Australian Feminist Death Metal Punks unleash their 'Disgust' to the masses
What a tantalizing name for a band! This is made even more intriguing by their spider’s web, Death Metal-esque logo design. Stabbitha & The Knifey Wifeys have just released a brand-new album, ‘Disgust‘, and my attention was well and truly piqued. Could they live up to their name, I wondered? Formed in 2014 and based in South Adelaide in Australia (Kaurna Land), Stabbitha have been cutting a ferocious swathe through the live circuit, where Kathleen Hanna from Bikini Kill was noted to remark; “…no idea how the singer is alive after soundcheck….so much power!!”
They don’t cover the subjects you would necessarily expect from a band with Death Metal influences, where “beneath the distortion, lies a deeply personal exploration of womanhood, queerness, survival and loss.”
Stabbitha & The Knifey Wifeys consists of:
Sass Williams – Vocals
Eb Tonkin – Bass and vocals
Jordan Varbaro – Guitar
Alex Hollow – Drums
‘Disgust‘ was recorded and mixed by Alex Upton, and was produced by the band themselves. Stabbitha & The Knifey Wifeys say that this album is for people who’ve looked at the world recently and thought, “This is disgusting.” I imagine that would include a lot of us, so I was interested to hear what this album had to offer.
‘Victory Of Death‘ initially sounds like a metallic garage-punk song, with some cool melodic guitar lines. In some ways, it reminded me of Tragedy (USA) and their ilk, who dared to mix punk heaviness with catchy melodies. It’s a very powerful sound, with screaming vocals to accompany this taut song. We also get a nice chugging mid-section with dualling guitars, leading into a wailing guitar solo. A strong start to the album.
‘Initial Wastage‘ has a stop/start intro, with a thrash metal riff. If your devil’s horn salute is not raised aloft at this point, you must be dead. There is also a section in the track that brings a relative quietness to the proceedings, before the song rocks out to the max.
‘Act Your Wage‘ is an album stand-out track, with an almost ‘hair metal’ guitar solo on display, to kick things off. Sass Williams screams, “No regrets! No forgiveness!”, as the song chugs away intensely. I bet that Stabbitha & The Knifey Wifeys are an intense proposition in a live scenario… A rolling beat and squealing guitars introduce the next song – ‘Letiticus‘ has an interesting, snaky guitar riff, and time signatures that change on a regular basis. ‘Final Kindness‘ is more of a straightforward headbanger of a song, and I defy you not to nod your head to it. It should be the law!
A slow build takes us into the next track, ‘Disruption‘, before rock’n’roll Armageddon hits in a song where the riffs never sit still. ‘Over Me‘ has a beat-down intro that almost lulls us into a false sense of security before the rest of the song becomes fast and extremely furious. This one is a relatively short song too. ‘Spit-Wine‘ has an intro that briefly reminded me of Refused, complete with harmonizing guitars and vocals literally spat out with venom. The delightfully named ‘Corpse Fauna‘ goes the more traditional rock route, sounding similar to Iron Maiden, but coming across as contemporary at the same time. ‘Tallowed Candlelight‘ has a chunky bass sound, and the vocals come over bright and clear on this number. The album ends with an impressive slice of melodic hardcore called ‘Deeper Known‘.
‘Disgust‘ is an album that has the potential to appeal to a wide audience amongst the alternative music scene, and Stabbitha & The Knifey Wifeys are surely a band to watch out for. This is a top quality, modern day, hardcore album delivered with a heavy metal wallop!
Released on 31st August 2026, buy your copy of ‘Disgust‘ from HERE
Catch Stabbitha on tour:
Adelaide – 3 October 2026
Newcastle – 4 December 2026
Lismore – 5 December 2026
Tickets and more info HERE
- Victory Of Death
- Initial Wastage
- Act Your Wage
- Letiticus
- Final Kindness
- Disruption
- Over Me
- Spit – Wine
- Corpse Fauna
- Tallowed Candlelight
- Deeper Known
Follow Stabbitha & The Knifey Wifeys on Their Socials:
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I have been writing reviews for Brighton & Hove News, and more recently Vive Le Rock magazine for a few years now. Previously, I could be spotted playing drums for many a band over the decades. A noisy habit developed whilst wearing short trousers at school, and one that has had me touring around the UK and Europe. Punk rock is my life, but I am also quite eclectic. I am an avid gig go-er and music devourer, and can feel out of sorts if a gig date is not on the horizon. I have also been known to put gigs on myself in order to fill those gaps.
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