Bonecruncher

Bonecruncher

Ohhhh yeahhhhh, dig it! Let me tell ya somethin’ about the wildest, most bone-crunchin’ crew to ever hit the punk scene. Bonecruncher, straight outta Wellington, New Zealand, formed in the most savage year of 2013! 

We got Anna Bouwmeester, a vocal powerhouse, screamin’ from the top rope. Then there’s Chris “Retro” Maclaughlin slingin’ riffs on guitar like a six-string savage, coming from the grindcore chaos of Numbskull. Dan Fraser, the drum-pounding madman, laying down beats harder than a piledriver, with a rap sheet including Shortlived, Deaf Terrorists, Bonus Donor, and even moonlightin’ in Phone Sex Robots. Sarsha Leigh-Douglas, holding it down on bass, a D-beat queen from Rogernomix and Fantails, with some Shortlived action in her past too. And Vanya Vitali, the other guitar-slinging warrior, fresh from Dunedin’s ska-punk scene with Ritalin and Skaface Claw, while still ripping it up in Freak Magnet and Raw Panic. 

Bonecruncher hit the scene in December 2013, dropping their first gig with Wellington sludge lords Meth Drinker, then flexing their muscles at Deadfest in Napier, sharing the stage with bands from all over the land. They were bringing stadium D-beat rungafication, pure, unfiltered chaos that’d make the crowd go wild! For two years, they tore through New Zealand like a hot knife through butter, hitting Onslaught in Dunedin, Smakdown in Hamilton, Punkfest in Christchurch, and everywhere in between, leaving nothing but broken bones and blown minds in their wake.

In 2014, they stormed into Scumbag College, Vanya’s DIY studio in Rongotai, and laid down tracks hotter than a flamethrower on a veggie-dog BBQ. Their self-titled debut album dropped in March 2015 on vinyl, courtesy of Sarsha’s Pantaloon Party label. Eight tracks of top-rope annihilation, brother! We’re talking the sonic equivalent of a bull and a dog squared to the power of 1086, stick your head in the V-8 engine of the last interceptor and ride the highway to the bonezone! Impervious to pain, the excellence of execution, pure rungacide, OHHH YEAHHH!

By 2015, they were cooking up a split EP with their Wellington D-beat brothers Rogernomix. Plans were in the works for a tour through Australia and South-East Asia in 2016 to drop that vinyl bomb, but the tower of power got too sour, and the plans fell apart. The release didn’t hit until Rogernomix went solo on the road. Later that year, tensions flared like a bad promo, and Chris and Dan stepped out of the ring, leaving Anna, Sarsha, and Vanya to team up with Jerry Sauve from The Dilfs to form TVX.

Bonecruncher was a wild ride, a punk rock suplex of sound and fury, and they left their mark on the scene like a Macho Man elbow drop from the top turnbuckle! OHHH YEAHHH, DIG IT!

Add To This Post

To contribute info, photos, corrections contact mail@upthepunks.co.nz


OriginWellington
GenreD-beat, crust
Years Active2014 – 2016
Associated ActsPhone Sex Robots
Rogernomix
TVX
Past MembersAnna (vocals)
Dan Fraser (drums)
Chris Retro (guitar)
Sarsha (bass)
Vanya (guitar)

Releases

TitleDateLabelTypeFormat
Bonecruncher2015, March 7Pantaloon Party Distroalbum12″/ DL
Bonecruncher / Rogernomix2016, May 1ANF019splitDL

Timeline

2013, December 6, Medusa

2014

2014, January 30, Mighty Mighty
2014, February 1, The Cabana
2014, July 26, Valhalla
2014, August 23, Onslaught
2014, September 6, Valhalla
2014, September 27, Valhalla
2014, December 20, Whammy

2015

2015, March 2, Valhalla
2015, March 7, Bonecruncher

2015, March 7, Hamtown Smakdown

Photos: Amy Torr

2015, March 28, Whammy
2015, August 21, Valhalla

w/ SNFU – Photos on UTR

2015, October 23, Punkfest

Photo: Amy Torr

2015, December 18, Whammy
2015, December 19, Ellen Melville Hall

2016

2016, January 22, Valhalla
2016, March 18-19, Hamtown Smakdown

Photos: Amy Torr

2016, April 29/ 30, The Royal/ Valhalla
2016, May 1, Bonecruncher/ Rogernomix

2016, June 4, The Cabana
2016, August 11, Valhalla