Elder weren’t exactly elder statesmen in the doom-metal body politic upon releasing their third album. But they were staunchly convinced that a little more of everything was needed. More volume. More melody. More prog-rock passages that’d break up the monotony of the hypnotic riffs.
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Our recent, lively conversation with Slothrust leader Leah Wellbaum ahead of their new album What They Grow in the Garden, resulted in a FLOOD interview and an exclusive bit of news that we ran on this website. But we have another leftover from the articles that might supply you with a good read if you’re in need of one.
The book in question is Milk Fed by Melissa Broder, released in February 2021.
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In the most brutally honest and thus edifying installment yet of our 100-plus-installment On Tyranny series, brand-new Irish electro-Celtic trio Chasing Abbey hold nothing back in speaking out against authoritarianism, oppression and the Palestinian genocide.
We’re publishing this video today to celebrate the release of the trio’s debut record, Cyber Celt, which comes out today (Friday) courtesy of Remote Control Records.
Get a breath of fresh air as you listen to all three members of Chasing Abbey – multi-instrumentalists/producers/vocalists Ronan Bell, Jonathan Byrne and Ted Conway – bravely speak their mind and exercise free speech fearlessly and proudly … just like the Irish tradition calls for.
As musically gifted as they are hyper-intelligent, as hyper-intelligent as they are kind, and as kind as they are wise, there was no better band to approach than atmospheric black-metal masters Der Weg einer Freiheit for The Bad Penny Passport‘s stop in Germany. That’s the name we’re calling our latest series, in which we check in with musicians in countries across the globe to get the real deal on the best bands their homelands have to offers. We’re blown away by your positive reception of the series, dear readers; we surmise it’s because you’re refreshed to be getting listening recommendations from musicians instead of Spotify, the algorithm or AI.
On Friday, Der Weg einer Freiheit released an instrumental version of Innern, the studio album they released last year, and we’ll bring you an interview with vocalist/guitarist Nikita Kamprad and bassist Alan Noruspur post-haste. But before we do, we’re gifting to you a list of Germany’s top 10 metal bands that Kamprad – one of our best comrades, and who we’ve interviewed before – in turn gifted to us. (Der Weg deserve a lofty place on the list, but Kamprad is too humble to have put his own band on it.)
Without further ado, here’s his list, with generously ample descriptions of the featured bands and explanations as to why they deserve to be on it.
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“The moral of the story is:
Say yes to every dog.”
-Jon Moore of Tiger Bear Wolf
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It would be sacrilege, blasphemous, a crime worthy of punishment by death were The Bad Penny not to rabidly pursue a band named Tiger Bear Wolf to participate in our ongoing – and, thanks to our rad readership, very popular – Pet Sounds series. In keeping with that thought, we chased down the post-hardcore math-rock band from Greensboro, North Carolina – and wouldn’t you know it, they were immediately into the idea.
Tiger Bear Wolf consists of four human beings – Jonathan Moore (guitar, vocals), Noah Howard (guitar, vocals), Matt Bostick (bass) and Lawrence Holdsworth (drums) – who recently released a self-titled album 17 years in the making. (Yes, you read that right.) In a story that will pull at your heartstrings, the pink-cheeked punks found themselves on a roll after putting out their first two records in 2002 and 2005. But Tiger Bear Wolf’s third effort was not the charm. Hard drives containing the songs intended to be on that next record went awry, and the band wasn’t able to recover the material until much later.
A source of solace and comfort for Moore during those trying years when the Tiger Bear Wolf recordings were lost was, no doubt, his dog Robo. You might want to keep a box of issues handy for this very special installment of Pet Sounds, as Robo is no longer with us and the rare photos that Moore so generously shared with us are rather breathtaking. Either way, here is the story of Robo the dog, unwavering companion to the frontman of the band Tiger Bear Wolf.
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As the 100th band we’ve interviewed for our On Tyranny series, which we launched in February 2025, we couldn’t have found a more fitting subject than Southern California hardcore/metal/rap enthusiasts Throwlight. The young band is tearing it up in conservative Orange County without any hesitation whatsoever, spitting in the face of the most frustrating aspects of the era in which are suffering through: compliance, willful ignorance and inaction.
While many artists are gratuitously tossing a remark or two into their live performances about how they disagree with the fascist takeover of America, Throwlight – consisting of vocalist Rocom, guitarist Chris Ellis, bassist Kevin Betz and playfully nicknamed keyboardist King of Somewhere – are putting their hearts totally into the fight. Their passion for resistance is as intense as the fury they unleash on their latest single, “No Kings,” which came out last month on limited-edition cassette.
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“It’s a difficult thing to be an artist, man. You use your brain and a lot of energy. It’s the same with us musicians. We are working a lot with our mind. Some people think we are lazy or that actors do nothing, but it’s a lot of mental work.”
-Nightrage’s Marios Iliopoulos
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One of The Bad Penny‘s favorite people in the whole wide world is Marios Iliopoulos, a rare human being who has a heart so big that it’s perplexing how his body can contain it, who has zero ego even though he fronts the best Greek metal band of all time, and who has generously donated hours of his time to speak with us about everything under the sun.
Previously, we brought you our conversations with Marios about his band Nightrage, the scourge of authoritarianism and fascism spreading across the world and his heartwarming friendship with sorely missed At the Gates frontman Tomas Lindberg.
Now we present you with what might our most entertaining chat with Señor Iliopoulos, as part of The Bad Penny‘s ongoing Favorite Films series. In case it’s not already obvious, the feature revolves around us speaking with musicians about movies that have won them over.
Without further ado, here’s our exchange with Nightrage innovator Iliopoulos about his flicks of choice.
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Ringo Starr may always be regarded as the weakest link in the Beatles, but when it comes to music supervisor and debuting solo artist Gary Calamar, his dog Ringo is an invaluable source of strength, inspiration and silliness. A longtime music industry executive – and DJ, and author, and five-time Grammy-nominated producer and music supervisor, and songwriter – Calamar is teeing up his first-ever solo record, Odd Numb3rs and Slanted Rhymes, for release October 23 on Big Stir Records. It will feature guest spots by his famous musician friends including Robyn Hitchcock, Maria Taylor and Mark Mothersbaugh.
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This Q&A with The Format – an influential indie-rock duo consisting of Nate Ruess and Sam Means that reunited last year – was conducted on Friday, September 11, as part of The Bad Penny‘s ongoing On Tyranny series. The feature focuses on how fascism damages artists artistically, emotionally and personally; provides them with space to discuss their fear, anxiety and anger toward the Trump administration; increases solidarity among like-minded artists; and lets them set an example for other musicians (young ones in particular) that it is legal and just to criticize and protest.
Of the 100-plus artists with whom I’ve spoken for this series, you guys are actually putting your money where your mouth is and doing a lot of good work. Please tell my readership what you’ve been up to and the catalyst for getting involved helping immigrants.
Nate Ruess: We’re focusing right now on direct organization and “Saturdays in the Park.” When we’re on tour and in a city on a Saturday, we find a park and set up our PA system and let everybody come and watch us play for free. We’ll invite about eight to 12 different organizations to come and set up tables at this free show, and in between us playing a few songs acoustically, we’ll invite them onstage for five minutes to explain what their organization is all about and why people might want to join or get more information. It gives everybody an opportunity, instead of just feeling good about themselves for donating, to take more direct action.
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