PRONG

“If I were to redo the vocals in the studio, the intensity of that moment would most likely be lost.”

“We had to find the best live versions of the songs as they were – and roll with it.”

“Wanting to be original and not easily labeled has been a curse that hindered our popularity.”

“You’ve got to get lucky as a songwriter.”

“It’s a very imperfect project. I’m not a trained singer or guitar player – and I don’t care what people think as much anymore.”

“Now you’re fighting against bands that play with prerecorded tracks. That’s what younger audiences are accustomed to.”

“Tyler is the best drummer Prong ever had, and Dean is the best bassist apart from Raven.”

“Perfection is overrated – intensity isn’t.”

“A live record shouldn’t be cleaned up. It should feel like you’re standing in front of the stage.”

“We were never built to fit into a genre. That’s probably why we’re still here.”

“If you want flawless, listen to a computer. If you want Prong, you get the cracks too.”

“We don’t sound like anyone else – and we have cool songs.”

Few bands have navigated the fault lines between hardcore, metal, and industrial tension as uncompromisingly as Tommy Victor and Prong.
In this in-depth conversation, Tommy Victor speaks with Fok ‘bs‘ about imperfection as strength, the danger of comfort, live intensity versus studio control, and why ‘Live And Uncleansed‘ might be the most honest document of Prong yet.
‘Live And Uncleansed‘ deliberately embraces imperfections.
At this point in your career, what do flaws reveal that precision never could?
“There lived an inexplicable energy. Especially in the vocals. If I were to redo the singing afterwards in the studio, the intensity of the show, of that moment would most likely be lost. Same with all of the performances. Whether it be the bass, guitar parts, especially the solos or the drums, we had to find the best live versions of the songs as they were, and roll with it.”
Prong have always existed between hardcore, metal, and something almost industrial in mindset.
Do you see genre as a tool – or as a limitation you’ve spent decades resisting?
“Initiallly we resisted, wanting to be original and not easily labeled. It’s been a curse I believe that has hindered our popularity.”
A live album freezes a moment that was never meant to bestatic.
What version of Prong did you most want to preserve on this record?
“Well, the current one, performing the classic ‘Cleansing’ songs along side the modern ones. Let’s face it, the old lineup wouldn’t be able to play sounds like ‘However It May End’ and ‘Ultimate Authority’ which we included on our new live record as well as ‘Cleansing’ songs.”
Songs like ‘Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck‘ have survived multiple eras and audiences.
Why do you think certain riffs keep aging while others disappear?
“I wish I knew then I’d write more songs like ‘Snap..’. You got to get lucky as a song writer I think.”
You’ve said this live release is a true exposure to what Prong are on stage.
Is vulnerability something you think heavy music still avoids too often?
“Oh yeah maybe. It’s a great point you’re making. Personally, I imagine I’ve released some of that emphasis on insisting everything being perfect. Mainly because it never is. At least for Prong. It’s a very imperfect project. I’m not a trained singer or guitar player. I’m willing to say that I really don’t know what I’m doing these days. I don’t care what people think as much as.”
Compared to studio albums like ‘State Of Emergency‘, live recordings strip away control.
How comfortable are you with losing that control at this stage of your artistic life?
“In the studio you sometimes don’t have as much control as you like. You’re under deadlines and budget constraints. You got to finish the project and sometimes you have to make quick decisions and let things be as they are or scrap them. We can’t make 4 month records any more. Or go back and rework stuff.”
Prong emerged from a New York scene defined by confrontation and friction.
How much of that original environment still lives in the way you perform today?
“Wow I dont know. I mean sometimes it feels like the old days and that’s great. I think now you’re fighting against all the bands that play with prerecorded tracks and that’s what the younger audiences are accustomed to be hearing.”
Many bands mellow with longevity.
Prong seem to sharpen instead.
Is aggression something you consciously maintain – or something that simply never left?
“It’s not entirely aggressive. That’s what I like about this new live record where we have included more alternative almost moody moments like ‘Sublime’ and ‘Not Of This Earth’.”
When you listen back to this live album, do you hear continuity with your past – or evidence that you’re still evolving?
“The past was sort of all over the place. I don’t think we could have done an over two hour set with any of the old lineups. These guys are better players. Tyler is the best drummer Prong ever had and Dean is the best bassist apart from Raven.”
When someone listens to ‘Live And Uncleansed‘ as their first exposure to Prong, what do you hope they immediately feel – not understand, but feel?
“Variety and originality. We don’t sound like anyone else. And we have cool songs.”
‘Live And Uncleansed‘ captures a band that refuses to polish away its edges.
Decades into their career, Prong remain driven not by perfection, but by instinct, friction, and the refusal to sound like anyone else – and that might be their greatest consistency of all.
by Fok ‘bs‘

track-list:
Revenge…Best Served Cold
Inheritence
The Descent
One Outnumbered
No Question
Sublime
Not of This Earth
Home Rule
Ultimate Authority
Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck
However It May End
Out of This Misery
Corpus Delicti
Whose Fist Is This Anyway?

Prong are:
Tommy Victor – vocals, guitars
Tyler Bogliole – drums
Christopher Dean – bass

live-dates 2026:
Mar5th Hyde Park Osnabrück/DE
Mar6th Gebäude 9 Cologne/DE
Mar7th De Tijdloze Sint-Niklaas/BE
Mar8th Burgerweeshuis Deventer/NL
Mar9th Het Depot Leuven/BE

Few bands have managed to channel aggression and precision quite like New York’s metal trailblazers Prong.
For more than three decades, the trio – led by founder, guitarist, and vocalist Tommy Victor – has fused hardcore intensity, metallic groove, and mechanical edge into a sound that remains unmistakably their own.
Now, that legacy is being captured in its purest form:
live and unfiltered.
On March 6, Prong will release their new live album, ‘Live And Uncleansed‘, via Steamhammer.
Available as a CD digipak, LP, and across streaming platforms, the record promises a no-frills document of the band at full throttle – stripped of studio polish and driven by stage-born adrenaline.
The first taste comes in the form of a live version of their enduring classic, ‘Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck‘.
Originally a defining track in the band’s catalog, the song has long been a staple of their setlists, igniting crowds with its unmistakable groove and razor-sharp riffing. In this newly released live cut, the edges are rougher, the energy more volatile, the delivery even more confrontational.
“This live version of ‘Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck’ is raw, high energy and unpolished,”
says Victor.
“If you want to get exposed to Prong or you want to get a taste of their explosive live show, this song is a must.”
That sense of immediacy defines ‘Live And Uncleansed‘.
Rather than smoothing out imperfections, the album leans into them – capturing the grit, sweat, and sheer physical impact of a Prong performance.
It’s a reminder that while trends may shift, the band’s core power remains undiminished.
Prong have also announced five European live dates, bringing their trademark intensity back across the Atlantic.
For longtime fans and newcomers alike, ‘Live And Uncleansed‘ serves as both a celebration of the band’s enduring catalog and a testament to their continued dominance onstage.
Raw.
Direct.
Uncompromising.
Just the way Prong intended.