Chicago blackened dark-wave outfit Bleached Cross have released their new album, ‘Wrath’, out now via New Morality Zine. It’s the four-piece at their most punishing and most human — ten tracks that turn grief into both psychological horror and spiritual reckoning.
Recorded with Andy Nelson at Bricktop Recording, ‘Wrath’ trades raw volume for atmosphere and tension, swinging from suffocating dread to moments of massive, fragile clarity. It’s a record about what survives loss — not the person you were before, but proof that love and pain can be carried together.
“With this record it sometimes felt more like we were scoring a horror movie than writing punk songs. We intentionally pulled back on guitars and really focused on sound design and texture. It was a new approach for us, but the result is probably our darkest and emotionally heaviest work yet.“
The Singles
Crucible arrived alongside the album announcement, charging forth in anticipation of impending grief. Lingering Souls followed, pushing the band further into the shadowy edges of their sound — eerie, spectral vocals and strong melodic hooks paired with layered, synth-heavy atmosphere and an almost dance-like electronic breakbeat. Blood Moon served as the final preview, defined by shimmery guitars and synths reflecting on a lost love, culminating in an anthemic, cathartic ending.
’Wrath’ track list
- Thorn Crown
- Season of the Witch
- Blood Moon
- Crucible
- Tomb
- Lingering Souls
- Torment
- Requiem
- The Dark
- Wrath
Buy ‘Wrath’ here
About Bleached Cross
Bleached Cross have spent the last several years refining a sound rooted fully in collapse and catharsis. Formed remotely between Chicago and San Diego in the winter of 2019, the band began as an exchange of files and ideas between collaborators Zak and Alex before evolving into a full live band in 2020. Since then, they’ve built a reputation through emotionally overwhelming live sets and a sound that blurs post-punk, industrial, darkwave, blackened hardcore, and noise rock.
Following early self-recorded demos and a split with Shamewave, the band released their self-titled debut LP in 2022 via Protagonist Music, followed by 2024’s ‘Columns of Impenetrable Light’ split with Boston’s The True Faith. They’ve shared stages with Frail Body, Secret Shame, Black Magnet, Bongripper, Cloakroom, Deaf Club, and Your Arms Are My Cocoon.
Live Dates
Bleached Cross hit the road this week with Milwaukee screamo band snag, kicking off August 4 in Indianapolis, IN.
♱ BLEACHED CROSS LIVE 2026 ♱
AUGUST
4 – Indianapolis, IN – Healer
5 – Pittsburgh, PA – Roboto
6 – Philadelphia, PA – Deadbirds
7 – Brooklyn, NY – Gold Sounds
8 – Washington, DC – Marx Cafe
9 – Columbus, OH – Dirty Dungarees
10 – Chicago, IL – Casa Cafe
Connect with Bleached Cross: FACEBOOK | LINKTREE | INSTAGRAM | BANDCAMP
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