Richmond noise-rock outliers Dumb Waiter return with Change (July 31, Ossein Records), a 13-track shift for the underground favorites, introducing vocals for the first time while maintaining the band’s experimental sensibilities.
A preview arrives today with the release of the album’s title track, and an accompanying video (link in bio) directed by the band’s own Nicholas Crider. “Over the past few years I’ve gone through a lot of major life events. With each one, I’ve found myself lying awake thinking ‘I’m afraid of change. Please let’s not change. Please don’t change on me.’ No matter how desperate you are to stay put, life will push you forward. The lyric ‘I don’t like change’ feels like one of the most universal, simple, and honest things I could say. Despite that fear, I’m learning to lean into who I am, and I’m less afraid of stepping out of the proverbial uniforms that society, scenes, friends and family may impose. It feels like a perfect statement for the band’s newly formed identity.”
Previously described by Decibel as “experimental freakies,” and by MetalSucks as a band “that isn’t pushing the envelope so much as shoving it right over the side of a goddamn cliff,” Change sees Dumb Waiter trading abstraction for urgency, still unpredictable but more direct in its message.
“What more is there to say without saying anything?” saxophonist/vocalist Tristan Brennis explains of the band’s decision to include vocals on the new album.. “We quickly realized that we had a whole lot to say about the current state of the world and this hyper-acceleration of society that I think we’re all feeling day in day out.”
Recorded with producer and mixer Kevin Bernstein at Baltimore’s Developing Nations studio (home to records by Full of Hell, Magrudergrind, and Pig Destroyer) and mastered by James Plotkin (Sunn O))), Isis, and Pelican), Change retains the band’s density while sharpening its delivery.
Album pre-orders are available now via Bandcamp, with Change available on limited-edition swirled purple and blue vinyl, cassette, and digital formats.
Boundaries release their new album, Yearning: the unbeautiful after, on July 17 via Sumerian Records.
Today’s announcement comes with the release of “Death will follow me” and its official video (link in bio). The track follows last month’s single “Skies cast amber black,” which drew praise from Revolver (“awesomely pissed-off”), Knotfest (“unrelenting aggression”), and Consequence (“vicious”).
“This time last year was one of significant sorrow for this band and many others,” vocalist Matthew McDougal explains. “The tragic accident that took the lives of our friends so suddenly has since had us in a state of perpetual mourning. The evidence of such and of life’s unforgivable violence is found throughout this newest album. ‘Death will follow me’ merely begins to scratch the surface of this concept and its grief ripples throughout this entire record.”
Recorded in the fall of 2025 with producer Drew Fulk (Knocked Loose, Fit For A King), Yearning: the unbeautiful after captures Boundaries at their most punishing, deliberate, and focused. The 14-track album features guest appearances from The Plot In You’s Landon Tewers (“Crowned and crucified”) and Make Them Suffer (“Torn wide open”).
“With the record, we aimed to be uncompromising and really plant our flag,” McDougal shares. “As more time passes, heavy music continues to lose its teeth. This genre is supposed to be threatening; it should have an edge and make you feel something. We tried to create an album with urgency.”
He continues: “The title, Yearning, is base level. What do you want from life, relationships, or whatever you spend time on? Time is the only resource with any real value; it’s the only thing you can’t get more of. You should deeply consider anything you choose to spend time on. The subtitle, the unbeautiful after, refers to the eventuality of what you’ve spent your time doing. The main questions are ‘What did you give yourself to? What is important to you? Where did it lead you?’”
Grindcore legends Napalm Death recently released a stellar collaborative album with sludge-rock icons (the) Melvins titled "Savage Imperial Death March," and I had a talk with Shane Embury about the making of the full-length in Treble!!! -
(Copy & Paste Link) - /napalm-deaths-shane-embury-goes-in-depth-on-melvins-collaboration/
The Synth Whisperer is the latest character to get a dedicated comic in the ongoing “Tales From The Pusciverse” comic book series, with today’s release of “Tales From The Pusciverse #3: The Synth Whisperer.”
The latest installment of Tales From The Pusciverse centers on one of the newest and most enigmatic characters to emerge from the expanding Puscifer universe… The Synth Whisperer. Introduced on a recent episode of the Tales From The Pusciverse Prodcast as “the man, the myth, the legend known as The Synth Whisperer in the deepest and darkest corners of the online music community,” this master of technology possesses electronics and can synchronize even the most temperamental of machines, including the Synclavier and Fairlight. As strange signals ripple across the Pusciverse, only The Synth Whisperer may hold the power to restore order, or reshape it entirely.
Written by Maynard James Keenan, the new issue features cover art by Zombie Yeti, artwork by Marlin Shoop (“Captain Action,” “G.I. Joe,” “Unprepped”), lettering by Jack Morelli (“Afterlife with Archie,” “Peter Parker Annual,” Marvel Comics) and faux advertisements by Andy Belanger.
“The stories are starting to unfold,” Keenan says. “The Synth Whisperer, The Briefcase, Fanny Grey, and Bellendia Black details are dropping like bread crumbs. This is only the beginning.”
“Tales From The Pusciverse” comics are available exclusively via Puscifer.com.
Monolord have released “Oozing Wound” (link in bio), the second preview of their upcoming album, Neverending (May 29, Relapse Records)
“It’s the first song we’ve done in a drop tuning,” vocalist/guitarist Thomas Jäger reveals. “We usually play in B, but ‘Oozing Wound,’ ‘You Bastard,’ and ‘It’s Neverending’ are all drop A. Except for one part, ‘Oozing Wound’ is almost the same riff all the way through. It’s repetitive, but we do different stuff with it, like remove the guitar and have just bass and drums in parts and then remove rhythm guitar when I play the solo melody. The lyrics are about being stuck on a bad road, feeling trapped with someone who takes advantage of you.”
To create Neverending, Monolord decamped to Ashland, Oregon to record with legendary producer/engineer Sylvia Massy (Tool, System of a Down, and Johnny Cash). The collaboration began when Massy asked vocalist/guitarist Thomas Jäger to send everything the band had ever written. “She asked me to send her everything we had—not just songs written for the album, but every stray riff and idea,” he says. “I even sent her stuff I’d written ten years ago. She listened to all of it and sent us a list of what she wanted to work on.” The band rehearsed 12 songs, recorded 11, and ultimately selected eight for Neverending. The result captures a focused but expansive version of Monolord’s sound.
The band announced the new album with a video for “You Bastard,” which captured moments from their studio sessions with Massy. Revolver said the four-plus minute track is “glorious” and Consequence, who named it their “heavy song of the week,” described it as “a hefty and quite melodic piece of doom metal,” while simultaneously declaring Monolord the “Swedish titans of doom.”
Bad Stuff, the Dallas-based quintet featuring members of True Widow (Dan Phillips and Nicole Estill) with art rock locals Jackie Dunn Smith, Gabriel Spatz, and Laura Hartman Pearl, announce their self-titled debut album, due June 5 via Relapse Records.
Bad Stuff move with mood and momentum: meditative, repetitive, and slow-burning, with dreamlike melodies drifting through something denser and more dangerous, all delivered with a cool, detached intensity.
On “Summer Girls” (link in bio) a hypnotic, circular drum pattern anchors the track as it unfolds at a deliberate pace, building tension before Phillips’ unmistakable guitar cuts through, with a low, droning undercurrent humming beneath it all.
Bad Stuff began as two bands: Latent Print, an instrumental project featuring Phillips and Estill, which would showcase his rockabilly chops and Estill behind the drum kit, and Concord Kill, Dunn Smith’s synth and drum machine driven project. “So these songs from our two bands are sitting there, one set that I wrote for Latent Print and another set that Jackie wrote on a four track recorder, and one day we decided that maybe we’d try to put it all together and see if it worked,” recalls Phillips. “And it did. When we were doing the sequence for the record, that “switching the dial“ thing became apparent– there's not just one sound or one style. It really makes the pacing of the record work and sort of showcases each of the songs.”
Bad Stuff is available now for pre-order/pre-saves on vinyl, CD, and digitally.
Warning return with Rituals of Shame, their first new album in 20 years, due June 19 via Relapse Records. The band’s 2006 album, Watching from a Distance, has become one of the most revered releases in doom metal, with Pitchfork noting it “stands among the high water marks of the genre,” and Stereogum declaring it the “greatest doom record of all time.”
“It’s my privilege to be able to present to you the first track released from Rituals of Shame,” Patrick Walker shares as “Stations” (link in bio) is now available. “Whether you’re among those who have been waiting for this for twenty years, or whether you’re new to my music, it is with great pleasure and some relief, that I can finally give you a taste of the album that will follow later in the year. I wrote and recorded the entire record throughout 2025. This is the year I shall have the honour of sharing it with you.”
Walker, who also leads 40 Watt Sun, began work on Rituals of Shame in January 2025, writing seven days a week over three months as he turned his full focus back to Warning. The album was recorded at The Arch Studio, a 140-year-old former church in Southport, U.K., with recording and mixing handled by Chris Fullard (Idles, Sunn O))), Ulver).
The decision to make a new Warning album emerged from a transformative period in Walker’s life. Reluctant to explain his lyrics, he acknowledges only that the work reflects a deeply personal present moment, with the collection echoing the themes that have long defined his writing: longing, separation, and most of all, love.
Rituals of Shame also reflects a range of Walker’s longstanding influences, from the expansive melodic structures of Marillion to the restraint and clarity of June Tabor. He also cites John Brenner of Revelation as a formative influence, particularly in shaping his approach to articulating emotion through heavy music.
The collection is available now for pre-order on various vinyl variants and other physical formats, as well as digital pre-saves.
Held., featuring Douglas Robinson and Salvatore Mignano of The Sleeping alongside Josh Eppard of Coheed and Cambria, share their final pre-release single “KNIFEPOINT” FT. GRAHAM SAYLE OF HIGH VIS (link in bio) ahead of the release of their debut album, GREY (May 15, MNRK Heavy).
“This song has a lot of attitude, and that’s a big reason we wanted Graham from High Vis to be a part of it,” Robinson explains. “We’re all big fans of Graham and High Vis. When I wrote the pre-chorus, I envisioned this British attitude reminiscent of bands like Bloc Party and Test Icicles, and I wanted it to come from someone who could back the attitude up. Graham is the perfect example of someone who can back-up their words with action.”
Sayle adds: “I was proper excited to jump on and be a part of it. I’ve always loved the chaotic side of the post-hardcore spectrum. I love the difference in our accents and how it somehow makes sense.”
“KNIFEPOINT” follows previously released singles “NEW YOUR ANTHEM” FT. FRANK IERO and “CONSTANT TENSION,” which drew praise from Revolver (“lightning-strike guitar… and thunderous drums”) and Kerrang! (“emotional” and “powerful”).
With the release of “KNIFEPOINT,” the band completes a three-part video series directed by Adam Thomson. Together, the clips form a short film, blending Held.’s visceral performance with a cast of interconnected characters, drawn toward the mysterious pyramid from the band’s logo.
Held. has also confirmed a date for their first live outing, playing Elsewhere in Brooklyn on April 18, with support from Common Sage. Tickets are available here. The trio also recently confirmed a June 18 date with Thrice and Hey Mercedes at Empire Live (Albany).
On GREY, Held. arrive as three veterans with nothing to prove. Recorded at The Animal Farm in Flemington, N.J. with producer Jon Markson (Drug Church, Drain, The Story So Far), the album hits with the urgency of a debut and the clarity of people who know exactly what they want to say.
Monolord return with Neverending, their first full-length album in five years, arriving May 29 via Relapse Records.
To create Neverending, Monolord decamped to Ashland, Oregon to record with legendary producer/engineer Sylvia Massy (Tool, System of a Down, and Johnny Cash). The collaboration began when Massy asked vocalist/guitarist Thomas Jäger to send everything the band had ever written. “She asked me to send her everything we had—not just songs written for the album, but every stray riff and idea,” he says. “I even sent her stuff I’d written ten years ago. She listened to all of it and sent us a list of what she wanted to work on.” The band rehearsed 12 songs, recorded 11, and ultimately selected eight for Neverending. The result captures a focused but expansive version of Monolord’s sound.
An introduction to the album comes with today’s release of “You Bastard” (/watch?v=N-dfIpmX-xo), alongside a video by James Rexroad during the recording sessions. Driven by a propulsive groove, the track points to a shift in the band’s approach. “This isn’t really what people would call a doom album,” Jäger adds. “It feels like a mix of that and something new.”
Reflecting on the band’s trajectory since forming in 2013, drummer Esben Willems adds: “It's been a wild ride and still is. I'm incredibly proud of what we've accomplished along the way, and in many ways, this album feels like the essence of everything we've done so far. My mindset is the same it's always been, to be the absolute best the three of us can be.”
Album pre-orders, including multiple limited-edition vinyl variants, CD and cassette, as well as digital pre-saves, are available now (/pages/monolord-neverending).
With the debut of Puscifer’s new comic book series, “Tales From The Pusciverse,” and two issues already sold out, the band shares an animated adaptation of “Tales From The Pusciverse #2: The Briefcase,” set to “A Public Stoning” (link in bio), from their new album, Normal Isn’t.
The story centers on the longest running mystery in the Pusciverse: The Briefcase. For years, the object has appeared in Puscifer’s videos and photographs, prompting the recurring question among fans: “What’s in the briefcase?”
Written by Maynard James Keenan, “The Briefcase” features artwork by Marlin Shoop (“Captain Action,” “G.I. Joe,” “Unprepped”) with lettering by Jack Morelli (“Afterlife with Archie,” “Peter Parker Annual,” Marvel Comics). The animation for the “A Public Stoning” video was created by Raul Araujo and Chris Rubey.
“The Briefcase has been part of the Puscifer mythology for years,” Keenan notes. “Everyone wonders what exactly is inside. This issue doesn’t necessarily answer the question… but it moves the story forward.”
The new clip arrives as the band is in the midst of their Normal Isn’t North American tour, with dates this week slated for Asheville, Durham, Bethlehem, and Boston. Tickets are available via Puscifer.com, and the full list of dates is below.
Puscifer’s new album, Normal Isn’t, is out now via Puscifer Entertainment/Alchemy Recordings/BMG.
Boundaries return with “Skies cast amber black” (link in bio), their first new music since 2024’s Death Is Little More, and a track that channels the current cultural climate into a crushing, cinematic storm.
“I have a deep desire in the pit of my making to surround and suffocate the growing plague of people’s self-interest,” vocalist Matthew McDougal says of the Drew Fulk produced track. “Given the chance, I’d remove every ego from the music landscape and burn it off for fuel to power blood hungry behemoths whose only goal is to crush and disable. This song is my plea to cleanse a community I adore of people who see it only as an opportunity or a stepping stone.”
Boundaries will spend much of 2026 on the road, joining The Amity Affliction and August Burns Red for a North American tour from April 10 to May 17, followed by a run of major European festivals including Rock Im Park, Rock Am Ring, Download, and Jera on Air. The band is also confirmed for spots at Warped Tour and Louder Than Life.
On March 15, two days after Into Oblivion’s arrival, Lamb of God will perform at Philadelphia’s TLA (Theatre of Living Arts), with the one-off show giving fans a rare chance to see the band in an unusually intimate setting. Fit For An Autopsy will open the evening.
The celebratory event is especially meaningful because it takes place in Philadelphia, the city that helped catapult them to fame and served as the setting for their 2005 Platinum-selling Killadelphia album and DVD.
Lamb Of God is asking fans to request tickets for the March 15 pop-up performance. Tickets are $15 (fees included), and fans can request now via Ticketmaster (link in Lamb of God's bio). Tickets that can be fulfilled will automatically be charged to the fan’s credit card and instructions on how to access tickets will be sent from Ticketmaster. Submitting a request does not guarantee tickets. Request tickets on Ticketmaster by March 11, at 10 p.m. Eastern. Lamb of God is using Ticketmaster’s Face Value Exchange to help fans get tickets at the original price. Tickets will be non-transferable and can only be resold on Ticketmaster at face value.
The Philadelphia event is part of a nationwide release-weekend celebration, with more than 140 independent record stores hosting Into Oblivion listening parties from March 13 to 15. Exclusive merch, including free Lamb of God swag (while supplies last), prizes, and an indie-exclusive, limited edition Poltergeist vinyl variant of the new album, will be available. A full list of participating stores is available at .
