Venomous Concept, the hardcore punk band formed by Kevin Sharp of Brutal Truth and Shane Embury of Napalm Death have shared the video for latest single ‘Fractured’.
Bonding over their love of punk heroes such as Black Flag, GBH and Poison Idea, the duo have been the core members of the band since 2004 and will release their 5th album ‘The Good Ship Lollipop’ on 24th February. Shane comments,“I was sitting outside the recording studio in Cambridge on a summer’s day thinking about this song, lyrically and vocally. We were a few months into the pandemic and Kevin had gotten into the U.K. to record his vocals for the Venomous Concept album, which was a relief! I sat there wondering what was happening in our world. Fiction seemed to have merged with reality where we all experienced so much stress, so much anxiety. I am not special—the pandemic affected us all in ways we don’t yet realise.
Music was always my comfort, but during this time my family needed me to be strong and I really wasn’t. I was breaking apart and trying to figure out how to put myself back together, and hopefully leave some of the bad bits behind.
Memories came—my childhood, my parents, my family, my children, my friends. Then the words to ‘Fractured’ came… I am still piecing myself back together, trying to be just good enough.”
Watch the video now: https://youtu.be/qi3t-qlCYLU
‘The Good Ship Lollipop’ sees Sharp and Embury joined by fellow Napalm Death member John Cooke alongside Carl Stokes, former drummer with UK death metal legends Cancer. ‘Having John Cooke of Napalm Death on guitar brought a new variety to the record, and Shane’s lifelong friend Carl Stokes formerly of the bands Cancer, Current 93 & The Groundhogs came in on drums to lay down some more solid rock grooves and old school power” Kevin adds.
The album was engineered by Piers Mortimer (Deep Purple, Jakko Jakszyk) and produced by long term friend and colleague Simon Efemey (Paradise Lost, Cancer). Shane concludes, “It was an amazing fun and creative experience, recording while there were COVID restrictions. We seem to now only dimly recall the whole process but this record lives it and breathes it. Kevin then breezed through U.K. customs in the summer of 2020 to record his vocals at headline music studios in Cambridge. There friendships were rekindled amidst worldwide hysteria.”
Sharp and Embury formed the band in 2004 and were joined by Danny Herrera and Buzz Osborne (The Melvins), who went on to be replaced by Danny Lilker. They have released 4 albums: Retroactive Abortion (2004), Poisoned Apple (2008), Kick Me Silly VCIII (2016) and most recently Politics Versus the Erection (2020) on Season of Mist.
‘The Good Ship Lollipop’ is released in association with Extrinsic Records on 24th February on the following formats:
Digitally worldwide via Graphite Records.
CD & black vinyl in the UK via Graphite Records.
Limited edition coloured vinyl and cassette in the U.S via Decibel Records.
CD in Japan via MCR Company.
Pre-order now: https://linktr.ee/venomousconcept
Venomous Concept are: Kevin Sharp (vocals), Shane Embury (bass), John Cooke (guitar), Carl Stokes (drums)
‘a gritty, energetic, and finely crafted platter’ – Angry Metal Guy
‘the perfect means to drown out the tsunami of bullshit pouring through your various media conduits‘ – Blabbermouth
Follow Venomous Concept online: Facebook, Bandcamp, Twitter
