From the first few seconds of “Inherent Violence,” Black Mantra sound like a band pulling from several shelves at once: ’90s hardcore, Revelation Records-adjacent bounce, reggae-punk, and the sort of fast melodic push that turns a room into movement before anyone has fully decided to move.
The Bressuire, France quartet have released a lyric video for the track ahead of their new EP “Slow Motion Apocalypse,” out May 22, 2026 on CD through Bästardz, tape through Dispear Records, LEGO edition as a self-release, and streaming platforms.
The record runs seven tracks in 15 minutes: five originals, plus covers of Beastie Boys’ “Gratitude” and Misfits’ “Skulls.” It is short, fast, and restless, but not in a one-lane way. Black Mantra’s thing has always sat somewhere between hardcore punk pressure and reggae lift, with Shelter, Bad Brains, Cause For Alarm, and Burning Heads sitting close enough to the practice room to matter.
“Indeed, the Bad Brains are a bit of our compass,” says Gus. “They have always played what they wanted: from the fastest hardcore, to mystical reggae through fusion filled with groove, they showed us that we could play everything we liked while keeping a certain coherence.”
That sense of permission runs through the band’s history. Formed in 2017 in Bressuire by four musicians raised on the sound of the ’90s, Black Mantra have spent the past nine years tightening a style built from New York hardcore aggression, Californian punk rock melody, and reggae punk.
They have played bars and festival stages including Hellfest, RIIP Fest, Fury Dance, In Your Face, and Raw Fest, while releasing three CD EPs and a split vinyl with Pavasse and HPS.
The lineup is Gus on vocals, Julien on guitar, Marol on drums, and Guy Shmoot on bass and synth. Their roots run through bands including Move On, Trouble, Circles, Omahas, Bunkum, Penalty, Crovercops, Tromatized Youth, Golden District, Machette, and Lasting Values. Outside the band, the four are also involved in organizing Jean-Yves Lafest in Bressuire alongside Bunkum and the Boc’Hall association.
The new EP was recorded between Nomad Audio and New Record Studio. Arthur recorded the vocals and also appears on “Skulls,” where Black Mantra keep close to the Misfits original while pushing it toward a ’90s melodic hardcore feel.
“The albums of the 80’s and 90’s are those we always listen to the most, we have remained a bit stuck in these musical decades,” says Gus. “These are the ones we find the richest and most daring musically. For proof, there are two covers on this EP, one of the 80’s with ‘Skulls’ by Misfits and one of the 90’s with ‘Gratitude’ by Beastie Boys. These are two bands that have also influenced us a lot, the dark, melodic and theatrical side of Misfits and the humor, fun and fusion of genres of Beastie Boys are also compasses for Black Mantra.”
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“Gratitude” moves further away from its source. Black Mantra reshape it into a reggae/dub/hardcore track, changing the structure and bringing in Méli and Eloïse from The Wheel-Hers on backing vocals.
“We tried to brand them with our stamp,” Gus says. “‘Skulls’ is rather faithful to the original but we brought a 90’s melodic hardcore side, especially with the addition of Arthur’s voice who came to sing on this track. For ‘Gratitude’, we really turned it into a reggae/dub/hardcore track, changed the structure and made it our own version. Our friends The Wheel-Hers, Méli and Eloïse, lent us their sweet angel voices for the backing vocals. We hope MCA would be proud of us!”
Black Mantra treat genre like a shared van playlist rather than a rulebook. “On our side, we listened to all these different genres, they fed us and made us grow,” says Gus. “On the road, the playlist can easily switch from Steel Pulse to Shelter, from Biohazard to Dr. Dre and from 7 Seconds to Turnstile.”
Several members write, which keeps the songs from settling into a single pattern. “Everyone brings ideas for riffs, bass lines, drum patterns, and vocal lines; it allows us to have our own sound, not to be a copy/paste of yet another hardcore band,” he adds. “Maybe that’s why we’ve been able to play together for 9 years, we can’t get bored or tired when we have the freedom to play whatever we want.”
“Slow Motion Apocalypse” takes its title from a specific kind of helplessness: watching the world drift toward collapse with no dramatic impact point, no clean moment of rupture, just the next bad image arriving slowly.
“The title of the EP, ‘Slow Motion Apocalypse’, is about the global feeling to see the end of the world as we know it, but really really slowly, frame by frame and not being able to change the next frame,” says Gus. “It’s kind of sad, but we try to laugh at it rather than being paralyzed by fear.”
“Slow Motion Apocalypse” is out May 22, 2026 on CD through Bästardz, tape through Dispear Records, LEGO edition, and streaming.
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