"Front Towards Enemy was the instruction placed on the M18A1 Claymore bomb. A lethal anti-personnel device capable of spraying steel balls to a distance of about 90 meters in a 60-degree arc causing untold damage. Much the same as TMOC really; Front Towards Audience (our friends though, not our enemy), pummelling them for about 90 mins via Kim’s bass… sorry I meant that collectively it’s TMOC doing that. And Kim’s loud bass…" - Josie Scott

Last seen during the summer of 2023–24 performing their landmark 1995 album Ill At Ease in full, The Mark Of Cain return this October for ZED 51 and a run of headline shows celebrating the 25th anniversary of their heavy rock masterpiece, This Is This. “This is This” was an oft used quote we used from Michael Cimino’s film “The Deer Hunter” to describe a situation which just “was”. Often used jokingly by us, it also underscored the idea of having your shit together – a state of being I often struggle with, however that’s never stopped me from pointing it out as a deficit in others 😊 We developed near all these songs in rehearsals with John Stanier back in 2000, working up some that were near fully fledged to others that were merely riffs that Kim and I and John Stanier had. I took all the complete and incomplete songs to the UK in 2001, to finalise and record the vocals working with Andy Gill from The Gang of Four who really pushed me out of my comfort zone for vocals. Knocking is still a favourite of mine from that time, as is Lone Pine and note that Lockdown has the opening guitar riff played by Andy Gill himself. John Stanier’s drumming style fit perfectly for us, and his powerhouse drumming is on full display in songs such as Cut Em Down, Familiar Territory, One Day Late in December, Sleep, and Outsider, a song which was based off a Stanier bass/guitar riff. The overall mix was achieved by Phil McKellar who really, finally, managed to capture our sound.” - Josie Scott

Alongside a handful of crushing This Is This classics, The Mark Of Cain will perform a host of fan favourites while also unveiling a selection of brand-new material as they prepare to record their sixth album in early 2027—their first full-length release since Songs of the 3rd and 5th in 2012.

THE MARK OF CAIN