MEAT HOUSE – Meat House

When White Stains guitarist Eric Montanez (who also did time in Government Warning, Direct Control, Blood Pressure, Sickoids, and many others) moved back home to Raleigh, North Carolina in 2021, it wasn’t long before he was playing with some of the area’s best musicians, recruiting Alex Greenberg from Mutant Strain on drums and Scarecrow / Public Acid guitarist Jeff Young on bass. When the trio invited White Stains vocalist Keith Caves on board—even though he lives in Pittsburgh, 500 miles from the band’s home base—Meat House was born. After a handful of rehearsals and a couple of low-key gigs, in December 2022 Meat House spent a couple hours laying down seven tracks with the Shaved Ape, who recorded them live with the same 4-track setup he uses to produce his own recordings. The results, a loose and lethal homage to the filthiest, fastest, and catchiest early 80s US hardcore punk, could have easily fit on a 7”, but the band decided to cut them loud on a 45RPM 12” with a ton of dead wax in homage to records like Black Flag’s Jealous Again or Battalion of Saints’ Fighting Boys. Nothing about this record is precious or overwrought… it’s just seven raw blasts of go-for-the-throat American hardcore punk.