Dead Heavens, a New York-based rock band started in 2015, have just announced their debut full-length album, Whatever Witch You Are. The band is a collection of talented artists from different bands, including vocalist Walter Schreifels (Gorilla Biscuits, Quicksand, Rival Schools), guitarist Paul Kostabi (Youth Gone Mad, White Zombie), drummer Drew Thomas (Youth of Today, Into Another, Bold) and bass guitarist Nathan Aguilar (Cults). The announcement of the new album is coming off the tour they just recently finished.
Dead Heavens have an authentic beginning. They began as Schreifels backing band on tour in 2013 with Thomas on drums and Aguilar on bass guitar. After returning to New York, Aguilar acquainted them with Kostabi, and they began recording in Kostabi’s apartment. Between brainstorming and experimenting, they would play classic ‘70s tracks of The James Gang, Black Sabbath, and Jimi Hendrix, which their sound eventually drew inspiration from. In 2015, they finally turned their project into a band with their current name, Dead Heavens. They dropped their three singles, “History In My Hands”, Adderall Highway” and “Feel Low”, without much of a timetable for future projects. Just recently, they finally announced their new album.
The name of the band came to Schreifels while watching the 1970s film, An American Hippie in Israel. He says, “In the film the aforementioned American Hippie collects a group of like minded flower children from around Tel Aviv. They cram into a convertible for a drive to the sea and pick out an uninhabited island to begin a new “free” society. They lose their raft, the waters around the island are shark infested, there’s no drinkable water or food save a single lamb which the hippies ultimately fight to the death for–their heaven dead yet the lamb survives. Our band is like the lamb, a lamb that grows into a goat, with horns.”
Dead Heavens’ sound draws from blues-based and psychedelic rock. They blast their sound in garage-rock like fashion. Schreifels’ voice, however, is clear and effortlessly haunting. Their music has complexities and subtleties throughout their hardcore style.
Their new album is set to release in June of 2017, leading with their awesome single, “Basic Cable”. Check out the song below.
Tracklist:
01 “Rainbow Of The Ohm Chart”
02 “Basic Cable”
03 “Away From The Speed”
04 “Bad Luck Child”
05 “The Moon Will Listen (But Not The Sun)”
06 “Adderall Highway”
07 “Gold Tooth”
08 “Silver Sea”
09 “Experience”