Manchester, New Hampshire Aug 23, 2026 (Issuewire.com) - The August 22, 2026, edition of Matt Connarton Unleashed, featuring B.F. Raid (Boston’s Final Raid) and Eljer P. Sloan, is now available for listeners to stream on demand.
Broadcast live from the studios of WMNH 95.3 FM in Manchester, New Hampshire, the three-hour program devoted its second hour to B.F. Raid and its third hour to Eljer P. Sloan. The complete broadcast, which also featured Jam Tomorrow during the opening hour, is available through the WMNH 95.3 FM on-demand archive.
B.F. Raid guitarist and co-founder Bruce Owens and drummer Jamie Forbes joined host Matt Connarton in the studio for an extensive conversation about the band’s new album, Combat Zone, its Boston-centered stories, the work required to complete the record and the growing response it has received since its July 30 release.
The nearly hour-long B.F. Raid segment featured four songs from Combat Zone: “Punchdrunk,” “The Greatest Show In Town,” “Down But Not Out” and “Bullets From The Board.” The music was presented alongside the personal experiences, historical events and creative decisions that shaped the songs.
Connarton opened the segment with “Punchdrunk,” the hard-hitting single currently leading B.F. Raid’s promotion of Combat Zone. After hearing the album in its entirety, Connarton described it as “really good,” adding, “I love it.”
Owens and Forbes discussed the concept behind Combat Zone, a 10-song, approximately 52-minute album that functions as an audio documentary about growing up and living in and around Boston. Rather than presenting a polished or romanticized portrait of the city, the album draws upon the people, neighborhoods, clubs, conflicts, tragedies and often-dark humor that became part of the band members’ lives.
One of the episode’s most substantial conversations explored the origins of “The Greatest Show In Town.” Owens explained how the song began taking shape during earlier recording sessions while the band watched daily street activity through the studio’s large windows near Boston’s Massachusetts Avenue corridor. What initially appeared from a distance to be part of the neighborhood’s spectacle increasingly revealed the addiction, exploitation and human suffering taking place outside.
Owens also discussed how the song was partly inspired by the story of Robin Benedict, whose disappearance and murder became one of the most widely reported cases connected to Boston’s former Combat Zone. That history helped shape a song that asks listeners to look beyond the spectacle and recognize the humanity of people who are too often treated as nameless or disposable.
The interview also examined the physical and emotional commitment required to record the album. Owens and Forbes recalled the long studio sessions, winter weather, demanding performances and exhaustion that accompanied the project. Their conversation highlighted a musical partnership extending back approximately 40 years, beginning when they were teenagers and continuing through two different bands.
Forbes has remained an essential part of bringing Owens’ musical ideas to life, contributing the persistence, timing and intensity necessary to transform the songs from compositions into finished recordings. Their long working relationship was evident throughout the interview as they traded stories about the sessions, the band’s internal dynamics and their shared determination to complete the album.
“Down But Not Out” gave listeners another example of the record’s combination of heavy music and direct storytelling. The B.F. Raid portion of the program concluded with “Bullets From The Board,” which Owens identified as the one song on Combat Zone that does not focus primarily on Boston. The composition instead draws inspiration from the events surrounding the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, expanding the album’s storytelling beyond its central geographic theme.
Owens and Forbes also discussed B.F. Raid’s expanding radio support, encouraging streaming activity, merchandise sales and the independent promotional work surrounding the album. Following nearly two years of writing, arranging, recording and preparing Combat Zone, the band is currently concentrating on getting the music in front of as many listeners as possible.
Recorded at The Record Co. in Boston with engineer Jamie Rowe, Combat Zone features Bill Kotowski on vocals, Bruce Owens on guitar and keyboards, Matt “Moose” Howard on bass and Jamie Forbes on drums. The album follows B.F. Raid’s 2024 release, Raided Again, which reintroduced the veteran Massachusetts band to a new generation of listeners.
Combat Zone is available through Spotify, Bandcamp and other major streaming services. Music, videos, photographs and current band news are available at BFRaid.com.
The final hour introduced listeners to Eljer P. Sloan, an original rock band based in southeastern New Hampshire. The group brought its own combination of heavy grooves, humor and imaginative songwriting to the program, opening its segment with the melodic and immediately memorable “A Better Day.”
During the 55-minute conversation, the members discussed the unusual origin of the Eljer P. Sloan name, the project’s evolution from Dave Malcolm’s recording work beginning in 2010 to the formation of a performing band in 2022, and the development of its current lineup. The band now features Dave Malcolm on vocals, Sean Harris on lead guitar and backing vocals, Tommy Haraburda on rhythm guitar and backing vocals, John Walker on bass and Jeff Caldeira on drums.
Eljer P. Sloan also discussed its upcoming performances, collaborative songwriting process and plans to develop an album’s worth of new music with the current lineup. The segment concluded with “Burn The Witch,” one of the heavier and more aggressive songs in the band’s catalog. Listeners can hear the complete Eljer P. Sloan interview on demand and explore the band’s music, videos and upcoming appearances at EljerPSloan.com.
Hosted by Matt Connarton, Matt Connarton Unleashed provides independent musicians, artists, entertainment figures and industry professionals with an opportunity to share their work through extended, conversational interviews. The format allows guests to move beyond brief promotional appearances and discuss the experiences, personalities and creative decisions behind their music.
The program streams live every Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon Eastern and broadcasts locally on WMNH 95.3 FM in Manchester. Episodes and individual artist segments are subsequently made available through the Matt Connarton Unleashed archive and major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Podbean, Pocket Casts and Podcast Addict.
About B.F. Raid
B.F. Raid, also known as Boston’s Final Raid, is a Massachusetts heavy metal band with roots extending back to 1981. The band combines traditional heavy metal, powerful vocals, heavy riffs and personal storytelling inspired by Boston’s people, neighborhoods and history. Its second full-length album, Combat Zone, was released on July 30, 2026.
About Eljer P. Sloan
Eljer P. Sloan is an original rock band from southeastern New Hampshire known for heavy, groove-driven riffs, energetic performances and creative songwriting. Initially developed as a recording project in 2010, Eljer P. Sloan became a live band in 2022 and continues to write and perform original material throughout New England.
Media Contact
B.F. Raid (Boston's Final Raid) *****@bfraid.com 617-658-3353 51 Pleasant St #245 Malden, MA, 02148 United States http://bfraid.com
