City of Dust

Inside Tucson's metal and hardcore underground

Page 5 of 5

Godhunter

It's hard to get Godhunter vocalist Charlie Touseull focused for an interview.

The latest issue of Decibel Magazine has come out and he's rightfully proud of his band's 8/10 review for their latest record, City of Dust. But once he gets started, the former Gat-Rot singer (whose metal-tinged '90s hardcore has proven to be very influential locally) has a lot on his mind.

Touseull accurately describes Godhunter's sound as "equal parts Black Flag and Black Sabbath," and along with Rodgers (guitar), Jake Brazelton (guitar), Ryan Williamson (bass), Andy Kratzenberg (drums) and multi-instrumentalist Matthew Davis, City of Dust may be Tucson's quintessential metal record.

"We're bringing a conscious message to a dystopian style of music," Touseull says. "Usually, there's not a lot of thought put into sludge metal but we're trying to approach it differently.

"When I got into hardcore music in the '90s, that was important to me—the political consciousness. You'd see a show and the band would give a two minute impassioned speech, and the kids would get ball worked up about social change and justice, and then play a 30 second song, and everybody would blow up."

This attitude is essential to how City of Dust functions as a complete statement. The lyrics among the album's eight anthemic songs cover SB 1070, Joe Arpaio, the Yarnell Fire, and immigration policy. Touseull explains that "the whole album is about the state of Arizona. It's about how we love and hate it—culturally, emotionally, spiritually—and the different stages of despair you feel as a resident. It's a really personal album that discusses the loves and hates, your wants and desires, and your shortcomings. The first line of the album is 'this place means the world to me; this place will be the death of me.' That sums up the first half of the album, which is called Hope. It's a conversation between Hope and Despair."

When asked whether hope and despair prevails, Touseull sums up his band, his album, and perhaps, the whole heavy music scene of Tucson: "It doesn't matter if you win every day because you have to wake up and fight again."

Discography: Wolves (2011), Teargas (2012), City of Dust (2014)