Location: Raleigh, North Carolina
Country: USA
Genre: Doom rock, southern rock
Single/video: Fire and Water
Format: Digital, streaming
Label: Nuclear Blast Records
Release date: September 22, 2025
This may sound extravagant, but Corrosion of Conformity is the stuff of legend. Since 1982, the band has produced socially aware, politically charged, chaotic hardcore, playing a crucial role in the crossover between hardcore and thrash metal.
Their early demos, split and compilation contributions, their albums "Eye For An Eye" and "Animosity" from 1984 and '85, and their EPs "Technocracy" and "Six Songs with Mike Singing" from 1987 and '88, established the groundwork for their distinctive sound which grew into their 1991 single "Dance of the Dead" that marked a significant shift in their sound.
Since the nineties, Corrosion of Conformity gained international recognition for their blend of Black Sabbath-influenced doom rock, blues, southern rock and southern metal. While it may have been commercially viable, I perceive it not as a transformation but as a morphing, with remnants of their original crossover vigor still evident beneath the surface. By implementing nuanced modifications in their songwriting with each album, they successfully avoided becoming monotonous throughout their long career, achieved high chart rankings with their 2018 full length "No Cross No Crown".
For their most recent single, a rendition of Free's "Fire and Water", the band utilized a relaxed recording environment that allowed them to experiment with various tunes while working on their forthcoming album. They discovered this possible cover serendipitously; initially, guitarist and vocalist Pepper Keenan hesitated to record it, considering the original song to be "sacred ground that should not be tampered with." However, drummer Stanton Moore eventually convinced him to reconsider after he interpreted the essence of the song in his unique drumming.
The song was primarily recorded as a way to pause from the process of recording their upcoming album; it was not intended to be overly serious, as the band elaborates, but rather just them playing a classic rock song they like. The cover exudes a sense of casual ease that resonates through the musicianship, resembling a young band in the early stages of their career, green but enthusiastic to get their work out there, deciding on which cover songs they most want to incorporate into their shows.
It appears that if a band, which has been around for an extended period and whose members are in their 50s and 60s, can maintain such an attitude towards listening to and performing music, regardless of whether it’s hardcore punk, thrash metal, or classic rock, that music can fulfill its role no matter how much you age, and you never have to entirely outgrow it. –Dave Wolff
Lineup:
Pepper Keenan: Guitar, vocals
Woody Weatherman: Guitar
Bobby Landgraf: Bass
Stanton Moore: Drums
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