On their forthcoming LP Security, Louisville dark punk stalwarts FOTOCRIME harness a more aggressive and furious tone, one akin to bands like Killing Joke and Big Black along with the man-vs-machine churn of Godflesh and middle period Ministry and more. Historically a synth-forward band, these influences, which have been omnipresent in virtually all of guitarist/vocalist Ryan Patterson’s previous work, come to the forefront to reveal a new era for the band.
This sound is on display on new single “Grifter” which premieres today. Patterson says: “The penultimate song on Security, ‘Grifter’ is a synth-driven punk song that owes as much to Wire as it does Marked Men. There’s probably an acknowledgement due to early Devo, as well the lyrical approach of Rick Froberg. With Fotocrime lyrics, I’ve often been inspired by film noir and hard-boiled mystery novels and ‘Grifter’ falls into this category, while also being an obvious allegory about the monsters in command who are peddling hate while bleeding us dry.” He continues: “On this track, Benny, David, our trusty Oberheim DX drum machine, and I were joined by drummer Ben Sears (Mirrorless, Whips/Chains) who is a human metronome and master of 16th note hi-hats. My brother Evan Patterson (of Jaye Jayle and Young Widows) came by to play a great synth solo in the bridge and J. Robbins (Jawbox, Burning Airlines), Amber Thieneman (Fool’s Ghost), and Aon Brasi (Aon Brasi) provide a chorus of backup vocals at the end. J. also plays additional synth and co-produced, engineered, and co-mixed the album, of course. ‘Grifter’ is an angry and sardonic song dripping with syrupy sweet down-stroked post-punk melody. Just how I like it.”
Formed in 2017, FOTOCRIME have released five EPs and four albums, and on Security, Patterson is joined by new members Benjamin Clark on guitar and David Cundiff on bass. Security also features appearances from drummer Jay Weinberg (Suicidal Tendencies, ex-Slipknot), legendary vocalist Barney Greenway of Napalm Death, all three members of the band Sumac, Nick Theinman and Evan Patterson of Young Widows, Nico and Phab of French dark punks Bleakness, and a cavalcade of veteran Louisville artists. Musician and noted producer J.Robbins also performed on several tracks and sat in at Patterson’s the House of Foto studio to co-produce, engineer, and co-mix the effort.
Security will be out on March 13th— pre-order now on Bandcamp or from Auxiliary / Shirtkiller directly here.
See FOTOCRIME on the road in North America this March and April, and on tour in Europe this May which includes shows with Russian Circles and Pelican…
FOTOCRIME, on tour:
Mar 07 Nashville, TN — The End #
Mar 20 Louisville, KY — Zanzabar ~
Mar 27 Chicago, IL — The Burlington ^
Mar 28 Indianapolis, IN — Spellbound
Apr 10 Pittsburgh, PA — Smalls Funhouse
Apr 11 Philadelphia, PA — Kung Fu Necktie
Apr 12 Brooklyn, NY — TV Eye
Apr 13 Medford, MA — Deep Cuts
Apr 14 Syracuse, NY — Song & Dance *
Apr 15 Toronto, ON — BSMT254 ¢
Apr 16 Ottawa, ON — Club Saw ¢
Apr 17 Montreal, QC — Turbo Haus ¢
Apr 18 Buffalo, NY — Milkies *
Apr 19 Cleveland, OH — Grog Shop
May 08 Vienna, AT — Cafe Carina
May 09 Poznan, PL — Pod Minoga
May 10 Berlin, DE — Urban Spree
May 11 Hamburg, DE — Gruenspan +=
May 12 Cologne, DE — Live Music Hall +=
May 13 Karlsruhe, DE — P8 +=
May 15 Paris, FR — Le Chinois
May 16 Veytaux-Montreux, CH — Chateau Chillon §
May 17 Lucerne, CH — Sedel
May 19 Budapest, HU — Durer Kert =
May 20 Prague, CZ — Meet Factory +=
May 21 Brno, CZ — Kabinet
May 22 Wiesbaden, DE — Kreative Fabrik
May 23 Siegen, DE — Vortex Surfer %
# with Portraits of an Apparition
~ with Endpoint
^ with Clubdrugs & Exedo
¢ with Unwell
* with Bad Bloom
+ with Russian Circles
= with Pelican
§ with Night In Athens
% with Moving Targets
