Four-piece hardcore punk band Dögmën, scattered across Wallonia in Belgium, dropped their new record “All Men Must Die” on January 1st — seven tracks of regression theology dressed in powerviolence tempos and savage riffs. The album deals with what the band describes as a desire to distance oneself from humanity until one regresses to a primitive state, to become an animal again.
Each song picks apart a different aspect of the human condition that feeds that urge to dissociate. Superiority over other species, misogyny, generational pressure, fear amplified by the 24-hour news cycle, the process of victimization — all get their turn. The record was originally going to be called “Regress,” but the band landed on the lovely sounding “All Men Must Die” instead. In retrospect, they feel the final title fits better.
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The artwork is where the concept locks into place visually. Tom, the singer, drew from cynocephaly — the mythological tradition of dog-headed people, attested across cultures worldwide. “The dogmen idea first came up when I was looking at a list of famous cryptids,” he explains. “I really liked the Michigan Dogman. Then I went deeper into that subject basically. So yes it was totally from instinct at first.”
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As a fan of old engravings and wood etchings, Tom knew from the start he wanted the artwork to follow that style. The concept was there early, fully formed. “It was almost fully formed from the start actually. The concept was there from the start and we knew we wanted it drawn that way.”
The artwork itself was brought to life by Florence Roman, a close friend of the band who’s helped with artwork and merch designs for other projects in the past. “We’re all really big fans of her work, she’s always been close to our musical journey,” Tom says. “To be able to have an idea brought to life with a talented person who is also a good friend it’s just an amazing feeling.”
The regression theme works on two levels for Dögmën. There’s the literal feeling of a hardcore show — how a good basic beat and a savage riff can make you feel like a caveman again. Then there’s the lyrical side, which Tom describes as something akin to refusal of certain aspects of human evolution.
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That more solemn quality also shaped production decisions. The band considered adding samples like they did on their first record but ultimately held back. “We thought this one had a more serious vibe so we were afraid it was going to tone it down,” Tom says. “I think the more solemn look of the artwork also had a role in this decision.” The dog-headed figure functions as a symbol for the band — not provocation, not a mirror. A symbol.
“All Men Must Die” was recorded by the band themselves in the Water Moulin, with vocals tracked by Mathias Ascolese at Shizuka Na Studio, who also engineered the record. Growls were contributed by Loukoum — rest in power.
The album is out now digitally on Bandcamp and available on cassette through Dirtyslap, Yoyodyne, and Emergence Records, with a vinyl release coming via Loner Cult and L’Ouïe Pleure.
Dögmën head out on an April weekend tour in France with Hetze, hitting Le Royal Royal in Nancy and Les Tanneries in Dijon.
