Key Tracks: “Shallow Graves,” “Stained Glass”

Does your math rock now come packed with extra protein? The sheer concept of health is up for debate in 2026, but wellness isn’t. And neither is Wellness, a new screamo-adjacent group out of New York who put out their self-titled debut album today, September 18^th. The group comes with pedigree, bringing together Morgan Brown (Heavenly Blue) on guitar, Leo Didkovsky (Liturgy, Kayo Dot) on drums, Morgan “Mo” Miller (Liturgy, Chepang) on bass, Cara Moses (Channel Vessel) on guitar, and Aeryn Jade “AJ” Santillan (forever, Massa Nera) on vocals. Longtime readers may know that Liturgy is a particular favorite of mine, so naturally I was intrigued by how that group’s black metal influence may extend to hardcore.

Math rock, for the arithmetically disinclined, has its roots in the complex and drawn-out structures of songs in bands like Rush and Yes. But over time, it has become a bit of a catch-all for unpredictable heavy bands as well. This is where Wellness fit in, who self-describe as “chaotic mathcore.” The seven songs on their debut stretch across screamo, emoviolence, math rock, black metal, and a few other subgenres that would give a normal person a headache. All seven songs are hyper-aggressive, with bleak and pained screaming vocals courtesy of Santillan. The opener “503” really sets the tone for the album, as the most straightforward screamo song on the record. The song acts as a mission statement of intensity before the band starts kicking off in other directions. The math rock and emo elements come through in the riffs and rhythms on “Possessions” and the closing song called, well, “Wellness.” These are among the more melodic tunes on the album – something that is not a guarantee across every song.

Black metal is a major influence here, which is surprisingly uncommon for screamo bands like this. “Tell Me How It Ends” has the bluntest black metal influence, with nary a central rhythm and consistent walls of noise. The follow-up, “Stained Glass,” feels like only a half-step towards brightness, as the song matches the walls of noise with more stereotypical rock drumming. “Glass” is the most ambitious song on Wellness, with a huge pause after a minute followed by a noise wall, and ending in a very skramz finale. It’s an odyssey through the various interests of each band member. There is a slight metalcore nudge at times, too – “Countering” sneaks a metalcore finish into what’s the grungiest song on the album, and “Wellness” tosses some influence into the mix too. On “Wellness,” the band manages to, somehow, end on the heaviest note on the record, sending listeners home with a cacophonous wall of guitars. Even though the album jumps to 10 from the opening beats and rarely lets up, it saves the biggest shove for the final few seconds.

Wellness describe their music as “made by and for the girls, the nerds, and the freaks.” While I am decidedly not a nerd, I definitely fall under freak category and, some days, girl. This is a deeply political release, reflective of the current oppressive state of American politics. Wellness is a melting pot of various extreme subgenres, just as the intended audience is any collective group of better-than-normal outcast. The album, in its brief runtime, tackles anticapitalism, transness, state violence and – most importantly – hope. The energy at which Wellness plays feels like pure catharsis, so much so that it trickles through to the listener. It’s alright to let the anger out, especially when some hope is splashed in. In case this isn’t clear, PGMR stands firmly and permanently with the dolls, and anyone under the thumb who chooses to make art, especially when it is something so proudly loud and aggressive.

The way that the songs on Wellness blend from one to the next makes it sound like the band jumped in the studio and did one long, singular take of the record, one act of cathartic meltdown. The individual members of Wellness have accrued a ton of experience already, but for a band that has only been jamming for a year, this is a breathtaking debut. The ferociousness of these songs might literally take your breath away. Wellness is only 16 minutes, but listeners might not be able to take much more of it, for their own, uh, wellness.

Wellness is available now on Bandcamp and streaming sites (but not Spotify).