Archive for the Interviews Category

From the Vault: Cost-Cutting Hacks For Broke Bands, Pt. 1: Trail Of Dead, Sigh, Black Anvil

Posted in Interviews with tags , , on 12/18/2025 by Kurt Orzeck


From the “starving artist” lore of yore to Woody Guthrie illegally hopping trains as a method of touring to record labels, promoters, and clubs ripping off bands, artists have struggled to make ends meet since the dawn of … (commercial) art. And we didn’t even mention gear theft, vans breaking down, and natural disasters (until we did just now).

Resilient bands sometimes overcome such hurdles thanks to their fans’ generosity, if the musicians are wise and savvy enough to build, grow, and maintain their fanbase. Other bands get big(ger) through contracts involving their music, merchandise, tours, and marketing. Yet even more broke bands manage to succeed by keeping their costs low—or simply getting lucky.

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From the Vault: Sigh Frontman Says ‘There’s No Way to Get Away From Death’

Posted in Interviews with tags on 12/17/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

A couple of weeks ago, Mirai Kawashima—frontman of Sigh, one of Japan’s longest-running metal bands—published a two-sentence Facebook post that summed up both his current state of mind and his band’s latest material. And the thought he shared didn’t even mention Sigh.

In true metal form, Kawashima wrote: “So I turned 53 today. There’s not much difference between 52 and 53, but obviously 53 is 1 year closer to death.”

And, in true Facebook form, the oblivious top comment read: “Happy Birthday!!”

It’s obvious to say, but Kawashima (who is also a music journalist) couldn’t have posted that remark were he a day younger. But that fact is worth noting because, when he spoke with The Bad Penny ahead of Sigh’s latest album, the vocalist and bassist explained that he couldn’t have made Shiki at a younger age, either.

Tying it all together, Shiki is about Kawashima’s increasing obsession with death as he gets older. Compounded by the passing of his father the month before we spoke with him, Kawashima explained how death was an abstract concept to him, until he turned 50 years old.

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Japan’s 夢遊病者 (Sleepwalker) Says They Won’t Tour but That ‘Life, as Art, Is Unpredictable’

Posted in Interviews with tags , on 12/16/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

“РЛБ30011922 is a way to deal with a death, to honor a memory and create a record of a reminder that this honor must be preserved.”
-PBV of 夢遊病者

When a band decides to call itself “夢遊病者,” it exponentially decreases their chances of getting “discovered.” But, of course, that presupposes the notion that mass appeal is the top priority for every musician. From all indications, that ain’t the modus operandi for Osaka, Japan’s experimental death-metal crew 夢遊病者. Their primary goal appears to be attracting erudite music-heads who are highly selective with what tunes they choose to consume.

The Bad Penny recently came across 夢遊病者 and became instantly hooked on the trio’s original sound, which also incorporates folk, free-jazz, grind, thrash and psychedelia. You owe it to yourself to check out РЛБ30011922, which consists of one engrossing song that runs 37 minutes (divided into 10 segments) and came out in late October. Don’t dare call the song, which shares the same name as the title of the release, a throwaway track; PBV (guitars/saz/bow/vocals/effects, NN (bass/electrophones) and KJM (drums/percussion) spent three years crafting it.

After getting hooked on the kaleidoscopic track, yours truly championed it in my Treble column, “The 13th Floor,” as one of the eight best psychedelic releases of the fall season. (You’ll find 夢遊病者’s “РЛБ30011922” even more tempting to seek out because it’s available on Bandcamp at a pay-what-you-want price point.)

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Pet Sounds #75: Brokedowns’ Drum Kit Player Can’t Get Enough of His Kitty Cats

Posted in Features, Interviews, Pet Sounds with tags , , on 12/16/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

If you’re unfamiliar with the Brokedowns, a punk band out of Chicago, than shame on you. Less than three weeks ago, the band’s irrepressibly good-natured and good-humored guitarist/vocalist, Kris Megyery, bravely participated in our On Tyranny series, informing us how he had personally witnessed despicable ICE raids at his workplace. He also agreed to speak with The Bad Penny because the Brokedowns’ new record, Let’s Tip the Landlord, which just came out a few weeks ago through Red Scare Industries.

During the same interview, Megyery informed us that the Brokedowns’ drummer, Mustafa Daka, has limitless love for his pets, making him an ideal candidate for the Bad Penny’s other popular series, Pet Sounds. Megyery’s claims proved to be very well-founded, as Daka got back to us speedy, ready to gush over his cats.

“My precious angels, sisters Ava and Olive … are my favorite topics to talk about!” he gushed during an email exchange.

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The Visionaries: Sadness Finds His ‘Purpose’ in Music, Readies for Breakout Year in 2026

Posted in Features, Interviews, The Visionaries with tags , , on 12/16/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

“If I have a purpose in life, it’s to make music.” That’s a powerful statement from a young man named Damián Antón Ojeda, whose solo blackgaze project Sadness exudes the sincerity, intensity and deep emotion of an artist proving his credo through his art. All those factors combined make him an ideal entrant in The Bad Penny‘s new series “The Visionaries,” in which we interview introverted musical savants who typically don’t do many interviews. Following Aaron Turner and Jute Gyte, Ojeda is in very good company.

While Sadness has crafted dozens upon dozens of releases over the past decade or so – most recent the exquisite EP Shimmer – 2024 marked the first live performance for the project. But now, having really broken out of his shell, Ojeda is ready to tour next year and – while he’s too humble to say so himself – is well-positioned for global domination.

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On Tyranny: Finland’s Rotten Sound Don’t Fear Crackdown on Dissent Because ‘We Live in a Democratic Country’

Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny, On Tyranny with tags , , , , , on 12/16/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

When The Bad Penny embarked on its On Tyranny project more than a year ago, we initially interviewed artists residing in countries controlled by authoritarian regimes in order to learn how they are still able to pursue their vocation despite fears of retaliation including censorship, imprisonment and even death. We conversed with musicians in Russia, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Hungary.

About six months later, the Trump regime began deploying military forces into U.S. cities, deported U.S. citizens without due process to countries they had never resided nor visited, and ordered masked “authorities” with no visible identification to kidnap and disappear people with no criminal records off the street. Thus, we turned our focus to how U.S.-based musicians are coping with previously unimaginable atrocities and how Authoritarian America is damaging the careers and personal lives of artists and dissenters.

Today we bring you a different perspective on the growing power of autocracy as the governing force across the world via a short-and-sweet interview with grindcore band Rotten Sound from Finland. While the vast majority of artists we’ve interviewed for On Tyranny have expressed fear, disgust and despair over the direction that the U.S. – and, by extension, the world – is headed, The Bad Penny was surprised to learn that some artists are not worried about being persecuted for their stances, whether they be creative or “political” (whatever that term actually means anymore).

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Struck a Nerve: A Rad Metal Band Born Out of Frustration With Music Industry Bullshit

Posted in Interviews with tags , , , on 12/14/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

“It started as a bit of a bit of a laugh, and then as the recording process went on, it became evident that it was actually pretty good, and we were having so much fun with it.”

Let’s cut to the chase, because that’s the modus operandi behind U.K. thrash wizards Struck a Nerve. Listenable Records announced in mid-September that the label had signed the band, featuring Shrapnel lead guitarist Nathan Sadd, two members who had parted ways with Shrapnel, and guitarist Lexell Altair Garrido to boot

A little over two months later, Struck a Nerve pumped out their self-titled debut – and they’re already starting to create the follow-up LP. If you don’t think that’s ambitious, check out what Sadd said in a press statement at the time of the band’s signing to Listenable: “Struck a Nerve are aiming to be the most aggressive and intense thrash band the UK has ever produced.”

With that in mind, buckle up for our conversation with the very intense – and equally insightful – Nathan Sadd, with whom we spoke via Zoom last month.

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Reverse Yr Curse Refuse to Accept Alienation, Self-Destruction as Their Fate

Posted in Interviews with tags on 12/14/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

It seems like a very flawed and distinctly American – or perhaps conservative Christian – way of thinking that a curse will never again rear its ugly head or inflict terror upon innocent children and old ladies once it’s banished. What a fallacy. Look no further than bad music as a prime example contradicting this simplistic idea.

After Styx, Kansas and Toto seemed to have an unbreakable stranglehold on popular music, along came Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty and the Replacements to slip out of the grasp of AOR assholes — kinda like how Hulk Hogan (sorry brother, you’re not getting an RIP from The Bad Penny) managed to wrangle out of the clutches of Ric Flair when all seemed lost.

Because Matthew Park grew up in a household in Fairfax County, Virginia, where music was largely absent and in which furtively flipping through his parents’ Dave Brubeck records was deemed “naughty,” his understanding of music wasn’t just myopic, it was practically nonexistent. Park can’t identify the moment of clarity when he finally discovered rock music – but he can vividly recall when music transformed him while he was surrounded by strangers.

“The first concert I ever saw was Mötley Crüe. And it was awesome,” he says during a recent video conversation. “This was also back during a time where, at least in my family and my friends’ circle, our parents didn’t really keep very tight leashes on us. We were free to roam. So that’s what we did. We got into hair metal, like Guns N’ Roses, and that quickly shifted into Jane’s Addiction and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.”

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On Tyranny: ‘The American Experiment Is Over,’ Singer for LA Punks Jacob the Horse Declares

Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny, On Tyranny, Videos with tags , on 12/14/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

“Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight, fight,” Aviv Rubinstien, singer for Los Angeles indie-punk band Jacob the Horse, tells The Bad Penny in a video conversation held earlier today.

“Show me your fangs or show me your teeth,” he continues. “People need to stop waiting around for others to do it for them and show the people that mean to step on you that you still have teeth and you won’t go down without a fight.”

The interview took place on December 14, 2025, less than two weeks before Jacob the Horse dropped their new single and video for “666 Chicks” – and ahead of the March 20 release of their new album, At Least It’s Almost Over.

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The Visionaries: ‘Dungeon Synth’ Master Jute Gyte Exudes Empathy in Rare Interview

Posted in Features, Interviews, The Visionaries with tags , , , , , on 12/14/2025 by Kurt Orzeck

“If I’m focusing on sources of human suffering, then maybe it would be nice to put [part of the proceeds I earn from selling that] material to try to alleviate some of that suffering.”
-Jute Gyte

This year, The Bad Penny has had the incredibly unexpected, transformational, good fortune of interviewing more than 200 musicians across the globe. But as 2025 (mercifully) comes to a close, we’ve reflected on many of those conversations and come to realize that we connected with some truly exceptional human beings who just happen to make music.

These are individuals who often but don’t always work in isolation, truly treat making music as a cherished endeavor, take their work seriously, have a very strong work ethic and regiment – and, as a result, transcend the simple act of songcraft, recording and performing live.

To these remarkable individuals, music is not a diversion, and certainly not a means to striking it rich or becoming famous. They devote themselves to their craft because it is their vocation, their calling – not their calling card to getting signed to an oily record contract.

Last week, The Bad Penny unofficially launched a new series, which we’re calling “The Visionaries” – a term each humble subject of the series will surely reject, but sorry guys, them’s the breaks – with an uncharacteristically intimate look into the creative process and soul of underground legend Aaron Turner that Treble generously published.

For the first “official” edition of the series “The Visionaries” published on The Bad Penny, we are thrilled to present you a conversation with perhaps the most unsung drone-metal musician of the century, Jute Gyte (Adam Kalmbach). If his name doesn’t sound familiar, don’t be embarrassed; hell, this guy flies so low under the radar, he would probably rather you don’t know who is, so long as his music is getting out there and assuaging some music listeners (particularly those who gravitate toward challenging listens).

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