In addition to being one of the coolest writers around, an expert in everything from jazz, to death metal, to Ween, Hank Shteamer is the drummer and vocalist for Brooklyn band STATS. As it so happens, the band is as eclectic as Shteamer’s musical taste, a wildly creative mishmash of Melvins-derived sludge and Beefheart-esque experimentation. Massively heavy but showing a progressive nimbleness that you don’t exactly hear in sludge/noise-oriented bands, the band’s debut album makes for an absurdly delightful listening experience.
“I’m making an attempt to process deep-seated fear and revulsion regarding elements of life that terrify me,” Shteamer tells PopMatters. “The album title is a plea to these malevolent forces, human or otherwise. While Mercy is a cathartic album lyrically, it’s intended as a kind of positive purging – much in the same way that the music, while harsh and complex, also embodies base rock n’ roll pleasures.”
Mercy will be released 7 August on New Atlantis. Pre-order it here.