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Osees Leader John Dwyer Surprise-Releases the Raw, Blown-Out Heathen Axe EP
John Dwyer has surprise-released Heathen Axe, a six-song solo EP recorded fast and loud on a Vestax MR44 four-track with Tom Dolas and John Hodge—an intentionally fried, unhinged blast built for max volume.
John Dwyer woke up Bandcamp subscribers with a new six-track EP, Heathen Axe, released without warning and credited as a solo project. If you’ve followed his long run through Osees, Damaged Bug, and Coachwhips, the approach will feel familiar: fast, loud, and intentionally unpolished.
In a message sent to fans, Dwyer said he set out to make “a totally fried recording, quick and dirty,” calling it a cathartic reset. He tracked the EP on a recently acquired Vestax MR44 four-track, the same model he used during earlier Coachwhips and OCS sessions. That detail matters, because Heathen Axe sounds like it was dragged straight from that era’s basement urgency and tape grit.
According to Dwyer, he spent a week writing riffs before bringing them to Tom Dolas and John Hodge. The trio reportedly ran each idea once, then recorded on the second pass, keeping performances loose, improvised, and overdriven. “Everything turned all the way up,” as he put it.
The result is a compact blast that leans into the same chaotic energy fans chase at the front of an Osees show: blown-out tones, twitchy momentum, and zero interest in studio polish. Dwyer also framed the release for listeners into Mainliner, High Rise, Comets on Fire, and Hair Police, which tracks with the EP’s scorched, psych-noise attack.
“ATENNNNNTION HUUUUMANOIDS… I WANTED TO MAKE A TOTALLY FRIED RECORDING, QUICK AND DIRTY… SORT OF A CATHARTIC EXPULSION… HOPE YOU DIG. PLAY LOUD.”
Listen below.
