Charm School is the latest project from Louisville, KY born artist Andrew Sellers and longtime collaborators Matt Filip, Drew English, Brian Vega and Jason Bemis Lawrence. Sellers grew up immersed in the punk and hardcore scene in Louisville, forming his aesthetic by soaking up local Louisville legends like Slint, Will Oldham (Palace Brothers/Bonnie “Prince” Billy, etc.), Sunspring, Crain, Guilt & Rodan. Throw in some Chicago flavor from The Jesus Lizard & Shellac, a little Post-Punk pepper from PiL & The Fall, & a dash of Post-Hardcore salt from Fugazi, and the influence recipe is complete.
The band’s first EP, Finite Jest, released in July of 2023, introduced listeners to a philosophically minded, crushingly loud critique of modern life’s increasingly maddening realities. The band’s debut LP Debt Forever, out today, is just as loud, but it improves upon Jest’s vision by boasting a broader range of material, more variety in terms of its themes, and far more sophisticated songwriting. Expressions of anger and frustration still abound, but you’ll also find a more subtle, world-weary cynicism wrapped in addictively salty, satirical humor.
From a production standpoint, Debt Forever was helmed by a dream team of midwestern luminaries. It was tracked in Louisville by Cincinnati-based engineer John Hoffman (Beef, Corker, The Serfs, Vacation), mixed by Mike Bridavsky at Bloomington’s Russian Recording (Deerhoof, Built to Spill, WHY?), and mastered by Greg Obis (Stuck, Deeper, Wishy) at Chicago Mastering Service (owned by Bob Weston of Shellac (a man who’s musical past is weaved together tightly with Louisville’s).
If there is any message in the record, it is that life on this earth, more than ever, is devastatingly fragile, and we should all be prepared for an even more destabilized future.
You can order the extremely limited vinyl version HERE
TOUR DATES
2.01.25 Purgatory (Brooklyn, NY)
2.02.25 The Upside (Lancaster, PA)
2.08.25 Cafe Bourbon Street (Columbus, OH)
2.21.25 Cosmo Joe’s (Dayton, OH)
Thoughts Words Action 