Nothing hits harder than life, as they say, and the series of bloody-knuckle bouts to get to the release of Yours, With Malice led to some deep introspection by YOUTH CODE regarding who they are, what they’ve accomplished and their next steps. “I think a lot of people’s stories during the pandemic were about self-reflection, but the ironic thing is we were already in a state of reemergence and re-imagination of self before the rest of the world was forced to do it,” says Ryan George. “We took time and began to workshop and demo vocals on some of the material we had. We never stop writing and are sitting on a mountain of tracks that we can rework and tweak. Not having deadlines surrounding us and in no hurry to get our material out there, all of a sudden the partnership with Sumerian arrived. That sort of ignited a fire and got us to where we are now.” These last few years of self-reflection found YOUTH CODE stewing in a simmering cauldron of bile and vitriol as Yours, With Malice is clearly their most intricate, well-crafted and blood-thirsty release to date and their first offering for Sumerian Records. Sumerian Vice President Julien O'Neill adds: "YOUTH CODE have long been a commanding voice in both electronic and heavy music, and we are incredibly honoured to welcome them to Sumerian Records with the announcement of their latest release, 'Yours, With Malice'. We believe this marks a powerful new chapter in their already illustrious career and are excited for what the future will bring for both new and longtime fans alike." While some of the sounds and references on Yours… come from classic 90s influences such as Nine Inch Nails’ classic Broken/Fixed duality, the untouchable middle period Ministry era that spawned The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste, in addition to a plethora of others like Front 242, Cabaret Voltaire, and Portion Control, the core attack has not changed much for the Los Angeles-based duo. If the music of YOUTH CODE is the sketchy, yellowing passenger van luring in unsuspecting listeners, then the melodies on Yours… are the out-stretched hand of unlimited candy that growing legions won’t be able to resist. Sara Taylor shares: “I started exploring more melodic vocals on our record with King Yosef [the 2021 collab A Skeleton Key in the Doors of Depression], but I’ve always felt somewhat insecure in my voice… At the same time, Eartha Kitt had a gravelly voice and she was the epitome of a vocalist that ably captured attention – she understood the song and how to make the most of it with what she had.” What has changed is YOUTH CODE's attention to detail and their hyper focus on execution in songwriting, two things that can only come from the wellspring of knowledge found in a band that has been at it for more than a decade. The group began in 2012 as a project between partners George and Taylor, inspired by the classic sounds of New Order, Depeche Mode and the hardcore punk that soundtracked so much of their youth. What emerged was a demo cassette that led to a 7” release on Angry Love, the first band unrelated to the legendary Psychic TV to be released on that label. A self-titled album followed, then 2014’s A Place to Stand EP, and 2016’s Commitment to Complications LP, all while touring with a diverse groups like Chelsea Wolfe, HEALTH, Skinny Puppy, and more, in addition to arena shows with My Chemical Romance and main stage appearances with Nine Inch Nails. Heaps of press accolades followed before the pandemic hit, and now, in 2025, YOUTH CODE return with their magnum opus.

The 10 song “Microtonic”, recorded with long-term band collaborator Alex Greaves and featuring guest appearances from Sydney Minsky Sargeant of Working Men’s Club and Olivesque of Nightbus, is unquestionably a bold leap for the group, who have embraced a fuller spectrum of tones and atmospheres. “I felt very constrained writing a certain type of music to fit the genre [we were known for] but something lifted and I felt more free to create what I want,” says Ryan.

“And what I seem to be doing at the moment is a lot of electronic music – taking influence from different spans of electronica, from dance music to ambient and more experimental sources.” Bdrmm’s trademark sound hasn’t disappeared by any means, the band’s more guitar-heavy beginnings a blueprint and influence on many of the groups breaking through in the here and now, a time when shoegaze is enjoying its strongest revival since its inception in the 80s, but those guitars are now incorporated into a broader, more expansive and varied sonic palette. “Microtonic” follows 2023’s “I Don’t Know”, an album that arrived to critical acclaim with the likes of Consequence calling it “one of their most enticing successes yet” and Rolling Stone UK describing it as “a chaotic, thrilling evolution”.

The lead single “It’s Just A Bit Of Blood” was also playlisted on BBC Radio 6 Music, and Brooklyn Vegan made the record their Album Of The Week saying that “I Don’t Know” saw them “not only avoid the sophomore slump but deliver a second album that is miles better their debut.” “Microtonic” will be available on digital, CD, classic black LP and on indie stories exclusive coloured LP. You can pre-order the album now via Rock Action: bdrmm.lnk.to/microtonic

The Horrors are a band that you cannot pin down to one genre, and bassist/producer Rhys Webb confirms that. “I certainly don’t believe in any musical boundaries, and I think that’s always been the ethos of the band, and there’s never any limits, or rules or any right or wrongs of what we should do.”

More here: https://www.soundspheremag.com/features/the-horrors-rhys-webb-talks-about-the-new-record-night-life-in-store-shows-and-20-years-of-the-band/

#bowlingforsoup #jaretreddick #wembley Bowling For Soup are Wembley bound! They've headlined festivals, sold out shows the world over, and have never been more popular in their three decades as a band; Now the Texan pop punk legends are headlining a show at one of London's most famous arenas for the first time.

Bowling For Soup will hit the stage at OVO Arena Wembley on the 13th of December 2025. "BFS" will be bringing all the hits - Girl All The Bad Guys Want, 1985, High School Never Ends, Phineas & Ferb and so many more. They're also bringing a fantastic supporting cast of Wheatus (who will be celebrating the 25th anniversary of their debut album) while cover superstars Punk Rock Factory will get the party started. It is set to be a perfect pre-Christmas night out for rock and pop punk fans of all ages.

Tickets will go on general sale at 10am on Friday 31 January and will be available from: AEGPRESENTS.CO.UK | AXS.COM | TICKETMASTER.CO.UK

Here's Bowling For Soup frontman Jaret Reddick on the excitement of their upcoming first London arena headline show: "Wembley…What can I say?!? When we first started playing the UK in 2000, you could never have told me that one day, we would be headlining the coveted Wembley Arena! More over, that it would take us 30 years to get there!! I don’t have a bucket list anymore. My dreams have all come true. I have a beautiful family, I’m still making people smile, and the future is bright. But let’s just say there is a little part of me that still has some things to mark off…Wembley is at the top." Prior to the OVO Arena Wembley show, Bowling For Soup will be in the UK in February 2025, finishing the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of their celebrated hit album A Hangover You Don't Deserve. The tour, which is almost completely sold out, is playing arenas and venues all across the UK. Full details and last tickets for that tour are available from the Bowling For Soup official website: https://www.bowlingforsoup.com/

When Stin (bass) spoke with Soundsphere in June 2024, the band were preparing for a highly-anticipated set at Outbreak Festival. Now, in the run-up to a 3 month tour spanning North America and Europe, Soundsphere is joined by Luther Manhole (guitar) and Raygun Busch (vocals). Contrary to his name, Manhole joins the Zoom call in what looks like a cozy home studio. Then comes Busch, right on time, adjusting his vertical iPhone frame as he moves from one room to another.

While Cap’n Ron (drums) remains MIA, Stin is busy mixing and mastering the band’s upcoming collaborative project. As anticipated, there’s a stark contrast between band and sound. Both Manhole and Busch emanate a conversation-between-friends dynamic that, if I were to stereotype, speaks to a Midwestern friendliness. Based in Oklahoma City, the band formed out of a “bad movie night.” The quartet had previously played in separate bands across OKC’s small independent scene, but Chat Pile is the first to gain major success. The band’s relationship with Oklahoma is a complicated one; over the decades, it has grounded and grinded them in simultaneity. Manhole: “Some people have to stay, right? A lot of people relate to this. You live in a place that sucks but you also kinda love it.” For a band whose identity is centred around Oklahoma, particularly the things about it which “suck”, love manifests in curious ways. Take, for example, their striking record sleeves; signifiers of authority - detention centres obscured by pylons, a colossal Christian cross overlooking a retail park - provide psychogeographical insights into America’s ‘Bible Belt’.

Chat Pile’s music seeks to unearth the darker histories beneath these conservative landscapes, scoring ideological resistance under a brutal concoction of noise rock and sludge metal. Lyrically, Busch explores the breakdown of the social contract, its trickle-down effects on the average citizen. Systemic failures are often elaborated through gruesome depictions of the human body, packaging the quotidian violence of American life - both symbolic and physical - into microscopic case studies. It’s impossible to talk about the band’s style and purpose without referring to cinema, Busch being a devout cinephile. One of his ‘truth about life’ films, Killer of Sheep (1979), expresses a similar sentiment in relation to Black life and its fungibility. Systems of racism, exploitation, and cultural displacement, as inherent to America as cowboys and milkshakes, are laid bare in relation to burgeoning Black fatalism. Prominent cinematic influences also include Mike Leigh, forgotten B-Movies, and of course, horror cinema. With Killer of Sheep, it’s clear how, exactly, Chat Pile has transposed similar ideas into sonic form. The role of social masking is one such idea, all mainline projects - excluding This Dungeon Earth (2019) - including a mask-related song. “It’s a word I like,” Busch confirms, “a motif I enjoy, and it has many meanings - societal masks, literal masks, horror masks.”

More here: https://www.soundspheremag.com/spotlight/this-is-all-so-fleeting-chat-pile-talk-empathy-success-and-upcoming-projects/