Witch Ripper’s kindred spirits – Mastodon, High on Fire and Baroness, to name a few – have done quite well for themselves thanks in part to keeping their creative juices flowing at practically all times. But by taking a slow-cooker approach instead, Seattle’s Witch Ripper have deftly avoided pitfalls like getting overexposed or even overplayed, and they’ve instead siphoned that time into developing a coherent and well-considered sound. Look no further than their new album, Through the Hourglass, which comes out Friday via Magnetic Eye Records. Read my full review via Veil of Sound.
Witch Ripper’s ‘Through the Hourglass’: Two Cent Review
Posted in Album Reviews, Reviews with tags Magnetic Eye, Witch Ripper on 04/07/2026 by Kurt OrzeckFilth Is Eternal’s ‘Impossible World’: Two Cent Review
Posted in Album Reviews, Reviews with tags Filth Is Eternl on 04/07/2026 by Kurt OrzeckVibrant, dexterous, and unrelentingly compelling, Seattle hardcore-punks Filth Is Eternal demonstrate on their newest album, Impossible World, that they’ve matured into a band adept at writing songs just two minutes in length. Read my full review courtesy of FLOOD.
Ponte Del Diavolo Take Stock of Their Crackerjack Catalog, Album by Album
Posted in Discographies, Exclusives with tags Ponte del Diavolo, Season of Mist on 04/07/2026 by Kurt OrzeckAren’t yet acquainted with doomy troupe Ponte del Diavolo, which also incorporates black metal and post-punk into a distinct witches’ brew they’ve dubbed “blackened post-punk hell”? For shame! The quintet – which hails from Turin, Italy – have already made their mark since forming in 2020, thanks to two long-players and three EPs. And their growth spurt shows no signs of letting up, either.
Ponte del Diavolo cranked out their latest LP, De Venom Natura, in February through the esteemed Season of Mist. The effort – which features “Every Tongue Has Its Thorns,” “Lunga vita alla necrosi,” “Spirit, Blood, Poison, Ferment!” and even a cover of Bauhaus'”In the Flat Field” among its seven songs is continuing to win over metalheads drawn to bands that break just about every metal convention.
Featuring vocalist Erba del Diavolo, bassists Khrura Abro and Kratom, guitarist Nerium and drummer Segale Cornuta, the wildly adventurous De Venom Natura captures the band going where few metal musicians have dared go before. In the band’s own words, they say LP number two is “an alchemical meditation on the poisons of nature – seductive, transformative and deadly.”
As with any band that lives to explore uncharted territory, we hit up Ponte del Diavolo to find out how their development as a band led to the audaciously ambitious record of theirs that just dropped. In a Bad Penny exclusive, the quintet graciously broke down each of their releases with descriptions that elucidate how they became the band that they are today.
Continue readingDoppelgängers: Queens of the Stone Age’s Josh Homme and The Pale Man From Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’
Posted in Doppelgängers, Features with tags Josh Homme, Queens of the Stone Age on 04/06/2026 by Kurt OrzeckJosé González’s ‘Against the Dying of the Light’: Two Cent Review
Posted in Album Reviews, Reviews with tags José González, Junip on 04/06/2026 by Kurt OrzeckWith his fifth album, Swedish songwriter José González considers his deepest of existential queries while maintaining the effervescent, seductive sound that’s the strongest through line in his career. Read my full review courtesy of FLOOD.
From the Vault: The Faint Take the Troubadour in Hollywood, 10.4.01
Posted in Concert Reviews, Reviews with tags The Faint, Troubadour on 04/05/2026 by Kurt Orzeck
On a weeknight in West Hollywood, relative newcomers The Faint from Omaha, Nebraska, took the famed Troubadour by storm, inspiring the crowd to hop onstage and dance along with the band for their final number. It was, well, so not Hollywood for dozens of uninhibited souls to make the daring move and take concert interaction to the next level. And as tour attendance had faltered in the previous weeks following 9/11, even more delight was had in seeing the spectacle.
Read my full review, originally published in October 2001 in Campus Circle, here.
An Easter Exultation to Cinema’s Still-Sorely-Missed King of Kings, David Lynch: Watch His ‘Rabbits’ Short Film
Posted in Favorite Films, Features with tags David Lynch, rabbits on 04/05/2026 by Kurt OrzeckBest New Music Videos (March 2026): Portrayal of Guilt, Robyn Hitchcock, Death Lens, Julez and the Rollerz, More
Posted in Lists, Videos with tags Apolaustic, Death Lens, Frēqs, Julez and the Rollerz, Knumears, Nick Flessa, Portrayal of Guilt, Robyn Hitchcock, Siiickbrain, Yelena Eckemoff on 04/04/2026 by Kurt OrzeckEnjoy The Bad Penny‘s latest roundup of the best music videos that caught our eye last month. And be prepared to be both shocked and awed, as the songs and accompanying imagery run the gamut, to put it mildly.
1. Portrayal of Guilt’s “Object of Pain”
2. The Frēqs’ “John Travolta”
















