photo by Derick Smith
Chicago alt-rock outfit The Joy Thieves are back with their new single ‘The Wrong End of Your Rifle’, the first single from their full-length album ‘Apocalypse Pending’, out June 5th via Armalyte Industries. Featuring Chris Connelly (Fini Tribe, Revolting Cocks, Ministry, Pigface) on vocals, this ripping track addresses the intense frustration we’re all feeling over corporations and billionaires seemingly able to do whatever they want, whenever they want, without consequence.
Revolving around musicians-producers Dan Milligan and James Scott (a.k.a. Joy Thieves Productions), The Joy Thieves is a musical supergroup that includes current, former, and touring members of Ministry, Stabbing Westward, The Rollins Band, Killing Joke, Pigface, RevCo, PIG, David Bowie, Blue October, Machines of Loving Grace, Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails, KMFDM, Naked Raygun, Foetus, My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult, Pegboy, Nitzer Ebb, Die Krupps and more.
A jagged, cynical critique of the intersection between state violence, corporate greed, and digital voyeurism, ‘The Wrong End of Your Rifle’ portrays a world where human life is devalued and even the most violent acts are packaged as content or conveniently filtered, filmed yet ultimately ignored by the screen-numbed masses.
“When the billionaires are accountable for nothing, and force their will by suppression in the streets, we have to become inventive. As we are forced to watch corporations create for-profit prisons, we must remember that we can’t argue or reason with bullets,” says Chris Connelly.
Since signing with legendary London alternative-industrial label Armalyte Industries in 2018, The Joy Thieves have delivered 11 critically-acclaimed releases. Produced, engineered and mixed by Joy Thieves Productions at Populist Recording + Mastering, ‘Apocalypse Pending’ is the newest record to blaze a mind-bending trail.
Joy Thieves Productions crafts their surprisingly cohesive signature sound from the contributions of its ever-growing 80+ roster of members, drawn from a diverse range of genres, including industrial, rock, punk, darkwave, hip hop and experimental music, they produce a sound that The Joy Thieves describe as being created by “all of us. And yet, none of us”. This approach has allowed the band to create a sound all its own. Aggressive, yet precise. Confrontational, but refined. Harsh, yet layered with melody.
Many of the songs on the new album began with producer-drummer Dan Milligan re-recording iconic hip hop breakbeats with modern drum sounds. ‘The Wrong End of Your Rifle’ began exactly that way — with a modern re-imagining of the one of the most famous breakbeats of all time (‘Ashley’s Roachclip’ by The Soul Searchers). This formed the basis upon which the entire track was built.
“At the very beginning of the creation process for Apocalypse Pending, the goal was to blend the existing Joy Thieves’ sound with elements of the golden age of hip hop, and I think ‘The Wrong End of Your Rifle’ does that as well as any song on the album,” says Dan Milligan.
For a band with members spread all over the world, The Joy Thieves’ music feels like it could have only been made in Chicago. Anchored by their love of industrial rock, their music immediately outgrows the restrictions of the genre by stretching into the new realms, creating a sound that both honors the past while pushing its evolution into the future.
As of April 7th, ‘The Wrong End of Your Rifle’ is available from digital music platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music and Bandcamp. The ‘Apocalypse Pending’ album will be released on June 5th.
The Joy Thieves is Amy Abramite, Scott-David Allen, Steven Archer, Tessa Asyd, Dave Bachta, Julian Beeston, Howie Beno, Laura Bienz, Bradley Bills, Charlie Bowes, Taylor Busby, Derek Christopher, Matt Clark, Chris Connelly, Ed Cripps, Terri Cripps, Mike Czarnik, DJ Darryl Hell, Roger Ebner, Marcus Eliopulos, Eva X, Paul Ferguson, Ed Finkler, Walter Flakus, Mia FluxXx, John Fryer, Brandt Gassman, Andy Gerold, Laura Glyda, Lana Guerra, Mike Gould, Joe Haggerty, John Haggerty, Cat Hall, Adrian Halo, Jeff Harris, Chris Haskett, Ryan Henderson, Katzen Hobbes, Brad Huston, i!, Jane Jensen, Mari Kattman, Martin King, Jason Kottwitz, Eric Liljehorn, Ken Magerman, Jim Marcus, Geoff Matson, Dave McAnally, Jaysun McBain, Lee Meadows, Melodywhore, Matt Mercado, Dan Milligan, Johnathan Mooney, Franke “Groovie Mann” Nardiello, Dee J Nelson, John D. Norten, Matt Noveskey, Steven OLaf, Nina Ophelia, Phil Owen, Sean Payne, Mark Pistel, Josh Pyle, Mike Reidy, Greg Rolfes, Sapphira Vee, Coral Scere, Collin Schipper, Destiny Scott, Foxy Scott, James Scott, Gregory Stokes, Grant Sutton, David Suycott, Louis Svitek, Ania Tarnowska, Veronica Tam, Raymond Watts, Mimi Wallman, Worth Steeling, and Gordon Young.
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