For over a decade, punk’s most beloved agitators Drug Church have been building a strong case that they’re the best loud guitar band in the game, and today, with the announcement of their upcoming record, Prude, it feels like there just might be undeniable proof of that notion. Prude is a lean 28 minutes of hardcore aggression and ’90s alternative hooks that bursts at the seams with personality, irreverence, and heart. It’s a record that’s so instantly satisfying that it almost belies what a unexpected feat it is for a prickly, hard-to-pigeonhole punk band from Albany, NY to become one of the most consistently crowd-pleasing outfits on planet earth. With this wonderful announcement comes the record’s first single, “Demolition Man,”alongside the Alex Backes-directed music video starring the one and only Biff Wiff, known for his work in I Think You Should Leave and Everything Everywhere All At Once, and more – you can watch the video below this article. It’s a towering cut of furiously catchy melodies that applies frontman Patrick Kindlon’s signature sardonic lyricism to the question: what is the purpose of humankind? “A song about envying dogs because they know what they’ve gotta do each day,” he explains. “I’m sure dogs are often confused, but they always have the north star of instinct. People live without it.”
Prude follows 2022’s Hygiene, a record that drew praise from worldwide press, and catapulted Drug Church from cult favorites to the ranks of the most exciting up-and-coming bands in aggressive music. Recorded and produced by longtime collaborator, Jon Markson, Prude not only meets the extremely high bar set by Drug Church’s previous work, it manages to exceed it. Never content to rest on their laurels, the band have pushed their key elements – eye-popping aggression, bulletproof melodies, and incisive lyrics -, to even greater heights, and discovered more than a few new tricks along the way. There’s only one band that sounds like Drug Church, and thankfully they’re extremely good at being themselves.
Prude will be released on October 4th via Pure Noise Records. Pre-orders are now available here.
Photo credit: Manuel Barajas
