The Austerity Program

History

The project began after guitarist Justin Foley and bassist Thad Calabrese met in college in New York City during the mid-early 1990s. They first formed a band called Polonium, named after what they believed was the heaviest metal on the periodic table. In 1997 the band renamed itself The Austerity Program. After sending out multiple creatively packaged demos, Hydra Head Records signed the duo in 2002, and their debut extended play Terra Nova appeared in 2003. Their first full-length studio album Black Madonna was released in 2007; according to the Hydra Head Bandcamp page, the title has nothing to do with the singer Madonna. In spring 2008 the duo toured with post-metal band Isis. A follow-up EP, Backsliders and Apostates Will Burn, came out in 2010, marketed with a humorous press release imitating an irate Hydra Head staff member complaining about the record's short run time. After Hydra Head announced in 2012 that it could not financially release more records, the band left and founded its own label, Controlled Burn Records. The second full-length Beyond Calculation was released in 2014 and received warm critical reception, including a spot on Rolling Stone's 20 Best Metal Albums of 2014. In 2016 the duo re-recorded early material under the Polonium moniker and issued the album Seriphim on April 4 of that year. The third Austerity Program album, Bible Songs 1, was released on June 14, 2019 after a lengthy production process; inspired by darker aspects of Biblical stories, it was supported by a short European tour. Its second half, Bible Songs 2, followed on May 1, 2025.