Synthwave artist Carpenter Brut has unveiled their new single “The Widow Maker”.

The track features vocals from Gunship’s Alex Westaway. This is the second time the two acts have crossed paths; Carpenter Brut remixed Gunship’s “Tech Noir.” Brut said this about working with Westaway on the song:

“While talking with a musician friend of mine, he said, ‘This song, it makes you want big guitars like Rammstein.’ Inwardly, I ruled out the guitar option, but for the vocals, his idea worked for me and I thought it would be cool to have a big industrial voice on this track, like Till Lindemann for example, but in the end I asked Alex Westaway (from Gunship) to sing on it. It's nothing like Lindemann vocally, but I love Alex’s androgynous register a la Brian Molko and what he did with the song.

There was this interesting ambivalence, even paradoxical between the martial side of the music and Alex's voice, which is quite pop, which makes this track both industrial and synth pop. As usual with the singers I work with, I gave Alex a word or two, a theme, and then he came up with his own lyrics. I really like this song, because for me it's Carpenter Brut with a mainstream feel.”

An accompanying music video, which can be seen below, was directed by Deka Brothers. Playing the role of Bret Halford aka Leather Teeth is actor Dylan Sprouse, who is best known for their work in The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and its spin-off The Suite Life on Deck. Sprouse said this about befriending the synthwave artist:

“I sent Carpenter Brut a comic I made with a note that read, ‘As I've written the entirety of this comic series with your music on repeat, I felt it only natural to send you this. I owe it to you.’ That was the first time we communicated and I believe we found ourselves to have some shred of creative kinship in our different mediums since then.

Over a year of us chatting back and forth about finding an opportunity to collaborate on something together, he hit me with the idea to portray Bret Halford in a video of his with the Deka Brothers as directors. We chatted character, background, content and I was all in immediately. Especially because it gave me the opportunity to take out some aggression with an oversized buck knife and some confetti cannons after a few short days of filming, a lot of running, a lot of stabbing, a lot of spiked studs, platform boots and a sprained ankle during a ‘bad drug trip’ scene. I hope you all get as pumped up watching this as I was filming it. Long Live Bret Halford.”

“The Widow Maker” stems from Carpenter Brut’s forthcoming studio album Leather Terror, which is out on April 1 via Universal Music. Pre-orders for the record can be made here.

Carpenter Brut will be touring North America this summer. Tour dates can be seen below. Tickets are on sale to the general public right now.

Carpenter Brut tour dates

August 2022

18 Los Angeles, CA @ Fonda

19 Las Vegas, NV @ Psycho Vegas Festival

20 San Francisco, CA @ UC Theater

22 Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom

23 Seattle, WA @ Showbox

26 Minneapolis, MN @ Varsity

27 Chicago, IL @ Metro

28 Pontiac, MI @ Crofoot Ballroom

30 Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall

31 Montreal, QC @ MTelus

September 2022

01 Boston, MA @ Royale

02 New York, NY @ Brooklyn Steel

03 Silver Spring, MD @ Fillmore