In the nineties, Puncture was a name which made waves in the underground industrial rock world, pushing the boundaries of heaviness with their unconventional style. Their music was a hard hitting blend of thrash metal guitars, pounding drum machines, raw vocals, and samples, generating an altogether distinct sound which contributed to developing the genre.
One of the key tracks from their self-titles debut album was Gag Rule. The full length originally came out in 1994 through Century Media Records. To celebrate its 30th anniversary, Puncture is set to be reissued as PUNCTURE XXX on October 18th, 2024, courtesy of Black Artifact Records.
Bringing their intense sound to live audiences, Puncture enlisted several additional musicians, with a lineup that included prominent figures like John Perez (Solitude Aeturnus), Mike Trujillo (The Hellions, Killcreeps), Larry Moses (Days of Decision), Mark Powell (Gammacide), and Brad Womack (Caustic Death).
Gag Rule came with a music video back in the day, directed by Greg Synodis, who had gained fame for his work on Vanilla Ice’s Ice Ice Baby. The band ultimately disbanded by the end of 1999, and briefly reunited in 2008 for two shows, which resulted in the retrospective DVD, Re-Aktivated.
The upcoming PUNCTURE XXX, has been remastered by Rob Colwell, who worked from the original DAT masters. The album now boasts enhanced clarity and impact, breathing new life into the band's punchy sound. In addition to the remastered songs, the reissue includes a second part filled with original demo versions and previously unreleased material, offering a deeper dive into the band's catalog. The original cover art has also been redesigned by Michael Christian of Black Artifact, giving the album a fresh visual update.
Puncture bears a sound which is relatively comparable to early Fear Factory, Godflesh, and the like, standing as an important record of a genre that would soon explode, while it is deeply rooted in a raw, organic darkness.
ZR