STATICLONE Brings Philadelphia Hardcore Sound to Relapse

STATICLONE debuts with “Better Living Through Static Vision” on March 7, 2024, via Relapse Records. The Philadelphia-based hardcore punk unit comprises George Hirsch (vocals, guitar), Dave Walling (guitar, bass), and Jeff Ziga (drums), emerging from the dissolution of their previous outfit, Blacklisted. Read our interview with STATICLONE.

Title: Better Living Through Static Vision
Artist: STATICLONE
Release Date: 2025-03-07
Genres: Hard Rock, Punk Rock, Space Rock
Label: Relapse Records
Description: STATICLONE releases Better Living Through Static Vision on Relapse Records March 7 2024. Philadelphia hardcore veterans create d-beat heavy debut album.

The band’s genealogy intersects with pivotal moments in Philadelphia’s hardcore lineage. George Hirsch, who immersed himself in the hardcore scene starting in 1995, and Jeff Ziga established their musical foundation in Blacklisted, while parallel projects included Shark Attack, Damage, and Armalite. Their collaborative spectrum extends to work with Converge and Nails, substantiating their position within hardcore’s evolutionary trajectory.

The sonic architecture of “Better Living Through Static Vision” synthesizes crust punk’s raw aggression, metal’s technical precision, and hardcore’s visceral intensity. The album’s compositional DNA aligns with the d-beat innovations of Disfear, Wolfbrigade, and Inepsy, while incorporating distinctive rock and roll elements. Hirsch’s songwriting process occurred during transit on Philadelphia’s elevated trains and subways—a methodology he maintained during his Chicago residence. This peripatetic composition approach infused the material with urban industrial textures.

Relapse Records, a Philadelphia institution founded in 1990, serves as the album’s distributor. The label’s historical focus on aggressive music forms provides an appropriate platform for STATICLONE’s sonic assault. The recording encapsulates decades of hardcore punk evolution, filtered through the members’ accumulated musical expertise.

The band’s formation represents a convergence of Philadelphia’s hardcore heritage. Blacklisted, where Hirsch and Ziga developed their initial musical rapport, functioned as a crucial node in the city’s hardcore network. Ziga’s percussion work in Blacklisted established rhythmic paradigms that evolved into STATICLONE’s current form.

The album documents the culmination of nearly three decades of involvement in hardcore’s cultural ecosystem. This temporal depth manifests in compositions that acknowledge genre conventions while pushing against established boundaries. The recording captures the intersection of personal history, urban environment, and musical evolution within Philadelphia’s hardcore continuum.

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