Like a long-presumed dead wrestler emerging during a king of the ring match to smash a folding chair over the head of a crooked referee, today The Halluci Nation make their return with the surprise release of Path Of The Heel, the first entry of a new two-part wrestling-inspired project entitled The Road To Halluci Mania.

Listen to Damian Abraham cut a promo on “Tree of Woe.”

On The Road To Halluci Mania, Halluci Nation set their “completely visceral and totally immediate” (CLASH) electronic soundclashes to a unique narrative that would be the envy of Mountain Goats leader John Darnielle: In the reality of the project, The Halluci Nation are Tag Team Wrestling Champions — quintessential good guys who have worked tirelessly to achieve greatness while being an authentic representation of who they are and where they came from.

Path Of The Heel, however, is told from the perspective of their enemies: The Alie Nation, who are a faction led by a character played by Fucked Up singer Damian Abraham (who, as the project attests, cuts a promo like a true pro). The character has become delusional and obsessed with taking down The Halluci Nation, and recruits his own Tag Team to do so at an event called Halluci Mania. Throughout, The Halluci Nation explore the harder edges of their sound, incorporating drum n bass breaks and dubstep drops to dizzying effect.

Listen to Path Of The Heel — which also features the acclaimed Powwow singing group Northern Cree — here.

Path Of The Heel will be followed by a Part 2 in early 2024.

An all First Nation (Mohawk and Cayuga) crew from Ottawa known for their blistering music and activist activity, Halluci Nation (comprised of Bear Witness and Tim “2oolman” Hill) reconfigures traditional Pow Wow music with hard-hitting electronic sound collages that swerve between dubstep, reggaeton, hip-hop, and moombahton. Live, they imbue the music with an activist progressive punk energy that helps them fit in on tours with mosh-starting acts like Fucked Up.

Pitchfork has called their music “politically thrilling and immediate,” while Stereogum describes their live shows as “awesome — full-on punk/rave spectacles.” Exclaim praised their 2021 album One More Saturday Night as “full of galvanizing moments that hold truth to power,” while Complex called it “groundbreaking…The Halluci Nation bring decolonization to the dancefloor.” The group have some remarkable collaborations under their belt: Yasiin Bey, Lido Pimienta, Ed Helms (of The Office), and even (by proxy) Martin Scorcese, whose new film Killers Of The Flower Moon features their track “Stadium Pow Wow” in its trailer.

Earlier this year, The Halluci Nation toured with Fucked Up across 10 Canadian dates that all opened with “a special live wrestling event.” They also released a collaborative single with Fucked Up, which Consequence described as “one hell of a cover of M.D.C.’s ‘John Wayne Was A Nazi.’” Listen to “John Wayne Was A Nazi” here.