{"id":334108,"date":"2026-06-12T20:40:07","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T20:40:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/334108\/"},"modified":"2026-06-12T20:40:07","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T20:40:07","slug":"austins-cormae-rages-on-sarcastic-ep-everything-is-so-great","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/334108\/","title":{"rendered":"Austin’s CorMae rages on sarcastic EP Everything is So Great"},"content":{"rendered":"

Five-piece local punk band CorMae<\/a> release their new EP, Everything is So Great, on June 12. It’s a record about economic anxiety, mental health, doomscrolling, and the general sensation of being crushed under the weight of modern life, set to fun, frenetic guitar punk.<\/p>\n

“It just seems like everything is just … not great, which is why our album is named Everything is So Great,” says vocalist Amber Appleton. “Big, fat, sarcastic asterisk next to that title.”<\/p>\n

The EP opens with a jolt. “Time Deleter” launches out the gate with a propulsive guitar riff and Appleton\u2019s signature shouting vocals, setting the EP’s no-apologies tone. “Mindst8” follows with a whistling, chipper melody, the sarcastic refrain functioning like a mantra for anyone white-knuckling their way through whatever bad news cycle is up next.<\/p>\n

The album’s lead single, \u201cRut,\u201d, is a standout: a thunderous double-bass stomper about being stuck, waiting for a break that may or may not come. Appleton\u2019s hyperventilating vocal delivery late in the song feels like genuine catharsis. \u201cRut\u201d will be featured in a music video due out today, June 12.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s irony all over the album, like the more cutting \u201cBigtime\u201d, an indictment of fame culture and the endless performance of ambition. But some tracks, like the pointedly looping \u201cADHD\u201d and the 43-second interlude \u201cCredit Card? You Got It\u201d offer comic relief with enough self-awareness to make the listener laugh and wince simultaneously.<\/p>\n

Drummer Aaron Gilligan calls felt the emotions hit hard in \u201cBig Time,\u201d which bleeds into closing track \u201cTired\u201d to form one cohesive story ending in an adrenaline crash. Appleton and Gilligan are the couple at the center of CorMae, and Gilligan recalls being moved by Appleton\u2019s full-throated scream before the song breaks down.<\/p>\n

“I remember when we were recording that moment, bawling my eyes out in the studio, because I know where that release was coming from,” Gilligan says.<\/p>\n

\"Everything Everything is So Great by CorMaeAlbum art courtesy of CorMae<\/p>\n

Everything is So Great, produced by Jonas Wilson, is the perhaps CorMae\u2019s most cohesive release, a natural evolution from two previous EPs and a live record released in 2025. The current lineup \u2014 Appleton on lead vocals, Tessa Cayton on lead guitar and backing vocals, Meryl Mabin on guitar and backing vocals, Maria Romero on bass, and Gilligan on drums \u2014 sounds like a band that has truly settled into itself.<\/p>\n

CorMae are \u201cfiguring out what our ethos and sound is,” Gilligan says. “We don’t allow ourselves to be sandwiched into one little microgenre. We’re always exploring different stuff.”<\/p>\n

Austin critics have been paying attention. KUTX called<\/a> CorMae “the perfect garage punk fuel for the riot grrrl coursing through your veins,” and the band was nominated for Best Punk Band at the Austin Chronicle’s 2025\u20132026 Austin Music Awards. They\u2019ve shared stages with Murder City Devils, Pretty Girls Make Graves, and Of Montreal.<\/p>\n

The connection with Of Montreal turned into something bigger. Appleton submitted the band to open for them in 2025 and got a last-minute call when the original opener dropped. Appleton hung around after the set, found the group\u2019s co-founder, Kevin Barnes,, told him exactly how much his music had meant to them, and asked if CorMae could join him on tour<\/p>\n

It worked. CorMae heads out June 19 on a 16-date national run supporting Of Montreal, hitting Webster Hall in New York, 9:30 Club in DC, and Thalia Hall in Chicago, among others.<\/p>\n

But first, CorMae celebrates the release right here at home. On June 12, they’ll sign records at Waterloo at 5 pm before playing their official release show that night at the 13th Floor with Heavy Velvet, Fifi Knifefight, and Top Down.<\/p>\n

Everything is So Great is available to stream<\/a> or purchase<\/a> now. Vinyl records, cassette tapes, and band merch are also available via the band\u2019s online shop<\/a>. <\/p>\n