Joining us this week is Brian Cook, you may know him as bassist in heavy bands Russian Circles and Sumac. This conversation focuses on his first solo effort - under the name Torment & Glory - which was released in late August. We Left a Note with an Apology draws from a wide music palate, folk tradition, country storytelling, krautrock with moments of sludgy distortion that transport the listener to a series of moments in Brian’s life. Our conversation also touches on the construction of the album, how Sargent House became involved in the release, social unrest, closing on a short discussion about recent Russian Circles brewery and coffee roaster collaborations. Brian created an exceptional playlist to accompany this episode that we've been digging since our conversation. Listen to the playlist HERE. Here's Brian's description of the playlist:  "A few weeks back I did a playlist of stuff that influenced the Torment & Glory (or stuff that I was listening to a lot while working on it) so I tried to make this one not have much/any stylistic overlap. So this one is basically starts with Dead Kennedys' "Terminal Preppie" cuz that was my gateway drug into punk, then kinda takes off into a bunch of weird punk stuff, fringe hardcore, art punk, krautrock, old school funk, dark drone, death metal, black metal, gloomy electronic stuff, guitar/savvy indie stuff, and a little wind-down with some jazz." Enjoy the playlist HERE. Enjoy the video for the song "No Big Crime". Find Brian Cook: Torment & Glory Russian Circles  Sumac Find Heavy Hops: Website (Listen to all episodes and access detailed show notes!) Facebook Instagram Twitter Support The Show By Donating Episode Art and HH Logo By: Bryn Gleason This episode was recorded, edited, mixed and mastered at Studio Berserk in Gothenburg, Sweden by: Esben Willems. Music by: Sam Cangelosi Please consider donating to our fundraiser to help Sam (Co-Host of Heavy Hops) fight cancer! Please a href="https://scorchedtundra.