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Talkhouse

The story of GWAR is carved across the history of this barren and hopeless planet, but GWAR themselves are not of this world… their story begins in the deepest reaches of outer space. Long ago, the beings who would become the rock band GWAR were part of an elite fighting force, the Scumdogs of the Universe. For eons, they served as thralls to a supreme being known only as the Master. But one by one, each future member of the band earned a glaring reputation for being an intergalactic fuck-up. And so, they were banished, sent away on a fool’s errand to conquer an insignificant shitball floating in a dark corner of the universe; the planet Earth. Once here, GWAR shaped the face of the globe, destroying and rebuilding the natural world, and giving rise to all of human history. Aliens to some, gods and demons to others, our erstwhile Scumdogs fucked apes to create the human race, and this fateful unplanned pregnancy would prove to be truly disastrous!
Their new album The Blood of Gods is nothing less than a sacred text chronicling the rise of humanity against their makers, and the massive battle between GWAR and the forces of all that is uptight and wrong with the world. Along the way, the band challenges the sins of their great mistake, from politics, pollution, and organized religion, to fast food, and factory farming. Humans are shown as what they are; a parasitical disease that must be eradicated before they suck the planet dry. Born of adversity, The Blood of Gods is a sonic scar… a question asked and answered…

GWAR

Music

GWAR’s Favorite Thing of the Decade Is…

<a href="https://www.mergerecords.com/power-chords" target="_blank" rel="noopener">P</a><a href="https://www.mergerecords.com/power-chords">ower Chords</a>, Mike Krol’s new Merge release, picks up where 2015’s <a href="https://www.mergerecords.com/turkey" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Turkey</a> left off. It traces Krol’s journey back to punk rock, harnessing both the guitar technique and the musical redemption referenced in its title. He’s wielding the same influences — Misfits, The Strokes, early Weezer, Ramones — but turning up the gravity and the gain. Indeed, Krol has gone somewhere new; yes, he bludgeoned himself with over-analysis and self-loathing, but along the way he stumbled upon a trove of intricate guitar lines and artfully mutating melodies.
Music ruined Krol’s life. And then saved it. In chronicling that process, Krol has made his best record — painful, voyeuristic, and angry, but ultimately transcendent and timeless. It is the sound of Krol giving in to a force greater than himself, as though the chords are playing him rather than the other way around.

Mike Krol

Best of the 2010s: Mike Krol’s Favorite Night of the Decade Was October 6, 2012

Will Butler is a member of Arcade Fire. His debut&nbsp;solo record, Policy, came out spring 2015. You can follow him on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/butlerwills" target="_blank">here</a> and like him on Facebook <a href="https://www.facebook.com/butlerwills?fref=ts" target="_blank">here</a>.

Will Butler

Will Butler of Arcade Fire’s Favorite Book of the Decade is…

Juiceboxxx is an American artist from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His forthcoming LP is slated for release on Dangerbird Records in early 2020.
(Photo Credit: Brad Dececco)

Juiceboxxx

Best of the 2010s: Juiceboxxx’s Favorite Thing of the Decade Was…

Sean Tillmann has been making records under the name Har Mar Superstar since 1999.  Under the Har Mar moniker Sean has gone through a plethora of phases ranging from fun-loving beats-based music pioneer (he and Peaches shared stages early on) to angry arena crowd opener (public lewdness police records to prove it) to soul music crooner. His latest album, Best Summer Ever, is out now.

Har Mar Superstar

Best of the 2010s: Har Mar Superstar’s Favorite Movie of the Decade is Adam Green’s Aladdin

Joe Troop is the singer and fiddle player of Che Apalache, the genre-bending bluegrass-Americana-Latin group that was recently nominated for a Grammy for their Rearrange My Heart album.

Joe Troop

Best of the 2010s: Joe Troop’s (Che Apalache) Favorite Thing Was…

Hamilton Leithauser lives with his wife and two baby girls in New York City. He was the singer for rock band the Walkmen from 2000-2014. He recently got social on the internet and now has<a href="https://twitter.com/HLeithauser" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Twitter</a>, <a href="http://facebook.com/jameshamiltonleithauser" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> and a <a href="http://www.hamiltonleithauser.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">website</a>.

Hamilton Leithauser

Best of the 2010s: Hamilton Leithauser’s Favorite Book of the Decade is The Sellout

Craig Wedren is a solo artist, film composer, and the singer for Shudder to Think. Check out his latest release, On in Love, featuring Jefferson Friedman and the American Contemporary Music Ensemble <a href="https://www.facebook.com/oninloveproject" target="_blank">here</a>.&nbsp; You can follow him on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/craigwedren" target="_blank">here.</a> &nbsp; &nbsp;

Craig Wedren

Best of the 2010s: Craig Wedren’s Favorite Film of the Decade is Mandy

At its heart, Hundred Acres — the third full-length album from Wisconsin singer/songwriter S. Carey — finds him grounded comfortably in his skin, but still with one foot in the stream. More direct than ever, there is a wellspring of confidence in this new batch of songs that lays bare the intricacies of life while keeping its ideas uncomplicated.
Trained in jazz, Carey’s astute musicianship has never been in question nor taken for granted, and the execution of Hundred Acres’ new ideas is seamless. He intentionally unburdened himself from a more complicated instrumentation palate for these ten songs, and, in effect, this modification to his approach brings the content of the work much closer to a living reality. By giving equal status to the indifference of nature and the concerns of a material world — while employing more pop-oriented structures instead of the Steve Reich&#8211; or Talk Talk-ian repetitions of his past work — a new balance is struck that creates something unique. This in turn provides equal status for the feeling that created each song, and the feeling each song creates. Almost impossibly, there is more air between the bars; Carey and his contributors sway like treetops in the wind, remaining flexible enough that they never threaten to break.
Written over the course of a few years, in between touring schedules and the growth of his family, Carey recorded, mixed and produced Hundred Acres at home and in various studios in rural Wisconsin with support from his longtime collaborators Zach Hanson, Ben Lester, and Jeremy Boettcher, as well as new contributions from Rob Moose (yMusic), Casey Foubert (Sufjan Stevens) and Sophie Payten (Gordi).

S. Carey

Best of the 2010s: S. Carey Was Blown Away by Stranger In The Alps

Talkhouse Weekend Playlist: Gold Celeste’s Top Tracks of the 2010s

FEELS is a noise punk band from Los Angeles. Their second album, Post Earth, was released via Wichita Recordings in 2019.
(Photo Credit: Jeff Fribough)

best of the decade