Haest - Wildfires + Sight Unseen

Ltd Red vinyl

What initially began as a side project in 2017 eventually turned into the primary band for the musicians in Haest, a UK band that should be on your radar. "We released a couple of EPs independently and then hooked up with TNS Records for our debut album and have been with them ever since," vocalist Dave tells No Echo. 

"A couple of years ago, our original drummer, Dan, left the band, having worked with us on 3 E's, 2 LPs, and a single. He was replaced by Rich and since this time we've recorded 2 EPs which will be coming out on a full-length LP later this month."

OK, so Haest is clearly a prolific quartet, but what do they sound like? "When we first started out, we had a very clear idea of what we were aiming at, mixing up hardcore punk with stoner/sludge and often described as a mix of Black Flag and Black Sabbath," says Dave. "On the first couple of albums, we started to experiment with some other influences including shoegaze and '90s emo but it's been since Rich joined the band that we've really started to spread our wings.

"The new record has loads going on, there's straighter hardcore punk stuff, some more melodic songs, early grunge influences, AmRep noise and loads more, it's a much more complex sound now that really doesn't fit neatly into any genre."

Whatever you want to call what Haest is doing, one thing is for sure: it's catchy.

Genre: Punk / Hardcore / Post Hardcore