M.A.G.S. - M.A.G.S. - VINYL LP

Vinyl LP pressing. 2020 . In early 2016, D.C. punk legends Brian Baker (Minor Threat, Dag Nasty, Bad Religion) and Michael Hampton (S.O.A., Embrace, One Last Wish) met up at Hampton's Brooklyn home to play music together. Friends since first grade, the two guitarists ended up writing a handful of songs that day, then closed out the session with a spur-of-the-moment decision to start a band. When it came to finding a bassist, Baker and Hampton looked to Johnny Temple of Girls Against Boys and Soulside (another fellow student at their elementary school), who equally shared their passion for what Temple refers to as Inchloud, angry, visceral music.Inch By the end of the year, the band had enlisted Refused frontman Dennis Lyxzén as their singer, thus cementing the lineup to punk-rock supergroup Fake Names. Soon after dubbing themselves Fake Names-a moniker that's part Raising Arizona reference, part recognition of the Inchubiquitous and demonic use of the term 'fake news,'Inch according to Baker-the band headed to Renegade Studios with the goal of creating a demo to present to record labels. But after playing those recordings for Baker's Bad Religion bandmate Brett Gurewitz, the Epitaph founder made an unexpected proposal. InchBrett said to us, 'This isn't a demo, this is the album,'Inch Baker recalls. InchHe was pretty adamant about putting it out exactly as it was, so that's what we wound up doing.Inch

Destroyer, the Smartpunk debut by M.A.G.S., opens with a title track that melds post-punk and Carole King-like melodies, immersing listeners in a world of emotional upheaval and self-realization. Other notable songs include the introspective InchSinsInch and the gritty InchElephantInch. - As the album progresses through a diverse array of emotions and genres, it concludes on a hopeful note with InchSupermoonInch, providing a broader perspective on life's trials and tribulations. According to M.A.G.S., the album underscores the theme of self-destruction for growth. Destroyer promises an epic journey in terms of both lyrical and musical dimensions, taking listeners into an alternate realm.

A magus is a wizard... a sorcerer. Magus, the band, is certainly interested in such things (who isn't), but the name is especially apt due to the band's approach to alchemy, the blending of rock, gothic, proto metal, and psychedelic styles to create a sound that is, ultimately, unique. Part of that uniqueness comes from the instrumentation. While guitar is often a dominant instrument of the rock oeuvre, the Fender Rhodes generally plays a supportive role. Not so here, where Jessica Weeks' deft use of the keyboard dovetails with Greg Weeks' more standard six-string approach. Not standard is the band's sound. Doomy yet inspirational, dour yet vibrant, the duo's tunes map sinister realms whose subjects span metaphysical creatures to enigmatic portals. You know, the typical stuff that rubs elbows with a magus. Formed in late 2024, Magus sprung from a desire by both artists to experiment with darker, heavier sounds. Long enamored of artists like Flower Travelling Band, Black Sabbath, and Deep Purple, the duo delved deeply into trance like riffs and euphoric solos to create the backbone of what has become their debut album, Music for Mandrax. This thirteenth Language of Stone offering features grounded, metronomic grooves, organic, lugubrious synth lines, and tandem vocals (supplied by both Weekses) that, in total, weave a heavy, trance-like spell sure to entice fans of bands as disparate as Sabbath is to Pink Floyd. Recorded at Weeks' Hexham Head studio (to analog tape, of course), the band enlisted long-time counterparts Jesse Sparhawk (bass) and Ben McConnell (drums) to round out their sound and lock down the grooves that propel the album. Mixed by Brian McTear and Amy Morrisey at Miner Street in Philadelphia, the band's fully realized vision came to fruition, which left only the album art to contemplate. The band, wishing to further the gothic aesthetic of their sound,