This past Friday, 29 August 2025, Youth Code brought their Industrial Worship tour to the Ottobar in downtown Baltimore, Marylandjoined by King Yosef, Street Sects, and Insula Iscariot. Youth Code’s Sara Taylor explained they put the tour together because all the bands are friends and wanted to breathe new life into the genre. If Baltimore’s stop was any indication, they’re succeeding.
Insula Iscariot opened with a dense, atmospheric wall of noise before erupting into a dark, angst-fueled set. Critics have labeled their sound everything from death industrial and power noise to EBM—or, as Insula Iscariot has joked, “anemic industrial.” Whatever you call it, their performance was both powerful and dynamic, veering between restraint and rage. They closed by stepping off the stage and into the crowd, hooded with a paper mask marked by a crude black cross—a striking finale that no doubt converted new fans and cemented their role as genre evangelists.
Street Sects followed with multi-instrumentalist Shaun Ringsmuth building an intense crescendo before vocalist Leo Ashline stormed the stage in full fury. Their sound pulls from industrial, punk, noise, and plunderphonics, yet feels like something greater than the sum of its parts. Bathed in near darkness, the band kept their visual aesthetic stark and visceral. At one point, Ashline prowled the crowd wielding a defanged chainsaw—half shocking, half hilarious, wholly unforgettable. The onslaught of songs turned the floor into a pit of slam-dancing chaos. Street Sects played with such ferocity it’s hard to imagine anyone wanting to follow them.
King Yosef rose to the challenge. Backed by drummer Kameron Tyler and multi-instrumentalist Cameron Gené, the set fused industrial, hardcore, hip hop, and metal into a seamless, punishing mix. King Yosef commanded the stage with a balance of confidence and casual ease, channeling grindcore intensity, hardcore breakdowns, and punk urgency. The crowd was clearly familiar, screaming lyrics and moshing with abandon, raising the energy bar even higher for the headliners.
Youth Code wasted no time, igniting the room from their opening track. Husband-and-wife team Sara Taylor and Ryan George tore through one anthem after another, their chemistry undeniable. Mid-set, Taylor jumped into the crowd, sparking a hardcore-style gang vocal moment that felt both raw and communal. At another point, she reminded the audience that fans often tell her Youth Code’s music saved them—before declaring that they saved her life, echoing the heartfelt exchanges of a hardcore show. Near the end, King Yosef rejoined the stage to share vocals on “Head Underwater” and “Death Safe” from their 2021 collaboration A Skeleton Key in the Doors of Depression. Youth Code closed with “I’m Sorry,” leaving nothing on the table and ending the night in a frenzy.
Looking back, the night embodied the tour’s mission: to inject new life into industrial music, something they’ve done by incorporating the best elements from punk, post-punk, hardcore, and metal. The genre has always evolved in parallel with these genres—sometimes diverging, sometimes colliding. This new wave of artists stays true to that lineage, making music they want to hear for the crowds they want to be part of. I spoke with one audience member who said he loved industrial but hadn’t been to a show in years. He wasn’t familiar with the bands and had discovered them through the internet. Watching him dance and revel in the camaraderie made it clear: this scene is still alive, still recruiting, still vital. Beyond the analog grit and digital crunch, the Industrial Worship tour feels like a crusade—fusingpunk and hardcore spirit into industrial’s framework to ensure the genre’s survival for years to come.
And if you want more, every artist just dropped new material:
Insula Iscariot released Bloodflow (A Milky Fluid) on 1 August 2025 via King Yosef’s BLEAKHOUSE label.
Street Sects released two albums on 15 August 2025—Dry Drunk as Street Sects and FULL COLOR ECLIPSE under their more melodic STREET SEX moniker, both on HEALTH’s COMPULSION RECORDS.
King Yosef released Spire of Fear on 15 August 2025 via BLEAKHOUSE.
Youth Code released Yours, With Malice on 16 May 2025 via Sumerian Records.
