Indian Handcrafts have announced their brand new full-length LP, Empress in Decline, due July 22. This is the fourth IH record produced by Toshi Kasai, and the first record they’ve made in their home studio, The Bethlab, recorded in 2019. JJ Golden (OFF!, The Warlocks, Ty Segall, Calexico) mastered the record.
To introduce their new album cycle, the band have shared the project’s first single, “Criminal.”
Brandyn James Aikins (drums & vocals) and Daniel Brandon Allen (guitar &vocals) had been playing together in various projects since the early 2000’s in their hometown of Barrie ON, and after a while, they decided to start a loud & heavy two-piece call Indian Handcrafts. They toured basements, libraries, clubs, theatres, festivals, and arenas throughout North America, and they’ve had people say some great things, and talk some shit (especially about the band name thing…). They worked both independently and for two different labels – Sargent House, and Atrial Records — and they made some records, some singles, and a couple videos. In 2017, they added a bass player named Leland Burmania, who helped fill out the sound and give the band an opportunity to expand their music.
The band name. They saw a sign on the side of the highway in Glooscap Nation territory while touring with their old band. And that was it. Dan is an Indigenous person, and he liked the idea of the band name representing a part of his heritage, despite how that can be misconstrued 10 years later.
Over the years, they went on tour with some big bands, and some small bands, met their heroes and worked with a few of them; most especially The Melvins; and a man they feel fortunate enough to call a friend, frequent collaborator and producer Toshi Kasai, who helped make Civil Disobedience for Losers and Creeps for the Sargent House label.
In June 2019, before the world changed, they hosted Toshi at their home studio (The Bethlab) in Barrie, Ontario, Canada to record their latest installment, Empress in Decline. Now, they are finally ready to release it to the world.
