THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Beneath the neon haze of Los Angeles, In Covert emerged — not with a bang, but with a pulse. Formed in 2019 by guitarist/synth artist Wes Lopez as an outlet for ambient loops and drone experiments, the project began as a solo ritual before evolving into a full band. The pandemic halted early momentum, but also catalyzed a transformation: The sound turned darker, more mechanical, more haunted.
By late 2022, Wes reconnected with long-time collaborator and drummer Oscar Ruvalcaba (Warlocks, Flaamingos, All Your Sisters), and their chemistry reignited the project. In 2023, the addition of vocalist Kris Balocca (Phaeic) — bringing range, fury, and magnetic presence — helped In Covert find their voice. Rounding out the live lineup in 2024 with bassist Victor Gutierrez (also of Phaeic), the band quickly solidified its presence in the L.A. underground.
Describing In Covert’s style is like trying to catalog a fever dream. It’s part deathrock, industrial metal, post-punk, and shoegaze, filtered through a VHS tape of The X-Files and scored by Godflesh and The Cure. Touchstones range from Christian Death to Ministry, from Celtic Frost to My Bloody Valentine. Add to that a love of ’70s–’90s horror and sci-fi — Hellraiser, The Crow, Blood Cult, Return of the Living Dead — and you begin to get a sense of the band’s cinematic vision. Lyrically, Kris channels overstimulation, grief, capitalist collapse, and AI-era dread with searing intensity.
Their debut album Bleak Machinery was recorded across sessions at Moonpalace and Paradise Recorders with engineer Chris King (Cold Showers, Kai Tak). The result is an album that feels both ancient and future-bound — a scorched vision of cultural collapse rendered in noise and atmosphere.”
