Necron 9’s debut LP came out earlier this year and Jeff even wrote about it extensively for his staff pick a while back, but I avoided making it Record of the Week until now because we couldn’t keep the record in stock. It’s been through a few represses already and the band toured a lot this summer, and since the drummer runs the record label, that entailed some gaps in supply. But now that we have a good stock, it’s time to put up the signal flare for how great this record is. For me, much of Necron 9’s magic comes from the way they weave together two key aspects of their sound. On one hand, they have this post-Damaged, dissonant and angsty thing, extruded through a grimy, half-decomposed rust belt filter. It’s totally raw and desperate, like the painful birth pangs of a post-apocalyptic civilization. But then alongside all that dark and angsty stuff, Necron 9 weaves in influences that sound to me like 80s Japanese punk, very rock-and-roll sounding in some respects, but with this stilted, odd disposition that comes across as kind of gothic. See the track “Flower Child,” which has shades of G-Zet and the Execute in its captivating main riff. Necron 9 weaves between these two poles in their sound masterfully, mixing them in different proportions in a way that feels absolutely gripping for the whole of People Die. The production is spot-on too: raw and fuzzy, like a grainy old horror flick. It’s just a fantastic record in every way… original-sounding, ambitious, musically dextrous, and of course punk as fuck. I also have to give it up for the packaging of the physical release, which includes a screen printed jacket, poster insert, and illustrated lyric booklet… it really feels like the band, label, and everyone involved put all they had to this one, and their passion shows through in the final product. If you haven’t already picked up this gem, do it now so you’re ready to write about it in your “Best of 2025” list.