Premiere: Lair Of The White Worm ‘Waster’ – ‘EP1’ Releases 15th October

John Cooke is better known for shredding his guitar in grind sludge noisenik’s Corrupt Moral Altar and as the touring guitarist for death grind stalwarts Napalm Death. But as covid hit and live music came to a halt, it gave John the opportunity to finally record the debut offering for his long-lasting love affair with the sonics of industrial and experimental metal under the guise of Lair Of The White Worm.

Set for release on the 15th October through APF Records and Trepanation Recordings, the six tracks that make up EP1 feel like a head on collision between Godlfesh and Submit era Pitchshifter, and today, we’re elated to bring you a teaser for the EP in the form of Waster, John explains…

‘The track Waster has been knocking around for quite some time. The guitars and drums were initially recorded at the Napalm Death band house around 2018 I think. When it came time to be putting together tracks for the first Lair Of The White Worm EP it fitted perfectly but still needed vocals. I actually had no idea what was going to happen when I went in to record vocals with Tom Dring at Vagrant Studios. It felt like the perfect time to try something as far removed from anything I have done in the past.’

Now click play below and be summoned to Lair Of The White Worm…

More On Lair Of The White Worm & ‘EP1’

APF Records and Trepanation Recordings are delighted to announce the release of John Cooke’s (Corrupt Moral Altar/Napalm Death) new project Lair Of The White Worm’s debut EP on 15th October 2021.

John Cooke is a man not used to sitting still. For the last ten years he’s lived and breathed music – spending much of his life on the road – as a member of Malevolent Creation, Corrupt Moral Altar, Venomous Concept, and Napalm Death. On his travels John has kept a journal, writing lyrical nuggets ideas down while touring with Napalm Death for the last 7 years. Then on rare moments at home he’s experimented with musical soundscapes on his guitar, informed by his love of Godflesh, Ministry and Scorn’s Vae Solis album.

When the pandemic arrived in the Spring of 2020, with all touring plans cancelled, John focused on pulling these musical ideas together. Working with his Corrupt Moral Altar bandmates Tom Dring (who ‘fixed, mixed and fucked with’ the riffs at his Vagrant Studios) and vocalist Chris Reese (who provided vocals on Virtu), the result is Lair Of The White Worm. APF Records, who released Corrupt Moral Altar’s Patiently Waiting For Wonderful Things EP in 2020, and Trepanation Recordings (run by Dan Dolby of Mastiff) have joined forces to bludgeon you with Lair Of The White Worm’s eponymous debut 6-track EP on 15th October 2021.

Lair Of The White Worm combines industrial metal and noise to create a truly unsettling, bleak musical landscape. It summons up the spirit of Killing Joke, Meathook Seed, Skrew, Godflesh and Pigface and, as John puts it, ‘contains 100% THC’.

‘The first Lair Of The White Worm EP has been in the works for many years between tours and sometimes written while on tour’, says John. ‘Especially after covid hit, it has been a way for me to deal with the last 18 months at home, and try to turn a negative into a positive.’

EP1 Tracklisting:
01. Virtu
02. Isolation
03. Bankrupt Morality
04. Into Ludes
05. Misery Box
06. Waster

Lair Of The White Worm is:
John Cooke – All instrumentation and vocals
Tom Dring – Fixed, mixed and fucked with the riffs
Chris Reese – Vocals on Virtu

Lair Of The White Worm and EP1 will be released on 15th October through APF Records and Trepanation Recordings, pre-orders for the CD, digital download and t-shirts are available now over on Bandcamp.

Label: APF Records | Trepanation Recordings
Band Links: Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram