Watch Swami John Reis’ Tour Video over here - Dates Run May 9th through June 10th
“Liberation through encroachment. Hot Snakes and @lebutcherettes West Coast “meet and greet” the hot slaves. Kissing hands and shaking babies since 2000. Stock footage courtesy of @howie_brdk.”
Starting Wednesday, May 9th at The Observatory in Santa Ana, Hot Snakes will begin a 15-date North American odyssey that has the band on the road through June 10th in Washington, DC. The tour will include stops in Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, New York, Boston, Toronto & Philadelphia. Hot Snakes are touring in support of their latest long-player, Jericho Sirens, which is available now worldwide via Sub Pop Records.
May 09 - Santa Ana, CA - The Observatory
May 10 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom
May 11 - San Diego, CA - The Observatory North Park
May 12 - Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour
May 14 - San Jose, CA - The Ritz
May 15 - San Francisco, CA - August Hall
May 16 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
May 18 - Denver, CO - The Oriental Theater
Jun. 02 - Seattle, WA - Upstream Music Fest
Jun. 04 - New York City, NY - The Bowery Ballroom
Jun. 05 - Brooklyn, NY - Elsewhere Hall
Jun. 07 - Toronto, ON - The Phoenix Concert Theatre
Herewith, details on Sub Pop’s elaborate plans to celebrate the TRUE most wonderful time of the year: Record Store Day 2018.
As the main course, we’re putting out Thomas Andrew Doyle’s (aka TAD) limited-edition Incineration Ceremony LP. And! Equally delightful, though more challenging to flip on eBay, a bunch of our artists are performing (King Tuff and Yuno), or doing DJ sets (Steve Turner of Mudhoney, John Reis & Gar Wood of Hot Snakes, and Colleen Green) in actual record stores! And all of this will be available or happen on Saturday, April 21st at participating retailers.
Please find info on Thomas Andrew Doyle and a schedule of performances and DJ sets below.
Thomas Andrew Doyle’s / Incineration Ceremony LP:
Incineration Ceremony is the new work by Thomas Andrew Doyle (TAD, Brothers of the Sonic Cloth, Hog Molly) and is a return to roots of sorts. After spending his formative years in music playing in jazz clubs while attending school studying classical and jazz music at Boise State University, Doyle comes forth with a symphonic take on what is going on in his head. Spawned from the dark and dreary recesses of Doyle’s psyche comes an immense sound of textures, rhythms and material suitable for film and stand-alone listening, disquieting all who are within earshot. People who are familiar with his music should expect the unexpected. Doyle’s entry into the world of symphonic composition is no novice beginner’s attempt. Incineration Ceremony is a musical journeyman’s expression that is genuine, heartfelt, honest, uncompromising, and authoritative.
Incineration Ceremony is limited to 1,500 copies worldwide, and comes housed in a single-LP jacket with custom dust sleeve and grey/black vinyl.
Incineration Ceremony Tracklist:
1. Silent Incineration
2. Bio-Illogical Functions
3. Meditations in Null
4. Desire
5. Nurtured in Grief
6. The Only Thing You Truly Own Is Nothing
7. Prognati ignis ignis
8. Lost in Abyssmal Waters*
9. Born into Sorrow*
10. Asleep in Arrythmia*
*Bonus tracks included as digital download
DJ Sets and In-Store Performances (from early to later):
Steve Turner (Mudhoney) / Jackpot Records DJ set (Portland, 10 am): 3574 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland, OR 97214
Colleen Green / Amoeba DJ set (Hollywood, noon): 6400 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028
John Reis (of Hot Snakes) / Vinyl Junkies DJ set (San Diego, 3pm): 2235 Fern St, San Diego, CA 92104
King Tuff/ Fingerprints In-store performance (Long Beach, 6pm): 420 E 4th St, Long Beach, CA 90802.
Gar Wood (of Hot Snakes + Beehive & the Barracudas) w/ Tracy Wooley (Beehive & the Barracudas) / Vinyl Junkies DJ set (San Diego, California, 7pm): 2235 Fern St, San Diego, CA 92104
About Record Store Day
Record Store Day was conceived in 2007 at a gathering of independent record store owners and employees as a way to celebrate and spread the word about the unique culture surrounding nearly 1400 independently owned record stores in the US and thousands of similar stores internationally. The first Record Store Day took place on April 19, 2008. Today there are Record Store Day participating stores on every continent except Antarctica (read more here).
Hot Snakes’ previously announced tour dates for 2018 continue with an in-store performance today at Down in the Valley (Golden Valley store, 6pm CT/All Ages), followed by a headlining show later tonight in St. Paul at the Turf Club.
Mar. 16 - St. Paul, MN - Turf Club
May 09 - Santa Ana, CA - The Observatory
May 10 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom
May 11 - San Diego, CA - The Observatory North Park
May 12 - Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour
May 14 - San Jose, CA - The Ritz
May 15 - San Francisco, CA - August Hall
May 16 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
May 18 - Denver, CO - The Oriental Theater
Jun. 04 - New York City, NY - The Bowery Ballroom
Jun. 05 - Brooklyn, NY - Elsewhere Hall
Jun. 07 - Toronto, ON - The Phoenix Concert Theatre
Jun. 08 - Allston, MA - Brighton Music Hall
Jun. 09 - Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer
Jun. 10 - Washington, DC - Union Stage
Jericho Sirens is now available from Sub Pop, select independent retailers near you and all DSPs. And the band’s recently reissued catalog - Automatic Midnight, Suicide Invoice and Audit in Progress - is also available now on Sub Pop.
What’s the word on Hot Snakes’ Jericho Sirens? Well, since you asked:
“On its three previous records, the group was willing to toy with sustain and release, tension and construction — look at songs like “Suicide Invoice” or “Lovebirds.” Those days are gone. Jericho Sirens is a punched-in wall. Between the doom of the opening bars to “I Need a Doctor” and the homage the record closes on (“Death of a Sportsman” crash-ends with a direct lift from Suicide’s epochal, nihilistic “Ghost Rider” and that song’s four-note spine) lives the sound of not being able to itch your pox. Ever.” [Jericho Sirens, First Listen] - NPR Music
“This is yet another example of Hot Snakes at the top of their game, except this time they gave 14 years in exile for other, lesser bands to catch up with them only to reclaim the throne with ease.” [Jericho Sirens, 9/10] - Drowned in Sound
“The very definition of kickass” [Jericho Sirens, 4/5] - The Guardian
“Jericho Sirens sounds more unstable and aggressive…The palpable anxiety of “I Need A Doctor” opens the album, segueing into the dissonant dread of “Candid Cameras” and the ferocious 78 seconds of “Why Don’t It Sink In?” “Death Camp Fantasy” is a vintage Hot Snakes pounder, and Froberg howls like Brian Johnson in “Psychoactive.” It all works. Whenever Hot Snakes decide to get together, they will always be welcome.” [Jericho Sirens, A-] - AV Club
“This is a winner from start to finish.” [Jericho Sirens, 4/5] - Q
“It’s got all the traits that make Hot Snakes the unique band they always were: the fury of hardcore, the dissonant riffs of noise rock, the fuzz-drenched party of garage rock. They’ve got no fat on this thing — it’s over and done with in 30 minutes and reply value is very high — and the songs aren’t just rippers but catchy too.” [Jericho Sirens, “5 Notable Releases This Week”] - Brooklyn Vegan
“Hot Snakes are as dry, dented and slightly demented as ever.” [Jericho Sirens, 8/10, “Album of the Week”] - The Line of Best Fit
“At its core, Jericho Sirens bears all of the elements that made up Hot Snakes’ excellent first trio of albums: a sharp clash of guitars, pummeling punk-rock rhythms, and Froberg’s frantic, strained bark. Yet there’s even more tension and agitation than usual, even for a band whose discography is founded on that very agitation.” [Jericho Sirens, Album of the Day] - Bandcamp
“Their lengthy hiatus has clearly not dulled Hot Snakes’ razor-sharp edge, one bit, making Jericho Sirens a very welcome return.” [Jericho Sirens, 4/5] - Kerrang!
“It’s a suplex to your ears, a fire in your spirit, a get-up-and-go, absolutely run-wild affair. It’s what Hot Snakes has always been, and always will be: masters of primal, visceral aesthetics.” [Jericho Sirens, Album of the Week] - Treble
“Comebacks are complicated, for bands and fans too, but this is one for the ages. Hot Snakes have returned, reminding those of us who’ve paid attention that they are definitively one of the greatest rock bands we’ve ever known.” [9/10] - Exclaim!
“Jericho Sirens is an incredible turn, and proof to the other half-hearted post-hardcore comebacks of the last years (looking at you At the Drive-In, Refused and more) that it is possible to still be high-quality and relevant. In fact, in places Hot Snakes’ fourth album is so good, it even puts newer bands who have come up in the meantime to shame.” [Jericho Sirens, 5/5] - The Skinny
“A band that holds a timeless appeal to anyone who grew up on hardcore and garage rock, a promise of good times fused to a pummeling sense of aggression and resolve.” - Chicago Tribune
“This band will not change your life, probably. But it will make your life both more terrifying and way more bearable. It’s an honor, genuinely, to be pummelled and trampled by some of the best.” [Jericho Sirens] - The Ringer
“Jericho Sirens, the fourth Hot Snakes album, is a cathartic pileup of chunky guitar slashes and feverish yelps. It’s dense and physical and nasty and fun as hell. We’ve already posted the excellently-titled early tracks “Six Wave Hold-Down” and “Death Camp Fantasy,” and now the whole album is out there online, ready for your solo desk-chair moshing. (You do that too, right? It’s not just me?).” [Jericho Sirens]- Stereogum
“Hot Snakes’ caustic, erudite commentary is more welcome than ever” [Jericho Sirens, 4/5] - MOJO
“Hot Snakes throw one hell of a rock and roll party; let’s hope the invites to the next one don’t take another fourteen years to arrive” [Jericho Sirens, 4/5] - DIY
“It’s exactly what you want out of a Hot Snakes jam, with a riff that snarls and swaggers like a hot rod, its wild hair of a melody built into the stylish chrome.” [“Six Wave Hold-Down”] - NPR Music
“And after teasing a new song, they’ve now shared the slashing, propulsive “Six Wave Hold-Down,” a song that’s absolutely worthy of their old albums.” [“Six Wave Hold-Down”] - Stereogum
“Charges forward with reckless abandon…” [“Six Wave Hold-Down”] - Consequence of Sound
“A ripper which has Hot Snakes sounding as inspired as ever…” [“Six Wave Hold-Down”] - Brooklyn Vegan
Jericho Sirens will be available worldwide on March 16th
As previously announced, Friday, March 16th, 2018 will mark the release of Hot Snakes’ Jericho Sirens, the long-awaited fourth album (and first in 14 years!!!) from the San Diego-based punk rock recidivists. For your listening enjoyment, we now share the second single from the band’s new record, entitled, “Death Camp Fantasy.” (also available on Spotifyand Apple Music.
Jericho Sirens is now available for preorder - available on CD / LP / DL / CS - from Sub Pop [right here]. And the band’s newly reissued catalog - Automatic Midnight, Suicide Invoice and Audit in Progress- is also available now on Sub Pop [over here].
The band will play a hometown release show in San Diego at the Casbah on March 7th, which is then followed immediately by a midwestern U.S. tour March 10th-16th.
Mar. 07 - San Diego, CA - Casbah [Sold Out] Mar. 09 - Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall Mar. 10 - Detroit, MI - El Club Mar. 11 - Cleveland Heights, OH - Grog Shop Mar. 13 - Nashville, TN - Mercy Lounge Mar. 14 - St. Louis, MO - Blueberry Hill Mar. 15 - Milwaukee, WI - Cactus Club [Sold Out] Mar. 16 - St. Paul, MN - Turf Club
Friday, March 16th, 2018 will mark the worldwide release of Hot Snakes’ Jericho Sirens, the long-awaited fourth album (and first in 14 years!!!) from the San Diego-based punk rock recidivists. The album was produced by the band and recorded in Philadelphia and San Diego throughout 2017.
Earlier this month, Hot Snakes whet fan appetites by unleashing a trailer featuring :60 (of a total :78) seconds of the monster Jericho Sirens track “Why Don’t It Sink In?” And late yesterday afternoon, Jenny Eliscu premiered the tumultuous new single “Six Wave Hold-Down” on her Sirius XMU show.
Jericho Sirens is now available for preorder from Sub Pop over here and will come in the following formats:
Standard LP on clear vinyl
The limited Loser edition LP on black vinyl (while supplies last!)
1. I Need a Doctor 2. Candid Cameras 3. Why Don’t It Sink In? 4. Six Wave Hold-Down 5. Jericho Sirens 6. Death Camp Fantasy 7. Having Another? 8. Death Doula 9. Psychoactive 10. Death of a Sportsman
AND … the band’s newly reissued catalog - Automatic Midnight, Suicide Invoice and Audit in Progress - will be available tomorrow, Friday January 19th on Sub Pop [get ‘em here].
Hot Snakes previously announced UK tour in support of Jericho Sirens runs January 25th-February 3rd, 2018. The band will then play a hometown release show in San Diego at the Casbah on March 7th, which is then followed immediately by a midwestern U.S. tour March 10th-16th. Tour dates below.
Jan. 25 - Manchester, UK - Gorilla Jan. 26 - Glasgow, UK - Broadcast [Sold Out] Jan. 27 - Newcastle, UK - The Cluny Jan. 28 - Leeds, UK - Brudenell Social Club Jan. 30 - Nottingham, UK - Rescue Rooms Jan. 31 - Cambridge, UK - The Portland Feb. 01 - Brighton, UK - Sticky Mikes Feb. 02 - London, UK - The Dome [Sold Out] Feb. 03 - Bristol, UK - Thekla (Early Show) Mar. 07 - San Diego, CA - Casbah [Sold Out] Mar. 09 - Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall Mar. 10 - Detroit, MI - El Club Mar. 11 - Cleveland Heights, OH - Grog Shop Mar. 13 - Nashville, TN - Mercy Lounge Mar. 14 - St. Louis, MO - Blueberry Hill Mar. 15 - Milwaukee, WI - Cactus Club [Sold Out] Mar. 16 - St. Paul, MN - Turf Club
More About Hot Snakes Jericho Sirens: Swami John Reis and Rick Froberg have been making noises together since high school. In 1986 it was the post-hardcore chime of Pitchfork. In 1991 it was the sprawling, multi-faceted arrangements of Drive Like Jehu. In 1999 it was the lean, mean swagger of Hot Snakes. Reis and Froberg are responsible for some of the most turbulent rock and roll of their, or any, generation.
Hot Snakes streamlined Jehu’s complex compositions and emerged as bona fide downstroke warlords. They made 3 studio albums of high-velocity, slash-your-face, piss-punk: 2000’s Automatic Midnight, 2002’s Suicide Invoice and 2004’s Audit in Progress. The band ceased activity in 2005 but reunited for a triumphant world tour in 2011, planting the seeds for what has cum.
Now, after a 14-year hiatus from the studio, Hot Snakes have kicked down the door back into our lives with their new album, Jericho Sirens, due out March 16 from Sub Pop. Fresh, warm piss, bottled and sold as lube.
“I considered stopping playing guitar on a social media poll after I completely mastered the instrument,” Reis says. “But so many people kept sending me letters and voicemail messages, asking me at the dry cleaners, or the butcher shop to bring back Hot Snakes. They were missing rock and roll music. I’ve always considered Hot Snakes to be more in the vein of the proto-Vog movement of the early ‘70s. But to these people, this is their rock ‘n’ roll. I understand that. I totally understand people’s desire to be controlled and humiliated by my guitar. Anyone can play the stupid guitar. What they want is for me to use it as a branding iron.”
The new album blasts out of the speakers with the furious “I Need a Doctor,” inspired by Froberg’s experience needing a doctor’s note in order to miss an important work function. “Yeah, I had to be quick on my feet,” says Rick. “Luckily a friend had a stack of stationary from Planned Parenthood and I used that to forge a note relieving me of my obligation to go to a really lame Christmas party at a karaoke joint.”
Throughout Jericho Sirens, Froberg commiserates with the frustration and torrential apathy that seems to be a fixture in our daily lives, while also reminding us that we have no fucking clue. “Songs like ‘Death Camp Fantasy’ and ‘Jericho Sirens’ are about that,” he says. “No matter where you look, there’re always people saying the world’s about to end. Every movie is a disaster movie. I’m super fascinated by it. It is hysterical, and it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy. It snowballs, like feedback, or my balls on the windshield.”
Musically, the album incorporates the most extreme fringes of the Hot Snakes sound (the vein-bulging, 78-second “Why Don’t It Sink In?” the manic, Asian Blues on speed of “Having Another?”), while staying true to longstanding influences such as the Wipers, Dead Moon, Michael Jackson, and Suicide on propulsive tracks such as “Six Wave Hold-Down,” one of the first songs written for the project during a Mummer Parade 2017 session in Philadelphia. Other moments like the choruses of “Jericho Sirens” and “Psychoactive” nod to Status Quo and AC/DC with Froberg admitting, “I still flip bird and ride my BMX on top of cop cars.”
“My muse was love. It sounds like panic and chaos,” Reis says. “Restlessness and unease. That’s a sound that I would ask for. I want that record. The inspiration would be simple, maybe even kind of straightforward. Very early rock ‘n’ roll DNA with lots of rules. I would find some note or rhythm in it that captivated me and I dwelled on it and bent it. That’s where I found dissonance. Bending and rubbing against each other uncomfortably. Marinate and refine. A lot of the other Hot Snakes records always had tension and release, but this one is mainly just tension.”
Jericho Sirens was recorded in short bursts over the past year, mostly in San Diego and Philadelphia with longtime bassist Gar Wood, Jason Kourkounis and Mario Rubalcaba, both of whom drummed on prior Hot Snakes releases but never on the same one. For Reis, reactivating his creative partnership with Froberg was one of the most rewarding aspects of the process: “Our perspectives are similar. Our tastes are similar. He is my family. And what more is there to say? My favorite part of making this record was hearing him find his voice and direction for this record. I came hard.”
In tandem with a full back catalog reissue series and the new album, Hot Snakes will return to the road in 2018 to incinerate the villages, and they’re already looking ahead to more music. Says Gar Wood, “There’re already 2 more records written and recorded. We wanted to come out with this one using the more mainstream sounding stuff to give people a chance to catch up.”
The US leg of Hot Snakes tour begins tomorrow night, November 8th
On Friday, January 19th, 2018, Hot Snakes entire discography – Automatic Midnight, Suicide Invoice, and Audit in Progress – will be reissued worldwide through Sub Pop. The first pressing of the LP reissues of these albums will be on colored vinyl (Automatic Midnight on orange, Suicide Invoice on yellow, and Audit in Progress on pink) and each album will come with its own, new set of 6 stickers designed by the band’s Rick Froberg. And January 19th will be the first time any of these albums have been available on cassette.
These influential post-hardcore all-stars – boasting members of Pitchfork, Rocket From the Crypt, Drive Like Jehu, Earthless, Obits, Burning Brides, OFF!, The Delta 72, and more –released three of our favorite rock records of the past 20 years: Automatic Midnight in 2000, Suicide Invoice in 2002 and Audit in Progress in 2004. And now, finally, they’re ours! As we await the somewhat-later-in-2018 release of their first new album since 2004, please make these Sub Pop reissues yours…
Automatic Midnight, Suicide Invoice, and Audit in Progress are now available for preorder in the below listed formats (plus there’s an updated Hot Snakes T-shirt design) [preorder them all here]
CD digipack with custom dust sleeve
LP in a single-pocket jacket with custom dust sleeve and new sticker sheet
Automatic Midnight, Hot Snakes’ first studio album, originally came out in 2000. Both the band and the album began as a side project for John Reis in June 1999, during time off from his main band Rocket From the Crypt. Reis wrote and recorded a batch of songs in San Diego with Delta 72 drummer Jason Kourkounis. To provide vocals for the tracks Reis called in Rick Froberg, whom he had played with in Pitchfork and Drive Like Jehu from 1986 to 1995. Most of the material from these sessions was used to create Automatic Midnight, which became the first release for Reis’ newly formed Swami Records label. The band’s sound represented a return to the unrealized past of its members: direct, undraped and rock ‘n’ roll while still maintaining the dense and turbulent character of the members’ previous work. In April or May of 2000, Hot Snakes added bassist Gar Wood, found their live sound and established themselves as primo, down-stroke warlords.
Automatic Midnight Tracklisting 1. If Credit’s What Matters I’ll Take Credit 2. Automatic Midnight 3. No Hands 4. Salton City 5. 10th Planet 6. Light Up the Stars 7. Our Work Fills the Pews 8. Past Lives 9. Mystery Boy 10. Apartment 0 11. Let It Come
Suicide Invoice, their second album, was originally released in 2002. It was recorded at San Diego’s Drag Racist Studios in 2002 with engineer Ben Moore. The album exhibits Hot Snakes’ slightly larger palate in mood and dissonance. People enjoyed the shows and listening to the recorded music. But, strain from controversy and fame would reveal cracks in the seemingly impenetrable hide of Hot Snakes. A year after the album’s release, drummer Jason Kourkounis left to focus on other music.
Suicide Invoice Tracklisting 1. I Hate the Kids 2. Gar Forgets His Insulin 3. XOX 4. Who Died 5. Suicide Invoice 6. Paid in Cigarettes 7. LAX 8. Bye Nancy Boy 9. Paperwork 10. Why Does It Hurt 11. Unlisted 12. Ben Gurion
Audit in Progress is their third studio album, originally released in 2004. The band recorded the album with new drummer Mario Rubalcaba at San Diego’s Big Fish Recording with engineer Ben Moore. An increased attraction to dissonance surfaced on Audit in Progress. The album was well-received by critics and fans and was named “best punk album” at the 2005 San Diego Music Awards. More shows were played and enjoyed and the band visited many cities all over the world. By 2005, the band spiraled into a mid-life punk crisis and stopped performing.
Audit in Progress Tracklisting 1. Braintrust 2. Hi-Lites 3. Retrofit 4. Kreative Kontrol 5. Think About Carbs 6. Audit in Progress 7. Hatchet Job 8. This Mystic Decade 9. Lovebirds 10. Reflex 11. Hair and DNA 12. Plenty for All
Lucky for all of us here in the present, Hot Snakes are charging back, renewed, recording new music and playing shows with both drummers, and planning for the release of a new album in 2018 on Sub Pop Records. Read more on Hot Snakes by Swami John Reishere.
Hot Snakes have added new UK headlining dates to their 2017/18 international tour schedule. These UK dates begin January 25th, 2018 in Manchester at Gorilla and end February 3rd, 2018 in Bristol at Thekla. The tour includes stops in London, Leeds, Glasgow, Brighton, Nottingham, Newcastle, and Cambridge. Tickets on sale to general public today at 3pm GMT.
Hot Snakes’ previously announced U.S. shows begin tomorrow night, November 8th, 2017 in Long Beach at Alex’s Bar and run through November 18th, 2017 in Philadelphia at Underground Arts.
Nov. 08 - Long Beach, CA - Alex’s Bar [Sold Out] Nov. 09 - Los Angeles, CA - The Troubadour [Sold Out] Nov. 10 - San Francisco, CA - The Chapel [Sold Out] Nov. 11- Portland, OR - Star Theatre [Sold Out] Nov. 12 - Seattle, WA - Chop Suey [Sold Out] Nov. 15 - Washington, DC - Rock and Roll Hotel Nov. 16 - Brooklyn, NY - Bell House [Sold Out] Nov. 17 - Boston, MA - Middle East - Boston Nov. 18 - Philadelphia, PA - Underground Arts Jan. 25 - Manchester, UK - Gorilla Jan. 26 - Glasgow, UK - Broadcast Jan. 27 - Newcastle, UK - The Cluny Jan. 28 - Leeds, UK - Brudenell Social Club Jan. 30 - Nottingham, UK - Rescue Rooms Jan. 31 - Cambridge, UK - The Portland Feb. 01 - Brighton, UK - Sticky Mikes Feb. 02 - London, UK - The Dome Feb. 03 - Bristol, UK - Thekla (Early Show)
