Agoraphobic Nosebleed

by William York Headed by guitarist/bassist/drum programmer Scott Hull (also of Pig Destroyer and formerly of A.C. as well), grindcore nut-cases Agoraphobic Nosebleed have existed in various forms since 1994. Their bleak, punishing sound mixes together caustic vocals, harsh (and inhumanly fast) drum-machine beats, and Hull's Earache-schooled guitar riffing. Their songs are short and compact, in most cases clocking in at less than a minute long. Their lyrics are often as unorthodox and/or inscrutable as the band's name and song titles (e.g., "Chalking the Temporal God Module," "The Fatter You Fall Behind," "Lives Ruined Through Sex") would seem to suggest. Topics such as crackpot apocalypse theories, homophobia and misogyny, drug conspiracies, mind control, rampant capitalism and consumerism, and bio-terrorism have all surfaced in their songs; and are often addressed in ambiguous, free-associative ways, interspersed with plenty of tasteless scatological outbursts, sometimes with a humorous slant and sometimes not. Following a few split and EP releases and a couple of lineup shifts, Agoraphobic Nosebleed's first "full-length" -- the 26-song, 19-minute Honky Reduction -- came out in 1998 on Relapse Records and was recorded by the lineup of Hull and vocalist/electronics manipulator Jay Randall. The following year saw the release of a 6" EP entitled PCP Tornado as well as a split CD with the Boston, MA, hardcore band Converge entitled The Poacher Diaries. For The Poacher Diaries, Agoraphobic Nosebleed's lineup was expanded to include a second vocalist, J.R. Hayes (also the lead vocalist for Pig Destroyer). Agoraphobic Nosebleed's second full-length, the long-promised Frozen Corpse Stuffed With Dope, finally came out in 2002, once again on Relapse. This time around, Hull and Randall were officially joined by vocalist Carl Schultz and bassist/vocalist Richard Johnson (of Enemy Soil and the Index, and also a member of Agoraphobic Nosebleed in their earlier days). The album also featured guest vocal appearances by Hayes as well as members of Benumb, Necrophagia, Cephalic Carnage, and Brutal Truth.