Stream Austin chaotic hardcore trio Mothman's new LP 'Cancer Withdrawal'
This Friday (6/3), Austin trio Mothman will release their new album Cancer Withdrawal on Dark Trail Records, the label run by Christian Segerstrom of Mathcore Index. As you’d probably expect, Mothman fall right under the chaotic hardcore and mathcore umbrellas that Dark Trail and Mathcore Index tend to specialize in, and they’re masters at this sound. Christian compares them to Ed Gein, Dead in the Dirt, and Nails, and I second that fans of those bands are definitely going to want to hear Cancer Withdrawal. For those wanting an early listen, you’re in luck — a full stream premieres in this post.
Speaking about the album, the band tells us, “Most of the lyrics on this record are being a musician in a far above average low-tier band in an underground genre. There are fits of rage, jealousy, hopelessness and eventually acceptance and joy. There are even a few curses levied towards so-called peers. We’ve tried our luck in numerous bands and haven’t been able to break out of being just another local band. We’ve played music together for over 15 years. Now that we’re older, keeping up these pursuits is even more taxing. However, nothing feels better than this forlorn vocation. The title, Cancer Withdrawal, is a direct reference to that feeling; hurting so bad for something that only returns negative results.”
They add, “A lot of these songs and riffs are over five years old. Nate and Skiles wrote the songs and sent Andy guitar stems, playthrough and air drum videos to write drums to. After a couple months of practice, we started tracking in March 2020. Everything was recorded at Nate’s house and Skiles’ apartment and took about a year to finish.”
The band also gives us these two trivia tidbits about the album: “1) There are only two 2 steps on the record, and you could debate that one of them isn’t a true 2 step. 2) There are two Steely Dan references. Not up for debate.”
There you have it!! Listen below…
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25 Chaotic Hardcore, Mathcore & Sasscore Albums from the 2000s That Are Seminal Today
Black Cat #13 – I Blast Off! (2000)
The Sawtooth Grin – Cuddlemonster (2001)
Racebannon – In the Grips of the Light (2002)
The Blood Brothers – March On Electric Children (2002)
Orchid – Orchid (aka “Gatefold”) (2002)
Since By Man – We Sing the Body Electric (2003)
"We sing the body electric/Sickness says hold on/Would you like to dance, dance, dance?"
That's how Since By Man open "A Kid Who Tells on Another Kid is a Dead Kid" (probably an Over the Edge reference but not a Nation of Ulysses cover), with Sam Macon raising his voice to a harsh shriek on "dance, dance, dance" and totally embodying flamboyant hardcore in the process. That line also gives this Milwaukee band's Revelation-released debut LP its title, and -- for a subgenre that prides itself on shamelessly verbose poetry -- it makes sense that a band would name their album after a Whitman poem. Throughout We Sing the Body Electric, Since By Man deliver a shapeshifting soundscape that bounces between melodic math riffs, clean-sung hooks, and bludgeoning metalcore, sounding like a cross between The Blood Brothers, Botch, and Poison The Well (who Since By Man guitarist Brad Clifford later joined). It's often a fast, frenzied, constantly-in-motion record, but it sets itself apart from dime-a-dozen mathcore with a few atmospheric, slow-burning songs that veer closer to Jupiter-era Cave In. I don't know if this particular album is a big influence on the current punk scene or not, but it sure sounds like it could be; it combines a lot of different sounds that have been coming to prominence in recent years. Some parts of this album sound like early 2000s post-hardcore in a nutshell, but other times it feels genuinely ahead of its time.