Wailin Storms are catching fire with their noisy and bluesy explosions of Southern Gothic Rock. Hot on the heels of feverish critical praise from Brooklyn Vegan, CVLT Nation, Treble, Decibel and other outlets, the Durham natives are fanning the flames even higher on their fifth album and first for Season of Mist. While surrounded by darkness from the outside world, The Arsonist burns with all of our heart’s desires.
“These nine songs don’t feel buffed, corrected or sanded down”, writes Decibel, who are premiering The Arsonist two full days in advance of its release. “They feel scorched”.
The Arsonist is released today, July 10, 2026 on Season of Mist, and you can hear all nine simmering songs by listening to the full album stream at Decibel Magazine’s website, HERE.
“I’ve always been fascinated by fire”, Wailin Storms vocalist and guitarist Justin Storms says. “It speaks to our inherent attraction to danger and annihilation, but also, our hope for transformation”.
Wailin Storms are igniting the stage this summer with a headline U.S. tour. The band will perform songs off The Arsonist for the first time, along with crowd favorites from across their critically-acclaimed discography.
Wailin Storms 2026 The Arsonist U.S. Tour
July 17 – Durham, NC @ Stanczyk’s [Album Release Show] [TICKETS]
July 29 – Johnson City, TN @ The Hideaway [TICKETS]
July 30 – Atlanta, GA @ Star Bar [TICKETS]
July 31 – Knoxville, TN @ The Pilot Light [TICKETS]
August 1 – Cincinnati, OH @ Motr [TICKETS]
August 2 – Youngstown, OH @ Westside Bowl [TICKETS]
August 3 – Columbus, OH @ Dirty Dungarees [TICKETS]
August 4 – Pittsburgh, PA @ The Government Center [TICKETS]
August 5 – Baltimore, MD @ Metro Gallery [TICKETS]
August 6 – Brooklyn, NY @ The Gutter [TICKETS]
August 7 – New Hope, PA @ John and Peter’s [TICKETS]
August 8 – Richmond, VA @ Cobra Cabana [TICKETS]
The Arsonist can be traced back through Wailin Storms’ past. As a child, frontman Justin Storms was so hypnotized by fire that he came dangerously close to accidentally burning down his family’s house in Corpus Christ, Texas. Old folk songs, Baptist hymns, Flannery O’Connor, René Magritte and other influences are brought stomping and screaming into the light. With its sideways gust of riffs and moaning chorus, “The Wind” blows loud enough to wake the entire cemetery.
Recorded by Matt Talbott of Hum in full analog, The Arsonist rekindles Wailin Storms roots in raw-to-the-bone blues punk. “Some of these songs are more primitive and stripped down, hearkening back to the four-track recordings that the band started with”, Storms says. “The recordings contain flaws but remain human in all the right ways. They could be a murder ballad or an old folk song that’s sung around the campfire”. Opener “Dead End” takes a Lynchian post-punk turn when its death rattle leads straight into a waking nightmare. “Calm night / Birds keep plucking out our eyes”.
Despite being haunted by a doom-soaked atmosphere, The Arsonist is inflamed by real life anxieties. “You Never Answered” is a deafening plea to put down our phone and answer the night’s call. The album rages against everyday trappings and never-ending wars, but even amidst its most chilling moments, Wailin Storms are fueled by the need for connection. “Like the wind controls the sea”, Storms croons during the slow-burning title track. “You always had a hold on me”. As the band are engulfed by the fiery pangs of love, they howl like the hounds of hell.
On The Arsonist, Wailin Storms deliver a fiery baptism of gothic rock.
Tracklist
1. Dead End (4:48) [WATCH]
2. Heart of Mine (5:13)
3. You Never Answered (4:53) [WATCH]
4. The Arsonist (4:52) [WATCH]
5. Never Rest (4:59)
6. Saved (4:24)
7. Patient Night (3:22)
8. The Wind (6:01)
9. It’s All Dark Now Where Your Eyes Used to Be (6:30)
Since migrating to North Carolina’s inland coast circa 2014, Wailin Storms have caught fire with noisy, bluesy explosions of Southern gothic rock. Hot on the heels of critical high praise and thunderous applause from crowds on both sides of the Atlantic, the band’s fifth album and first for Season of Mist fans their flames with reckless abandon. While surrounded by darkness from the outside world, The Arsonist burns with all of our heart’s desires.
“I’ve always been fascinated by fire”, Wailin Storms vocalist and guitarist Justin Storms says before alluding to a time when he came dangerously close to accidentally burning his family’s house down. “It speaks to our inherent attraction to danger and annihilation, but also, our hope for transformation”.
Born the son of a church pianist and Baptist preacher, Justin Storms converted to the church of rock ‘n’ roll after listening to the teachings of his older brother. “He was responsible for getting me into outsider music”. After forming Wailin Storms in his home state of Texas and a pass through New York City, Storms hunkered down in Durham, North Carolina, where he was joined in 2014 by the band’s current drummer Mark Oates (Bats & Mice) and bassist Steve Stanczyk.
Debut full-length One Foot in the Flesh Grave laid a solid foundation for Wailin Storms in 2015 with an East Coast and Midwest tour that led to their first appearance at The Fest. 2017 follow-up Sick City infected more ears with coverage spreading from CVLT Nation to NPR. It was their third album, though, that really opened the floodgates. Rattle was featured by The Needle Drop and named one of the best albums of 2020 by Treble, Riff Magazine, Angry Metal Guy and Machine Music. More attention from Decibel and Metal Hammer came two years later around The Silver Snake Unfolds, which was followed by the arrival of guitarist Ben Melton, as well as shows and tour dates with everyone from City of Caterpillar, pageninetynine and This Will Destroy You to Acid Bath, Eyehategod and Young Widows.
“If Bauhaus, Killing Joke, and Black Sabbath had a child, this would be it”, Metal Injection proclaimed about Wailin Storms.
Brooklyn Vegan concurred. “It’s just loud, heavy, dark rock music, and it’s awesome”.
The Arsonist can be traced back through Wailin Storms’ past. Recorded by Matt Talbott of Hum in full analog, the album rekindles the band’s roots in raw-to-the-bone blues punk as a heated response to today’s vat of overproduced music and AI slop. By experimenting with swoons of Rhodes organ, “Heart of Mine” recalls the Roadhouse from Twin Peaks. “Some of these songs are more primitive and stripped down, harkening back to the four-track recordings that the band started with”, Storms says. “The recordings contain flaws but remain human in all the right ways. They could be a murder ballad or an old folk song that’s sung around the campfire”. Other early influences soak into the songwriting’s weathered fabric: Flannery O’Conner’s grotesque sensibility, Cormac McCarthy’s unflinching fatalism, Old Regular Baptist hymns. With its sideways gust of riffs and moaning chorus, “The Wind” blows loud enough to wake the entire cemetery.
“Because the heart wants what the body wants and the mind wants what the eyes want”, Storms gravely intones. “Won’t you take me through hell”.
Wailin Storms throw heavy splashes of surrealism into the fires of The Arsonist. “Many of the lyrics draw from the same imagery and emotions conjured by David Lynch, especially his film Wild at Heart”, Storms says. “Dead End” opens the album by taking a harrowing turn of its own when the drum’s rattle leads straight into a waking nightmare. “Calm night / Birds keep plucking out our eyes”.
While shrouded by a doomy and dreamy atmosphere, The Arsonist is inflamed by real life anxieties. Taking inspiration from René Magritte, the album’s cover art, which is heavily shadowed except for a tiny house gone up in flames, was painted by Storms himself. “These songs are steeped in the trials and tribulations of everyday life”, he says. The title track is slowly engulfed by love’s eternal flame. “Like the wind controls the sea”, he croons over the gentle sway of his guitar. “You always had a hold on me”. The thunderous climax surges with such feverish intensity that it threatens to send the night of passion up in smoke.
Amidst the wreckage of The Arsonist, Wailin Storms do find a semblance of peace. “It’s All Dark Now Where Your Eyes Used to Be” ends the album with a ghostly flicker of gothic romance. “I know a place where we can sit and grow old”, Storms offers with grim assurance. A piano tolls like death’s bell as he glimpses up at a church that resembles a skull. “There’s a sliver of hope in coming to terms with death”, he concludes. “Life is temporary and that’s where its beauty lies”.
On The Arsonist, Wailin Storms deliver a fiery baptism of Southern gothic rock.
Lineup
Justin Storms – Lead vocals, rhythm guitar
Ben Melton – Lead guitar, backup vocals, Rhodes organ, piano
Steve Stanczyk – Bass
Mark Oates – Drums
Recording credits
Recorded at Earth Analog in May 2025
Production Credits
Produced and engineered by Matt Talbott
Mixed by Mike Lust at Phantom Manor (“Dead End”, “Heart of Mine”, “You Never Answered”, “The Arsonist”, “Never Rest”, “The Wind”, It’s All Dark Now Where Your Eyes Used to Be”
Mixed by Dave Downham at Gradwell House (“Saved”, “Patient Night”)
Mastered by Dave Downham at Gradwell House
All lyrics written by Justin Storms
Cover art
Justin Storms
Layout and design
Steve Stanczyk
Follow Wailin Storms
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2e1J5JQpROgSuT7RcsUbZ2
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/wailin-storms/451185826
Bandcamp: https://wailinstorms.bandcamp.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@wailinstorms7
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wailinstorms/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wailinstorms
