A Literary Odyssey in Fire and Fury — A Genre-Defying Metal Debut Emerges
Experimental metal trio AGENBITE MISERY have just unleashed Bellwether and Swine — a venomous, cerebral, and sonically punishing debut single from their upcoming album Remorse of Conscience, due February 6, 2026. It’s the first crack of thunder from what promises to be one of the most ambitious concept records in recent memory — a full-scale metal adaptation of James Joyce’s Ulysses.
Clocking in at just under six minutes, Bellwether and Swine is a seething blackened sludge assault — part literary exegesis, part sonic exorcism. The track dives deep into the “Cyclops” episode of Ulysses, reinterpreting its scathing commentary on nationalism, mob mentality, and rhetorical violence through a modern heavy lens. With militaristic riffing, cavernous bass, and vocals alternating between sardonic sneer and ritualistic chant, AGENBITE MISERY turns metal’s triumphalist posturing against itself — a mirror held up to the monstrous face of jingoism.
Lyrically, the band weaves direct quotes from Joyce’s exaggerated narrator with Old Testament allusions and mythical imagery. Spoken word sections evoke prophetic dread, while sludgy choruses echo the narrator’s dismissals with blasphemous reverence:
“Begob, he got as far as the door. Begob, always some bloody clown or other.”
Self-recorded and produced by the band, the single was mixed by Eric Sauter and mastered by underground mastering legend Brad Boatright. It’s the first of five tracks to drop ahead of the album — and if this is the first salvo, the full-length promises to be nothing short of apocalyptic.
Who is AGENBITE MISERY?
Hailing from New Hampshire, AGENBITE MISERY is the brainchild of guitarist Sam Graff, bassist Cam Netland, and drummer Adam Richards — three literary obsessives with roots in the most caustic corners of extreme music. Drawing from sludge, black metal, post-punk, ambient, and noise rock, the trio isn’t interested in fitting into a scene — they’re out to redefine what concept metal can be.
Former collaborators in Boston metalcore project VICARIUM and the avant-garde UNDER GREEN SUNS, Graff and Richards bring a history of progressive experimentation. Netland, previously frontman of Connecticut’s COAGULATE, adds a crushing low end and seething vocal duality. Together, they form a unit less interested in genre boundaries than in weaponizing sound as a vessel for intellectual and emotional upheaval.
Remorse of Conscience will adapt chapters of Ulysses into modern sonic language, retaining the depth and density of the original text while charging it with explosive energy. If Bellwether and Swine is any indication, this is not your typical concept album — it’s a feral, labyrinthine, and unapologetically literate reimagining of modernist myth.
Connect with AGENBITE MISERY:
- Bandcamp: https://agenbitemisery.bandcamp.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61574211514876#
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/agenbitemisery/?hl=en
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwjOZilhkqTRkZHpJJwlbhw
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6dYQgCtNvpvNWwfQ06LQQZ
- Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/agenbite-misery/1716987132
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@agenbite.misery
