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Song

Letters From The Psych Ward

Artist

Blacklist Union

Blacklist Union backstory

September sees the release of Blacklist Union’s fifth long player and Letters From The Psych Ward’s title track reveals a band reborn.

Frontman Tony West was raised in the Bronx on Ramones, Bad Brains, and NYHC.

He made his way to Los Angeles aged 19 and initially collaborated with guitarist Todd Youth (Murphy’s Law/Danzig) and Malfunkshun.

West took a break from L.A. to try out Memphis in 1998 and while he was there he attended the first Saliva gig with Paul Crosby on drums.

This marked the beginning of a lifelong friendship between Crosby and West, leading to a management collaboration and the former joining Blacklist Union.

A band born in 2006, Breaking Bread With The Devil, Til Death Do Us Part and Back To Momo followed hotly tipped debut After The Mourning.

But a first Blacklist Union album in eight years — produced by Christopher Johnson at L.A.’s East West Studios — represents a raucous return for the proven hard rockers.

In Tony West’s own words

“The world we live in is f**cking nuts.

“We have to deal with so much shit in life.

“Whether it’s politics, kids getting killed in school, what the human race is doing to one other. 

“Whatever pain you’re going through in life, we can all relate to this as human beings.

“And hopefully we can keep our sanity through music.”

The verdict on Letters From The Psych Ward

Lose yourself in a suffocating video clip and it’s clear to see that classic Alice Cooper is written all over this darkly effective blast of sleaze-soaked west coast rock.

Sonically driven by Chinese Democracy-era Guns N Roses and vintage Murderdolls, Blacklist Union have crafted a compelling audio-visual experience ripe for the post-pandemic era.

And the tenacious Tony West delivers a typically snarling tour de force as the charismatic frontman navigates the murky waters of mental health.

Letters From The Psych Ward avoids tired cliché to reveal a new spin on a depressingly relevant topic.

And West benefits from a mighty mix missing from so much of Blacklist Union’s early work.

Letters From The Psych Ward might not be the last word on mental illness.

But it’s a profound statement of intent from a band with plenty left to say almost 20 years down the line.

What’s next for Blacklist Union

New album Letters From The Psych Ward is slated for a September release.

According to the band’s website, live shows are incoming.

Watch this space.