Man’s Gin

Man’s Gin

Rebellion Hymns

Profound Lore

Formed by Erik Wunder years ago while still living in Colorado, Man’s Gin began as an outlet for the Cobalt frontman to write dark booze jams and murder ballads on his acoustic guitar. Upon moving to Brooklyn, New York, Wunder assembled upright bass / ebow player Josh Lozano and guitarist / pianist Scott Edward and took the band’s sound up a notch. The result was the debut album Smiling Dogs, a sonic jaunt down America’s barren wastelands that garnered acclaim throughout the underground. Man’s Gin soon became known for putting on an awesome live set, performing mainly around the New York area as well as doing a short tour with Bruce Lamont of Yakuza. Recorded and produced by Andrew Schneider (Unsane, Pelican, Cave In, Converge) at Translator Audio in Brooklyn, sophomore album Rebellion Hymns is a emotionally charged, cinematic opus, employing a more expansive sonic palette this time around. The group brings a formidable cast of guest musicians along for the ride, including renowned solo artist and former member of Swans Jarboe, Wunder’s Cobalt co-conspirator Phil McSorley, and John LaMaccia of Candiria. A work of genuine wonder and dark beauty, Rebellion Hymns features photography and art direction by respected rock / metal photographer Jimmy Hubbard.

Man’s Gin

Smiling Dogs

Profound Lore

Man's Gin was born in Colorado when Cobalt multi-instrumentalist Erik Wunder and a friend took up their their acoustic guitars and a bottle of cheap liquor and began writing lonely tributes to the drink in which they were drowning their sorrows. The collaboration yielded a batch of home-recorded songs they called The Rum Demos, and circulated among their small circle of friends. Fast-forward several years to 2009--Wunder was living in Brooklyn and Cobalt had just released Gin, one of the most celebrated metal albums of the year. Man's Gin songs had been kicking around in his head for years, and Wunder decided to resurrect the project, adding electric guitars and drums to the band's original acoustic guitar / vocal structure and enlisting the help of Josh Lozano and Scott Edward on grand piano and upright bass. Differing on the surface from the extreme blacked metal of Cobalt, Smiling Dogs explores the darker side of Americana from a singer-songwriter prospective. It's a heartfelt collection both unnerving and beautiful, reminiscent of Woven Hand, Henry's Dream-era Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, the more acoustic side of Alice and Chains, 16 Horsepower and even Tom Waits or Johnny Cash. Recorded by Colin Marston in his Thousand Caves studio, this powerful work is destined to be recognized as one of the best underground rock albums of 2010.