The Holy Nothing are a Fort Wayne three-piece that take their pummeling riffs and menacing atmosphere very seriously. 

Made up of Austin Hammond (drums), Joey Kaufman (guitar, synth, and vocals), and Dan Kinnaley (bass and vocals), The Holy Nothing toe the line between post-hardcore, punk rock, and post-metal, bringing the darkly aggressive and heavy vibes all together in a way that’s both widescreen and intimate.

On the band’s new EP, Vol I: A Profound and Nameless Fear, The Holy Nothing sum up their dark and doom-drenched musical trip into five all-encompassing tracks, touching on everything from Helmet to Neurosis to Knocked Loose, but bringing something unique to their brand of Midwestern metal. There’s an almost Gothic feel to the musical world of The Holy Nothing.

The Holy Nothing are no strangers to the Fort Wayne music scene. They combine experience as players and writers, which makes this trio’s sound all the more engaging and inviting. The sound on this EP is tight and the production is spot on, having been recorded at Kinnaley’s Chipped Tooth Audio. In other words, these cats know what they’re doing and do it very, very well.

“Bathe Me” opens the EP with a slithery bass line and a catchy rhythm reminiscent of early ’90s post-hardcore bands like Polvo and Slint. It’s catchy, aggressive, and off-kilter in all the right ways. “Bliss Trench” plows through the speakers like a possessed freight train with Kaufman’s bloody shriek a nice counterpoint to Kinnaley’s baritone voice in the chorus. The Holy Nothing use synths to great effect as well, adding an almost psychedelic swirl to their sound.

The centerpiece is “Unending Death,” which brings the sound assault down to a trudging, looming vibe. Sounding like more like The Black Angels teetering into doom metal territory, this track pummels the senses but in a far more nuanced way.

Vol. I: A Profound and Nameless Fear never relents. The Holy Nothing lay out a sonic assault, combining classic and modern metal influences into a sound that’s aggressive, foreboding, and very much their own.