Photo by Tony Truty
When Your Eyes Are Shut, the vicious new EP from Indiana-based deathcore practitioners MAULED, is out today!
With their latest EP, MAULED sets fire to the modern-day deathcore rulebook with six new tracks of back-bending breakdowns, agonizing, torturous screams and frenetic drumming, reminiscent of the unique sounds trademarked by bands like Whitechapel and Suicide Silence.
“This is our take on the early days of deathcore,” notes vocalist Abe Kirkpatrick. “We don’t necessarily dislike the current state of it, but we’d like to re-route it back to what it once was while combining it with modern influence.”
“We wrote this record with nothing but hate in our hearts,” he continues, “When we sat down to put these songs together, we knew they needed to sound as hateful and angry as possible. This record goes out to all the people that fueled that hatred. I hope you see me When Your Eyes Are Shut.”
Stream MAULED’s When Your Eyes Are Shut HERE.
Watch MAULED’s video for “Drop Dead Gorgeous” HERE.
When Your Eyes Are Shut is available now digitally at the MAULED website HERE and Bandcamp HERE. A CD edition will be available via DS//FP Records in the coming weeks. (Vinyl, initially available through Silverback Gorilla Records, is now sold out.)
When Your Eyes Are Shut Track Listing:
1. Intro
2. Mouthful Of Glass (Feat. Frankie Palmeri)
3. TheLastThingYouSee
4. Unidentifiable Autopsy
5. Drop Dead Gorgeous (Feat. JP Kaine of Surfaced)
6. For Me…It’s Always Like This
In celebration of the EP’s release, MAULED will play a special show supporting VCTMS and The Crimson Armada tomorrow, Friday March 13th in Chicago. Later this month, the band will take to the streets on a two-week headlining tour. The journey will commence on March 26th in Cleveland and run through April 11th in Indianapolis with support provided by Thus Spoke Zarathustra and Surfaced. In May, MAULED will play a trio of shows supporting Whitechapel and Entheos.
Tickets are on sale now at mauleddc.com. See all confirmed dates below.
MAULED Live:
3/13/2026 The WC Social Club – West Chicago, IL w/ VCTMS, The Crimson Armada
w/ Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Surfaced:
3/26/2026 The Foundry – Cleveland, OH
3/27/2026 Preserving Underground – Pittsburgh, PA
3/28/2026 Gametime Sports Bar – Westville, NJ (no Thus Spoke Zarathustra or Surfaced)
3/29/2026 Ottobar – Baltimore, MD
3/31/2026 Back Table – Greensboro, NC
4/01/2026 Poe Mill Music – Greenville, SC
4/03/2026 Klub Kutters – Fort Lauderdale, FL
4/04/2026 Luna Fit – Orlando, FL
4/05/2026 Obscura – Tampa, FL
4/07/2026 The Shop – Atlanta, GA
4/08/2026 Auto Haus – Huntsville, AL
4/09/2026 Tempo – Nashville, TN
4/10/2026 Sprak Skatepark – Louisville, KY
4/11/2026 The Irving Theater – Indianapolis, IN
w/ Whitechapel, Entheos, Tracheotomy:
5/11/2026 Club LA – Destin, FL
5/12/2026 2 Minglewood Hall – Memphis, TN
5/13/2026 Headliners Music Hall – Louisville, KY
“Pushing beyond the current revival movement’s obsession with pure nostalgia, MAULED channels the brazen intensity and stalwart brutality of deathcore’s earlier iterations with flashes of modernity, and the result is staggering. Jarring aggression that stands to jumpstart acts of random violence anywhere it’s heard, the band’s second EP, When Your Eyes Are Shut, is a testament not only to how ferociously in-demand blunt, honest and remorseless deathcore is, but how well these guys achieve it.” – New Transcendence
“The aggression here feels purposeful rather than decorative. From the opening moments the guitars don’t just chug, they lurch. The riffs have weight, almost a dragging quality to them that makes the heaviness feel physical instead of just loud. When the faster parts hit, they’re sharp and violent, but the slower sections are what stick. The band understands that space makes brutality hit harder.” – Black Angel Promotions
“…this isn’t an EP for the casual listener. It leans into the aspects of the genre that are hard-hitting and ruthless. In a world where everything is being toned down, it’s a brutal and stark reminder that sometimes the pristine polish isn’t always needed in deathcore. MAULED have proven they are unwilling to compromise on their razor-sharp concept. Their use of unabating breakdowns is sure to push them to the masses and hopefully grab their attention.” – Boolin Tunes
“…make no mistake, this isn’t nostalgia bait. It’s more like a rejection of modern deathcore, lacking any of the hardcore influences of its namesake. The hardcore is evident here, but with themes of death, murder, and revenge like the death metal portion of deathcore’s namesake. In fact, the fixation on death makes me wonder if these lads are OK. This isn’t the B-horror schlock or tongue-in-cheek of pure death metal. It feels more personal and thus… kinda fucked up. It’s been a while since death metal made me feel this way. Well done, MAULED.” — Heavy Metal Philosophy
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