Paradise Slaves, the new band featuring former members of 36 Crazyfists and Diecast, have a video for their cover of Soul Asylum’s ’90s hit “Somebody to Shove.” The song appears on Paradise Slaves’ debut album, “With Hell in His Eyes,” out now via Spinefarm Records.
“This all started the first time we all hung out as a band,” guitarist Jon Kita said. “[Vocalist] Brock [Lindow] put on ‘Somebody to Shove’ and pointed out how he always wanted to cover it and we were all surprised that no one had. Over the next few days, we put it on the TouchTunes at every bar we went to and without fail, people would sing along to it regardless of their age. When I got home, I worked out a version of the song in a format and key that fit Brock’s range, re-orchestrated things a bit here and there, tracked the guitars, bass and drums, and sent it to the guys as a surprise.
“After Brock heard it, he booked studio time that week and tracked the vocals. Outside of Ryan re-tracking the drums and us re-amping the guitar and bass at mix time, the version you hear on the album is the version we put together following the very first time we got together in person. It’s such an iconic track, tends to get overlooked because of some of Soul Asylum’s more popular songs, and it lent itself to a heavier version right out of the gate.”
Paradise Slaves will have a record release party at Gabes 252 on Saturday, June 7, in Westfield, Massachusetts. Support will come from Byzantine and Hero and the Horror. Get tickets here.
The Boston-by-way-of-Anchorage quartet is the union of Lindow (36 Crazyfists), solo artist and guitarist Tyler Stroetzel, Kita (Diecast), bassist Brad Horion (Diecast) and drummer Ryan Manning (Pentagram, Blitzkid). As the story goes, Killswitch Engage guitarist Joel Stroetzel shot a text over to Lindow mid-pandemic. His younger brother Tyler was putting together a solo album, “Dark Verses, Vol. 1,” and wanted Lindow to sing on a track. Right away, the duo hit it off as collaborators and buddies.
Following the first song, they continued to write and record. Given his longstanding friendship with Lindow, Kita naturally fit in and joined the fold, followed by Horion and Manning. Jamming away, they nodded to inspirations such as Soundgarden and Alice in Chains twisted up with just the right amount of hardcore grit and heavy metal eloquence. In between, they performed alongside the likes of Killswitch Engage, Fit for an Autopsy and more. Eventually, the group congregated at Tin Bridge Studios in Massachusetts to record.
“This band is something I didn’t expect,” Lindow said. “After it fell in my lap, I was making new music with new people and we became brothers, and for that, I’m so grateful. When you get a gift like this, you need to put your best foot forward and have some fire. I definitely still have the same fire and love for making music I always had, and it manifests in Paradise Slaves.”
