Monuments To Arson: A Tribute To His Hero Is Gone Compilation To See Release September 30th; Heiress’ Rendition Of “Like Weeds” Now Playing + Preorders Available

Satanik Royalty Records will release Various Artists: Monuments To Arson – A Tribute To His Hero Is Gone digitally on September 30th with a limited edition vinyl edition to follow.

A compilation honoring Memphis, Tennessee quintessential cult neo-crust act His Hero Is Gone, the collection features Many Blessings, deathCAVE, Open Veins, Isenordal, Heiress, Nightmare Fuel, Old Iron, Githyanki, HEEL, Blast Cells, Impulse Noise, Nuclear Dudes, Wretched Fuck, and Plaguestate.

Comments Satanik Royalty Records owner and deathCave bassist Freiburger, “His Hero Is Gone has always been a band that has been special to me from their lyrics which always tackled problems with capitalism, cops, and corporate greed to the crushing riffs and feedback that is scattered through all their albums. The band was short lived in the ‘90s but their message rings just as true today as it did back then. It’s an honor to cover these songs with the bands that are featured on the album. I’m extremely proud of how this all came together!”

Additionally, all digital and vinyl proceeds (minus shipping costs) from the Monuments To Arson… collection will be donated to the Fairbanks Native Association, an indigenous organization that assists with drug and alcohol dependency, mental wellness, and more. The compilation marks the first of many the label plans to release for charity. Elaborates Freiburger, “I’m going to release cover albums periodically to raise money for important causes within indigenous communities. When I was a child, my mother was the director of the Fairbanks Native Association, which is the organization I will be donating to first. I’ve seen first-hand the problems associated with alcohol and drug dependency and wish to do what I can to help those who struggle with the same problems I once struggled with.”

In advance of the record’s release, today the label unveils “Like Weeds” as reinterpreted by Seattle post-hardcore/sludge outfit (and Satanik Royalty recording artists) Heiress. Comments guitarist Wes Reed, “We’ve loved His Hero Is Gone since the ‘90s, so they were at the top of the list when choosing a new song to cover. ‘Like Weeds’ has always been [drummer] Justin [Martinez]’s favorite song of theirs; we jammed on it a few times and the rest, as they say, is chemistry.”

Preorder Monuments To Arson – A Tribute To His Hero Is Gone digitally through Bandcamp HERE. The vinyl edition — limited to 700 copies in Black, Clear with Black Smoke, and Black and White variants – will be released March 25th, 2023. Find preorders at the Satanik Royalty Records shop HERE.

Monuments To Arson – A Tribute To His Hero Is Gone Track Listing:

1. Many Blessings – Paranoia Secured
2. deathCAVE – Leash
3. Open Veins – Headcount
4. Isenordal – Headless/Heartless
5. Heiress – Like Weeds
6. Nightmare Fuel – Surrender
7. Old Iron – Chain of Command
8. Githyanki – Raise the Curtain
9. HEEL – Friendly Fire
10. Blast Cells – Epidemic
11. Impulse Noise – …And We Burn
12. Nuclear Dudes – Concrete Cage – Abandoned
13. Wretched Fuck – Carry On
14. Plaguestate – What Goes Up

Forged in 1995, His Hero Is Gone was short-lived but left an impact on heavy music that resonates to this day. The band’s landmark sound is at once crushing, brutal, and marked by intense dual growling vocals. In their brief existence, the band released Fifteen Counts Of Arson (1996), Monuments To Thieves (1997), and The Plot Sickens (1998) as well as a handful of seven-inches that influenced scores of hardcore and grind bands. His Hero Is Gone took an intensely anti-corporate, anti-consumerist stance, and their lyrics often dealt with radical political ideals. They disbanded in 1999, with the various members forming several new acts, most notably the similarly pummeling Tragedy.

Heiress released their Distant Fires full-length earlier this year via Satanik Royalty Records. The record was recorded at MRX in the SODO district of Seattle in November 2019. Scott Evans (Kowloon Walled City, Yautja, Floor) lent his recording and engineering skills to the album, giving it a big, natural, roomy sound well-suited to Heiress’ organic approach and tone-obsessive timbre. The album was mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege in Portland. Though steeped in despair, Distant Fires is a slow-burner of an album that reveals a new dimension of its power with each listen. Order Distant Fires on vinyl at THIS LOCATION. Find digital orders HERE where the record can be streamed in full.