Sooper Records cofounder Glenn Curran speaks elaborately with conviction and altruism about what drives him and his partners to pour their heart and soul into the super-duper Sooper Records—and release albums they believe in, as art for art’s sake. Read my profile on the bespoke Chicago label for Music Connection.
Sooper Records Pursues ‘Authentic Expression[s] of the Human Experience’
Posted in Interviews with tags Sooper Records on 07/24/2025 by Kurt OrzeckRIP Ozzy Osbourne, Voice of Heavy Metal, Prince of Darkness, Biter of Bat Heads, Cooker of Eggs
Posted in News, Videos with tags Ozzy Osbourne on 07/22/2025 by Kurt OrzeckHLLLYH’s ‘URUBURU’: Two Cent Review
Posted in Album Reviews, Reviews with tags HLLLYH, Mae Shi on 07/17/2025 by Kurt Orzeck
HLLLYH’s URUBURU was originally intended to be the fourth Mae Shi album. But the members of HLLLYH discovered that making new music by piggybacking on prototypes of old Mae Shi material sounded like Mae Shit. In hindsight, it was as if HLLLYH had put on an elaborate stage production of Weekend at Bernie’s. Read my review on Treble.
Matt Jencik & Midwife’s ‘Never Die’: Two Cent Review
Posted in Album Reviews, Reviews with tags Madeline Elizabeth Johnston, Matt Jencik, Midwife on 07/11/2025 by Kurt Orzeck
While Matt Jencik is listed first in this collaborative duo’s billing, one could easily mistake Never Die for a proper studio effort by Madeline Elizabeth Johnston’s Midwife. Muted, melancholic, sometimes meandering and always mysterious, hers is a tranquilizing sound. Read my review of Never Die on Treble.
Gaupa’s ‘Fyr’: Two Cent Review
Posted in Album Reviews, Reviews with tags GAUPA on 07/11/2025 by Kurt Orzeck
Fyr, the new EP by superbly skillful Swedes GAUPA, is a downright infuriating listen. Well, to this embarrassed rock critic, at least. How does a band capable of writing and executing a record, even if it is just a short-player, without the slightest blemish, scratch or scuff? Read my review of the EP for Veil of Sound.
The Lion’s Daughter Go Out With a Roar, Donate Dough From Last Show to Animal Rescue
Posted in News with tags animal rescue, Lion's Daughter on 07/11/2025 by Kurt OrzeckSt. Louis’ progressive/blackened sludge metal band The Lion’s Daughter were adamant that their farewell performance would barely resemble the inescapably dire mood that characterizes most bands’ sayonara shows. Read my New Noise feature that reveals intimidating frontman Rick Giordano’s surprising soft spot for animal rescue.
On Tyranny: Haggus Frontman Blasts Punk Bands’ Silence on Gaza, ICE
Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny with tags Haggus on 07/11/2025 by Kurt Orzeck“If you use weak-ass, purposely offensive artwork or lyrics just to ‘shock’ people, or stay silent during times like this in attempt to walk the fence in fear that your reputation might be tarnished, then fuck you. We don’t want or need you as a peer.”
-Haggus’ Hambone
Haggus is the band leading the charge for “mincecore,” a form of “grindcore,” to be accepted by the punk underground community. But founder Hambone doesn’t mince words when it comes to Nazis, racists, bigots, sexists and other propagators of hate. To paraphrase the admirable musician, they can all fuck off.
Three weeks ago, shortly after the Oakland band released its new album Destination Extinction on Tankcrimes, Hambone spoke in great length with The Bad Penny about Haggus, the band’s history, his views on punk music, and just about every other issue under the sun.
Buckle up, kiddos. You’re able to hear the straight dope from a wicked talented musician who has no tolerance for dopes.
Continue readingAustere Say Their DIY Decision Spawned LP They Had Always Wanted to Make
Posted in Interviews with tags Austere on 07/11/2025 by Kurt Orzeck
If there’s one thing we’ve to come to expect from a studio album by black-metal duo Austere, it’s that it’ll be a no-nonsense affair that eschews humor in favor of maintaining a laser-like focus on cerebral, emotional, and even spiritual growth. In our recent exchange with the Australian duo–consisting of Tim Yatras (drums/keyboards/vocals) and Mitchell Keepin (guitars, bass, keyboards, vocals)–we discovered that, as human beings, they as direct as their no–frills music.
The symmetry between art and the personality of the artist who created it is not to be confused with what corporate suits call “on brand.” Those shysters insist that artists, in order to make a living, must prove their artistic mettle in tandem with their ability to socialize and hock their wares–honest advertising be damned.
Continue readingBad Penny Bests: Top 10 Best (And Worst) Meats
Posted in Comedy, Lists with tags Frank Zappa, Meat Puppets, Tomahawk on 07/11/2025 by Kurt Orzeck
You people can’t seem to read a full article these days unless it’s a Top 10 list. So The Bad Penny is jumping on the bandwagon from time to time and see if ours are as riveting as “Top 10 Substitutes for Mayonnaise,” “Top 10 Best Bob Seger Songs,” “Top 10 Ways to Sneeze Politely in Public,” etc.
Here’s our second one. We think. The first was abut clubs. We’re too lazy busy to comb through our labyrinthian archives to see if we’ve posted an edition during the sordid history of this website.
Top 10 Best Meats
2. Meatwound
3. Meatballs
Agriculture’s ‘Bodhidharma’: Two Cent Review
Posted in Reviews with tags Agriculture on 07/10/2025 by Kurt Orzeck
One might regard as pretentious Agriculture’s belief that they warrant a genre of their own, which they call “ecstatic black metal.” But try finding another band that alternates between enormous riffs that grab hold like the Sarlacc Pit in Return of the Jedi and refuse to let go. Read my Treble review of “Bodhidharma,” a single selected from Agriculture’s forthcoming The Spiritual Sound.
The Bad Penny (beta) 