Warning – Rituals Of Shame (Relapse Records)

Label Description: As WARNING prepares to release Rituals of Shame – their first new music in twenty years,vocalist/guitarist Patrick Walker is self-effacing about what led to this moment. Over the last two decades he continued to write and release music, satisfied that he had achieved what he set out to do with WARNING. In those intervening years, interest in WARNING swelled, organically gathering an ardent fanbase. In particular, the 2006 album, Watching from a Distance, has gained a cult following.

In response to a transformative period in his life, Walker turned towards writing new songs, and it soon became apparent that these belonged to WARNING. In early January 2025, he started with a completely blank canvas, and piece by piece, he started to fill it with ideas that evolved to become the songs that make up Rituals of Shame. His immersion in the project became a full-time pursuit.

After successfully demoing the five songs, Walker retreated to a remote house on a hill outside Florence, Italy, to refine the lyrics. Recording took place at The Arch Studio, a 140-year-old former church in Southport, UK. Chris Fullard (Idles, Sunn O))), Ulver) handled the recording and mixing.

Walker’s lifelong musical inspirations can be traced through Rituals of Shame. The ambitious structural arrangements harken to Marillion’s complex but soaring episodic songs. They retain a sparsity that is reminiscent of June Tabor’s economic arrangements; thick with melody but with a diaphanous air to them. Citing John Brenner of Revelation as an enduring inspiration, Patrick credits him with introducing the idea of how to infuse heavy music with significant emotional depth.

Often reluctant to discuss the minutiae of his lyrics, Walker does acknowledge that making this album was a direct response to the immediate concerns of his current life period. Rituals of Shame also echoes the enduring themes and fixations that have marked most of his work: guilt, shame, personal failure, obsession, longing, and separation, but, most of all, he says, love.

Mothertomb – Dying To Live (Self-Released)

Label Description: Mothertomb emerged from the deep woods of Northern Michigan in 2025, forging a sound that is equal parts crushing weight and haunting atmosphere. Rooted in traditional doom metal yet unbound by convention, the band’s sound explores a broad spectrum of influences, from the hypnotic haze of heavy psych and stoner metal to the aggression of sludge metal and the dynamic complexity of progressive and groove metal.

Set for release on July 14th, 2026, Dying to Live is Mothertomb’s debut full-length album. Across its five tracks, the record explores themes of transformation, suffering, transcendence, and the timeless struggle between darkness and light. Drawing inspiration from Welsh folklore and the shadowed corners of the human psyche, the songs traverse landscapes inhabited by ancient spirits, inner demons, and the forces that shape the human condition.

The album unfolds through layers of metaphor, allegory, and introspection, inviting listeners into a world where darkness and illumination coexist. From brutal heaviness to moments of eerie beauty, Dying to Live is a journey through the depths of the human experience.

Created entirely as an independent DIY effort, the album was written, recorded, produced, and artistically directed by the band itself. Dying to Live stands as a testament to that labor of love, and we are honored to share it with the world.

Mothertomb:
Alice Gawlinski: Vocals
Chance Gawlinski: Guitar
Alton Minor: Bass
Mike Benitez: Percussion

“Dying to Live” was recorded in Charlevoix, MI at Death Box Records (2026).

Music written by: Mothertomb
Produced by: Alton Minor and Mothertomb
Lyrics written by: Alice Gawlinski
Mixed and mastered by: Alton Minor
Recording engineer: Alton Minor and Mike Benitez
Artwork Design and Illustration by: Alice Gawlinski

Picking / Gnarled Fingers – Picking / Gnarled Fingers (Cruel Nature Records)

Label Description:

“This is some heavy-duty drone shit, and it sure hits the spot.”
– Aural Aggravation
auralaggravation.com/2026/04/25/picking-gnarled-fingers-picking-gnarled-fingers/

Gnarled Fingers and Picking are two artists drawn together by a shared love of bleak, crushing, low-end oblivion.

Picking is a new raw doom / noise / drone project from Charlie Butler inspired by lifelong incessant excessive picking of nails.

Gnarled Fingers is an experimental, ambient drone project, relentless wall of fuzz and atmosphere, no escape, created after growing up in Somerset Levels with stories of witchcraft and pagan superstition.

Picking – Toenail
Written, recorded live with no overdubs, and mixed by Charlie Butler, December 2025
charliebutler1.bandcamp.com

Gnarled Fingers – Echoes From Futures Past
Written, recorded at 13 sound studio, and mixed by Carlos, November 2025
linktr.ee/GNARLEDFINGERS

Cover & layout by Carlos
Mastered by Jack Chuter

Nadja – cut (Cruel Nature Records)

Label Description:

Four extended songs ranging from experimental and minimal acoustic to heavy industrial doom metal, with the addition of saxophone, French horn, harp, and multiple voices.

Double LP release by Midira Records available from:
midirarecords.com/release/md-156-nadja-cut/

CD available from Broken Spine Productions:
nadja.bandcamp.com/album/cut

Cover artwork by Jesse Narens.

www.midirarecords.com
cruelnaturerecordings.bandcamp.com
otayonii.bandcamp.com
andyaquarius.bandcamp.com
fastermilesanhour.com
jessenarens.com

 

released October 24, 2025

Aidan Baker – guitars, drum machine, voice, saxophone
Leah Buckareff – bass, voice
Andy Aquarius – harp
Kartini Suharto-Martin – french horn
Tristen Bakker – voice
Oskar Bakker-Blair – voice
Lane Shi Otayonii – voice