Lightning Rules Premieres GNARPEGGIATOR Single From Upcoming EP FOSSIL FEULS

Portland, OR explosive rock trio Lightning Rules has premiered its new single "Gnarpeggiator" on PureGrainAudio. The band's latest single is the third from its upcoming Fossil Fuels EP - set to be released on March 9 - and kicks off with a nasty series of fiery riffs before the band proceeds to douse it in gasoline.

"Carbon is combustible, the ancients come to life, energy is not lost it's only stored" is a curious opening to a rock song, perhaps more befitting a Neil Degrasse Tyson fronted prog project. And yet that bit of nerdery is how Lightning Rules has chosen to begin their latest EP, Fossil Fuels. This opening track, bearing the same title, is a rumination on rebirth and progress borne from apparent failure. It illustrates the central theme of the EP as well as the mental state of the band at the time of it's recording.

"Winter was a low point for us," said front man Wess Willis. "We were missing a drummer, we'd only played a handful of shows that year, we were really tight on cash, not going anywhere and really just discouraged in general. We discussed just giving the band a break, spending time on other things..."

Despite this malaise, the band had not been entirely idle in the previous months. Several new songs had taken shape, many of them channeling the seasons frustration. These tracks would provide both the raw material and the motivation to head into the studio, changing direction rather than backing off the accelerator.

"We had to take a hard look at why we make records. If there's no financial benefit or nobody really cares, is it even worth doing? Ultimately we decided that we would make the record for us, that the songs deserved to exist for their own sake... that we could derive our own meaning and purpose out of what felt like an empty time. So we sold all the gear we could stand in order to get enough money to start the new record."

The band enlisted Stephan Hawkes at Interlace Audio to produce the record as well as provide studio drums. Six songs were recorded, beginning with the title track.

"'Fossil Fuels' really set the tone of what the record would be about," adds Willis. "It accepts defeat, but only as a jumping off point to something greater, sort of a 'nowhere to go but up' feeling. There's a confidence arc across the tracks, they move from a kind of naive chest-thumping proudness down into despair and back out into hopefully a more resolute, mature sort of determination."

In addition to the central metaphor of dinosaurs becoming rocket fuel - new progress from old death - the songs touch on political themes, family issues, censorship, cancer, and corporate greed. Despite the seriousness of the subject matter, the songs bounce and move with youthful energy and abandon. The band considers this contrast a core part of the Lightning Rules sound.

"We don't shy away form heavy subjects, be it personal or more societal issues," explains Willis. "That said, we're still a rock band so it should be fun. The songs should be a release, even if they're dealing with something deadly serious. We want it to feel empowering for the listener, that you can take one on the chin and keep coming back."

The end result is a record that is fully realized in its sound and ambition, and that has weaponized the bands collective experience and talents. Brontosaurus-sized bass and drums construct a granite foundation, while guitars Crackle and vocals stretch and howl. The entire affair rarely stops to take a breath across its 23 minutes.

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