Today Nashville-based heavy melodic duo Friendship Commanders are excited to share their new band-created video for “DEAD & DISCARDED GIRLS,” a powerful closer from their new album BEAR, out now via Magnetic Eye Records (order). “DEAD & DISCARDED GIRLS,” which was directed by the band’s Jerry Roe, is available to watch below.
The haunting track was inspired in part by the 1997 murder of fourteen-year-old Reena Virk and in part by vocalist Buick Audra’s reflections on empathy, specifically, the human tendency to withhold it unless we personally relate to someone’s suffering. The album’s dedication, “For all of the bad daughters,” originates from this song. The band is intentionally releasing the video on November 14, the anniversary of Virk’s death.
Read an exclusive essay by Buick Audra on the inspiration behind the song at Atwood Magazine.
Released October 10 on Magnetic Eye Records, BEAR explores the ever-elusive idea of belonging, where it exists, and where it doesn’t. Audra wrote the record after realizing she had been, in her words, “kicked out of womanhood, if I was ever part of it in the first place.” The album opens and closes with songs about girls and the harm they endure at the hands of other girls and women. BEAR was co-produced by Buick Audra (vocals, guitar) and Jerry Roe (drums, bass) with longtime collaborator Kurt Ballou, who tracked the instrumentals and mixed the record.
On the single, Buick Audra shares: “I learned of Reena’s story through the work of Rebecca Godfrey, who wrote a book about this horrific event, and I was struck by this tale of exclusion, violence, and ultimately death that befell a kid who just wanted to fit in. I know it well, and I also know how little empathy women and girls are sometimes able to extend to their own kind. I’ve felt it all my life. In this track, I’m trying to say, look at what we do to each other. I recorded the vocals for ‘DEAD & DISCARDED GIRLS’ last year on November 14, in tribute to her. The track spans the broadest dynamics on the whole record, going from an intimate opening to a crushing middle section, audibly reflecting the track’s message: care about someone else; care about her. Reena was drowned, so the song and video are both centered around water.”
Jerry Roe adds: “I tend to see visuals and work off my gut instinct to begin with when it’s time to make a video for a song, but I leaned harder on that than anything else this time. Rather than get overly specific or directly reference what this song was about, I wanted to involve water and the type of foliage that lives around bodies of water. Contrasted against the dark black and blue predominantly slow-motion performance footage that’s made to look as if we’re underwater ourselves, my goal was to sort of present souls that have been lost to the water as living on underneath and in the earth forever. Not trapped, but there to remind us always of what should be and wasn’t.”
Tracklist:
KEEPING SCORE
DRAIN
DRIPPING SILVER
MELT
NEW
X
MIDHEAVEN
IMPERFECT
FOUND
DEAD & DISCARDED GIRLS
Friendship Commanders are currently on a U.S. Fall tour in support of BEAR. Tickets are on sale now.
Friendship Commanders Fall Tour Dates: 11.19 – Bellingham, WA @ Waterfront Tavern 11.20 – Portland, OR @ High Water Mark 11.21 – Seattle, WA @ Bad Bar 11.23 – Laramie, WY @ Ruffed Up Duck
Produced by Friendship Commanders & Kurt Ballou Recorded by Kurt Ballou at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Vocal recording by Buick Audra at Fort Knockout, Nashville, TN (US) Additional engineering by Jerry Roe at Fort Knockout, Nashville, TN (US) Assistant engineering by Zach Weeks at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Mixed by Kurt Ballou at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege, Portland, OR (US)
Cover artwork by Jerry Roe & Buick Audra Layout by Buick Audra & Keith Brogdon
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS reveal and stream their complete new album “BEAR” and a new music video for the track ‘DRAIN‘, released on October 10, 2025. “BEAR” via Magnetic Eye Records and available for purchase here: http://lnk.spkr.media/friendshipcommanders-bear
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERScomment on the album: “I have spent my life feeling like an outsider, which can be cool in some contexts but isolating in others“, Buick Audra explains. “As I wrote the songs that would become this album, I was able to pinpoint where I have often been a misfit, but also where I have always belonged – something, I had never truly looked at. Being on the outside can also be beautiful, and now I’m glad to be here. There is an arc to this album, one that is also illustrated in the sounds and performances. It was powerful to create the recordings with Jerry and Kurt, and I think it’s our boldest body of work to date. I hope it finds whoever needs it. And to anyone on the margins of something: you always belong with us.“
Jerry Roe writes: “I feel like we’ve done everything that I’ve ever wanted to do within the bounds of heavy melodic rock on this record“, the drummer and bass player continues. “We pushed the arrangements into wonderful, adventurous and expansive places, got our tones and parts refined within an inch of their lives, and of course all of this was easy and fun to do, because Buick wrote such an incredible batch of songs. Kurt really captured and mixed this all so perfectly too. There’s nobody better for what we do. If this is the last record that I ever made, I would feel like I said and did everything I wanted to as a musician in this life.“
Credits Video directed & edited by Jerry Roe Video shot by Jerry Roe & Buick Audra Gaffed by Jerry Roe Shot at Our Vinyl, Nashville, TN (US)
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS also announced more US live dates for Fall 2025. Please see below for an updated list of currently confirmed shows.
Listen to ‘Bear’ here:
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS are not just any band within the wider musical cosmos of heavy rock and stoner metal. Artistic excellence, reflected in the two Grammy wins of singer, songwriter, and guitarist Buick Audra as well as the status of drummer and bass player Jerry Roe as one of the most sought after studio percussionists, paired with outstanding lyrical intelligence have once again flown together organically to shape their forthcoming album “BEAR”.
“BEAR” was written around the realisation that Buick Audra had essentially been kicked out of womanhood. This album is a documentation of her awareness also while cataloguing other areas of human connection: art, outsider culture, and dark rock venues – all places where empathy and creativity grow wild. Audra and Jerry Roe arranged and performed the fourth full-length of FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERSalbum to have two sides to it, musically: heavy and light, salt and sugar, fire and air, and lost and found.
Although hailing from Nashville, Tennessee these denizens of the ‘Music City’ kindly beg to differ. FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS‘ sound draws from sludge, doom, heavy metal, and grunge with roots in punk and hardcore, among other guitar driven styles.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS were originally conceived as a side project by the two industry veterans Buick Audra and Jerry Roe, whose accolades have already been mentioned above. When the duo found common ground, they were able to bring all their combined musical excellence, perspectives, precision, and power to their new band.
Their early works, the EPs “GARFIELD” (2015) and “JUNEBUG” (2017) as well as the debut full-length “AVE” (2016) were all self-recorded as well as self-produced in their own studio, Fort Knockout, and supported live with regional tours.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS‘ sophomore album ‘BILL’ (2018) was co-produced by the band with Steve Albini and engineered at his Chicago studio, Electrical Audio. Working with Albini proved a pivotal experience for the duo, both personally and professionally. “BILL” reached a notably larger audience and allowed national touring. Following Albini’s passing in 2024, the band released his original analogue mixes of the project, “BILL- The Steve Albini Mixes”.
Although the duo’s members maintained other ventures, FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS had developed into a focal endeavour for them both. Their again self-produced 2020 EP, “HOLD ON TO YOURSELF”, was the beginning of their by now years-long collaboration with Kurt Ballou, who mixed the record. He also mixed their self-produced pandemic-era singles “STONECHILD/ YOUR REIGN IS OVER” (2020), “ALTAR / LAND OF MEN” (2021), and “AND IF MY BODY” (2022). These were later compiled on a limited vinyl release entitled “RELEASE OF THE REST” (2022). The singles also marked a departure from the duo’s previous punk and hardcore leanings while introducing a heavier, sludgier sensibility.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS recorded and co-produced their third album “MASS” again with Ballou at his GodCity Studio in Salem, MA. Audra recorded and produced her vocals at her Nashville studio, and Ballou then mixed the tracks. With “MASS” (2023), a concept album about memory, language, and the state of Massachusetts, the duo took the important next step of reaching a global audience.
“BEAR” was again co-produced by band members Buick Audra and Jerry Roe. The duo returned to Salem to work along once more with their longtime collaborator, Kurt Ballou, who also tracked the instrumental performances and mixed the record. As a result, the songs with a huge range of musical ideas and expressions are unified in sound as well as in theme, which runs throughout the record in various ways: the ever-elusive idea of belonging, where it occurs, and where it absolutely does not.
With “BEAR”, FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS present a rare sparkling gem of an album, heavy yet captivating, shiny yet dark, and songs that brim with important meaning. “BEAR” is easy to get into, but beware, this album will draw its listeners into fascinating and thought-provoking depths!
Tracklist:
KEEPING SCORE
DRAIN
DRIPPING SILVER
MELT
NEW
X
MIDHEAVEN
IMPERFECT
FOUND
DEAD & DISCARDED GIRLS
Produced by Friendship Commanders & Kurt Ballou Recorded by Kurt Ballou at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Vocal recording by Buick Audra at Fort Knockout, Nashville, TN (US) Additional engineering by Jerry Roe at Fort Knockout, Nashville, TN (US) Assistant engineering by Zach Weeks at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Mixed by Kurt Ballou at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege, Portland, OR (US)
Cover artwork by Jerry Roe & Buick Audra Layout by Buick Audra & Keith Brogdon
Upcoming shows: 16 OCT 2025 Columbus, OH (US) Ace of Cups 17 OCT 2025 Lexington, KY (US) Al’s Bar 18 OCT 2025 Frederick, MD (US) Café 611 19 OCT 2025 Allston, MA (US) O’Brien’s 20 OCT 2025 Brooklyn, NY (US) The Wood Shop 22 OCT 2025 Richmond, VA (US) Bandito’s 23 OCT 2025 Raleigh, NC (US) Slim’s 24 OCT 2025 Nashville, TN (US) The Cobra 07 NOV 2025 Austin, TX (US) Raven Room at Crowbar 08 NOV 2025 Houston, TX (US) 1810 Ojeman 09 NOV 2025 Fort Worth, TX (US) The Cicada 11 NOV 2025 Albuquerque, NM (US) TBA 12 NOV 2025 Las Vegas, NV (US) The Griffin 13 NOV 2025 Los Angeles, CA (US) The Redwood Bar 14 NOV 2025 Santa Cruz, CA (US) The Jury Room 15 NOV 2025 San Francisco, CA (US) Kilowatt 16 NOV 2025 Palmdale, CA (US) Transplants Brewing Co. 19 NOV 2025 Bellingham, WA (US) Waterfront Tavern 20 NOV 2025 Portland, OR (US) High Water Mark 21 NOV 2025 Seattle, WA (US) Bad Bar 23 NOV 2025 Laramie, WY (US) Ruffed Up Duck
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS share the video single ‘FOUND‘ as the fifth advance track taken from the American heavy duo‘s forthcoming album “BEAR” that is slated for release on October 10, 2025, via Magnetic Eye Records. The pre-order is available here: http://lnk.spkr.media/friendshipcommanders-bear
‘FOUND‘ reflects on where one turns when feeling lost or left on the outside, carrying an anchoring message of hope. For profound, in-depth comments by the duo, please see below.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS have also announced more US live dates for Fall 2025. Please see below for an updated list of currently confirmed shows.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS comment on the single: “The song’s title, ‘FOUND’, is quite appropriate, as it was written in a season of feeling so displaced, so locked out of my own gender, and then I had this profound experience at an art exhibit where I realized that what I truly belong to is the work itself“, Buick Audra writes.“The music, the art. The proclivity to explore, observe, witness, love hard, and grieve even harder. I stood in front of silver gelatin prints one artist made about their dead friend and collaborator – another genius creative person who was misunderstood in his lifetime, and I wept. Wept for them, for me, for my dead friends, and oddly, with gratitude for what we all share: the courage to go there. It’s a gift to be able to walk with death, to witness horror, and to admit your own human frailty – and then turn around and make work expressing it, to allow others to see it. ‘FOUND’ is a love letter to the work, and to the parts of us that generate it. I was never lost; I was and am just outside. They’re not the same. Either way, I belong to myself and the work. Today, that’s enough. When unsure, go within.“
Jerry Roe continues: “‘FOUND’ is maybe the most straightforward rock song, we’ve recorded to date, and the arrangement of it in particular is something that I’m extremely proud of“, the drummer and bass player elaborates. “Every part is taken as far as it can go, and we get both quiet and extremely loud. It all circles around to an incredible and emotional ending that feels like a grand conclusion to the thesis of the record. Also, to speak of it in more direct terms: The riffs are sick!“
Credits Video directed & edited by Jerry Roe Video shot by Jarad Clement & Jerry Roe Additional footage shot by Buick Audra & Travis Nicholson Gaffed by Jarad Clemen PA work provided by Travis Nicholson & Dave Johnson In Studio footage shot at NuMynd, Nashville, TN Exterior footage shot at the Frist Museum, Exit/In, the End, & the Basement in Nashville, TN Guest appearances by Travis Nicholson, Patrick Damphier, & Dave Johnson
For Lee, Ann, and Roger
Tracklist:
KEEPING SCORE
DRAIN
DRIPPING SILVER
MELT
NEW
X
MIDHEAVEN
IMPERFECT
FOUND
DEAD & DISCARDED GIRLS
Upcoming shows: 20 SEP 2025 Youngstown, OH (US) Westside Bowl 09 SEP 2025 Kansas City, MO (US) SK8bar 10 OCT 2025 Tulsa, OK (US) Whittier Bar 16 OCT 2025 Columbus, OH (US) Ace of Cups 17 OCT 2025 Lexington, KY (US) Al’s Bar 19 OCT 2025 Allston, MA (US) O’Brien’s 20 OCT 2025 Brooklyn, NY (US) The Wood Shop 22 OCT 2025 Richmond, VA (US) Bandito’s 23 OCT 2025 Raleigh, NC (US) Slim’s 24 OCT 2025 Nashville, TN (US) The Cobra 07 NOV 2025 Austin, TX (US) Raven Room at Crowbar 08 NOV 2025 Houston, TX (US) 1810 Ojeman 09 NOV 2025 Fort Worth, TX (US) The Cicada 11 NOV 2025 Albuquerque, NM (US) TBA 12 NOV 2025 Las Vegas, NV (US) The Griffin 13 NOV 2025 Los Angeles, CA (US) The Redwood Bar 16 NOV 2025 Palmdale, CA (US) Transplants Brewing Co. 19 NOV 2025 Bellingham, WA (US) Waterfront Tavern 20 NOV 2025 Portland, OR (US) High Water Mark 21 NOV 2025 Seattle, WA (US) Bad Bar 23 NOV 2025 Laramie, WY (US) Ruffed Up Duck
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS are not just any band within the wider musical cosmos of heavy rock and stoner metal. Artistic excellence, reflected in the two Grammy wins of singer, songwriter, and guitarist Buick Audra as well as the status of drummer and bass player Jerry Roe as one of the most sought after studio percussionists, paired with outstanding lyrical intelligence have once again flown together organically to shape their forthcoming album “BEAR”.
“BEAR” was written around the realisation that Buick Audra had essentially been kicked out of womanhood. This album is a documentation of her awareness also while cataloguing other areas of human connection: art, outsider culture, and dark rock venues – all places where empathy and creativity grow wild. Audra and Jerry Roe arranged and performed the fourth full-length of FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERSalbum to have two sides to it, musically: heavy and light, salt and sugar, fire and air, and lost and found.
Although hailing from Nashville, Tennessee these denizens of the ‘Music City’ kindly beg to differ. FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS‘ sound draws from sludge, doom, heavy metal, and grunge with roots in punk and hardcore, among other guitar driven styles.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS were originally conceived as a side project by the two industry veterans Buick Audra and Jerry Roe, whose accolades have already been mentioned above. When the duo found common ground, they were able to bring all their combined musical excellence, perspectives, precision, and power to their new band.
Their early works, the EPs “GARFIELD” (2015) and “JUNEBUG” (2017) as well as the debut full-length “AVE” (2016) were all self-recorded as well as self-produced in their own studio, Fort Knockout, and supported live with regional tours.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS‘ sophomore album ‘BILL’ (2018) was co-produced by the band with Steve Albini and engineered at his Chicago studio, Electrical Audio. Working with Albini proved a pivotal experience for the duo, both personally and professionally. “BILL” reached a notably larger audience and allowed national touring. Following Albini’s passing in 2024, the band released his original analogue mixes of the project, “BILL- The Steve Albini Mixes”.
Although the duo’s members maintained other ventures, FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS had developed into a focal endeavour for them both. Their again self-produced 2020 EP, “HOLD ON TO YOURSELF”, was the beginning of their by now years-long collaboration with Kurt Ballou, who mixed the record. He also mixed their self-produced pandemic-era singles “STONECHILD/ YOUR REIGN IS OVER” (2020), “ALTAR / LAND OF MEN” (2021), and “AND IF MY BODY” (2022). These were later compiled on a limited vinyl release entitled “RELEASE OF THE REST” (2022). The singles also marked a departure from the duo’s previous punk and hardcore leanings while introducing a heavier, sludgier sensibility.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS recorded and co-produced their third album “MASS” again with Ballou at his GodCity Studio in Salem, MA. Audra recorded and produced her vocals at her Nashville studio, and Ballou then mixed the tracks. With “MASS” (2023), a concept album about memory, language, and the state of Massachusetts, the duo took the important next step of reaching a global audience.
“BEAR” was again co-produced by band members Buick Audra and Jerry Roe. The duo returned to Salem to work along once more with their longtime collaborator, Kurt Ballou, who also tracked the instrumental performances and mixed the record. As a result, the songs with a huge range of musical ideas and expressions are unified in sound as well as in theme, which runs throughout the record in various ways: the ever-elusive idea of belonging, where it occurs, and where it absolutely does not.
With “BEAR”, FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS present a rare sparkling gem of an album, heavy yet captivating, shiny yet dark, and songs that brim with important meaning. “BEAR” is easy to get into, but beware, this album will draw its listeners into fascinating and thought-provoking depths!
Produced by Friendship Commanders & Kurt Ballou Recorded by Kurt Ballou at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Vocal recording by Buick Audra at Fort Knockout, Nashville, TN (US) Additional engineering by Jerry Roe at Fort Knockout, Nashville, TN (US) Assistant engineering by Zach Weeks at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Mixed by Kurt Ballou at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege, Portland, OR (US)
Cover artwork by Jerry Roe & Buick Audra Layout by Buick Audra & Keith Brogdon
American heavy duo FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS unveil the new video clip ‘X‘ as one part of the two-track advance single together with the audio track ‘MIDHEAVEN‘, both of which are taken from their forthcomingalbum: “BEAR” that is scheduled for release on October 10, 2025, via Magnetic Eye Records. The pre-order is available here:http://lnk.spkr.media/friendshipcommanders-bear
Buick Audra wrote ‘X‘ in June 2024, a few weeks weeks after the passing of their friend and collaborator Steve Albini: “I was grieving, but I was also watching a generation grieve in ways that I’d observed my whole life – stoically, strongly, sentimentally, and somewhat individually“, the guitarist, vocalist and songwriter states. “This song is a loving send-up to that lost generation. We wanted the track and visuals to honor some of the artists who raised us creatively, including Steve. The camera I’m holding in the second verse was his. Very moving to have and include it here. He was a young Boomer, but the absolute King of Gen X – missed and loved.“
Audra continues: “‘MIDHEAVEN’ goes wider; it gets into this idea of being born under a certain set of stars, and whether or not that has anything to do with who we are. As a person who feels like a lifelong misfit with a nature I can’t seem to change, I’m curious about where that starts. Is it written from the start? I’m willing to believe anything at this point. Some days, it’s tempting to blame it all on the sky.“
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS write about the video clip: “I wanted the video to have the vibe and look of those by our favorite bands from the Gen X Grunge era while still being its own thing, so it’s lit, shot and performed in a way that honors that spirit without aping anything too closely – hopefully!“, drummer and bass playerJerry Roe reveals.“Everyone wanted to appear tough and cool while also not seeming to take what they were doing too seriously. There’s such a particular mood of the era that no one has captured since. It was the best time for the medium of music videos honestly, and it was a lot of fun to try and channel it. I find it moving to watch in a way that surprises me.“
Listen to ‘MIDHEAVEN’ here:
Video credits
Video directed & edited by Jerry Roe
Video shot by Jarad Clement
Like their earlier dual single, ‘KEEPING SCORE’ & ‘MELT’, ‘X’ & ‘MIDHEAVEN’ showcase juxtaposing ends of “BEAR”‘s sonic spectrum: one being heavy, the other being lighter – while both are intimately connected through addressing questions about identity and influence.
Tracklist:
KEEPING SCORE
DRAIN
DRIPPING SILVER
MELT
NEW
X
MIDHEAVEN
IMPERFECT
FOUND
DEAD & DISCARDED GIRLS
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS are not just any band within the wider musical cosmos of heavy rock and stoner metal. Artistic excellence, reflected in the two Grammy wins of singer, songwriter, and guitarist Buick Audra as well as the status of drummer and bass player Jerry Roe as one of the most sought after studio percussionists, paired with outstanding lyrical intelligence have once again flown together organically to shape their forthcoming album “BEAR”.
“BEAR” was written around the realisation that Buick Audra had essentially been kicked out of womanhood. This album is a documentation of her awareness also while cataloguing other areas of human connection: art, outsider culture, and dark rock venues – all places where empathy and creativity grow wild. Audra and Jerry Roe arranged and performed the fourth full-length of FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERSalbum to have two sides to it, musically: heavy and light, salt and sugar, fire and air, and lost and found.
Although hailing from Nashville, Tennessee these denizens of the ‘Music City’ kindly beg to differ. FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS‘ sound draws from sludge, doom, heavy metal, and grunge with roots in punk and hardcore, among other guitar driven styles.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS were originally conceived as a side project by the two industry veterans Buick Audra and Jerry Roe, whose accolades have already been mentioned above. When the duo found common ground, they were able to bring all their combined musical excellence, perspectives, precision, and power to their new band.
Their early works, the EPs “GARFIELD” (2015) and “JUNEBUG” (2017) as well as the debut full-length “AVE” (2016) were all self-recorded as well as self-produced in their own studio, Fort Knockout, and supported live with regional tours.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS‘ sophomore album ‘BILL’ (2018) was co-produced by the band with Steve Albini and engineered at his Chicago studio, Electrical Audio. Working with Albini proved a pivotal experience for the duo, both personally and professionally. “BILL” reached a notably larger audience and allowed national touring. Following Albini’s passing in 2024, the band released his original analogue mixes of the project, “BILL- The Steve Albini Mixes”.
Although the duo’s members maintained other ventures, FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS had developed into a focal endeavour for them both. Their again self-produced 2020 EP, “HOLD ON TO YOURSELF”, was the beginning of their by now years-long collaboration with Kurt Ballou, who mixed the record. He also mixed their self-produced pandemic-era singles “STONECHILD/ YOUR REIGN IS OVER” (2020), “ALTAR / LAND OF MEN” (2021), and “AND IF MY BODY” (2022). These were later compiled on a limited vinyl release entitled “RELEASE OF THE REST” (2022). The singles also marked a departure from the duo’s previous punk and hardcore leanings while introducing a heavier, sludgier sensibility.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS recorded and co-produced their third album “MASS” again with Ballou at his GodCity Studio in Salem, MA. Audra recorded and produced her vocals at her Nashville studio, and Ballou then mixed the tracks. With “MASS” (2023), a concept album about memory, language, and the state of Massachusetts, the duo took the important next step of reaching a global audience.
“BEAR” was again co-produced by band members Buick Audra and Jerry Roe. The duo returned to Salem to work along once more with their longtime collaborator, Kurt Ballou, who also tracked the instrumental performances and mixed the record. As a result, the songs with a huge range of musical ideas and expressions are unified in sound as well as in theme, which runs throughout the record in various ways: the ever-elusive idea of belonging, where it occurs, and where it absolutely does not.
With “BEAR”, FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS present a rare sparkling gem of an album, heavy yet captivating, shiny yet dark, and songs that brim with important meaning. “BEAR” is easy to get into, but beware, this album will draw its listeners into fascinating and thought-provoking depths!
Produced by Friendship Commanders & Kurt Ballou Recorded by Kurt Ballou at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Vocal recording by Buick Audra at Fort Knockout, Nashville, TN (US) Additional engineering by Jerry Roe at Fort Knockout, Nashville, TN (US) Assistant engineering by Zach Weeks at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Mixed by Kurt Ballou at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege, Portland, OR (US)
Cover artwork by Jerry Roe & Buick Audra Layout by Buick Audra & Keith Brogdon
American heavy duo FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS drop the video clip ‘KEEPING SCORE‘ as part of the two-track advance single from their forthcoming new album “BEAR“, which has been scheduled for release on October 10, 2025, via Magnetic Eye Records. The pre-order is available here:http://lnk.spkr.media/friendshipcommanders-bear
These exceptional artists from Nashville, Tennessee have already teased the album announcement with the video for ‘MELT‘ over the last few days. Links and important statements regarding both songs can be found below.
The dual singles illustrate the tonal expansiveness contained within the ten-track body of work that is “BEAR”, where there is heaviness and also a kind of lightness. ‘KEEPING SCORE’ sees songwriter Buick Audra confront cycles of women injuring girls due to being threatened by their existence, something she experienced personally. ‘MELT’ addresses the loneliness and confusion that comes with being rejected by members of one’s own gender in adulthood.
“‘KEEPING SCORE’ was the first song written for ‘BEAR’ and I think of it as the mother of the album“, vocalist and guitarist Buick Audra reveals. “When I was a kid, the mother of my best friend, a boy, singled me out as a problem for her son and all the other boys in our skateboarding crew. She was afraid that I was corrupting them somehow. She called around and spread non-truths about me to the other parents, some of whom I’d never met. It was devastating, humiliating beyond words. Years later, I realized women in my own generation were doing the same thing to little girls who knew their sons. Little girls! Age seven, eight! Being called ‘hussies’ by grown women! Color me horrified. Color me involved. Now that I can speak for myself, I will also speak for girls like me. Someone should. The propulsive riff on this song is my war cry.“
Jerry Roe adds: “These songs were so exciting to hear when Buick played them for me for the first time – pretty unlike anything we’d ever done up to this point in terms of energy and propulsion“, the drummer and bass player writes. “Our music has tended to move either fast or slow while somehow feeling heavy at all times, and these songs lean and move forward in a way that’s much brighter and quite joyful, even through the subject matter. To play them almost feels like being flown through the air towards a gigantic bullseye made of fiery confetti! I can’t wait to play this new album live.“
“The song ‘MELT’ is about realizing that I’ve never really fit with my own kind, something I’ve only come to terms with in the last two years or so“, Buick Audraexplains. “I’ve spent so much time and energy trying to be a woman among women, but at the end of the day, I’m just always over here being too loud. Too much. And yet, somehow also not enough. It’s a stunning paradox. Musically, the song has a sugary quality to it, which is also referenced in the line, ‘that’s how they punch you, sugar over fists’. This track beats me up because it’s so painfully true, but it’s also a delight to play.“
Bear Tracklist:
KEEPING SCORE
DRAIN
DRIPPING SILVER
MELT
NEW
X
MIDHEAVEN
IMPERFECT
FOUND
DEAD & DISCARDED GIRLS
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS are not just any band within the wider musical cosmos of heavy rock and stoner metal. Artistic excellence, reflected in the two Grammy wins of singer, songwriter, and guitarist Buick Audra as well as the status of drummer and bass player Jerry Roe as one of the most sought after studio percussionists, paired with outstanding lyrical intelligence have once again flown together organically to shape their forthcoming album “BEAR”.
“BEAR” was written around the realisation that Buick Audra had essentially been kicked out of womanhood. This album is a documentation of her awareness also while cataloguing other areas of human connection: art, outsider culture, and dark rock venues – all places where empathy and creativity grow wild. Audra and Jerry Roe arranged and performed the fourth full-length of FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERSalbum to have two sides to it, musically: heavy and light, salt and sugar, fire and air, and lost and found.
Although hailing from Nashville, Tennessee these denizens of the ‘Music City’ kindly beg to differ. FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS‘ sound draws from sludge, doom, heavy metal, and grunge with roots in punk and hardcore, among other guitar driven styles.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS were originally conceived as a side project by the two industry veterans Buick Audra and Jerry Roe, whose accolades have already been mentioned above. When the duo found common ground, they were able to bring all their combined musical excellence, perspectives, precision, and power to their new band.
Their early works, the EPs “GARFIELD” (2015) and “JUNEBUG” (2017) as well as the debut full-length “AVE” (2016) were all self-recorded as well as self-produced in their own studio, Fort Knockout, and supported live with regional tours.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS‘ sophomore album ‘BILL’ (2018) was co-produced by the band with Steve Albini and engineered at his Chicago studio, Electrical Audio. Working with Albini proved a pivotal experience for the duo, both personally and professionally. “BILL” reached a notably larger audience and allowed national touring. Following Albini’s passing in 2024, the band released his original analogue mixes of the project, “BILL- The Steve Albini Mixes”.
Although the duo’s members maintained other ventures, FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS had developed into a focal endeavour for them both. Their again self-produced 2020 EP, “HOLD ON TO YOURSELF”, was the beginning of their by now years-long collaboration with Kurt Ballou, who mixed the record. He also mixed their self-produced pandemic-era singles “STONECHILD/ YOUR REIGN IS OVER” (2020), “ALTAR / LAND OF MEN” (2021), and “AND IF MY BODY” (2022). These were later compiled on a limited vinyl release entitled “RELEASE OF THE REST” (2022). The singles also marked a departure from the duo’s previous punk and hardcore leanings while introducing a heavier, sludgier sensibility.
FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS recorded and co-produced their third album “MASS” again with Ballou at his GodCity Studio in Salem, MA. Audra recorded and produced her vocals at her Nashville studio, and Ballou then mixed the tracks. With “MASS” (2023), a concept album about memory, language, and the state of Massachusetts, the duo took the important next step of reaching a global audience.
“BEAR” was again co-produced by band members Buick Audra and Jerry Roe. The duo returned to Salem to work along once more with their longtime collaborator, Kurt Ballou, who also tracked the instrumental performances and mixed the record. As a result, the songs with a huge range of musical ideas and expressions are unified in sound as well as in theme, which runs throughout the record in various ways: the ever-elusive idea of belonging, where it occurs, and where it absolutely does not.
With “BEAR”, FRIENDSHIP COMMANDERS present a rare sparkling gem of an album, heavy yet captivating, shiny yet dark, and songs that brim with important meaning. “BEAR” is easy to get into, but beware, this album will draw its listeners into fascinating and thought-provoking depths!
Produced by Friendship Commanders & Kurt Ballou Recorded by Kurt Ballou at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Vocal recording by Buick Audra at Fort Knockout, Nashville, TN (US) Additional engineering by Jerry Roe at Fort Knockout, Nashville, TN (US) Assistant engineering by Zach Weeks at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Mixed by Kurt Ballou at GodCity, Salem, MA (US) Mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege, Portland, OR (US)
Cover artwork by Jerry Roe & Buick Audra Layout by Buick Audra & Keith Brogdon
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