The Dead Coats

The Dead Coats is an Austin, Texas-based band. They recently finished a tour that started in Texas and took the band up the west coast before ending at The Redwood Bar in Los Angeles.
This band has garage punk sensibilities with rapid-fire songs. What struck me immediately as their set started was the lead singer, Lauren. There was a sparkle in her eye and she seriously was having the time of her life on the small bar stage. The band told short anecdotes and gave their reflections prior to each song. For example, they had a song called, "Coke on the Water." They explained that every rock band had to have one song about cocaine. - Notes From Vivace

I met up with the The Dead Coats in the house shared by three of the band’s members. They set me up via video chat across a weed-strewn table in Lauren Warner’s bedroom, lovingly referred to as “The Shag Palace.” There is something paradoxically intimate about video chat interviews. I’m (virtually) in the band’s house at eleven o’clock on a Tuesday night. Everyone's in their sweatpants, half drunk on Stella, and rambling off into ironic bits and inside jokes with each other. Our guards are down as we sip on whiskey in the comfort of our respective homes and connect through a screen.

But that could just be par for the course; the Dead Coats are not a naturally guarded band. Their low-fi, anger-fueled psych punk doesn’t go for that staple of political angst (that sometimes comes across as trite in other groups). They’re firmly grounded in the realities of being young and making due.

Front-woman, and Baltimore transplant, Warner’s (@lorminthegoddess) lyrics are an invitation into her personal life. Her insecurities and frustrations are belted out in a vocal-chord-obliterating wail that expresses as much pain as it does venom. At first you might think her vulnerability would clash with the thick, driving, Dead Kennedys bass of local Austinite, Joe Osteen (@a_texas_bassman_dream) (not the preacher, he clarified), the early Nirvana, sometimes-meets-Metallica shredding from Joshua Jones (@lil_guitary_jones), and the head-shattering drums from newbie, Faith Lee (@___faithlee) (who we, unfortunately couldn’t get a hold of for this interview). But, the band has melted together over their three years and two studio albums and found a perfect synthesis. They want to give you a hug, but will headbutt your ass if you break the five second rule. - Concept Animals

After launching last weekend, this local “dissenting voice in the music industry” showcases on two stages. Bird Casino, Time Thieves, Dream Eater, Cactus Flowers, and Dream Reamer stack early. Hardcore “skumm” punk from Worm Suicide, Lauren Warner’s howling garage-punks Dead Coats, and the masked, firelit, Butthole Surfers-like live insanity of Daikaiju then boot caffeinated butts from here to Houston. – - Austin Chronicle

Austin's ascending DIY act references grunge, garage, noise, and post-punk over old-school pogo rock and hardcore's mosh pit hyper-locomotion, but they rarely slight the "punk" part of the equation. A 2-year-old partnership between Baltimore transplants Lauren Warner (vocals) and Joshua Gage (guitar) and Austin natives Joe Osteen II (bass) and Guy Davis aka Dr. Buns (drummer), the Dead Coats epitomize this dynamic. Nice is their second full-length in less than a year. Across ravers like the title track, "Cat Song," and "Coke on the Water," they welcome us into their living rooms, show us their messes, then invite us to read their journals – entries screaming of desperate lives, leavened with moments of joy or silliness. And as the guitars grind and scrape atop the rhythm section's battering, Warner unleashes a howl, excoriating in its fury, alternated with a bluesy wail. Her rage is total, but there's fear and vulnerability in her 1,000-yard stare. This music connects deeply and seduces; then it shoves you away – hard. Supremely compelling. - Austin Chronicle

In the context of growing up, most bands never survive past their terrible twos. All the initial, “we’re gonna be great,” “they’re gonna loves us,” wears off into the realization that playing music takes a near impossible zen level of commitment to do anything with it. Playing great hangout spots and house shows is easy, you just have to find a niche of like-minded friends; avoid sucking and they will immediately love you. Translating that into bringing a crowd for four shows a month in town is near impossible; better yet getting that crowd to show up a thousand miles away in a city you have never heard of, in a state you couldn’t have found on a map to save your life before touring.

Year two, when you realize it takes more time practicing/playing/recording than it does working your dead end, buzz-killing, nine-to-five you sleeplessly stumble through each day just to support playing in the band is when the foundation begins to crack. That is when it becomes apparent who is deluding themselves in denial about it being just a hobby. Year three is when bands become a unit mapping out a way forward within the confines of their own ambitions. You feel their confidence when they walk into a venue, you can see the business side being eeked out as they learn the too much vs. too little balance of having to deal with all those areas of music every person who ever skipped a party to practice an instrument told themselves they would never be a part of. They teach themselves to balance all that goes into being a band outside of just the parts they love. There are a million success stories on the path of rock n roll. No two are alike. While there is no denying a distinct and dramatically few carry a mystique of manifest destiny aura about them, the vast overarching similarity for the majority of bands who go anywhere comes down to unending commitment.

With their soon to be released album Big Wish, the ambitions for The Dead Coats are high as they stand poised in facing this next phase of development boldly. Big Wish will be the first studio album from the band. It was recorded in Austin at The Bubble Studios. Produced by Chris “Frenchie” Smith. Dissent Records will be putting out the release. Having grown familiar with their sound, the new single shows a band rounding edges; the growl sharpness of vocals of the past are now bigger, reflecting how the band, in general, is less driven to afront the listener by force, instead choosing to draw you into them. All of this is by design as they take this moment in their development to lean on the basics of their sound so as to spotlight the soil by which their future grows. It is not a stepping back, it is a stepping out. Undoubtedly this will be good for the band as a brand.

Some might see the best move for The Dead Coats was avoiding getting too watered down by the involvement of a notable producer and the daunting environment of a studio having graced the presence of Lemmy Kilmister, The Dandy Warhols, Built to Spill, The Meat Puppets, etc, by choosing to record the album live in a two-day crunch rather than tracking it out in pieces into safe perfection. Notable sure, the move they are making that puts what they value beyond compromise of energy and presence into perspective truly the best though is their choice to release the album by playing it live (à la streaming because, ya know, covid). Nothing is more Austin than hyping people through an all senses touching experience to sell records. So at 8 pm on January 30th, we will all get to embrace the album in the true tradition of this town; by falling in love with the music in a flashing memory moving us to buy the record and keep that rush of enjoyment tangibly close for revisiting at will. The recordings themselves no doubt will take on hyped life of their own this year but first and foremost they are focusing on presenting it to those already in the fold to be excited about moving forward on the journey together.

Big things are on the way for The Dead Coats. This album will be as valid to where they are headed as all the wild shows and two great releases which came before it. No more and no less. After three years of digging this band, we are excited to bring you the first track from Big Wish, “Forsake My Name.” Tune in to Safehouse on Saturday the 30th to hear the rest! - Anon Magazine

Austin rockers, The Dead Coats made a rocking full-length album slated to drop Saturday on all platforms. The band tracked the 10-song album, BIG WISH (Dissent Records) in two days utilizing analog equipment and forgoing click tracks in favor of a more natural sound. The analog production and live recording The Dead Coats employed was a nod to rock albums of the past.

The record was produced by prolific Austin-based studio owner, Frenchie Smith (The Meat Puppets, Dandy Warhols) at his Bubble Recording Studio.

Lead vocalist, Lorin Warner adds, “We felt that a lot of tracks in present times can feel stagnant with using a click-track. Tempo changes are natural, and essential to the spirit of rock n roll. BIG WISH, features this spirit with an assorted amount of songs in mixed-genres.“


The result is a really great rock n roll album featuring Warner’s wailing but nimble vocal delivery along with drummer, Ren Fletcher and bassist, Joe Osteen deftly handling the rhythm work while lead guitarist, Joshua Jones adds the kind of riffs that get listeners riled up in a good way. This is a tight, solid rock band that defies the music media’s claim that guitar rock is dead. It’s not even a question to ponder as we waded into the album with a certain amount of excited anticipation.

Opening track, “Fire Again” possesses a driving beat, glam rock vocals by Warner who really knows how to wail without sounding forced. Her vocal ability is highlighted throughout the recording. The band is tight, powerful and clearly know who they are musically. They have the type of self-awareness that is rare for a young band. Tomorrow’s release is their third full-length album.


Track two, “Forsake My Name” was the band’s first single from the new record. The nearly 80’s-era sound on the track is balanced by guitars (not synths) to give the tune a healthy dose of nostalgia but the kind in which listeners raise their eyebrows at how easily it appeared The Dead Coats co-opted the style, then made it their own. The band is self-described as a rock n roll band with garage rock injected into their veins. They’re not wrong.



We really enjoyed the song, “OPF” which has a classic punk vibe, leading off (pun intended) with loud, distorted guitars. Warner’s insistent vocal delivery combined with the classic riffs produced shades of UK punk a la X-Ray Specs. In fact, it’s a bit startling how similar Warner’s vocal styling on this track sounds so similar to the Specs’ Poly Styrene.

Catch The Dead Coats at Far Out Lounge on April 10 to celebrate Warner’s birthday with a great lineup including, The Boley’s, Cowboy Diplomacy and Maryjane brought to you by Dissent Records. Tickets can be purchased in advance here. The band is also scheduled for a sold-out album release show with Ringo Deathstarr on Saturday at Empire Garage. - The Cosmic Clash; Greg Ackerman

Who tops your post-pandemic concert wish list? The Dead Coats make a convincing case to be the live band of the vaccine summer with Big Wish, a bombastic amalgamation of classic rock & roll. Recorded live in two days with producer Chris "Frenchie" Smith (...Trail of Dead, Ringo Deathstarr), the first release for local imprint Dissent Records bursts in guitars ablaze and voices wailing. "I'm 23 with authority," frontwoman Lauren Warner belts in "Stoner Ray," doing her best Chris Cornell impression. "I'm a shooting star/ Not a setting sun," she quips on the monotony-rejecting "OPF." Her operatic runs command this crisp half-hour, but guitarist Joshua Jones propels the frontwoman well, chopping through nimble opener "Fire Again!" and the jigsaw riff of single "Forsake My Name" before slowing to the soft blues licks of "Blood in the Water" and "Good News Last." This music belongs in a sweaty club, but if you're itching to rock now, these guys ignite a safe outdoor space just fine. – Carys Anderson - Austin Chronicle

Holy hell. The shreds on this alone will ignite your car as you smash the pedal to the floor. This is the one to blow your speakers out to. Big Wish by The Dead Coats makes its official debut today, via Austin-based Dissent Records. And leave it to front woman Lauren V. Warner to bring the badass vocal presence that knocks the wind out of you. What better way to celebrate the new music than with a mighty blowout release party tonight, Saturday March 27, at Empire Control Room, 606 E. 7th St.

Ringo Deathstarr and Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol round out what is undoubtedly a high-volume/high-octane show. Everything kicks off at 8:30 p.m. This is a socially-distanced event, adhering to CDC protocol; masks are required, and temps taken at the door.

Oh shoot! As of this writing, The Dead Coats show is SOLD OUT. But the album is available on Bandcamp. - KUTX

I showed up for my second interview with the Dead Coats fittingly hungover. The night before had been a debauched nightmare I’m glad I couldn’t remember. According to my roommates— I told the band as I cracked open a beer with them before we began talking— I had drunk at least a pint of vodka, attempted to lasso a light fixture with a noose tied out of a guitar cable, and come close to accidentally smashing a glass table with a medieval mace. In short: I had been in the right state of mind to listen to Big Wish.

The Austin band’s new album is a declaration of power, written in sweat and blood and signed with the essential anger that defines Punk music. Incorporating a lot of their older influences with the slowed-down, hard-hitting, style of new drummer, Ren Fletcher, some heavy metal riffs from guitarist, Joshua Jones, bassist, Joe Osteen’s driving rhythms and singer, Lauren Werner’s signature, all-out, wailing vocals, the band has crafted a sound that is, at once, both familiar and surprising.

I followed The Dead Coats from their chaotic practice space, through a beaded door, and into Ren’s back den, where we all got comfortable to talk about the new album and its upcoming release.

~~~

Jake: What is the Big Wish? Where does the name come from, and what is it that you guys wish for?

Joe: It’s not necessarily one wish in particular. It’s in the moment. The song, itself is more about need than anything, and there’s always a new need for each occasion, I guess.

Josh: And out of all of the songs, Big Wish felt like the most appropriate to name the album after because of that, too.

Jake: In what way?

Lauren: Well, we picked that one because all of the songs sort of represent a demand for something more. Whether it’s wanting to be taken seriously, or reclaiming your agency, the running theme throughout is just, like, demanding what you need. Getting your big wish.

Joe: It was also one of the first songs we ever wrote, and I’ve always liked the way it sort of gradually gets your attention. I think there’s something allegorical for the Dead Coats in that.

Jake: Some songs, like Fuzz Lighter, for instance, seem like a departure— or maybe an evolution— into this more heavy metal sound. Where does that come from?

Josh: Well, definitely having Ren as the drummer on this album changed how we played. She and I both gravitate toward that sound a little and I think we’ve taken it and ran on some of these new songs. Our last drummer loved to go really heavy and really fast, so we made a lot of more traditionally punk songs and we came out with a 28-minute album, if that. I think we’ve slowed it down from there and it’s brought out this new sound in us.

Lauren: Longer songs, more rage to savor.

Photo courtesy of The Dead Coats
Photo courtesy of The Dead Coats

Jake: So do you think this is a departure? Would you say you’re moving away from Punk?

Lauren: People think “Punk” has to be this particular kind of sound, when Punk is more of an attitude. It’s saying “I don’t care what you think about what I’m doing and I’m going to do it anyways.”

Joe: It’s all inspired by Beyonce, really.

Josh: Lemonade, great album. We go back to it whenever we write.

Lauren: People always think of late 70s, or early 80s bands like Dead Kennedys, and we love that music too, but The Replacements are Punk, too. Punk isn’t a sound, it’s a philosophy.

Jake: I’ve always thought of Punk as this attitude of going to war with something. What are the Dead Coats going to war with?

Ren: Ourselves.

Lauren: People who have always wanted us to fail. A lot of what Stoner Ray has to do with is that. Saying I have power no matter what age I am. I think a lot of it comes from spite, and I’ve always liked spite. Spite is my weapon of war.

Josh: Fucking Greg Abbott.

Joe: Yeah I think we can all agree we’re at war with Greg, even if we don’t directly mention him. He’s always there in the back of our songs.

Josh: If you play them backwards it’s pretty much all we talk about. Shoutout to you, Greg!

Jake: Speaking of, you guys had to cancel your original release show which was supposed to happen the weekend after our epic snowstorm. Why do you think that was an important decision?

Joe: See, the thing is, the day before that supposed storm, I blacked out, and then I woke up a week later, naked in a Walmart parking lot…

Ren: Again?

Joe: Yeah, again, and so I don’t know what any of you guys are even talking about with this “snowpocalypse” stuff.

Lauren: Well, the thing is, we could have gone on at Far Out that Saturday. They were up and running and ready to have us, but we thought it would just be this horrible signal to send to be using all this electricity and water when so many people were still without it. Plus we would have been asking them to drive to see us, and risking their lives. It was just the clear decision to postpone.

Ren: Although someone risking death just to see The Dead Coats in the blistering cold would be pretty punk rock.

Art by Patrick Carroll
Art by Patrick Carroll

Jake: Undoubtedly. Back to Big Wish, I feel like the tone of this album is more sarcastic, even self-effacing. What do you think caused that tonal shift?

Lauren: I think we’ve always had that in us. I know I, for one, have always had this tendency to make jokes at my own expense, sometimes they land, most of the time not. We all get pretty dark sometimes.

Joe: Yeah, this “new” attitude is more like a return. It’s a new album, with a new drummer and a new kind of recording. More professional and purposeful, and so that’s a new beginning and a sort of fresh start, and we already had a lot of those key parts in motion, but the best thing with the sound changing was a nostalgic visitation with the basics.

Jake: You mentioned reclaiming your agency, or your power, as a message to convey. Do you think now is an especially important time to give people that permission?

Lauren: I think any time is an important time to remind people of that, yeah. But we’re also all in this fucking limbo right now, so yeah, I think it’s this time where we’re all craving that— all feeling helpless more than usual. But that sort of message is timeless more than anything. You always gotta take what’s yours.

Ren: I don’t even know if it’s about permission — people need encouragement. Lauren does an amazing job of telling the listener her emotions when she sings. It probably helps that most of the songs she writes are based on things she goes through in her life. I think a lot of people can relate for that reason. Plus it’s just awesome to see women on stage, and it’s right where they should be.

Jake: You guys have a flair for the theatrical with your stage presence. Last time we talked you guys had just played a show at the beginning of the pandemic where you dressed in scrubs and brought Lauren out in a body bag. Do you guys have anything cool planned for your release show with RIngo Deathstarr on the 27th?

Ren: We plan to rock. Loud.

Joe: I’m definitely gonna find some new sunglasses, and I’m calling my mom on stage to tell her I’m on Cash Cab, but I do that pretty often. What the trivia question is? That’ll be a mystery.

Lauren: We’ve definitely been giving it some thought. It’s not always something planned out, but sometimes we just get an opportunity. I saw an ad for a giant rideable dildo, like a mechanical bull, that you could rent and I’d love to bring that up on stage, but that may be something for a different time. We really have no idea what this show will end up being like, you have to buy tables, we’re in the middle of a pandemic still and it shows.

Josh: What I’ve heard from people about our shows is that they feel like the band is playing in your living room, everyone around is your friend, even if one of them decks you in the face.

Joe: No, that’s not it at all, our shows feel like you’re at your grandma’s house and she just baked you cookies.

Lauren: I mean, obviously I want everyone there to get amped and pissed and then go home and maybe cry a little. If that doesn’t sound like a blast, I don’t know what does.

~~~

I attended the Death Coats show on the 27th, and found that Lauren was right about the pandemic. My friends and I were confined to a “pod”— a table near the back of the Empire Garage’s outdoor venue— as was everyone else in attendance. It was the first show I had been to in over a year, which still amazes me. The limitations of the space meant that the show was necessarily toned down from what you would normally expect: no great wave of human bodies writhing against the stage, no drunken brawls (maybe a plus there), a rigorous screening by the, usually quite lenient, bouncer, and no giant dildos to speak of.
But, despite all of this, the Dead Coats still brought their magnetic energy and bombast, belting out the powerful tracks of their new album, cracking jokes like old friends, and rocking, hard as promised.

Things may not have entirely returned to normal in the Austin music scene, but the music still endures, and the Dead Coats still bring the power and the fury. - Concept Animals