooves allows a level of freakish and violent attitude to form which gives Primal a truly outlandish quality on tracks such as Dog Ham, Chilled Monkey Brains, Gazelle Horns and Primal. FATIMA always opt for a truly amplified sound which allows the LOW & SLOW and REVERB parts of the record to provide an exhilarating display of pure ROCK & ROLL fury.

The production values are handled superbly well with a classic Nineties Grunge/Stoned Out energy appearing from every single corner that allows FATIMA to play with extreme musical confidence. Sometimes the record does become a bit over the top for its own good along the way but this is offset by FATIMA’s superb musicianship which results within non-stop musical solos along the way. 

Primal is a record that delivers on all fronts which is most definitely worth multiple repeated listens.

Excellent and Highly Recommended.

Words by Steve Howe

Links 

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram

Libbianski - Episode 1 (EP Review)

Release Date: December 04th 2025. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD

Episode 1 - Tracklisting

1.Continue The Sad 03:57

2.Steve French 04:26

3.Finding A Cure 04:44

Members

Kurt Williams - guitar/ vocals

Nat Reid - bass/ vocals

Tom LaHatte - drums

Review

Episode 1 is the debut EP from Libbianski who fuse Doom, Shoegaze, Post-Metal and Alt Metal that has a solid Doom-Pop foundation with the band playing similar sounds to bands such as TORCHE, HUM and Slow Crush. The record has quite an aggressive and vivid energy which I didn’t fully expect which comes out in full force within the excellent opening track of Continue The Sad. The harsh vocals from Kurt Williams (Guitar) are quite different from Nat Reid’s (Bass)  sublime Alt Metal and Punk Rock delivery.

The music moves from catchy Doom-Pop hooks to a gloriously delicious Post-Metal energy with a sludgy attitude forming throughout. Add a subtle Grunge and Noise Rock attitude which allows Libbianski to dominate the Doomgaze landscape. The lyrics are quite insightful but with a rebellious presence to them. That style of music continues within the outstanding second track Steve French which captures a slightly downbeat Nineties sounding melody with outbursts of Sludge Punk surroundings with the band following closely to their gloomy Pop hooks.

Libbianski are from Wellington, New Zealand which once again shows a different style of Hard Rock and Heavy Metal band to emerge from there with the likes of BEASTWARS, ULCERATE, Planet Of The Dead and Sidewinder impressing me over the years. Libbianski play their own great style of distorted sounds which takes a more warm hearted and disjointed approach within the final track Finding A Cure with Kurt’s and Nat’s vocals once again offering different styles and musical perspective. Tom LaHatte puts in a wonderfully understated performance on drums which makes everything tick throughout the whole EP.

Episode 1 is a superbly heavy, quirky and extremely delightful record with Libbianski offering a different style of Shoegaze that’s brimming with wonderful creativity. 

Words by Steve Howe

Links 

Facebook | BandCamp

Feel Worse - This Will Weigh Heavily On Your Annual Performance Appraisal (Album Review)

Release Date: November 28th 2025. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD

This Will Weigh Heavily On Your Annual Performance Appraisal - Tracklisting

1.In Public 03:47

2.Elbow Party 04:31

3.Graves Upon Graves 06:17

4.Break the Ice 03:17

5.So You Die 04:58

6.The Giant Who Wanted Company 03:30

7.Storms 03:57

Review

This Will Weigh Heavily On Your Annual Performance Appraisal is the debut album from Noise/Post-Hardcore/Sludge Metallers Feel Worse and it’s a project made up of members from bands such as Sulaco, Sully and Burn Everything. Feel Worse play a wide range of different musical themes such as Post-Rock, Black Metal, Psych Metal and Industrial Rock within their main Post-Hardcore and Sludge Metal attitude. 

The band are perhaps closer to the likes of KOWLOON WALLED CITY and WHORES with the band creating sludgy anthemic grooves with a stirring social conscience appearing within the lyrics. The vocals are very much of the Post-Hardcore and Punk Rock variety as the music even has influences such as The Melvins, At The Drive-In and Converge to give this quite a highly experimental vibe. Feel Worse even find the time to play around with Psychedelic and Sonic movements which you can feel the full force on tracks such as In Public, Elbow Party and Graves Upon Graves.

With a twisted sense of melody allowing Feel Worse to move across different musical boundaries and even when the vocals move into Pitch-Black territory, the music is constantly melodic with a dark Psychedelic energy appearing within some of the more longer tracks of the record. There are some parts where the music is quite chaotic and Jazz focused in places but it’s quite refreshing to hear with Feel Worse always thinking ahead by creating complex rhythms and musical structures that also allow you to focus upon the lyrical content even more especially on tracks Graves Upon Graves, Break The Ice and The Giant Who Wanted Company.

Feel Worse has a harsh Nineties Alt-Metal attitude appearing on the later stages of the record with plenty of menacing beat-downs and progressive beats becoming more part of the action. This is a highly captivating slice of Noise Rock with a full on Sludge Metal attitude with the album also having quite a surreal experimental sound throughout.

This Will Weigh Heavily On Your Annual Performance Appraisal is a superbly entertaining record which dares to be quite different and still leaves you wanting to hear more with it’s great collection of individual songs that have BRAINS and BRAWN to match in equal measure.

Words by Steve Howe

Links 

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram | LinkTree