DAMNAGE’s riotous, heartfelt, and relentlessly powerful debut puts the genre-defying trio firmly on the map as one of the most exciting new acts in punk rock.

Stream: ‘DAMNAGE’ – DAMNAGE

The album is a sonic punch to the gut and to the face. Giving you something to think about and to feel while you go for the wildest musical ride of your life. Hot and cold. Raw, feral and calculated.

– DAMNAGE

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DAMNAGE’s debut crashes in with zero interest in playing it cool, in a time when a lot of music feels over-polished and safe.

Their self-titled album is ten tracks of pure, unfiltered energy, not so much knocking on the door of punk rock as kicking it wide open. Tim Stewart, Jonny Drummond, and Tosh Peterson have been around the block, from touring with megastars to sweating it out in tiny clubs, and you can hear every bit of that history in these songs. The result is a record that feels lived-in, loud, and completely uncompromising from the first note to the last.

From the opening moments of “Wasteland,” it’s clear that this album isn’t here to politely introduce itself. Instead, it barges in, drenched in distortion and urgency. Stewart’s guitar snarls through the mix, while his vocals claw at the societal rot buried beneath the surface of modern life. There’s a palpable unease, a restlessness in the song’s DNA that perfectly sets the tone for the chaos to come.

“Million Ways” follows with an equally feral energy, spinning a tale of psychological unraveling with breakneck bass lines and propulsive drumming. It’s here that Drummond’s rhythmic instincts shine brightest, his bass throbbing like a heartbeat on the edge of collapse. This track, like so many on DAMNAGE, walks the tightrope between control and complete implosion, and that’s precisely where the band thrives.

If there’s a song that distills the band’s mission statement, it’s “Time to Kill.” Written during the pandemic’s most disorienting moments, it’s a dissection of inertia, anxiety, and claustrophobia. Tosh Peterson’s drumming is especially surgical here, crisp yet chaotic, anchoring the track’s emotional volatility with machine-gun precision. The band doesn’t seek to soothe; they confront the noise in your head with more noise, and somehow, it works beautifully.

“Love and Money” takes a darker, moodier turn, examining the blurred line between passion and ambition. There’s a gothic undercurrent to Stewart’s vocals, which simmer more than scream, allowing the song to marinate in tension. It’s a rare moment of restraint that proves the band’s emotional depth goes beyond brute force.

The whiplash continues with “Cheap Talk,” a punchy, riff-heavy takedown of performative power and hollow promises. Here, the band taps into a kind of primal sarcasm, using irony as a blade. It’s aggressive, sure, but never sloppy, a theme that runs throughout the record. DAMNAGE aren’t just angry; they’re focused, meticulous, and methodical in how they weaponize sound.

“Semisocial” feels like the emotional breather of the album, if you can call a song with snarling vocals and a bar-brawl rhythm a breather. It’s an anthem for the selectively antisocial, those who prefer dim corners to dance floors. There’s a swagger here, almost reminiscent of The Strokes, but warped through a filter of raw punk energy and barbed-wire production.

One of the most compelling tracks, “Ain’t Got Time,” continues to showcase the band’s thematic obsession with urgency, movement, and mortality. Stewart and Drummond’s vocal interplay is especially tight here, blending existential musings with hard-driving instrumental work. It’s a song that manages to feel both desperate and defiant, a rallying cry for anyone burning the candle at both ends.

Then comes “Important,” a brilliantly sarcastic track that skewers the self-importance of celebrity and social media culture. Delivered with a wink and a snarl, the lyrics drip with disdain as the band struts through a hook-heavy, irony-laden chorus. It’s one of the most fun tracks on the album, a reminder that DAMNAGE knows how to wield humor as a weapon just as effectively as distortion.

“Try” punches back with an anguished sense of futility, capturing the grind of trying to exist, really exist in a world that often feels rigged against sincerity. It’s a tightly-wound pressure cooker of frustration, built on syncopated rhythms and a chorus that feels like a scream into the void. You don’t just hear this song; you feel it in your teeth.

And then comes the closer: “Never See It.” Perhaps the album’s most vulnerable track, it trades fury for melancholy, distortion for atmosphere. It’s a haunting exploration of emotional invisibility, of being overlooked by those who should know you best. The track peels back the armor, revealing a pulse of pain beneath all the grit and swagger. It’s a risky move, ending an album this intense on a note of quiet devastation, but it pays off. The echo of that final refrain lingers long after the last note fades.

At just ten tracks, DAMNAGE doesn’t overstay its welcome, but it leaves a lasting bruise.

It’s lean, mean, and emotionally explosive, proving that punk rock in 2025 is alive, kicking, and screaming into the void with purpose. What elevates this debut beyond the typical noise-punk romp is the sheer intention behind every sound. These are seasoned musicians who know exactly what they’re doing, and more importantly, why they’re doing it.

From the pits of pandemic paralysis to the peaks of personal revelation, DAMNAGE is a debut that feels less like an album and more like a purge, a feral, unfiltered expression of being human in a fractured world. And while the sonic terrain is jagged and wild, it’s never aimless. This is a band with a compass, one pointing straight toward a future built on fearless creativity and unbreakable camaraderie.

DAMNAGE isn’t just the sound of a band finding their voice. It’s the sound of that voice already screaming from the rooftops: raw, defiant, and absolutely unforgettable.

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Disclosure: The writer of this piece also serves as the artist’s publicist. All opinions are their own, and this feature was written with the intention of celebrating and supporting the music.

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:: stream/purchase DAMNAGE here ::

:: connect with DAMNAGE here ::

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Stream: “Wasteland” – DAMNAGE

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 © Manu Lagoteta

DAMNAGE

an album by DAMNAGE