We’ve partnered with some of our favorite websites to bring you each scene’s best upcoming bands, diving beneath the surface to give you a glimpse of tomorrow. In this monthly check-in with our friends at Post-punk.com, we get the scoop on names like Spike Hellis, SRSQ, and Aurat. (Check out last month’s column here!)

Spike Hellis

Spike Hellis, the duo of Cortland Gibson and Elaine Chang, released
their debut EP, Crisis Talk, in 2021. This was followed by their excellent self-titled full length album in 2022. The record’s four singles, “Slices,” “Teardrops (Kisses),” “Cause of Death,” and “Mouth," are the perfect kick in the cojones for those of you tired of the dull, repetitive crap passing itself as industrial and
EBM these days. The band manages to sound as true to the Wax Trax! Records-era creative spirit as their closest analogs, Youth Code and High Functioning Flesh do too, so you know you’re in good hands.

Speaking of Wax Trax!: Spike Hellis is known for closing out their sets with their cover of Revolting Cocks' “(Let’s Get) Physical.” I know that because the band tours so much, they’re the very definition of “road dogs”—and they’re probably the band I’ve seen most since COVID-19 lockdowns subsided.

They’ve shared the stage with artists such as Choir Boy, Fearing, Plack Blague, Riki, Nuovo Testamento, Pixel Grip, Twin Tribes, and Body of Light; they also toured with Adult. and Kontravoid earlier this year.

And just when I thought I had been fatigued from seeing their live set too many times, Spike Hellis’ recent show opening for Light Asylum at the Lodge Room in Los Angeles featured an entirely new set, light rig, and visuals. I was blown away.

The band is set to tour yet again this September with Soft Kill. They’ll also perform at all three iterations of Cold Waves Festival in NYC, Chicago, and L.A., sharing the stage with the Revolting Corpse.