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Regarded as one of the hardest working men in punk rock, John ‘Speedo’ Reis has been making compelling music for almost four decades. Speedo, as we’ll refer to him from now on, has fronted Rocket From The Crypt, The Night Marchers and Sultans, as well as play guitar for Pitchfork, Drive Like Jehu, Hot Snakes and, most recently, with his solo band Swami John Reis.

Here are the 10 definitive moments from his prolific career…

PITCHFORK – Sinking (Saturn Outhouse, 1989)

After finding his feet in high school bands like Conservative Itch, Speedo’s first notable band featured future Drive Like Jehu and Hot Snakes frontman, the late, great Rick Froberg. His slow-burning, intricate guitar style and quiet/loud dynamics would later provide the blueprint for many post-hardcore bands. The San Diego quartet would release one full-length album, Eucalyptus in 1990, but our attention turns to Sinking, taken from the Saturn Outhouse EP released one year earlier.

DRIVE LIKE JEHU – Bullet Train To Vegas (Yank Crime, 1994)

Formed from the ashes of Pitchfork, Speedo and Froberg were joined by bassist Mike Kennedy and drummer Mark Trombino. Drive Like Jehu is where the magic really started to happen. Named after a king in the Bible, the band’s two albums – their self-titled 1991 debut and the 1994 follow-up, Yank Crime – yielded a frenetic, progressive take on twisting hardcore, topped off with Froberg’s rasping howl. Rye Coalition recorded an exceptional cover version of this song for the 2025 Paid In Full charity single (along with their take on Shellac’s Wingwalker) in tribute to Rick Froberg and Steve Albini.

BACK OFF CUPIDS – Trivial Pursuit (Back Off Cupids, 2000)

Back Off Cupids was the result of a solo project recorded sporadically during the mid-90s. Largely compromised of instrumental tracks, this self-titled release features guest appearances from RFTC’s horn section, Jason Crane and Paul O’ Beirne. Check out Trivial Pursuit, which takes its name from the popular Parker Brothers board game. Next time you play the game, remember the pieces are officially called wedges. If you call those bits cheese, you’re dead wrong.

HOT SNAKES – If Credit’s What Matters I’ll Take Credit (Automatic Midnight, 2000)

Speedo reunited with Froberg and enlisted The Delta 72 drummer Jason Kourkounis for Hot Snakes’ debut album, Automatic Midnight, which was released at the turn of the millennium. They later enlisted Tanner frontman Gar Wood to assume bass duties on tour. Picking up where Drive Like Jehu left off, Hot Snakes simplified their previous sound to create a more direct, yet similarly powerful proposition, represented best with this searing cut from that album.

SULTANS – Just A Fool (Ghost Ship, 2000)

Sultans released two albums during their seven-year career. Initially, Speedo played bass alongside RFTC guitarist Andy ‘ND’ Stamets, to offer fans a raucous, stripped back take on traditional rock n’ roll. For this album, he assumed the name of Slasher. No idea why.

THE NIGHT MARCHERS – All Hits (Allez! Allez!, 2013)

For his next band, Speedo combined the distinctive sounds of his other bands to create The Night Marchers’ ominous bursts of rock n’ roll. Check out All Hits, the third song from their 2013 album, Allez! Allez! presumably named to appeal to the fickle Gallic market. The Night Marchers were, are, and will continue to be miles better than Johnny Hallyday. It’s just a scientific fact.

SWAMI JOHN REIS AND THE BLIND SHAKE – Wet Greek (Modern Surf Classics, 2015)

Just over a decade ago, Swami John Reis – one of Speedo’s many aliases – joined forces with the Minneapolis trio The Blind Shake for an album of baleful surf rock. Check out Wet Greek, which takes the traditional music of the sun-drenched country and firmly hits the accelerator pedal.

ROCKET FROM THE CRYPT – On A Rope (Scream, Dracula!, Scream, 1995)

Where to begin with this band is a whole other feature. Formed around the same time as Drive Like Jehu, Rocket From The Crypt was a very different beast. The result of a head-on collision between punk and Motown, the band – who wore matching outfits and inspired fans to ink themselves with their Pushead-designed logo – gradually expanded to a sextet, including a two-piece horn section. They disbanded in 2007, only to reform in late 2011 for a surprise appearance on the US children’s TV show, Yo Gabba Gabba (Speedo appears on the show as ‘The Music Swami’). The band were something of a mainstream attraction in 1996 on the strength of their classic On A Rope, which peaked at number 12 in the UK singles chart. Check out this vintage Top Of The Pops performance and keep your eyes peeled for sporadic live announcements. “Take it away, Teddy men…”

PLOSIVS – Rose Waterfall (Plosivs, 2022)

Like Speedo, Plosivs frontman Rob Crow has helmed many, many projects over the years, including Pinback, Heavy Vegetable, Goblin Cock, Thingy, Anal Trump and Rob Crow’s Gloomy Place. As an integral part of the San Diego music scene, it made sense that he’d eventually team up with Reis for Plosivs, a supergroup also featuring RFTC drummer Atom Willard and Mrs. Magician’s Jordan Clark. Rose Waterfall, taken from their self-titled debut, distills the very essence of what makes their individual musical endeavours great and presents it in the finest alt-rock glassware. Salud.

SWAMI JOHN REIS – Future Moods (Navajo White, 2026)

Over the last few years, he’s released savage blasts of “junk shoppe punk that kicks you in the ding ding” with tempos that are “often breakneck” while “dense arrangements tumble like bricks into hot cheese” (bands – make your press releases more like this). His recent output has been presented under the Swami John Reis banner: 2022’s Ride the Wild Night, 2024’s All Of This Awaits You (as Swami & The Bed of Nails) and 2026’s reflective Navajo White (named after a paint colour used by Reis during his time served as a house decorator). Future Moods features one of the last recordings by Rick Froberg before his death from an undiagnosed heart condition in 2023. With this in mind, it gives the lurching song added emotional heft.

Due to “unforeseen circumstances”

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Switchblade .

The post Switchblade Scarlett to reunite for live show to celebrate 15 years since the release of their full-length album first appeared on Sleaze Roxx.

That trek was originally booked for this month.

The post Carcass & Brujeria’s Australian/New Zealand Touring Rescheduled For September 2027 appeared first on Theprp.com.

There Will Never Be an Ode Like This Again
The Making of Agalloch’s Ashes Against the Grain

Ashes Against the Grain is a classic American metal record, but Ashes Against the Grain is also a middle child. Obviously, no band can know such a thing during the process of creation, but certain markers reveal themselves in retrospect. In the late ’90s, John Haughm, Don Anderson and Jason William Walton pooled the musical compulsions of their young adulthood into both Sculptured, a progressive death metal project helmed by Anderson, and Agalloch, a neofolk- and black metal-inspired project initially conceived by Haughm. The passion that drove efforts like Pale Folklore and Of Stone, Wind, and Pillor grew into an ambition and compositional confidence that allowed the trio to dream their baroque and brilliant record The Mantle into being. All this music came to fruition in the relative hermetic comfort of a small group of friends who shared a tight artistic language, who felt the freedom to create without external input.

On the strengths of these musical statements, Agalloch earned a steadily increasing renown, which carried with it the weight of new expectations and new questions. What was Agalloch’s sound? How far could the band members stray—either outward, toward the avant garde and the experimental, or inward, toward more simplified song structures—without betraying the band’s core purpose? Could they strive toward being a new darling progressive metal juggernaut, “the next Opeth,” as their label, The End Records, wanted? Did they even want that for themselves? Should they make the leap into a full live lineup and whip up a larger audience through relentless touring? And, of course, they were no longer so young anymore—now in their late 20s, with adult relationships and responsibilities encroaching, were they even interested in thinking and creating in the same way they had over the previous decade? Who were Agalloch?

This is the personal and professional tumult in which Ashes Against the Grain took shape. External pressures intermingled with the band’s own sense of self, putting identity and integrity at stake. Before Ashes, Agalloch were powered by a brash and youthful self-assurance; after Ashes, they had the benefit of hindsight, that struggles could be overcome and cast away. And in the cauldron at the center of it all, Agalloch crafted a set of songs that have been fan favorites for two decades and counting. The band’s newfound live performance experience informed the tautly rendered gems like “Not Unlike the Waves” and “Falling Snow.” Monolithic opener “Limbs” and the cataclysmic closing triptych “Our Fortress Is Burning” were lacquered in emotional layers without ever tipping past Agalloch’s ability to recreate them on the stage.

For too long, The Mantle has stood as the lone Agalloch representative in Decibel’s Hall of Fame. Finally, to celebrate 20 years of additional brilliance, we welcome Ashes Against the Grain to its rightful place in the Hall.

Need more classic Agalloch? To read the entire seven-page story, featuring interviews with all five members who performed on Ashes Against the Grain purchase the print issue from our store, or digitally via our app for iPhone/iPad or Android.

The post Agalloch – Ashes Against the Grain appeared first on Decibel Magazine.

Swedish heavy metal squad Ram presents their latest single and video for “Night Blade.” The track appears on their forthcoming new long player, Against, set to drop on October 9th through Metal Blade Records.

Comments vocalist Oscar Carlquist: “The return of the riff! Before writing this song, I had been contemplating the fact that ’70s and early ’80s metal was a lot more about the riff than what you hear and have heard for a long time. I wanted to bring that back and wrote a typical, super simple old-school riff to carry the song. A perfect song to headbang to.”

It has been nearly seven years since Ram‘s The Throne Within, an album defined by its spiritual and metaphysical themes. With Against, Ram takes a more grounded approach, focusing on the experience of being pushed beyond reasonable limits and refusing to comply. The album captures that moment of resistance, “that fire of defiance, which ultimately defines its title and message,” as the band collectively states.

Musically, guitarists Harry Granroth and Martin Jonsson continue to favor bridge pickups, maintaining a sharp and aggressive tone. The equipment used on Against reflects a classic approach, contributing to a sound that feels both timeless and direct. Sonically, Against was conceived as a return to classic recording philosophies. Drawing inspiration from the early works of Dio, MSG, and Sweet, the goal was to create an honest and unpolished sound. What you hear is what you get! In a music landscape increasingly divided into countless subgenres, the band positions itself deliberately outside of categorization. The title Against itself reinforces the band’s longstanding identity as nonconformists, viewing heavy metal as a form of sonic rebellion.

One of the most noticeable aspects of the record is its concise songwriting. Where earlier work may have leaned toward complexity, this album embraces clarity and precision. This evolution reflects a broader maturation, with the Swedes recognizing that restraint and focus can be more impactful than technical display.

The album artwork, created by Carlquist himself, also reflects a conscious shift toward simplicity. In contrast to previous covers filled with symbolism, the focus is placed squarely on the band’s iconic ram-horned skull emblem, ensuring that the identity of the band remains unmistakable.

Ultimately, Against stands as a statement of intent, a reaffirmation of identity and purpose. Or, as they put it themselves: “Fear the return of the Heavy Metal Tyranny!”

Ram‘s Against full-length will be released on CD and digital formats here, as well as vinyl, in the following color variants:

• 180g Black
• Clear Lilac Marbled
• Purple Melt (Ltd. 300)
• Crystal Clear Blackdust (Ltd. 300)
• Silver Black Splatter (Ltd. 250)

In related news, after 17 years as the bassist for Ram, Tobias “Tobbe” Petterson has decided to step down from the band. Petterson has been a pivotal part of both Ram‘s recordings and live shows, and his steadfast bass playing and ferocious stage presence will be missed.

The band comments: “Petterson will always remain a part of the Ram family, and we part as brothers, still united by the power of heavy metal. But the heavy metal tyranny must proceed; new horizons await, and these will be shared with our new bass player, Desekrator of Voodus and Stormdeath fame. Desekrator has been close to the band for decades, and through being a die-hard fan, he is already well-versed in the true spirit of Ram. This, combined with his bass skills makes him the perfect replacement for Tobbe. Onward Upon The Black Path!”

Petterson will perform his final show with Ram on October 9th in Gothenburg, the band’s record release show.

The post Swedish Heavy Metallers RAM Unleash “Night Blade” Video/Single appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.

“Avalanche” arrived this past April.

The post Gojira’s Mario Duplantier Launches His Second Drum Solo Of The Year, “Refuge” appeared first on Theprp.com.

Lighting up stages in February & March.

The post Cult Of Luna, BRUIT ≤ & Youth Code Announce Early 2027 European/UK Tour appeared first on Theprp.com.

The promoter is "currently assessing the extent of the damage." Continue reading…