Madlantis Records drops a VHS tape

From wall-rattling sludge rock to hook-laced punk, Ryan Andrews is one of the most experimental and dynamic artists to call Lansing home. Shoot, he even has a country band. His main outfit, No Skull, keeps the busiest, but Andrews always finds time to issue music from his side projects on his indie label, Madlantis Records. Just released is another heavy-as-hell Christmas-themed album from his band Neganance.

Andrews chatted with City Pulse about this new release, a fresh batch of songs issued on a VHS tape. (Yes, you read that correctly). Read on to find out more about it and what’s in the works for 2025. Those without a VCR player can view it on YouTube or stream it for free at neganance.bandcamp.com.

Reflecting on 20-plus years of playing music and releasing albums on Madlantis Records, what do you think of first?
Ryan Andrews: I’m grateful that I’ve had the chance to make a ton of music with a ton of great folks, and there’s been a crowd in the Lansing area and abroad that I’ve had the chance to entertain. They’ve supported all this lo-fi punk rock that we’ve plopped on records, CDs and cassettes. I feel lucky that for 20 years now, I’ve had free reign to release any weirdo thing I want. I started Madlantis Records because I thought our first CD looked dumb without a record-label logo on the back. I never thought it would last past that release, let alone more than 20 years.

You just released a new Neganance album on Madlantis — how did this come about?
This release is probably the sixth and last Neganance album. It’s called “12 Songs.” These songs were written in the fall of 2023 to celebrate 20 years of Madlantis Records and to be our final Christmas grind album from Neganance, our dummy metalhead alter egos.

Most people these days know you from No Skull. Are there any similarities?
Oh, this album is wildly different from the No Skull stuff and very different from the last Neganance music we did. This album is super low-tuned grindcore and slam riffs. It’s short songs, but they’re epically long compared to previous Neganance songs, which usually range from about 12 to 45 seconds. These new ones come in at around one or two minutes each. The mission of this album was to make each song as heavy as we could, with no frills, no solos and nothing soothing. There’s almost no melody, just pure and heavy sludge grind.

What’s on the VHS?
The VHS will include 12 new videos, one for each song. It’s a chaotic mess of drunk and on-drugs Santas, burning Christmas trees, bong rips and other Christmas vomit that syncs beautifully with the Christmas stupidity Neganance grinds out.

Madlantis Records has been around for just over 20 years now. Do you have a favorite release?
Yeah, 20 years ago, I started Madlantis Records to release the first Red Teeth album, called “Fastest Loser.” This will mark the 70th-something release for Madlantis. I think my favorite release right now is the newest No Skull record. The art and tunes all came out great, and they were finished in a timely fashion, which doesn’t happen often.

Phil Clark, who played in Bert with you, also helps run Madlantis Records, correct?
Yes, Phil has been a huge part of Madlantis Records since the second release. That was Red Teeth's 2007 album, “Live at the Aztec Room.” We make decisions together on most releases, and he does most of the cover layout work for physical releases and internet releases, as well as the bigger portion of the videos we do. Nowadays, Phil lives way up north. The last music project we did together was this Neganance release. I wrote and recorded the music at my studio in Haslett. Then we got together at Troubadour Recording Studios in Lansing — our home studio away from home — with the talented Corey Derushia. We wrote lyrics and recorded Phil completely destroying his voice. Phil made 12 videos, created the packaging and produced the VHS tapes.

Is there anything new on the No Skull horizon?  
Last year, we released No Skull’s “Fields of None” LP; we also played some shows as a country group as well as our stoner-rock stuff. Now, we’re dipping back into the grunge-and-punk well with an altered lineup. No one has left the band — we just have a slightly rotating lineup depending on what style we’re playing live. For 2025, No Skull is writing new material we should be playing live and recording soon. We’re plotting a bunch of studio recordings for other material we wrote over the last few years, including our doom-country set.

I know it’s a long list, but what bands have you played in over the years? Is there an era you’re most fond of?
I’ve been in 6seed, Cirkus Hed, Vraptr, Spanish Ghost, Valez, King of the Monsters, Red Teeth, Tax, the Ohmophobes, Trash Juice, Bert (later the Legend of Bert), Dr. Device and No Skull. I have a soft spot for every project I’ve participated in, but No Skull is my favorite. It’s the thing I’m currently doing and most proud of musically. I will say, though, that being in Bert with Phil and my brother, Rael, was probably one of the greatest times in my life, band-wise. We had a lot of fun making albums, touring and laughing together. These are memories that I’ll remember at the end of my life.

Outside of music, what are you up to these days?
I live the life of a Michigan guy. I have a son in college and a fun and cool wife who teaches middle school and makes me laugh a ton. I read book after book after book. I’ve ditched all social media and most of the internet. I just work on art and music and read and drink beers. It’s a good life.

For more information, visit madlantisrecords.com.