Cover Story

The Cover Story

Rico Nasty: “I think genre deserves to get bent and broken”

As Rico Nasty prepares to drop huge alt. single Black Punk and hit the UK / Europe in July, the vital Maryland musician makes her Kerrang! cover debut to reflect on going from poet to rapper, rock and hip-hop’s give-and-take crossover, and creating her own revolution…

The Cover Story

Greg Puciato: “Art comes from a place of abstraction, a feeling that you can’t put into words”

Greg Puciato is a perpetual motion machine. His history with The Dillinger Escape Plan established him as a thermonuclear frontman, but his prolific solo work proves that he’s an unstoppable artistic force. As he prepares to release second album Mirrorcell, he pauses to reflect on vulnerability, time, and the importance of joy…

The Cover Story

Magnolia Park: “The vision has always been to create positive change”

They’re the must-hear pop-punk band of the summer, but there’s more to Magnolia Park than delivering feel-good bangers. As they prepare to release new EP Heart Eater and tour the UK for the first time, the Orlando natives reveal the powerful message behind their tunes…

The Cover Story

Witch Fever: “We’re not chasing a movement that’s already happening… You want to be the ones not fitting in”

After half a decade in the Brit-punk underground, Witch Fever are ready to boil and bubble, harnessing the deepest darkness within on phenomenal debut LP Congregation. And they’re using their songs to fuel the fight for a brighter tomorrow…

The Cover Story

State Champs: “We know we’re good at this sh*t. We know we’ve been here this long for a reason and we wanna showcase that”

For the past decade State Champs have been a pop-punk mainstay, always with one eye on bigger things. Now that the scene is making a bid for the mainstream, is new album Kings Of The New Age their chance to break through? Frontman Derek Discanio thinks so, and he doesn’t care who knows it…

The Cover Story

Denzel Curry: “Everybody’s doing stuff that’s gonna make them fit in. I do my best to make sh*t that makes me not fit in”

From incendiary RATM covers to tours with Turnstile, Denzel Curry knows a thing or two about the power of heavy music. Refusing to be pigeonholed, however, the Floridian rapper’s new album Melt My Eyez See Your Future pushes his craft into new dimensions, which are more personal than ever…

The Cover Story

HEALTH: “We always thought we were making music for a post-Skynet landscape”

Through corruption, climate change, coronavirus and corporate greed, life in the 2020s is edging toward the kind of dystopian future we see in movies. Providing the soundtrack to the end of the world are Cali cult heroes HEALTH, who have called on some friends to bask in our existential dread…

The Cover Story

Placebo: “Making music felt like a lifeline, and that feeling still exists to this day”

For almost three decades, Brian Molko and Stefan Olsdal have been masters of their own destiny, steering Placebo into whichever creative waters they so choose. Now, after nine years lost at sea, the duo have returned with Never Let Me Go, and prescient tales of loss, surveillance and climate change. A record for our times, that could only have been made by these two…

The Cover Story

The Linda Lindas: “Whatever you have to say, you should say and be proud of it”

They might not be old enough to get into some venues, but LA punks The Linda Lindas are putting the scene on notice. After last year’s viral smash Racist, Sexist Boy got them picked up by Epitaph, with a fiery cocktail of tenacity and teen spirit, these ferocious young women are ready to take on the world...

The Cover Story

Drug Church: “I don’t think I’m pessimistic at all, I think I’m actually almost foolishly optimistic”

Is an artist really who we think they are, or are we merely projecting our own ideas onto imperfect creators? It’s something Drug Church frontman Patrick Kindlon reckons with regularly, and ahead of new album Hygiene, he explores in-depth just why we need to find and maintain space between art and artist.

The Cover Story

PUP: “The demon is always over my shoulder, but it’s much easier now to keep him there”

Unafraid to dig deeper than ever for the creation of their fourth album The Unraveling Of PUPTHEBAND, Stefan Babcock and co. brought up a range of emotions – both good and bad – within the Toronto punks’ ranks. Now they’re out the other side, and the only way is PUP…

The Cover Story

Malevolence: “I speak from the heart. As a community, that’s something we should all try to do”

After more than a decade as uncrowned kings of the Brit-metal underground, Malevolence finally seem poised to break for the big time. Beyond its brilliant bludgeon and bloody-knuckled battle cries, upcoming third album Malicious Intent finds the Sheffield crew channelling their fire to spark a long-overdue conversation on men’s mental health…

The Cover Story

WARGASM: “We stand for chaos”

Their backgrounds couldn’t be more different, but something special happens when Sam Matlock and Milkie Way plug in and let rip. As they prepare for their biggest year yet, Kerrang! gets inside the innovative, pissed-off and chaotic phenomenon that is WARGASM.

The Cover Story

Zeal & Ardor: “I just want to take people by surprise”

Zeal & Ardor were only meant to be a one-time thing on the internet. Now, on the eve of their brilliant, self-titled third album, they’ve become celebrated as one of metal’s most forward-thinking bands. For mainman Manuel Gagneux, it’s a strange development to process. Here’s how he went from a teenage punk hanging out in Swiss squats, to the man lighting up heavy music…

The Cover Story

Nova Twins: “We don’t want to follow trends, so we try to push it in a new direction”

Are Nova Twins punk? Metal? Rap-rock? All and none of the above, but there is currently no band on Earth like them. Their second album, Supernova, is one of the most exciting noises to hit 2022, from one of the most electric bands in Britain. For those still wondering Who Are The Girls?, meet Amy Love and Georgia South as they prepare for lift-off…

The Cover Story

Ghost: “You have to destroy to rebuild, but that doesn’t mean you have to level everything into gravel”

With darkness, division and diabolical leaders everywhere, the world appears to be turning into one giant Ghost song. As they reappear with their new album Impera, we find Tobias Forge harking back to the Victorian age and finding it not so dissimilar. He takes us through the band’s fifth offering, and how their empire continues to grow…

Back Next

Rico Nasty: “I think genre deserves to get bent and broken”

Greg Puciato: “Art comes from a place of abstraction, a feeling that you can’t put into words”

Magnolia Park: “The vision has always been to create positive change”

Witch Fever: “We’re not chasing a movement that’s already happening… You want to be the ones not fitting in”

State Champs: “We know we’re good at this sh*t. We know we’ve been here this long for a reason and we wanna showcase that”

Denzel Curry: “Everybody’s doing stuff that’s gonna make them fit in. I do my best to make sh*t that makes me not fit in”

HEALTH: “We always thought we were making music for a post-Skynet landscape”

Placebo: “Making music felt like a lifeline, and that feeling still exists to this day”

The Linda Lindas: “Whatever you have to say, you should say and be proud of it”

Drug Church: “I don’t think I’m pessimistic at all, I think I’m actually almost foolishly optimistic”

PUP: “The demon is always over my shoulder, but it’s much easier now to keep him there”

Malevolence: “I speak from the heart. As a community, that’s something we should all try to do”

WARGASM: “We stand for chaos”

Zeal & Ardor: “I just want to take people by surprise”

Nova Twins: “We don’t want to follow trends, so we try to push it in a new direction”

Ghost: “You have to destroy to rebuild, but that doesn’t mean you have to level everything into gravel”

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