Mark Dunn

In 1790, five convicts escaped Sydney by boat and were swept ashore near present-day Newcastle. They were taken in by the Worimi people, given Aboriginal names and started families. Thus began a long and at times dramatic series of encounters between Aboriginal people and convicts in the second penal settlement in Australia.

For Dummies is an extensive series of instructional reference books which are intended to present non-intimidating guides for readers new to the various topics covered. The series has been a worldwide success with editions in numerous languages.

PALLBEARER are back with new album, »Forgotten Days«. Carefully plotted throughout 2019, the quartet's fourth long-player eschews the compositional maximalism that hoisted predecessor »Heartless« aloft for the heaviest groove and the most visceral hooks to come out of the Arkansans to date. Spread across eight towering tracks, »Forgotten Days« sees PALLBEARER embracing their roots again, but this time with a doom-infused metallic spark that's infectious and transcendent. Indeed, this album is everything a PALLBEARER fan could love. It is a raw and riveting evolution, filled with emotion and the unique downcast exuberance that has defined the band's storied career.

It is always interesting when a musician's newest release zigzags away from previous works, making an abrupt change of course. Often it happens at the request of a producer or record company, and probably because his/her previous disc was not well received. This in no way explains Starebaby by drummer Dan Weiss. Sixteen: Drummers Suite (Pi Recordings, 2016) and Fourteen (Pi Recordings, 2014), both larger ensemble recordings, composed and arranged by the drummer were critical successes. He could easily have continued down the same path.