Der Weg Einer Freiheit’s new album, Innern, will be regarded as one of the year’s greatest metal records: one that hits hard by virtue of masterful execution of musical adeptness, and that simultaneously leaves listeners feeling better about themselves than when they pressed play. In a world that is completely upside-down, perhaps black netal is our best hope of survival. Read my review on Veil of Sound.
Shiner bassist Paul Malinowski talks about producing the Kansas City post-hardcore band’s new LP, BELIEVEYOUME, as well as dream collaborators and nightmare live show experiences. Read my Shiner interview on FLOOD.
“As someone who is a queer individual, my safety came from a lot of people dying and protesting and fighting for my rights to feel safe. … I’m willing to have a boot on my neck for the people that I love and care about. I’m here for the fight.”
–Sonia Sturino
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Only about 69,500 people live in Portland, Maine, which is one of the least-populous states in the U.S. (and is the only one in the Lower 48 to share a border with just one other state). But let’s drop the Cliff Clavin act and get to the most salient fact of interest to you, dear reader of The Bad Penny: Portland is home to one of the most red-hot indie-rock bands in the Northeast: Weakened Friends.
Led by impossible-not-to-love married multi-instrumentalists Sonia Sturino (who has a green card) and Annie Hoffman, this year marks the 10th anniversary since Weakened Friends cranked out their first release: The crunchy, power-chord song “Won Yet,” which proved from the git-go that the group had the sharpest of ears for melody, harmony and chorus. In a mere 12 days, the sumptuous songsmiths will unveil Feels Like Hell on the inimitable Don Giovanni records.
When The Bad Penny caught wind of the topics that Weakened Friends address on their third record – resisting the temptation to succumb to “deep nihilism in the face of global capitalism” and instead refuse self-censorship and embrace the freedom to speak out, we quickly invited them to participate in our ongoing On Tyranny series – and both Sturino and Hoffman merrily obliged.
We staged a video chat with them about three weeks ago, as we all hunkered down in our kitchens (theirs is far more decorative than mine) to share our thoughts and feelings about the state of the U.S., and the impact Authoritarian American is having on musicians.
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Lest you think Austin, Texas, is only comprised of psych-rock bands these days, The Bad Penny brings you Temple of Love, a goth-rock/dark-wave band whose debut, Songs of Love and Despair, drops November 7 on Reptile House. Fans of The Black Angels and Killing Joke, take note.
Husband-and-wife duo Steve Colca and Suzy Bravo incepted Temple of Love way back in 2018, intending it to be a “pet” recording project all their own. But the two musicians – who hail from touted doom bands Destroyer of Light and Witchcryer, respectively – decided to aim for loftier ambitions after their 2019 demo earned them heaps of praise.
Consisting of guitarist/vocalist Colca, vocalist Bravo, drummer Patrick Pascucci and bassist Joseph Maniscalco, there’s also an honorary member of the band: Colca and Bravo’s beloved black cat, Fulci. We’ll have plenty more to say about Temple of Love and their maiden release in the future, but first, let’s give the hat-wearin’, snow-bearin’, self-brushin’ Fulci some affection and attention.
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When The Bad Penny caught up with Aurorawave frontman Nathan Aurora on Wednesday, ahead of the metal-reggae band’s gig at The Shredder tonight, he was in the zone. The previous week, he achieved a lifelong dream by playing Louder Than Life Festival, now the biggest rock event in the States, and that was just a month after his band released their second full-length, Monument. Featuring members of Underoath and Emmure, the record is doing well on the charts and providing Aurorawave with plenty of wind in their sails as they tour behind it.
We caught up with Aurora as his L.A.-based band was cruising into Denver, and what turned into a short Q+A a about Aurorawave’s show tonight in Boise swelled into a larger conversation about the birth of the band, its personality and mission, and even what drives Aurora as a musician and human being. So here we go …
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After a kinda middling summer concert-wise in Boise, the next month is chock-full with super shows, and The Bad Penny will do its best to both inform you about can’t-miss and encourage you to attend them. One is happening tonight at Shrine Social Club, which will host Sub Pop art-rock quintet Guerilla Toss, along with Vancouver, British Columbia’s alt-punks Still Depths and Evan Zuri.
Guerilla Toss’ set will perform selections from their fifth record, You’re Weird Now, which dropped Sept. 12 and features contributions by Stephen Malkmus of Pavement (who produced the album) and Ben Katzman, who came in third on Season 46 of Survivor. Bet you didn’t have that latter guest appearance on your bingo card.
Guerilla Toss singer Kassie Carlson did The Bad Penny the favor of touching base with us during their long drive from Portland to the City of Trees. Our conversation went a little something like this:
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(Note: This essay was written before the Pixies released a fifth video, Live at the Town and Country Club 1988, in 2011.)
So, shocker: Some people have been suggesting in the five-plus years since Pixies re-formed that maybe the foursome – who are revving up for another trek – have only been doing it for the money. What a strange, bizarre accusation. Like the plot of a Behind the Music episode, it’s the most predictable question of all for any band getting back together: It’s been alleged of everyone from CSNY to Simon & Garfunkel to Eagles to the Stooges to My Bloody Valentine to Rage Against the Machine to Dinosaur Jr. to the Jesus Lizard and on. And on. And on.
On the other hand, there is some potentially sound evidence that raking in the clams has been the main, if not only, reason Pixies reunited. As evident in the somewhat-illuminating doc loudQUIETloud, one of the DVDs we’ll be focusing on below, David Lovering was on the verge of going broke, falling back on his career as a magician – turning tricks in order to make ends meet, if you will.
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Noise punks Miracle Blood are road dogs – but it’s cats (and two guinea pigs who sadly passed away) that are the Boston-area band’s animal spirits. Guitarist/vocalist Andrew Wong, bassist Garrett Young and drummer Anthony Bollitier, in a rare break between playing gigs, were game to talk about their love for their furry friends as part of The Bad Penny‘s ongoing Pet Sounds series.
Miracle Blood’s latest album, Hello Hell, came out in November via esteemed label Nefarious Industries. But it’s their past releases that are littered – pun very much intended – with references to creatures of various sorts. There’s their August 2022 song “Pomeranian,” and then three double-single releases from 2019 on which animals are featured on their pastel covers: “Roses”/”Nurses,” “Swollen/Sentinel” and “Bloom/Polite and Calm.”
We chatted up Miracle Blood about their animal fixation, and here’s what they had to say. Or purr.
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SUMAC and Moor Mother, whose collaborative record The Film is one of the most universally acclaimed metal releases of the year, are already planning a follow-up effort, SUMAC frontman Aaron Turner confirmed to The Bad Penny on Thursday.
In response to The Bad Penny noting the widespread positive reaction that SUMAC and Moor Mother received for The Film, Turner replied: “I was very pleased that it got such a warm reception. It felt like a very challenging record. I was confident in what we produced but had no expectation in terms of how it was going to be received. We’re definitely talking with her about more shows upcoming in the near future, and then a little further down the road, to make another record together. I hope that happens.”
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