Iguana Death Cult

Hailing from Rotterdam, Iguana Death Cult craft a lively and irreverently cheeky style of rock & roll shaped by contemporary and classic garage rock, surf guitar, traditional punk, and indie rock, earning notice from adventurous listeners both domestically and overseas. Their debut album, 2017's The First Stirrings of Hideous Insect Life, balanced muscular tracks with vivid twang and growl while displaying authentic humor that avoided silliness. On 2019's Nude Casino the group revealed a broader palette shaped by 1970s rock and pop structures, and regular lockdown jam sessions during the COVID-19 period yielded the material for 2023's Echo Palace.

Jeroen Reek, guitarist and vocalist who spent his early years in the small Dutch town of Willemstad, assembled the band in 2015 by recruiting three fellow musicians who had never met: guitarists Tobias Opschoor and Justin Boer plus drummer Arjen van Opstal. Once it became clear three guitars were unnecessary, Boer, still developing his skills, was convinced to take up bass instead. Drawing from current garage-punk outfits such as Ty Segall, Tijuana Panthers, and Thee Oh Sees, Iguana Death Cult swiftly built a local following through explosive concerts and released their first single that same year, "Sirens" b/w "Seven Tongues," initially pressed as a limited cassette. Two digital tracks, "Can of Worms" and "Sad White Dreams," appeared in 2016.

Issued on the band's own imprint in 2017, The First Stirrings of Hideous Insect Life attracted favorable notices that helped spread word of the group across Europe, the United Kingdom, and the United States after they moved to Rotterdam. An appearance at the South by Southwest Music Festival led to interest from the American indie label Innovative Leisure, which signed them; their second album, Nude Casino, arrived in October 2019. By the time listeners encountered the record, keyboardist Jimmy De Kok had joined, expanding the lineup to a quintet.

Unable to record or tour once the COVID-19 pandemic halted the music business, the members began gathering regularly at Jeroen Reek's apartment to discuss unfolding events and their prospects. These talks eventually gave way to picking up instruments and improvising, with the resulting explorations forming into songs. Iguana Death Cult released the single "Future Monuments" b/w "Artificial Afterlife" in March 2022, revealing a more open, less aggressive approach with added pop sensibility. When they later booked time at Rotterdam's PAF Studio, some of their original bite returned; produced by the band, 2023's Echo Palace delivered a harder-edged sound while maintaining a refined interplay among their instruments.