This Monday, March 7, will mark the last show local weirdo-thrash unit Oozing Wound will play with founding drummer Kyle Reynolds. Oozing Wound was formed back in 2012 by Reynolds with former Cacaw bandmate Zack Weil on guitar and vocals and Unmanned Ship bassist Kevin Cribbin, and they’ve since been hammering out an intense, high-volume, off-kilter take on Big Four thrash-metal. With two Thrill Jockey-issued full-lengths under their belt, and a brand-new, as-of-yet-untitled third LP just in the can, the question that came to my mind when I learned about Reynolds’s departure was, “So what now?”
“Kevin and I are still gonna Wound it up,” says Weil, who reports that the two have already auditioned a potential new drummer, and have some more lined up for next week. “As long as we find a drum person, we’re all set.”
Reynolds is a massive force within the band, never leaving a dull moment in a track with his jackhammer fills, hypnotic beats, and nonstop pummeling. I couldn’t imagine a more daunting drum throne to sit on. But Weil remains optimistic. “Yeah, I think it’ll be cool. Kyle and I have been working together for eight or nine years, so it’ll force me to move out of a comfort zone a little bit,” he says. “The new stuff is pretty weird so I think it leaves us open to try a lot of shit.”
He also assures that Reynolds’s departure is amicable: “He’ll still be an Ooze consultant.”
To celebrate Reynolds’s run with Oozing Wound, today’s 12 O’Clock Track is “Hippie Speedball,” a six-minute, sludgy stomper from 2014’s Earth Suck LP. Check out its video below.
Monday’s show is a free banger at the Empty Bottle that starts at 9 PM. Rectal Hygienics, Running, and Lil Tits open for Oozing Wound.