Track By Tracks: EARTHBURNER - Permanent Dawn (2024)

1. Necrodisiac:

Description: As I break down these songs, I want to be clear that Devin Swank wrote all the lyrics, so my POV is that of a reader and not a lyricist.

“I want your flesh in pieces, A hunger for decomposition…”

With lines like this, I get that “Necrodisiac” is on brand with OSDM lyrics. As with Devin’s main band—Sanguisugabogg—or my other band, Broken Hope, the lyrics are pure horror.

Musically at 1:30 minutes long, this song kicks off the album as a pure death grind slam to the head with a bit of grind, and a bit of sludge riffing…it sets the tone for what’s to come on the entire album. Our songwriting formula is basically one part grindcore parts (pure Terrorizer “World Downfall” worship) meets heavy AF death-metal type riffage all in one package.

2. Like Dogs:

Description: This is the newest Earthburner song on record.

“We’re like dogs, Locked in cages…”

This song is about being oppressed by higher powers in society, but in the end, the oppressed retaliate and rise up and the underdogs bury the tyrants calling the shots. Moreover, Devin Swank had told me that his visions for the lyrics included FEMA camps or people sleeping in bags awaiting immigration…people locked in dog cages receiving orders from politicians, or in a military boot camp…getting orders yelled to them by drill instructors. Musically, this Earthburner’s shortest song is at 0:37 minutes. This song was also written on the spot in the studio when we were tracking the “Permanent Dawn” album. It’s pure grind with a cool bass break. It’s also kind of extra special to me because not only was it written in the studio, but it’s the first song written by my bassist—Tyler Affinto—who also happened to be my stepson.

3. Broken Head:

Description: “I feel the waters rising, Keeping my head afloat, Immersed in this bullshit, But somehow I can cope…”

My take on the lyrics is that the first-person subject of the song is struggling to survive in a world that wants to grind the person down—but they’ll latch on to someone else and use them up to survive.

Devin had said about the lyrics in a press release that the song talks about the constant drain in everyday life and how the pressure, stress, and frustration can take a complete toll on somebody, and usually that anger is lashed out on people who don’t deserve an ounce of it. Musically, this is the oldest Earthburner song…I think it may in fact be the first EB song that I wrote. It clocks in at 2:09 minutes and has a bit of everything: Heavy AF riffs, blasting, some dark & trilling bits…

4. Facelift:

Description: “All your scars are made by me, Swollen face and broken teeth, And your eyes beaten shut, Grinding bones until their dust…”

The lyrics to this song are pretty simple: it’s all about beating the living shit out of someone. Super aggressive and angry lyrics. And if you’ve ever seen or met Devin, he’s built like a tank…he’s the size and build of a professional wrestler and he’d be your worst nightmare if you ever pissed him off, god help you if he got his hands on you. To that end, his lyrics pretty much sum up what he’d do to anyone who fucked with him.

Musically, the riffs are slamming and blasting and don’t let up—and it’s basically 1:49 minutes of the same riff throughout yet changed up with varying drum patterns. It’s really fun to play…

5. Permanent Dawn:

Description: “Left in the dark, Blindness has cursed my eyes, I can’t see what they have planned for me, Permanent Dawn…Permanent Dawn…Permanent Dawn…”

This is the title track to the album, obviously. For me, this track is almost like a central lyrical theme to “Permanent Dawn”—the entire album. Moreover, according to our singer, Devin Swank, he had a solid vision for the overall album “album vibe” if you will. Devin says that our “Permanent Dawn” song is essentially about the nothingness and absolute bleakness and darkness you experience right before your heart beats its last beat, there’s no light, no stairway it’s just dark forever. Moreover, Devin also told me that the source of inspiration for this title track came from Devin feeling he wanted to name the album after that song because it really sets the tone for the entire album as it progresses and becomes more dark and real/hard-hitting. Musically, this is another “early” Earthburner song I wrote years ago (like Broken Head) and at 2:14 minutes, it packs a helluva punch…just ferocious from beginning to end.

6. Uncreation:

Description: “He did not create the world, Destroyed it piece by piece, He had sculpted it in his vision, And fucked it from the start…”

That lyric line might lend itself to giving the impression that it’s got some kind of “God” angle, but it’s actually the opposite. Earthburner isn’t a band that dabbles in religion, rather, we aim for a more realistic view of the world without theology…like, it’s not God who created the world we live in, but it’s “humankind” who created this world—and it’s humans who are fucking it up royally in myriad ways.

This was another “early” Earthburner song that first appeared on our 2011/2012 3-song EP Under a different name. It’s also our second-shortest song behind “Like Dogs” and clocks in at 1:02 minutes and is a blasting chokehold on the ears.

7. Perception For Profit:

Description: “Perception For profit, I live with these choices, They will haunt me, Vicious cycle, Repeats…”

As with most of the lyrics on our “Permanent Dawn” album, the track, “Perception For Profit” is a reflection of basic life—specifically, working hard for a living at a shitty job for the benefit of a greedy business owner and wishing for a way out…but you can’t because you’re so dependent on an income to survive. I can relate to these lyrics because I’ve had my share of working for horrible bosses and business owners…it was very depressing but at the time, a means to an end. Musically, this is our most “punk-sounding” song. At 1:50 minutes, it’s a mix of old-school punk meets grindcore with a really catchy bass break that sets the stage for a really catchy, skank-worthy bridge that’s also very crushing. I’d say this is a standout track just due to its diversity within the attitude and riffs.

8. Cadaveric Coprophagia:

Description: “I hunger for something foul, Defecation, Of the deceased…” This track is another one where the lyrics harken back to OSDM lyrics—just like “Necrodisiac” being on brand with that nod to where Sanguisugabogg and Broken Hope come from. It’s explicit, nasty, and horrific in subject matter. Relevant to all this, “Cadaveric Coprophagia” reminds me of the lyrics I wrote for the Broken Hope song, “Coprophagia” in 1993, which starts with the delightful verse: “Sick hunger, I desire human waste, Urine, and feces meet my taste, Excrement, the smell makes one choke, When put upon my plate my fork shall poke…”

This makes me think that the apple doesn’t fall from the tree when it comes to young Devin and old Jeremy and our similar take on OSDM lyrics—me being the original “old schooler” while Devin, Tyler, and Mike embrace and adopt OSDM in their hearts and in their own ways. Musically, this song is another one that’s just shy of being two minutes long (1:49) and it’s absolutely relentless from the start and then kicks in with this really catchy and heavy bridge riff that turns into a brutal AF, slow end riff.

9. Hunger Pains:

Description: “Wires have entered, Shots feel like razors, Veins are exposing, My skin glowing pale, Eyes growing red, Soon pronounced dead, I’m living in hell, I’m feeling parched, Wet my lips off, With the taste of killed blood, Rip the chords off, Stand myself up, I hunger for flesh, Hunger Pains, I hunger for flesh, Hungry for your blood…”

When I read the lyrics to this song, it reminds me of how great “art” is and how it’s open to interpretation…so since I didn’t write these lyrics and Devin did, I form my own visions of what’s going on in the lyrical story, and on this case, “Hunger Pains” immediately reminds me of the amazing novel, “The Passage” by Justin Cronin. In that novel, there are incarcerated inmates who are injected with an experimental virus. The virus transforms the inmates into vampiric monsters of incredible strength and psychic power, hungry for blood. So, that’s my takeaway. Musically, this track is our longest…it’s a 2:53 minutes rager with a grinding start and verses that don’t pull back until the bridge which comes in with trilling and smashing riffs that then return to the speed, ultimately finishing with an extremely heavy beatdown riff that just sets everyone off—the end riff is especially effective on my stepson, Tyler, who goes absolutely batshit crazy when he plays that riff with the band…I have to keep my distance so he doesn’t hurt me. LOL.

10. Slaves To The Screen:

Description: “The screen holds all your power, Commercials are sucking you dry, But you’ll listen, You consume shit, A slave to The machines…”

The lyrics to this song are about the current climate we’re in with both TV and apps on smartphones…you know, media addiction—specifically those who constantly have their eyes glued to their smartphones. It’s literally about being a “slave” to whatever “screen” you’re staring into for a social media fix, for a legit or fake news fix, for approval for “Likes” and on and on. We see it everywhere, so Devin chose to write about that subjugation to technology and how we consume the man-made rubbish from these devices. It’s another lyrical subject that is an observation of society, like “Perception For Profit” or “Like Dogs.” And therein lies some kind of real-life horror…

Musically, this is our second-longest track at 2:39 minutes. I originally started writing this song for Broken Hope, actually, but once I got going with the riffs and the attitude, I was like, “This is made for Earthburner!” So I poached it for the “Permanent Dawn” album. Also, personally, this is probably my favorite Earthburner song to play with the band and to listen to. I feel this song has it all: my flavor of grindcore, massive/heavy AF riffs, catchy riffs, and an end riff that just makes me wanna smash shit.

11. Positive Outlook:

Description: This song is actually a cover song by Corrosion of Conformity. When I was a teenager, I bought the COC album, “Animosity” and just loved it and I still love it to this day. “Positive Outlook” has this really super-heavy riff in the bridge…and then that riff comes back around even slower and heavier…it’s kinda like what we’ve heard many death metal bands do over the years—bring a massive/heavy AF riff back into the mix, but play it slower…it’s just really sick.

The idea to cover this track goes back to when Broken Hope started, I always wanted to cover “Positive Outlook,” but it just never happened. My whole idea for wanting to do that song was because of that original bridge-riff I mentioned, like…I knew if I took that riff and played it through my own guitar rig with my tone—plus the B-tuning in Earthburner—I could take what COC had done before and just make it even more crushing. I finally did it and I love it! The original track clocks in at 3:04 minutes but we seemed to have done it in 2:42 minutes…

That’s it for the song-by-song breakdown and descriptions behind the lyrics and music…