CJ, Author at MendoWerks

The Animal Instinct Tour: Pop Evil & Bad Wolves

1Sep

By CJNo Comments

Events, Features

The Animal Instinct Tour: Pop Evil & Bad Wolves

Coming soon, to a venue near you: Pop Evil and Bad Wolves are hitting the road together later this Fall for a co-headline tour. With two great supporting acts, Sierra Pilot and Oni, this is promising to be a tour to remember for modern rock fans. Pop Evil & Bad Wolves: Fall 2024 Tour Dates The tour kicks off on October 30th in Jacksonville, North Carolina, and wraps up a month later in Lexington, Kentucky. Speaking on the tour, Pop Evil singer Leigh Kakaty shared, "We are stoked to announce 'The Animal Instinct Tour' with our friends in Bad Wolves. This tour will be full of high energy and radio hits from start to finish. We can't wait to see you all out there!" "It's difficult to express how excited I am to get back on the road again with the boys," shares Bad Wolves gui...

2024 Music Festivals to Look Forward To… When It Cools Off in September

18Jul

By CJNo Comments

Events, Features

2024 Music Festivals to Look Forward To… When It Cools Off in September

If you're like me, then perhaps this summer is just a bit too fucking hot to do music festivals. Yeah, these record-breaking 2024 heatwaves suck... but never fear, for we at MendoWerks have put together a list of some US-based music festivals to look forward to when it cools off (hopefully) later on this year. My hope is that it'll be safe to go outside again by September... so let's start there. 2024 Music Festivals: September Okay, I lied to you... we're technically starting on August 30th, which is when Rocklahoma kicks off. Rocklahoma is a festival that's always been on my bucket list. They consistently have some of the best hard rock line-ups out there. This year, Rocklahoma has some very special-to-my-Zillennial-heart headliners: Evanescence, Avenged Sevenfo...

Knotfest Presents: VUKOVI x Calva Louise Co-Headline US Tour

29Jan

By CJNo Comments

Events, Features

Knotfest Presents: VUKOVI x Calva Louise Co-Headline US Tour

Two big names in UK alternative are joining forces this spring: VUKOVI and Calva Louise. These two bands are coming together for a co-headlined US tour in May. Want to know more? Read on to find the tour schedule and to get to know these two bands ahead of your local show. VUKOVI x Calva Louise US Tour Dates The co-headlined tour will run for just over two weeks. The shows begin in Carboro, North Carolina, on May 8th and ends in Brooklyn, New York, on May 23rd. Heads up, west coast fans: you may need to get going on some travel plans if you want to catch a show, as the tour route is taking VUKOVI and Calva Louise along the east coast. Additionally, Stellar Circuits will be supporting the tour on all dates except for the headliners' two festival appearances, which are Wel...

Creeper Announced as Support for Black Veil Brides’ 2024 Tour Across North America

12Dec

By CJNo Comments

Events, Features, Music

Creeper Announced as Support for Black Veil Brides’ 2024 Tour Across North America

Southampton's favorite goth rockers, Creeper, have been quite busy these last few months. The band just wrapped up a European tour supporting Atreyu, and back in October, they released their third studio album, Sanguivore, with Spinefarm. That's not all... Earlier this year, Creeper not only performed at the Heavy Music Awards. but was also listed in three different award categories: Best Single (for "Ghost Brigade"), Best UK Artist, and Best UK Live Artist. Now, the band has even more good news: Creeper is coming to North America to support Black Veil Brides on tour in the spring of 2024, after they complete a 12-date run of shows in the UK. Want the details? Keep reading. "Yeehaw cowboys, cowgirls, and cowothers across North America..." The 'Bleeders' tour is comp...

Sleep Theory: Massive Tour Announcements + “Fallout” Music Video

17Nov

By CJNo Comments

Events, Features, Music

Sleep Theory: Massive Tour Announcements + “Fallout” Music Video

Earlier this year, we wrote about an up-and-coming band that you're about to see everywhere... almost literally. In this case, I'm referring to hard rock quartet, Sleep Theory, whose excellent Paper Hearts EP dropped back in September on Epitaph Records, and who is about to hit the road for nearly six months after supporting artists like Shinedown, Set it Off, I Prevail, and Badflower all year. Yeah. You read that right: there are opportunities to catch Sleep Theory live in concert every month through May 2024. As far as current events go, the band also shared a new, apocalyptic music video for "Fallout", the opening track from their debut EP, via Knotfest. This new video continues the motifs found throughout the video for "Numb", which was also heavy on the end-of-the-world typ...

Jeris Johnson Shares Hot Takes & New Music Video: “When The Darkness Comes”

14Oct

By CJNo Comments

Music

Jeris Johnson Shares Hot Takes & New Music Video: “When The Darkness Comes”

"I can’t wait for the entire metal community to tell me it’s not a metal song."- jERIS jOHNSON, ON 'wHEN tHE dARKNESS cOMES' Jeris Johnson just released a new music video: "When The Darkness Comes". This drop follows the artist's 2022 debut album, I WANT BLOOD/i want love, and more recently, a summer single, "Take Me Away". Recently, Johnson had gone quiet on social media for a while in order to focus on creating his upcoming album with long-time producer and collaborator, SACCO. However, as this single's release date approached, the artist certainly has found his voice on social media once more...as you'll see below. Before then, be sure to check out Jeris Johnson's latest 'not metal enough' creation, "When The Darkness Comes", on YouTube, below: https://www.yout...

Taking Back Sunday Share ‘152’ Lead Track: “Amphetamine Smiles” + New Tour Dates

2Oct

By CJNo Comments

Events, Music

Taking Back Sunday Share ‘152’ Lead Track: “Amphetamine Smiles” + New Tour Dates

With a title like "Amphetamine Smiles", I couldn't help but check out the new Taking Back Sunday single. This heart-wrenching single serves as the third teaser track and opening song for the band's upcoming LP, 152, which is the band's first album in seven years. Listen to "Amphetamine Smiles" by Taking Back Sunday, below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7gJWZcxNPY Speaking on the song, the band shares, "You could document the writing, arranging, and recording of 'Amphetamine Smiles,' but there's no way to explain how it came together... It's the product of some kind of magic." I can definitely feel the magic... can you? Taking Back Sunday celebrates '152' 152 is due out October 27 via Fantasy Records. To commemorate the occasion, the band announced a few intimate r...

SINthetik Messiah Synthesizes Industrial D’n’B Track, “I Wanna Be Alive With You”

1Oct

By CJNo Comments

Features, Music

SINthetik Messiah Synthesizes Industrial D’n’B Track, “I Wanna Be Alive With You”

If you haven't caught on yet, I'm a big fan of guitar music. The heavier, the better! However, sometimes, a song outside my usual tastes gets sent my way... and I'm taken aback by how much I like it. In this case, the song is "I Wanna Be Alive With You" by Louisiana-based industrial bass pioneer, SINthetik Messiah, sent to me by one of my editors here at MendoWerks. Learn from my mistakes: even if electronic music isn't your usual jam, let this song be your first taste of the genre. Because... in a word? It's 'epic'. Find "I Wanna Be Alive With You" by SINthetik Messiah on YouTube, below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1reL_SSkYAg "I Wanna Be Alive With You" video, via Drop Nation. According to SINthetik Messiah lore, this song is about a ghost watching his lover and y...

Asinhell (ft. Volbeat Frontman) Share “Desert of Doom” Video

9Sep

By CJNo Comments

Music

Asinhell (ft. Volbeat Frontman) Share “Desert of Doom” Video

The frontman of legendary Danish rock band, Volbeat, has unleashed a new death metal project: Asinhell. This new band, comprised of guitarist Michael Poulsen (Volbeat, Dominus), vocalist Marc Grewe (Insidious Disease, Morgoth), and drummer Morten Toft Hansen (Raunchy), is a labor of pure love; not only are these three musicians good friends 'in real life', but the Asinhell debut album, Impii Hora, is a tribute to some of Poulsen's favorite groups. For example, the band's newest single, "Desert of Doom", was inspired by Bolt Thrower, Death, Entombed, and Motörhead. Check out the music video for "Desert of Doom", below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTKqYZN0Uno Video directed by Shan Dan Horan. "Bang your head 'til it doesn't bang no more!" As it turns out, once a (deat...

Of Mice & Men Share New Video for “Castaway” + More

23Aug

By CJNo Comments

Events, Features, Music

Of Mice & Men Share New Video for “Castaway” + More

In case you missed it, California-based hard rock band Of Mice & Men just released a poignant new single, "Castaway," off of their upcoming album, Tether. This single comes accompanied by a gorgeous new black-and-white music video; the full album is due out October 6th via Sharptone Records. The news doesn't end there. Of Mice & Men are also hitting the road later this year. Find all the details and more, below. Watch the new music video for "Castaway" by Of Mice & Men on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdN88l0E0Ro "Castaway" speaks to an experience familiar to many, especially in a "post"-pandemic world. We all have those friends and loved ones who tend to disappear when things get tough. Whether this is an avoidant behavior pattern, mental illness,...