photos by Katharina Fruehwirth
“Wannabe V.I.P.” is the third and final single previewing People As Idiots & Idiots As Leaders, the ravenous and politically-charged third LP by Vienna, Austria-based political hardcore punk/noise rock trio DESOLAT, which will be released next week.
While DESOLAT’s output combines elements of noise rock, sludge, and hardcore, at heart, its members are anarcho-punks who can’t let the injustices of modern society go unaddressed. The album’s chronology follows an initial assessment (“Idiots As Leaders,” “Pig Race To The Apocalypse”), followed by depression (“This Sadness Makes Me Rage,” “No Depression When Dead,” “Good People Keep Their Mouths Shut While The Assholes Believe The World Belongs To Them”), and ultimately culminates in cynicism and resignation (“Cyberdyne Employment Application,” “Humans Are Such Easy Prey”). It doesn’t sound very uplifting, yet anger at the state of the world and one’s own condition is omnipresent in the energy of the music and lyrics. Stylistically, emocore elements have crept into the band’s sound for the first time, revisiting the past projects of its members.
People As Idiots & Idiots As Leaders features guest appearances by vocalist/musician Jarboe (ex-Swans), saxophonist Michael Masen (Mozo Mozo), and RBK from post-punk band Rolltreppe. The album was recorded and mixed at Cosmix Studio in Vienna by Rainer Spänle and mastered by Swedish death metal legend Dan Swanö at Unisound (Edge Of Sanity, Katatonia, Bloodbath).
DESOLAT guitarist/vocalist Alfred Satani reveals, “The third and final single released ahead of the album is titled ‘Wannabe V.I.P.’ and is the second song that doesn’t fit the album’s overall concept.
“Who doesn’t know people who talk about nothing but who they know? You get the feeling that their self-worth is fueled solely by the (supposed) social status of their acquaintances. Their obtrusive stories revolve around when they did something – or even just talked – with some ‘cool’ person. This phenomenon can be found in all social classes and circles. And with men, of course, there’s the added variant of sex stories as trophies of heroism. Totally annoying! And on closer inspection, actually sad. If you really want to, you can take it very seriously, because with the value system underlying it, the dream of an egalitarian society fades into the distance. It’s a perspective rooted in a ranking of people that has nothing to do with character. Whether the people involved have a healthy psyche and self-esteem is also questionable.
“Musically, the song is surprisingly upbeat and punk-rock for DESOLAT. The vocals are by featured artist RBK. She’s the singer of the Viennese post-punk band Rolltreppe.”
DESOLAT’s “Wannabe V.I.P.” is now playing HERE.
People As Idiots & Idiots As Leaders will be released digitally and on marbled oxblood vinyl next Friday, October 9th and disseminated to the masses as a DIY collaborative release by nine labels and three distributors from seven countries, including, Reptilian Records and Exotic Fever Records in the US, Bloodshed666 Records and Grazil Records in Austria, Araki Records in France, minoRobscuR in Germany, Geenger Records in Croatia, Rat Run Records in the UK, and Geertruida in the Netherlands, and distributed by Dischord Direct, Stickfigure, Sounds Of Subterrania.
Preorders for all regions can be found where both prior singles including “The Art Of Shit” video are playing HERE.
A hometown album release party has been booked for October 16th, with more live plans in the works.
DESOLAT Live:
10/16/2026 Venster99 – Vienna, AU *album release show
Nine years after the breakup of the stoner/sludge band Cyruss, the successor trio DESOLAT was formed, consisting of three longtime members of the Viennese scene and (former) members of Phal:Angst, Cyruss, Dim Prospects, La Ligne Maginot, Gfrast, Face The Owl, Radikalkur, E.M.S., and others. DESOLAT’s second album, Get Sick And Let Me Watch You Die, was released in 2024 on the legendary U.S. noise rock/punk label Reptilian Records, and marked a milestone for the band in terms of international attention.
The nine songs on DESOLAT’s People As Idiots & Idiots As Leaders largely follow a thematic concept rooted in our times. In a world where wannabe and actual autocrats, far-right extremists and populists, macho loudmouths, and religious fanatics are elected to lead nations, democracy appears increasingly fragile. When the trajectory of social and political development seems to be heading primarily downward, democracy becomes a precious commodity even for anarchists – one that we must hope will at least be maintained at its current level. The conflict between revolutionaries and reformists within the left-wing scene suddenly seems ridiculous. When one is surrounded by figures like Putin, Orbán, Erdoğan, Trump, Bolsonaro, Milei, Meloni, Kaczyński, and the like – and when parties such as the FPÖ and AfD (both far-right/populist) are enjoying enormous success in one’s own and the neighboring country – it becomes disheartening to hold out hope for the future. The media landscape is shifting towards sickening and emotionally radicalizing social media dynamics controlled by ridiculously rich oligarchs who openly express anti-democratic fantasies of omnipotence and would love to play the role of world leaders.
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