{"id":333876,"date":"2026-07-09T02:09:26","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T02:09:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/333876\/"},"modified":"2026-07-09T02:09:26","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T02:09:26","slug":"unholy-rodents-perfect-squirrelcore-on-debut-album-verminous","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/333876\/","title":{"rendered":"Unholy Rodents perfect ‘squirrelcore’ on debut album ‘Verminous’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"UnholyUnholy Rodents Credit: Adam Hall<\/p>\n

The idea of a concept band packs many connotations, most of them highbrow. But with new Central Florida punk trio Unholy Rodents, you\u2019d be wrong. Predicated on a demonic squirrel schtick that defines their entire identity, they\u2019re about as intellectual as Tampa\u2019s Wolf-Face \u2014 who, by the way, all perform dressed like Michael J. Fox\u2019s Teen Wolf. Just like Wolf-Face, however, this does not preclude them from being some sort of brilliant.<\/p>\n

The three-piece scurry of vocalist-bassist Squirrel Goddammit, guitarist Blind Squirrel and drummer Anti-Squirrel call their music \u201csquirrelcore\u201d and perform wearing horror squirrel masks. While that concept may not necessarily suggest depth, it does prove some wicked guile. Now, the young group are emerging to infect our scene with their very particular breed of punk-rock pestilence.<\/p>\n

From their Lake County origins, Unholy Rodents are beginning to creep into the metro with some live shows, including one this weekend. They\u2019re also coming armed with new debut LP Verminous. With songs like \u201cSatanic Squirrels That Love to Sin,\u201d \u201cFuck Animal Control\u201d and \u201cGet the Fuck Out of My Tree,\u201d the album is a 10-pack of hardcore songs mostly involving squirrels \u2014 so, fair enough, squirrelcore. For a fledgling group that\u2019s also a novelty act, Verminous is an introduction that\u2019s probably more than you would, and probably should, expect from a comedy band. In fact, forget that apologist disclaimer. This record is a scorcher.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Youtube<\/p>\n

Unholy Rodents are a band that shoot it deadly straight. No experimental detours or arty flourishes, just head-on hardcore that makes Verminous a bolt of high-velocity punk rock built for the pit. There are a couple of surprise ska breakdowns on \u201cNo One Cares\u201d and \u201cJeff (the Squirrel) Goddammit\u201d that could qualify as comedic relief. But, otherwise, fast and furious is the mode with storming guitars, barreling beats and confrontational shouts. It\u2019s classic anti-establishment punk rock done with fidelity, fire and, OK, fur.<\/p>\n

Unholy Rodents may be a novelty act, but they\u2019re no joke. This debut album is a funny but fierce blast. So gird your loins and your bird feeders alike \u2014 these squirrel nut rippers are coming. Verminous now streams everywhere, and this weekend you can catch the disease live when Unholy Rodents play at Sanford Punk Night with Swift Knuckle Solution, No Allies, Best Days Behind and Steve Osborne. (6 p.m. Saturday, July 11, West End Trading Co., $10)<\/p>\n

\"Stay<\/p>\n

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This article appears in July 8-14, 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Unholy Rodents Credit: Adam Hall The idea of a concept band packs many connotations, most of them highbrow.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":333877,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[139,141,140],"class_list":["post-333876","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/333876","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=333876"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/333876\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/333877"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=333876"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=333876"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=333876"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}