A violent tornado of punk rock can be exhilarating, but it’s only interesting for so long. Eventually ducking spikes of guitar shrapnel and trying to fight your way out of a vortex of screams gets old, and you want a sense of the climate changes that caused the storm to begin with.

The Heavy Hearts are passionate veterans of some of the most respected (if unheralded) underground bands of the ‘90s northwest rock scene. The former members of the Delusions, the Bali Girls, and Engine Kid are linked together by life long friendship and creative collaboration—and in the case of Denise Maupin and Brian Burnside—old-fashioned matrimonial bliss. That rich, collective history and unshakable bond is what makes their sound both bristle and breathe.

“We set out to make a record that sounded alive and present. That was a theme I kept repeating to myself while recording and listening to playbacks,” recalls Maupin while discussing the sessions for A Killer of Snakes. “It didn't have to be perfect, but it HAD to be alive.” Recorded entirely in Denise and Brian’s basement home studio, the resulting sound is organic, articulate punk with a bass-heavy edge and sharp ear for melody. “The intent was to preserve the live feel we get while were writing together in our own space and share it.,” explains Burnside. “No tricks or bullshit in the recording process.” Well, one trick, but a wise one: mixing duties were handed off to esteemed producer Johnny Sangster (Mudhoney, the Briefs, the Valley).

Comparisons are perpetually made to Fugazi, Hot Snakes, and X, “It's funny, the influences… It's a great compliment and we love the bands, but they weren’t intentional influences.”

Recorded mostly live, they have captured the energy and honesty of the band on “A killer of Snakes”. “Playing live is the best part; it's when we feel closest as musicians,” asserts Burnside.