Relapse Records has announced the official signing of one-man industrial metal force Author & Punisher, formed in 2005 by Tristan Shone, creator and sole artist behind the project. Author & Punisher has released five full-lengths in a little over a decade.

Author & Punisher begins a new chapter this year with a self-released EP, Pressure Mine, which Shone describes as, “dark and heavy, yet harnessed and restrained, with a focus on rhythm and deep full bass textures from all analog sound machines”. The EP is currently available for purchase via Bandcamp here.

In addition, Shone has just finished a new arsenal of sound machines called Gridiron which he will tour with and begin writing his next full-length for Relapse Records, due out in early 2018.

Author & Punisher will tour North America and Europe this spring with the new Gridiron creation including a performance at the prestigious Roadburn Festival. All confirmed tour dates are listed below.

Tristan elaborated on the signing and his new machines: “It's an honour to join the the label that has been providing the soundtrack to most of my adult life. With a new gear arsenal and the backing of one of the kings of the underground, something special awaits.

“2016 and 2017 have been very unique for Author & Punisher retooling mechanically and sonically. In the pipeline for years but only now coming to life, the latest machines, Gridiron, are made up of a number of reconfigurable manual/physical units, each intended to couple with a separate piece of analog gear, and give unique control over it. The force feedback from the interaction of machine components and materials, coupled with the integrity and quality of scrutinized analog sounds, is meaningful and powerful. Whether harshly rhythmic or dissonant, these are relatable in ways that programmed sequences often aren't. This new exploration is an attempt to work with one foot within rhythmic framework of existing analog drum sequencing, while dragging a tire iron on the railroad spikes.”

Stay tuned for more news and info from Author & Punisher.

Tour dates:

March
24 - Vancouver, BC - The Astoria
25 - Portland, OR - Ash Street Saloon
27 - Seattle, WA - Barboza
30 - San Francisco, CA - Thee Parkside (with Sanford Parker and Bruce Lamont)
31 - Oxnard, CA - Oxnard Club Fallout

April
1 - Los Angeles, CA - The Complex (with Sanford Parker and Bruce Lamont)

April
7 - Brussels, Belgium - AB
8 - Antwerp, Belgium - Het Bos
9 - Utrecht, Netherlands - dB’s
11 - Cologne, Germany - Underground
12 - Dresden, Germany - Chemiefabrik
13 - Berlin, Germany - Droneburg
14 - Hamburg, Germany - Droneburg
15 - Manchester, UK - Fat Out
17 - London, UK - Underworld
23 - Tilburg, Netherlands - Roadburn Festival
24 - Paris, France - Espace B
25 - Clermont-Ferrand, France - Raymound Club
27 - Bologna, Italy - Freakout Club
28 - Milano, Italy - Ligera
29 - Rome, Italy - Acrobax