[Podcast] Ep. 85: [Interview] w/ JASON PEPPIAT of PSYCROPTIC (AUS) + ISC Radio.
VIDEO INTERVIEW LINK:
(via the official ISC Youtube Channel)
Podcast/Audio-Only Version:
via the Podcast category on our Youtube Channel + podcast app platforms*
Castamatic, Castro, Fountain, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Podcast Guru, Podverse and TrueFans, as well asAmazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, GoodPods, iHeartRadio, PocketCasts and RadioPublic.
EPISODE 85 - SHOW NOTES:
(See below for corresponding Heavy News releases related to the artists featured in today’s episode. Here you’ll find said news plus artist/label links, various media, merch, tour dates, album release dates, preorder links etc, depending on the type of coverage. Support the international underground and your local scene!)
PSYCROPTIC (AU): Release New Single + Video ‘Ashes Of A New Dawn’ -
New Album The Pulse of Annihilation Out NowFRANKENBOK (AU) Release New Single, ‘Casualty’.
New Album, The Arriba War Honkle, Out NowMINDVILE (SPAIN/USA) Signs with Paragon Records and Satanath Records; Releases First Single "Bite by Bite"
U.S. Death/Thrash Crew, NINTH REALM (US), Releasing Damnation's Veil in August!
Bahrain's ZVINDIYAR Release New Single "Shadhavar"; Debut Release Six Rites Due September 3rd
PSYCROPTIC (AU): Release New Single + Video ‘Ashes Of A New Dawn’ -
New Album The Pulse of Annihilation Out Now
‘Ashes Of A New Dawn’ video:
Stream:
https://psycroptic.bandcamp.com/music
https://direct-merch.com/collections/psycroptic
For over two decades, PSYCROPTIC has operated at the vanguard of innovative death metal, defined by instrumental precision, structural intelligence and an uncompromising creative ethic. ‘Ashes Of A New Dawn’ is their latest single with the track, and accompanying video, coming from the band’s new full-length, The Pulse Of Annihilation, which is out now!
Comments bassist Todd Stern, “Loooooove this song. It’s the type of song that gives you imagery as you listen. Slow, melty intro… next thing you know you have to run for your life. Great moments of intensity, all in good fun. It’s aggressive as fuck but it’s also like a party song! Highly recommended.”
Adds vocalist Jason Peppiatt, “Lyrically, this song is kind of a sequel to ‘Ashes Of Our Empire’ off the Divine Council album but musically it’s a total Joe Haley riff fest!”
Across The Pulse Of Annihilation,PSYCROPTIC sounds focused, disciplined, and fully aware of their trajectory. Complexity remains foundational, but it is now guided by compositional restraint and veteran confidence. With this release, the band reaffirm their status not merely as innovative death metal stalwarts, but as architects actively shaping its future, proving that mastery, sharpened by time, only grows more lethal.
PSYCROPTIC AUSTRALIAN TOUR this August
Aug 6 – Pub Rock Diner – Devonport
Aug 7 – Royal Oak Hotel – Launceston
Aug 8 – Altar – Hobart
with Rivers Of Nihil
Aug 13 – Magnet House – Perth
Aug 14 – Lion Arts – Adelaide
Aug 15 – Max Watts – Melbourne
Aug 21 – Manning Bar – Sydney
Aug 22 – Necrosonic Festival – Brisbane
The Pulse Of Annihilation album released in Australia via Direct Merch
Rest of the world, via Metal Blade Records
LINKS:
www.psycroptic.com
www.facebook.com/psycroptic
Instagram: @psycroptic_official
For interview and review requests contact:
Glenn Dyson - dysie_pr@cultetiquette.com.au
FRANKENBOK Release New Single, ‘Casualty’; New Album, The Arriba War Honkle, Out Now:
Hot on the heels of their latest album, The Arriba War Honkle, which debuted on the ARIA Australian Artist Chart at #5, Frankenbok return with “Casualty,” a hard-hitting single that transforms raw heaviness into a powerful metaphor for emotional exploitation.
Originally sparked by guitar and vocal ideas from Aaron Butler after he attended a First Aid course, the song was lyrically reframed shifting the focus from first aid and physical trauma to the casualties left by emotional drain and social parasites.
"‘Casualty’ is about the people who keep giving, until they’re left paying a heavy price.”
Driven by crushing riffs and Frankenbok’s unmistakable energy, the track balances brute force heaviness with reflection, reminding us that generosity should never mean self-destruction.
Listen to ‘Casualty’ here:
Watch the Video, at:
TOUR DATES
Catch Frankenbok next at
Sat, Aug 1: Segressions 30th Anniversary Show - The Basement, Belconnen, ACT
Oct 16-18: Justalice 2026, Drummond North, Vic
Sat, Jan 16: Scorched Earth 2027
For tickets and further info head to:
www.frankenbok.net/shows
Frankenbok’s music embraces heaviness, humour and brutality! The Australian legacy metal band boasts a diverse sound, unafraid to try anything and are ALWAYS impulsively applying that to their craft. Since their inception in 1997, they’ve defied boundaries, constantly evolving, yet never losing their core.
The path they have been carving for close to 30 years without a break proves they are a force of raw power with infusions of playfulness, colour, and a fearless spirit.
With a broad spectrum of influences, Frankenbok seamlessly weaves together alternative, punk, funk, metal, and death metal, creating a sound that is as versatile as it is intense. Something like nude wrestling in a maximum security prison wing!
HEAVY Magazine recently summed up their sound to: “The wild love child of Faith No More and Red Hot Chili Peppers, with a healthy dose of metal and pure madness.”
Fans will be swept back to the BOK's golden era of what once made them appealing in the first place but carried forward by a limitless musical vision. The Arriba War Honkle is a defining moment, nostalgic for the old guard, electrifying for the new.
After 30 years of existence, it is clear that this band will never go away! For the nature of Frankenbok is, and always will be, irrepressible….
“THE ARRIBA WAR HONKLE” is out now:
Follow Frankenbok:
Facebok | Instabok | WebBok
MINDVILE (Spain/USA) Signs with Paragon Records and Satanath Records; Releases First Single "Bite by Bite”
Black/death metal band MINDVILE (Spain/USA) has signed with Paragon Records and Satanath Records for the release of their debut album, Old Continent, scheduled for September 25, 2026.
The album is the first chapter of "Stories No Tongue Should Tell", a planned five-album conceptual series exploring real cases of human cruelty and depravity from different regions of the world. Each release will focus on a specific continent and present stories inspired by real individuals whose actions have left a lasting mark on society.
Alongside the announcement, MINDVILE has released "Bite by Bite", the opening track from Old Continent and the first music to emerge from the project:
https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/mindvile/bite-by-bite
Commenting on the single, the band states:
"From the bowels of the earth emerges one of the most terrifying monsters ever to plague our world, locked inside a glass case beneath meters of concrete and consumed by a ravenous hunger.
The first monster to emerge from the dark chrysalis of this new project called 'Stories No Tongue Should Tell', as Mindvile presents its first single, 'Bite by Bite', from the new album 'Old Continent'."
Recorded at Moontower Studio, "Old Continent" features:
Belzedrum - drums
Gralborj - bass
Vate - guitars and vocals
The album contains eight tracks and is accompanied by a complete visual booklet. The cover artwork was created by Juanjo Castellano (The Black Dahlia Murder, Avulsed), whose illustration depicts Lithuania's Hill of Crosses. The album contains eight tracks and is accompanied by a complete visual booklet.
TRACKLISTING:
1. Bite by Bite
2. Predator's Mask
3. Unholy Task
4. The Evil Siren's Tongue
5. Lord of the Threshold
6. Judge, Killer and Executioner
7. Craftman's Legacy
8. Cellarbound
U.S. Death/Thrash Crew, NINTH REALM, Releasing Damnation's Veil in August
Maryland-based Death/Thrash crew, Ninth Realm, will release their sophomore album, Damnation's Veil, on August 28 via Transcending Obscurity Records.
Damnation’s Veil is a consistent blend of death-thrash, metallic hardcore, black metal, and traditional heavy metal. The album will be available on CD, vinyl, and digital formats.
Ninth Realm has released three singles from the album. Those are:
"Cohorts of the Abyss" (Official Video):
"Damnation's Veil":
"Rituals in Thar’amath”:
Tracked between April-July 2025, the production process for Damnation's Veil was split between recording drums, guitars and bass with Matthew Michel at Viva Studios (Goetia, Antichrist Siege Machine, Infant Island, Left Cross, Blood Monolith) in Fairfax, VA, while vocals were handled by Sebastian Philips (Exhumed, Mammoth Grinder) at his home studio in Dundalk, MD.
In other news, Ninth Realm has announced an album listening party and album release show, both of which will take place in Washington, D.C. The Damnation's Veil albumlistening party happens on August 29 at Lyman's Tavern. The album release show will take place on on October 9 at Pie Shop.
Pre-order Damnation's Veil:
ninthrealm-label.bandcamp.com/album/damnations-veil
linktr.ee/transcendingobscurity
Track Listing:
1. Valigeth
2. Damnation’s Veil
3. Cohorts of the Abyss
4. Imbued in Hellfire
5. Rituals in Thar’amath
6. Orphaned Throne
7. Wyrd of Strideborne
8. Beyond the Void
9. Vengeance Unto Rot
10. All Hail Treachery
11. Twilight’s Blade
Credits:
Cover art by Jerry “Wyrmwalk” Hionis (Frozen Soul, Morgul Blade, High Command, Inhuman Nature, Troncale, Wrecking Ball, Maul)
Influences on this record include: Iron Age, Bolt Thrower, Mercyful Fate, Power Trip, Celtic Frost, Bathory, Dissection, Autopsy, Candlemass
Photo Credit: Michael Burke
Line-up:
(l-r in photo)
Amelia Morris (Bass)
Charles House (Rhythm Guitar)
Ben Hageage (Vocals)
Joey Burke (Drums)
Liam McMahon (Lead Guitar)
BIO:
Ninth Realm is a death-thrash band founded in Maryland and the surrounding DMV area. Formed in 2019, the band has released six individual recordings, including a demo, two EPs, a promo tape, and a full-length album, as well as several splits and compilations with other bands. Drummer Joey Burke and lead guitarist Liam McMahon started the project while in college at the University of Maryland.
Conceptually, the band draws from Joey’s original dark fantasy world, Tythorin – a setting shaped by themes of vengeance, fate, grief, trauma, and the indomitable willpower of the human spirit.
Bahrain's ZVINDIYAR Release New Single "Shadhavar"; Debut Release Six Rites Due September 3rd
After their debut single "Anqa" was voted Best New Metal Song of the Week by Metal Hammer readers, Bahraini atmospheric death metal project ZVINDIYAR return with "Shadhavar", the third and final single from their upcoming debut release, Six Rites, due on September 3.
Metal Hammer described "Anqa" as "a glorious showcase" of the band's sound, praising its "big, dramatic riffs delivered with a furious, unrelenting force."
Inspired by the mythical Persian creature Shadhavar, the new single explores mortality, ambition, and the desire to leave something behind after the body is gone. Combining death metal aggression, clean vocals, cinematic atmosphere, and Persian mythological imagery, "Shadhavar" marks the band's most ambitious work to date while bringing the story of Six Rites to its conclusion.
Watch the official lyric visualizer:
Six Rites is available for pre-order now on Bandcamp. Supporters will receive the full six-track release and digital booklet early on August 20, ahead of the official worldwide release on September 3.
Drawing inspiration from Persian and Arabic mythology, Six Rites explores themes of transformation, collapse, and transcendence through a cinematic blend of atmospheric death metal. Serving as ZVINDIYAR's first complete release, it expands upon the conceptual world introduced by the band's three singles.
Track-listing:
Anqa
Hex Of The Frenzied Decay
The Soaring Enigmatic
Fell
الهمس الأول
Shadhavar
LINKS:
Bandcamp pre-order: https://zvindiyar.bandcamp.com/
EP teaser: https://youtube.com/shorts/Vwroi86UIq8
Artist Links:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zvindiyar/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@zvindiyar
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@zvindiyar