Screams from Underground
Five new tracks from Dallas. Get the record now: digitally from Bandcamp, or on compact disc shipped from the band.
Ships from Dallas, TX · Digital delivered instantly
Sisyphus
The first single from Screams from Underground, the new EP. Camus read the myth as a man handed an endless task who chooses to keep going anyway. Five men from Dallas making that argument at volume.
“The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a man’s heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy.”
Albert Camus, The Myth of Sisyphus
“The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him.”
Fyodor DostoevskyThe Brothers Karamazov
The Members
- Craig MeinhartVocals
- John TapiaGuitar
- Krishna PeriGuitar
- Ryan ForistBass
- David CruzDrums
The abyss, at volume
Formed in Dallas, Texas, S.H.I.V. (Self-Honed Instrument of Violence) welds the crushing riffs of old-school death metal to classic hardcore, then runs the whole thing through the dark philosophical weight of Fyodor Dostoevsky. The intent is not decoration. It is to push extreme music into deeper territory: despair, morality, guilt, and the human condition, delivered as a relentless wall of sound.
In 2022 the band released its debut six-song EP, The Only Way to Escape Is to Die, a raw and uncompromising statement that carved out its place in the underground. Original members Craig Meinhart, John Tapia and David Cruz have since been joined by Ryan Forist and Krishna Peri, rounding out the sound and pushing the intensity with renewed force.
With a sound that is equal parts feral energy and suffocating heaviness, S.H.I.V. continues to cut its own path: brutal, unflinching, and unafraid to stare into the abyss.
The complete record
Every song the band has put to tape, listed track by track.
Screams from Underground
Out NowStudio EP · 2026 · 5 tracks
- 01Guilty No Matter What
- 02Sisyphus
- 03Three Brothers
- 04City of the Possessed
- 05Age of Quarrell
The Only Way to Escape Is to Die
Studio EP · 2022 · 6 tracks
- 01Black Dolphin
- 02In Darkness I Dwell
- 03Bloodthirsty
- 04Ideological Extermination
- 05Dead Within 3 Hours
- 06The Penitent Void
On the record
Conducted alongside Sinusoidal Music’s review of Screams from Underground, filed August 27, 2026. Answers from the band, lightly edited for length.
“It is a sound that will make the depths of hell shiver.”
Sinusoidal Music· August 27, 2026
- How has the band's approach to composing changed since “The Only Way to Escape Is to Die”?
The band went through a prolonged writing stage because we lost two members since our last recording. Ryan Forist came in on bass, and Krishna Peri is our new guitarist. Any time there is a lineup change, it alters the songwriting dynamic. We had one completed song for the new EP under the old lineup (Sisyphus) and otherwise started from scratch. We honed in on bringing out the two main elements that are the linchpins to the band's sound: combining old-school hardcore riffs within death metal songwriting.
- What were your intentions while composing “Sisyphus”?
Sisyphus is a modern retelling of the Greek myth of the man cursed to roll a boulder up a hill only to have it roll back down as soon as it gets to the top. It seemed an appropriate metaphor for modern existence, especially as told through the eyes of a working stiff trying to work up the nerve to face each day. That mixed with the simple, driving riff made it a natural fit for the band.
- How was it working with Sam Paquette and Machine on the recording?
It was an exceptionally smooth process. We knew what we wanted, but both of them are high-class professionals that really brought out the best in us. Sam is an accomplished guitarist in his own right and a gear head, so he knows all the technical requirements necessary for a good recording. And Machine locked in on the vision we had for the album as soon as we told him. We were blown away by how heavy and big it sounds.
- Dostoyevsky is a core inspiration. What of his work informs this EP?
There's not one single work that stands out more than the others. Three Brothers is influenced by The Brothers Karamazov, and City Of The Possessed is influenced by The Devils. The title is a play on Notes From Underground. We draw more from his philosophical perspective than any singular work. Our songs are influenced by him, but they are not direct translations of his plots.
No dates on the book
Nothing is booked at the moment. The next one goes up on Bandsintown and Facebook the day it is confirmed.
Merchandise
Screams from Underground
Compact disc.
The Only Way to Escape Is to Die
Compact disc.
Icon Tee
Heavyweight cotton. Front logo, back print.
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