Tristan Shone, hero
Christina Liu
One minute Tristan Shone was touring with Tool, one of the highest-grossing rock acts in history. The next, he was in quarantine inside his San Diego home, just like the rest of us. It was March 2020 and he was performing across the country as Author & Punisher, his mostly one-man industrial doom metal act. The tour had only started that January—there were still a few dozen dates on the lineup when he drove home from Portland as lockdowns began.
Nowadays, Shone is touring again to promote his new album, Krüller. He’s also readjusting to life back on the road. He recently completed the first leg of a tour, which began at Tijuana’s Moustache Bar in February and ended at The Casbah in May. It picks back up in autumn and heads to Europe.
“People are ravenous out there,” he says, referring to his return to live performances. But he’s quick to clarify: “Not in a bad way.”
He says audiences are excited to be out there again. They’re talking to him more than usual at live shows and making eye contact. He concedes that it’s left him feeling anxious and overwhelmed after years off stage and a little conflicted about touring again. “I’m hiding a lot more than I used to,” he says. “But it also feels good.”
Author & Punisher, bw
Christina Liu
Author & Punisher unofficially started in 2004 while Shone was finishing graduate work at UCSD. His thesis included building an assortment of custom drone and dub machines that produce electronic sounds. Some weigh over 300 pounds and operate by way of levers, chains, slides, cranks, and more.
His thesis earned him an MFA in electromechanical sculpture and a new career path to rock stardom. The resulting Author & Punisher sound, made by layering synths over one another alongside heavily distorted vocals and intricate, overwhelming melodies, recalls analog heavy metal with an extra dose of sludge.
Shone’s music has inspired a cult following of gearheads and metal lovers. That notoriety, in turn, brought him into friendship with the members of Tool, which eventually landed him a spot on their touring lineup.
Krüller was recorded entirely in San Diego with a fleet of accomplished local artists. Phil Sgrosso, best known for his work with As I Lay Dying, wrote and recorded the guitar parts. (Doug Sabolick of Ecstatic Vision plays guitar on tour.) Other vocal and instrumental guests include drummer Danny Carey and bassist Justin Chancellor, both of Tool; producer Jason Begin; Shone’s wife, Marilia Maschion; and sound engineer John Cota. Shone says it’s incredibly new for him: “I usually don’t let people into my world like that.”
Author & Punisher, stage
Christina Liu
The result is a somewhat softer record than Author & Punisher’s previous releases. It’s still heavy, bone-rattling music—a primal release of sorts—but now it’s more obviously melodic, a bit more mature. In contrast to the screams and terrifying synths of Shone’s 2018 release Beastland, on Krüller there are more contrasting sounds, IRL instruments, and a wider range of vocal styles. It’s the sonic equivalent of the sun peeking through storm clouds. He remembers thinking, “I’m going to try to make things really heavy but also use my voice more as an instrument, rather than a rivet drill.”
These changes gave him breathing room he hadn’t previously enjoyed as just one person, no matter how many machines he connected. Even performing Krüller feels different—he says it’s the most enjoyable live set he’s ever played, a welcome relief after the turmoil of the last few years. “I’m more relaxed, more mellow,” he says. “It feels like I’m more in control.”
