Biography
Syracuse has long carried a reputation in rock circles for its deep roots in hardcore punk and the straight-edge movement, whose bands championed sobriety, vegetarianism, and spiritual ideals while frequently aligning with Hare Krishna teachings. In that sense, straight-edge often served as a politically left-leaning counterpart to Christian rock, at times sharply denouncing artists in that genre who backed Republican causes.
Brand New Sin, a metal outfit also hailing from Syracuse, never shared any ties to straight-edge ideology. Instead, the group’s boisterous, long-haired, tattooed members projected a hedonistic, troublemaking image that appeared to reject the values of the city’s straight-edge community. Guitarist Kris Wiechmann underscored that stance by likening the band’s self-titled debut to “the first drink an alcoholic takes after walking out of rehab.”
The sextet drew from an array of metal and hard-rock sources, including Motörhead, Black Sabbath, Guns N’ Roses, Pantera, and Metallica, while also incorporating the bluesy, swampy textures associated with Lynyrd Skynyrd and Southern rock acts such as Alabama Thunder Pussy and Hammerlock. Although ’70s and ’80s influences are evident, a Corrosion of Conformity/Down sensibility kept the music from seeming purely nostalgic, allowing Brand New Sin to connect with the post-2000 alternative-metal audience. The band showed no interest in rap-metal and displayed no stylistic kinship with nu-metal acts such as Limp Bizkit, Korn, (hed)pe, Rage Against the Machine, or Tommy Lee’s Methods of Mayhem.
Several members had previously played in the Syracuse metal/punk band Godbelow during the 1990s. Seeking a sound with stronger Southern and swamp-rock leanings, they formed Brand New Sin in the early 2000s. The lineup featured lead vocalist Joe Altier, bassist Chuck Kahl, drummer Mike Rafferty, and three guitarists—Slider, who also supplied backing vocals, along with Kris Wiechmann and Ken Dunham.
Now or Never Records, based in Jersey City, New Jersey, issued the self-titled debut album, produced by Peter Walker, in June 2002. Drummer Kevin Dean joined the following year. Walker returned to the helm for the 2005 releases The Black and Blue EP and the full-length Recipe for Disaster. Altier departed in 2008 to explore other projects; Nine Ball frontman Joe Sweet stepped in briefly before exiting in 2009, the same year Dunham left. Wiechmann assumed lead vocal duties and the band issued the independently produced album Distilled that year. In 2011 Brand New Sin delivered its fifth studio album, United State, on Goomba Music—the second release with Wiechmann handling vocals.
Brand New Sin, a metal outfit also hailing from Syracuse, never shared any ties to straight-edge ideology. Instead, the group’s boisterous, long-haired, tattooed members projected a hedonistic, troublemaking image that appeared to reject the values of the city’s straight-edge community. Guitarist Kris Wiechmann underscored that stance by likening the band’s self-titled debut to “the first drink an alcoholic takes after walking out of rehab.”
The sextet drew from an array of metal and hard-rock sources, including Motörhead, Black Sabbath, Guns N’ Roses, Pantera, and Metallica, while also incorporating the bluesy, swampy textures associated with Lynyrd Skynyrd and Southern rock acts such as Alabama Thunder Pussy and Hammerlock. Although ’70s and ’80s influences are evident, a Corrosion of Conformity/Down sensibility kept the music from seeming purely nostalgic, allowing Brand New Sin to connect with the post-2000 alternative-metal audience. The band showed no interest in rap-metal and displayed no stylistic kinship with nu-metal acts such as Limp Bizkit, Korn, (hed)pe, Rage Against the Machine, or Tommy Lee’s Methods of Mayhem.
Several members had previously played in the Syracuse metal/punk band Godbelow during the 1990s. Seeking a sound with stronger Southern and swamp-rock leanings, they formed Brand New Sin in the early 2000s. The lineup featured lead vocalist Joe Altier, bassist Chuck Kahl, drummer Mike Rafferty, and three guitarists—Slider, who also supplied backing vocals, along with Kris Wiechmann and Ken Dunham.
Now or Never Records, based in Jersey City, New Jersey, issued the self-titled debut album, produced by Peter Walker, in June 2002. Drummer Kevin Dean joined the following year. Walker returned to the helm for the 2005 releases The Black and Blue EP and the full-length Recipe for Disaster. Altier departed in 2008 to explore other projects; Nine Ball frontman Joe Sweet stepped in briefly before exiting in 2009, the same year Dunham left. Wiechmann assumed lead vocal duties and the band issued the independently produced album Distilled that year. In 2011 Brand New Sin delivered its fifth studio album, United State, on Goomba Music—the second release with Wiechmann handling vocals.
Albums
Live
