photos by CJ Grogan
Occupants, the succinctly potent new EP from New Brunswick, New Jersey-based noise/indie rock crew ATOM DRIVER, is today available for public consumption.
ATOM DRIVER formed in the 2016 when guitarist/vocalist Mark Segal (ex-Boss Jim Gettys), bassist Justin Ingstrup (ex-Good Clean Fun), and drummer Mike Polilli (Buzzkill) set their sights on blending classic and current noise rock, indie rock, and post-hardcore influences with a love of punk and metal. The trio made their debut with the 2017 EP Slackjaw, produced by Steve Evetts (Hatebreed, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Snapcase, Sepultura) and released on local label Powerbunny 4×4. Two more self-released EPs followed: In The West later that same year, and Here They Come, The Hornets in 2019.
After reassessing their musical vision in 2020, ATOM DRIVER recruited Chris “Crispy” Corvino (Deadguy, Second Arrows) to handle vocal duties. As soon as masks could come off, the group recorded six new songs with Joseph Dell’Aquila at Exeter Recordings. What emerged as the Is Anything Alright EP was more frantic with a more pissed-off vocal style layered over some quite accessible noisy indie rock with nods to bands like The Monorchid, Hot Snakes, Motörhead, Tomahawk, McClusky, and God Bullies. The EP was mastered by Bill Henderson at Azimuth Mastering and saw release in February of 2022 on Nefarious Industries.
ATOM DRIVER bashed out three new songs which will now fester their way into the public domain as the Occupants EP. Equal parts love letter to pioneering ‘70s pop matriarchs and mandatory pen pal assignment from noise to pop to prog, Occupants sees the quartet secure their intentions hinted at on Is Anything Alright. It’s noisy while catchy, sarcastic, upbeat yet bummed out. It’s the sound of the most fun you can have while remaining fashionably disgruntled.
As with its predecessor, Occupants was recorded, engineered, and mixed at Exeter Recordings in Freehold, New Jersey by Joe Dell’Aquila, mastered by Bill Henderson at Azimuth Mastering, and completed with artwork and videos by drummer Mike Polilli.
Crank ATOM DRIVER’s Occupants up loud enough to make your neighbors’ ears bleed, the record now streaming everywhere including Bandcamp RIGHT HERE.
If you missed them, catch the video for “Say Anything You Want” HERE and the video for the title track HERE.
Sporadic live updates from ATOM DRIVER will post over the months ahead while they continue writing the new album which will be released sometime in 2025.
“New Jersey noise rockers ATOM DRIVER are having fun and getting loud about it on their latest EP, Occupants…. Things are noisy and fast, driven by a steady guitar riff and Crispy’s yell-sung vocals. Guitarist Mark Segal locks in with ATOM DRIVER’s rhythm section, creating a wall of sound that doesn’t really let up for the track’s run time. There’s also heavy garage rock influence…” – Decibel Magazine
“…at once heavy, hard, grinding, psychedelic, and pummeling… like Black Flag’s ‘TV Party’ played by Hot Snakes with rabies.” – OffShelf
“Punk energy is infused into indie melodies with a penchant for controlled noise… Three songs are all Atom Driver needs to demonstrate their intensity.” – Metal Digest
“…strong hints of John Reis fronted outfits as Drive Like Jehu and Hot Snakes which is a sound that can be described as garage-rock infused post-hardcore. Throw in elements of Tomahawk style alt-metal weirdness and proggy math-rock dexterity for good measure… there was nothing about Occupants I didn’t like.” – Clean Sheets
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