The Austerity Program: Black Madonna

One of the nicest surprises in the ALARM mailbox this week was Black Madonna, a crushing full-length album by New York duo The Austerity Program that comes out today on Hydra Head Records.

Bassist Thad Calabrese and guitarist/vocalist Justin Foley are a couple of brainy guys (PhD candidate and research worker, respectively), who not only wrote and produced all the music on their record, but actually built their own recording studio from the ground up. The twosome dish out heavy, minimally layered math-metal, backed only by a well-programmed drum machine.

The Austerity Program keep it so minimal, in fact, that they didn’t bother giving their song titles — just numbers. Black Madonna, their second release on Hydra Head, opens with dynamic instrumental “Song 12.” “Song 17b” is pensive, swampy, and introduces Foley’s slightly off-pitch but loveable howl.

One of the most intense offerings, “Song 19” (fourth track), starts out with a palm-muted guitar and wrecking-ball bass, alternating between soft and loud and capping with an ending that illustrates both a classical music influence as well as a sense of humor. (For another example of their witticism, check out Black Madonna promo video on YouTube.)

If you thought live drums were the only way to go with rock music, Black Madonna will make you flush that idea down a toilet. And a couple of spins will make you feel smarter too!

–Jamie Ludwig
The Austerity Program (Hydra Head)