Worm Gear

Worm Gear started in 1995 as a print magazine. We published 11 issues before going to a webzine format. In the last year or so things have quieted, however this new blog based format will hopefully change that. The workload and depth of the archives was too much work for one person to maintain the website. This format should alleviate a lot of that burden and we can get back to what we have been doing for so many years. In time we hope to have much of the archive available here as well.

Marty Rytkonen and Scott Candey have been the constants since the very beginning, but over the years we have had numerous writers help us out and contribute some great work along the way and you will see their work here as well. Worm Gear’s focus has always been to provide a certain depth to the varying types of extreme music we cover. Music that has been our lives for nearly 25 years at this point, and the passion and curiosity that has fed the obsession is what we try and bring to the work.

The looser style of the blog will also allow us to deviate from the simple reviews & interviews format we have always had and I think provide for some new elements to the content that we are looking forward to. For those of you that have followed us for years, and those who have no idea about Worm Gear… stay tuned to this space as we have a extensive archive of reviews and interviews from the spectrum of extreme music to bring you. Thanks as always for your attention. Please feel free to to leave comments.

Marty Rytkonen
After 10+ years of toiling beneath the Worm Gear Moniker, I honestly wouldn’t know what to do with myself if this medium of our expression wasn’t a part of my life. When the print side of the mag was still functioning, I was the main biped in charge of keeping in touch with the labels to obtain ads (financial), coordinate interviews and also to design/layout the pages. My tastes center around the black and death metal worlds but isn’t limited to them. Hardcore, punk, industrial, some goth and other esoteric styles also appeal to me.

Outside of the webzine, I run Worm Gear Distribution, co-run Bindrune Recordings and have contributed to other publications such as Metal Maniacs and Digital Metal as a freelance writer. I also play guitar and sing for Charnel Valley (used to be a part of Prosthesis and Slaunchwise).

Scott Candey
My duties with Worm Gear have included, review writing, webmastering, interviews, and various bits of grunt work. My primary focus lies with Noise, Dark Ambient, Death Industrial, Power Electronics, Crusty Punk, Hardcore and various types of Underground Metal .

Outside of Worm Gear I record under the name Gruntsplatter, and have done collaboritive projects that include Blunt Force Trauma, Triage, Circadian, Umbra etc. In addition I also operate Crionic Mind Records and Distribution, and assist with Bindrune Recordings. I also have done graphic design under the banner of Crionic Media. More recently I produce the podcast “Professor Gruntsplatter’s Spookatorium”, and have been getting back to doing some writing and art .