Panopticon may be more widely known as a "metal" band - I use that term loosely because Panopticon is a lot more than the black metal base genre it derives from - yet founder Austin Lunn finds his inspiration from many different genres, punk and hardcore being one aspect of his sound that doesn't manifest in the most obvious of ways. Here, Austin lets us in to his formative years as a music fan and tells us about the kinds of sounds that influenced Panopticon on deeper levels that just the musical sphere. Catch Panopticon on tour or listen/purchase to the latest album The Rime of Memory here. -- I decided, instead of doing what I usually do for playlists, which is focus on metal or Americana, I’d write about some records that had a profound impact on me in my teens and early twenties. I don’t write about this stuff often, since it’s a different genre and doesn’t show up in obvious ways in my band or a lot of the bands in my genre. When I was a kid, I grew up listening to lots of progressive rock and metal, with a few more mainstream oriented bands in the mix in the mid-‘90s… but it wasn’t until the summer after 8th grade that I discovered a love for punk and hardcore… listening to classic bands like Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, and Minor Threat… like many young teenagers entering that time in their lives (rebelling against their Rush records, haha). Those … Read more
Stephen Hamm might be best known as Slow's bassist in some circles. Slow’s Against The Glass was voted the 17th best Canadian … Read more
Twenty years is a long time – much longer than many relationships last. So it’s an accomplishment when a band … Read more
Acathexis – Immerse (Amor Fati/Extraconscious Records) Acathexis’ self-titled debut from 2018 is one that still bears repeated listens, personally, many years later. … Read more
I spent a good part of the late ‘90s annoyed at the abundance of Ramonescore. I’ll stand by my word: many of the bands of that era were carbon copies that didn’t bring anything new to the format. But time has passed and what was overdone is now a refreshing change of pace. For whatever reason, when I hear a … Read more
I find Totally Slow a hard band to categorize. Their brand of melodic, hard punk is familiar and comforting -- rooted in ‘80s hardcore, ‘90s skatepunk, and post-something guitar-driven rock. The press release namedrops Dag Nasty and Hot Snakes, among others, which I think are good starting points. But while it’s familiar, it’s absolutely not a carbon copy. Like their forebearers, the songs … Read more
City Of Death is the third album from Polish noise makers Steamachine. Having dabbled in a few metal styles over their career, City Of Death has a heavy carnival influence to it which I have to say I really like. It's interesting just how much more sinister things sound when you pump eerie, jingly circus sounds amongst very dark, heavy, … Read more
The opening track on Somehow, We Are Here is a statement. Yes, Faulty Cognitions is a punk band with members of Low Culture, Shang-A-Lang, Nocturnal Prose,and more. Yes, this shares a lot of commonalities, but it’s also a new band with a new sound. The band humbly says they were going for an early, jangly R.E.M. vibe but self-confess that it has more of a Replacements thing going on … Read more
Some bands are visual, yeah? You need to see them live, in person, to truly experience them. You need to see the costumes, the theatrics, the flashing lights and, yes, the sweat … Read more
What I enjoy most about the Jesus and Mary Chain is arguably also their biggest flaw. The band’s slacker energy meets wall of feedback with a surprisingly melodic twist has … Read more
Since the demise of Sonic Youth in 2011, Kim Gordon has stayed active through multiple outlets, through all of which she has rejuvenated her experimental outlook. Alongside Bill Nace in Body / Head, … Read more
Each month at SPB we feature a new record on the site. While we like to talk and write about music, the common is goal is simply sharing music with others. And this month we’re excited to present the self-titled debut album from Evansville, IN based Amblare. The band was … Read more
Bad Breeding continues with the bangers, announcing their upcoming fifth album, Contempt, coming out in June on One Little Independent Records. The new album's packaging will zines discussion journalist Aidan Frere-Smith and … Read more
Montana based post hardcore, screamo, metalcore four piece Fly Over States have recently signed to Fever Ltd ( Heavenward, Muted Color, Chain Gang of 1974). To celebrate this they have just … Read more
156/Silence has shared their first new music in two years, a new horror-inspired single called "Unreasonable Doubt," released via SharpTone Records. The metal meets hardcore band from Pittsburgh, PA has … Read more
Folk-punk band AJJ, who released Disposable Everything last year (Hopeless Records), shared the single "Best of All Possible Worlds" today, a collaboration with rapper Kool Keith and singer-songwriter Kimya Dawson … Read more
Hellcat Records has a new roster addition: The Calamatix, a ska-punk quartet featuring vocalist Raylin Joy, guitarist Adam Porris, bassist William “Matty” Taylor, and drummer Clarence "Pocket" Kidd III. The … Read more
After sharing a few singles in recent times, Stand Still of Long Island, NY has set the date for their debut album, with comes out on June 14 via DAZE … Read more
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