by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)

Welcome to FUZZY MEADOWS, our weekly recap of this week's new music. We're sharing our favorite releases of the week in the form of albums, singles, and music videos along with the "further listening" section of new and notable releases from around the web. It's generally written in the early hours of the morning and semi-unedited... but full of love and heart. The list is in alphabetical order and we sincerely recommend checking out all the music we've included. There's a lot of great new music being released. Support the bands you love. Spread the word and buy some new music.

*Disclaimer: We are making a conscious effort not to include any artist in our countdown on back-to-back weeks in order to diversify the feature, so be sure to check the "further listening" as well because it's often of top-notch quality too.

CHAT PILE | “Slaughterhouse”

After two essential EPs, a Sepultura cover, and a split with Portrayal of Guilt, the time has finally come for Chat Pile to release their first full-length album, God’s Country. Due out July 29th via The Flenser (Vile Creature, Mamaleek, Succumb), the immensely popular Oklahoma City trio are primed to pulverize our senses in long form with their brand of noise rock and industrial oozed intensity. It’s great to see a band of their ilk gaining widespread love and acclaim, a band absolutely “buzzing” in the ugliest variety, and we mean that as the utmost of compliments. With the album’s lead single, “Slaughterhouse,” it’s easy to see why the band’s built such a rabid fanbase, from the lurching tension and immediate brutality of the song’s intro to the deranged croon of the verses and the atonal riffs, and the sordid minimalism provided by the goddamn bleakest of hooks. This one isn’t really pleasant by any definition, and that seems to be the point. A true soundtrack for life in decay.

GANSER | “People Watching”

After a few stalled tours and COVID delays, Chicago’s Ganser were able to bring their show on the road this past Spring, sharing the live experience of 2020’s Just Look At That Sky with audiences outside of the Midwest. The band leave an impression in their wake, creating post-punk music that touches upon everything from shoegaze and 80’s goth punk to grunge and noise rock. Following last year’s remix EP, the band have announced Nothing You Do Matters, a new EP featuring two singles and a remix, the entire thing produced by Liars’ Angus Andrew. The three track effort isn’t out until October via Felte Records (Mint Field, Fashion Club, Sextile), but “People Watching” has arrived. The lead single is led by the rhythm section of Brian Cundiff (drums) and Alicia Gaines (bass) stuttering and gliding between shifting beats, shaking in time with the tension of Nadia Garofalo’s vocals. The band slink in and out of anxiety and tension, recalling both the rattled post-punk of Bush Tetras and a touch of Nine Inch Nails indebted sheen.

LAWN | “Night Life”

New Orleans’ Lawn are getting ready to release Bigger Sprout, a record built on both brand new material and a remastering of their earliest music, a collection that bookends an era, and gives the people what they want… more Lawn. Due out in July via Born Yesterday Records (Caution, Spirits Having Fun, Mesh), we recently featured the album’s lead single, “Down,” a song penned by the band’s Mac Folger (guitar/vocals). The beauty and brilliance of Lawn has always resided in their two-headed songwriting approach, and “Night Life,” led by Rui DeMagalhaes (bass/vocals) offers the flipside to the band’s coin. Where Folger’s songs often feel comfortable on the janglier end of post-punk bliss, DeMagalhaes’ songs tend to lean more into the Wire school of post-punk, noisy, detached, and full of jagged dynamics. “Night Life” is full of razor sharp turns and tight rhythms (with Hunter Keene on drums), inspired by the sleaze of a washed up rock ‘n’ roller, and the ever present call of the “night life”.

POISON RUÏN | “Not Today, Not Tomorrow” EP

Following two truly great EPs (that came together to create one truly great LP), Philadelphia’s Poison Ruïn have become one of the most in demand punk bands, combining old school hardcore, dungeon synths, and proto-metal. Their recordings are delightfully lo-fi, giving a damp basement aura to their medieval chaos and brute riffs. As they continue their ascent to becoming “your favorite band’s favorite band,” Poison Ruïn are back with a new EP, Not Today, Not Tomorrow. Released via NYC’s RoachLeg Records (Sørdïd, Xero, Tower 7), the three track effort is built upon everything that makes Poison Ruïn so great. There’s the gnarly metal riffs, the hard pounding drums that resonate with sheer density, and the psychedelic touches that make their death rock tendencies sound so damn epic. There are moments when Poison Ruïn almost feel like our generations answer to the Wipers, but the band shift around within their own sound enough that any comparison is fruitless. They are their own beast, and all the better for it.

SPODEE BOY | “Neon Lights” EP

After a slight delay, Spodee Boy’s Neon Lights EP has arrived, and it was well worth the wait. The Nashville band, led by Connor Cummins (Snooper, Safety Net, Body Cam), continue their descent in Western cow-punk twang, and they’ve never sounded better. With each new EP, the band lean further into their cowboy depravity to accent their already agitated post-punk, adding one reckless nature to another, channeling bands like The Gun Club and Dow Jones in equal measure. Everything gets mangled and reassembled, the band reimagining bar room brawl rock in its most punk temperament, with quick tempos, sweeping distortion, and enough fucking boogie to get any boots grooving. There’s plenty of attitude, from detached aggression to personal disdain as the band collide headfirst into feedback and harsh fills, their sense of urgency always leading the way.

Further Listening:

Fuzzy Meadows: The Week's Best New Music (May 23rd - May 29th)