Since their inception, Thirdface have intrigued their audiences and peers alike with their raw, intense technicality. The Nashville quartet consisting of drummer Shibby Poole (he/they), guitarist David Reichley (he/they), bassist Maddy Madeira (they/them), and vocalist Kathryn Edwards (she/her) bring an atypically musical approach to hardcore. The group take the most harrowing elements of punk, grindcore, and death metal and fuse them into a ferocious sound that is intricate and impressive yet deeply visceral–and very much their own. Now Thirdface’s sophomore full-length, Ministerial Cafeteria, arrives via stalwart unconventional rock label Exploding in Sound Records, and pushes their music to invigorating new heights.
Thirdface was born out of the Nashville DIY scene and the band remains remarkably dedicated to it. Edwards runs the beloved all ages venue Drkmttr; Poole is a go-to recording engineer for local bands; and all four members have played in various other projects over the years. Poole, Reichley, and Madeira were already well acquainted with each other’s playing styles through a previous band, and they started Thirdface as a side project in 2017. They soon found themselves leaning toward a more intense sound that required a vocal presence unburdened by an instrument, and Edwards entered the fray. 2021 saw the release of Thirdface’s self-recorded debut album, Do It With A Smile, and led the band to national acclaim from the likes Pitchfork, Stereogum, and BrooklynVegan, as well as touring with the acts like Touché Amoré, City of Caterpillar, and more.
Just like with their debut, Ministerial Cafeteria was recorded and mixed by Poole at his Nite Flight Studios, but this time the album’s creation proved somewhat more challenging. Writing began during Covid lockdowns and Thirdface’s first attempt to record took place as far back as Fall of 2021 with a tracking approach that seemed to inadvertently dull the band’s spark. “We tried recording all the instruments separately, as opposed to playing live all together, which was different for us,” Madeira explains. “It ended up feeling disjointed or soulless or something. But being able to take those songs on tour made a big difference in how it felt to record the second time around.” The band played many of the songs that would become Ministerial Cafeteria on a three week tour in the spring of 2022, rewriting and honing the tracks into their most effective form—then they recorded live in the room together to capture that same energy. Madeira adds “That time together allowed us to not only get tighter as a band but get in each other’s brains again as well, and I think that comes through on the album.”
The result certainly feels like it could only be performed by a hive mind operating on pure instinct. Ministerial Cafeteria is a blistering amalgamation of pummeling drums and inventive riffs that rarely lets up. Thirdface’s definitive sonic characteristic is their refusal to let any single part settle long enough for a listener to get comfortable, creating an abject tension that can only be broken by a restructured perspective. Every churning mid-tempo stomp is contrasted with fierce and sprawling phrases played with an uncommon precision at the utmost speed, all inked and colored with Edwards’ illustrative storytelling employing both realist and campy terror.
Lyrically, Ministerial Cafeteria explores “horrors, real and imagined,” whose complexities match those of the music. Edwards explains, “The lyrics kind of represent a bit of a shift from primal anger at any and all external aggressors found in the first album, to what I think are the two central themes of this album: an introspective exploration of mental health issues and skepticism towards societal structures and authoritative powers.” A line from the song “Sour” gives Ministerial Cafeteria its title. “I describe authority as a shitty dining hall where you get served literal garbage as options,” Edwards says. “‘Sour’ is the most direct critique of pervasive systemic issues, portraying a grim but realistic view of the industrial complex as a metaphorical ‘cafeteria’ that perpetually serves harmful conditions. It is truly a rejection of the oppressive systems that rule our lives. It challenges the legitimacy of these systems and questions the expectation of acceptance of their effects.”
Throughout the album Edwards expertly weaves personal and societal strife, connecting the dots between our inner lives and the outside forces that can impact them. “The majority of the lyrics were written during Covid lockdown,” she says, “and that definitely played a role. Many people saw parts of their lives start to unravel and had little control over it. The album takes a journey inward with the opening track ‘Mantras’ capturing the initial breakdown of self, and the closing track ‘Purify’ describing the eventual rebuild.” Elsewhere songs like “Trap Revealed,” “Midian,” and “Artifact of Darkness” draw on Edwards’ love of film and television, tapping influences like Clive Barker’s Nightbreed and Yu Yu Hakusho to explore internal struggles overtop of blown-out bass and mind-bending guitar lines.
For a band as intense as Thirdface, sonic evolution may not seem instantly perceptible, but the details make a profound difference. The band’s onslaught of blasts and D-beats are no less present than ever, but now grooves are allowed a little more life, stretching for an extra measure or for a full repetition before they’re snatched away. Even Edwards has refined her vicious delivery, articulating vulnerability through parables and stream-of-consciousness chants, rather than opting for externalized rage. Ministerial Cafeteria gives more space for the dancers, but their faces will still be on the ground as they try to process what they’re hearing.
photo credit: Diane Zadlo
