It appears, in these wounded days, that everything we know is false, that the process of constructing and irradiating illusions has been weaponized. And what about our insatiable craving of “newness” and the maintenance of cultural “originality?” Sometimes the most punk thing a group of musicians can do is meditate. For Braveyoung — who call themselves a “punk band, kind of” with a self-deprecating yet winking honesty — the somber fury is there, in bowed guitars, collapsing columns of feedback, and decaying drone structures. So is the maudlin snarl and the acknowledgement that things will mostly be a lot worse for a long time.
After a lengthy recovery from a serious motorcycle accident, Braveyoung is preparing to release Misery and Pride, their second album, with The Flenser, a label that often courts beautiful visions of an impending end time. The trio has been performing in various forms since 2005, releasing multiple EPs and collaborating with monoliths of blackened orchestration The Body. They capture an epic sense of scale and failed trials on “Wonderful,” the first track on the album, which demonstrates the slow brooding Braveyoung is best at.
Misery and Pride is out March 26. You can pre-order the LP and CD at The Flenser and stream the premiere of “Wonderful” here:
Misery and Pride tracklist:
01. Wonderful
02. You Pigs Should Find A God To Love
03. Blue Beyond The Hill
04. Oh Love That Will Not Let Me Go
05. Such A Worm As I
06. I Lay In Dust Life’s Glory Dead
07. The Good King Will Punish You