Los Angeles, CA – August 8, 2012 – Santa Cruz punk rockers Stellar Corpses debut album Dead Stars Drive-In released on Santa Carla Records is available now! Produced by the multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning Joe McGrath (AFI, Morrissey, Green Day, Blink-182, Alkaline Trio), the band blends a musical amalgamation of punk, rockabilly, hard rock and melodic rock, thrown in for good measure, on an album that defies musical expectations. In support of the release, Stellar Corpses have been touring opening for punk rock legends TSOL, Nekromantix, Voodoo Glow Skulls, and classic horror punk rockers The Misfits. The band recently announced a slate of live shows including dates with Tiger Army this fall, additional tour dates to be announced. View the video for the bands’ first single “Vampire Kiss” now online. 

With musical influences ranging from Elvis, Black Flag, Social Distortion, Stray Cats, and Bad Religion, to Black Sabbath, The Misfits, Danzig, Rancid, Sepultura and Megadeth, it’s no wonder Stellar Corpses chose to work with producer McGrath pouring everything they had into a stellar first album. Dead Stars Drive-In features special guest turns from Hunter Burgan and Jade Puget from the revolutionary goth punk band AFI, and Michale Graves of The Misfits.

“It was amazing to record in the same place that so many of my influences recorded,” said singer Dusty Grave. “Black Flag, Descendents and Pennywise to name a few. And working with Joe McGrath was incredible. He helped us to make the best record of our lives. Not to mention how excited we are to have had Hunter, Jade and Michale involved.”

“Vampire Kiss,” the groups’ video for their first single off the album is “a nod to our hometown of Santa Cruz,” where the movie The Lost Boys was filmed, says Grave. “Its a powerful sing along that would frighten any glittery vampire out there,” said bassist Dan Lamothe. The video also boasts cameos from producer Joe McGrath and AFI’s Hunter Burgan, who sings backup vocals on the track. Continues Grave, “Working with Hunter was amazing. He took the video to a deeper, darker level, which was perfect… way more than we expected. We thought he would just walk by, make a cameo in the background and bail, but he didn’t. He fully embraced this role and brought some serious intensity to the set.”

Dead Stars Drive-In covers all sorts of subjects beginning with the title track, an ode to the dark side of Hollywood and how some of its brightest stars eventually burned out. “But to this day, their lights shine as bright as ever, and we will go on loving them always,” Grave explains.

Stellar Corpses, which literally means “dead stars” in astronomy (Grave’s idea from studying astronomy in college), have become a fixture in the Santa Cruz hard rock music scene over the years. They are by no means an overnight success story. The band met in high school and have been around, playing clubs, building their fan base one-by-one with their dynamic and interactive live shows.

“When Stellar Corpses was first getting started we set a goal to follow in the footsteps of all the bands that have inspired and continue to inspire us,” says Grave. “It’s six years later, and we are working with these bands. Life is good…it pays to follow your dreams.”

Stellar Corpses is Dusty Grave on vocals and lead guitar, Dan Lamothe on backing vocals and upright bass, Emilio Menze on backing vocals and guitar, with Kyle Moore on drums.

STELLAR CORPSES CONFIRMED LIVE SHOWS:

DATE                        VENUE                                                            CITY/STATE

Sep 01                       East Village Coffee Lounge                Monterey, CA

Oct 12                       Red House Studios                            Walnut Creek, CA

Oct 21                       The Catalyst                                     Santa Cruz, CA w/Tiger Army
Oct 26                      Moe’s Original (Halloween party)           Denver, CO
Oct 28                      Marquee Theatre                                 Tempe, AZ w/Tiger Army
Oct 29                      Strummer’s                                         Yuma, AZ
Dec 01                      Oakland Metro                                    Oakland, CA
May 25, 2013            Tucson Rodeo Grounds (Hot Rods and Horror Festival)            Tucson, AZ

* additional dates TBA

Stellar Corpses…morbidly fun punk rock from Santa Cruz: www.stellarcorpses.com

Become a fan on Facebook: www.facebook.com/StellarCorpses

View videos on YouTube: www.youtube.com/stellarcorpses

Follow the band on Twitter: @StellarCorpses