Weekly Roundup: January 30th
Weekly Roundup: January 30th
Featuring Home Front, Unearth, Faerie Ring, and more.
MOSH PITHY:
A curated selection of cool shit for you to listen to.
Unearth – “The Wretched; The Ruinous”
Who doesn't love a good semicolon, right folks? It’s great to see OG metalcore act Unearth coming back in a big way, especially with a shiny new Will Putney-produced single. According to a YouTube commenter, “The Wretched; The Ruinous” sounds “straight out of 2004,” and I’m inclined to agree, as that is my favourite era of the band. You’ve got thunderous drums, a blazing solo and a dope chant outro. It’s heavy and exactly what I want from Unearth. No word on a new record, but it definitely feels like a ‘watch this space’ kind of deal. So, you know. Watch the live tour video for “The Wretched; The Ruinous” below:
Loser – Stadium Dreams on a Bedroom Budget
Melbourne alt-rock outfit Loser appear to have gone through some line-up changes of late; however, that hasn’t stopped them from prepping for the release of their upcoming EP, Stadium Dreams On A Bedroom Budget, in a slightly unconventional way. On social media, the duo outlined their plans to release it more “like a Netflix show,” with individual singles coming out in separate months. With two tracks already out, January’s release was the delightful mid-tempo banger “Only One,” and there are still three more to come. Stream the EP’s previously released singles here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Overgrow – “When You’re Not Around”
Starting off as a Columbus, Ohio solo project for vocalist Jake Ciccotelli, Overgrow have gradually morphed into a Chicago-based quartet specialising in a heady mix of alt-rock and shoegaze sounds on 2021’s Wall of Mirrors LP. On their latest single, “When You’re Not Around,” the first song written together as a full band, the quartet are working through some personal issues: “The song centres around the need some people have to use others to climb social ladders, and to discard of them when that purpose has been exhausted.” Listen to “When You’re Not Around” here.
Majesties – Vast Reaches Unclaimed
Melodic death metal trio Majesties are gearing up for the release of their debut album, Vast Reaches Unclaimed, through 20 Buck Spin on March 3rd. It’s a record with a big, late 90s Gothenburg feel, evoking the face-melting intensity of Jester Race-era In Flames. Think bombastic, major key melodies, explosive riffs, twin guitar harmonies, and pained vocals that sound (to my ear anyway) like Tomas Lindberg from At The Gates/Disfear. It’s good stuff. Stream the LP’s pre-release singles here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Faded State – “Silver Man in the Sky”
On their forthcoming LP, Indiana “hazy and gloomy” stoner doom Faerie Ring are embracing their inner mad scientist. Weary Traveler, coming out through King Volume Records on April 14th, initially caught my attention with some very D&D-inspired album artwork (giant axe statues, blue lightning, imposing cliff faces etc.), but this particular studio anecdote from their Bandcamp page sealed the deal:
“For ‘Silver Man In The Sky,’ another single, the band wanted the sound of an anvil, so they took an iron skillet (which the band wound up cooking in a few hours later) into the recording booth and bashed it with a hammer in front of a $20,000 Telefunken microphone. As Kyle recalls: ‘There was a moment in the song where we were sending a signal from a Steinway piano worth more than my house through a Death By Audio Fuzz Delay into a Sunn Model-T. I felt like a mad scientist.’”
Listen to “Silver Man in the Sky” here.
Lo! – The Gleaners
Australian blackened sludge veterans Lo! are back with a new record to follow up on 2017's Vestigial. It’s called The Gleaners and is out April 7th through Pelagic Records. The record is billed as “a soul-ripping hell-ride across nine visceral anthems; an affair of raw violence with a touch of sophisticated madness.” Listeners can no doubt expect some dark riffs and gargantuan grooves with a smattering of foreboding atmospheres. Stream the LP’s pre-release singles here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
Home Front – “Faded State”
It’s been a hot minute since I featured Canadian post-punkers Home Front in this newsletter (December 2021, to be exact), so we’re well overdue. Levelling up from a duo to a full band, the Edmonton quintet will release their full-length debut Games Of Power on March 3rd through the good folks over at La Vida Es Un Mus Discos, and it’s already one of my most anticipated albums of 2023. If the idea of morose post-punk/new wave with slick synth melodies, deep baritone vocals, and hardcore rhythms sounds up your alley, then I would highly recommend you seek this one out. Watch the video for “Faded State” below:
Exhibition – The Last Laugh
Buffalo bruisers Exhibition mix things up with a fun and nasty mix of late-80s hardcore worship and contemporary heaviness. The quintet’s debut full-length, The Last Laugh, is coming out through the great Triple B Records on February 27th, and four songs from the record are already up and streaming now as a little ‘while you wait’ teaser EP, so that’s dope. Stream the LP’s pre-release singles here (Bandcamp/Spotify).
HEAVY METTLE:
A closer, more in-depth look at a new record that ticks all my boxes.
Fucked Up – One Day
“With Abraham and Haliechuk splitting lyrical contributions for the first time in nearly a decade, this alternating motif manifests in curious ways. Cuts like ‘I Think I Might Be Weird,’ ‘Huge New Her’ and the record’s title track find Abraham lending a pompous grandeur to Haliechuk’s tales of alienated sea captains, Delphic visions of dime-store laundromats and the meaning of love at the ‘End of History,’ heightened by sparkling synths, power-pop melodies and harmonized, glam rock guitar licks….
And yet, against all of these ruminations on time, memory, and the dense webs of human connection, ‘Cicada’ stands out as Fucked Up’s most candescent celebration of life in the face of ever-encroaching darkness. Propelled by a glorious, Hüsker Dü-worthy hook and Haliechuk’s soaring croon, the record's penultimate track acts as a fittingly triumphant ode to loss: ‘Give me one more day / Let me hear you say / I'll remember you my friend / Your song will never end.’” (Read my full review for Exclaim! here.)
Stream here: Bandcamp | Spotify
Listen to all these tracks and more on the TPD 2023 CUTS playlist, updated weekly.
ERRONEOUS BOTCH:
Last week, we had the one and only Jem from Sydney all-stars SPEED drop by the show to run through his curated Hit List of Asian hardcore heaters, including acts like Depressed 1279, Whispers, Defy, KRUELTY, and Destiny. It’s an absolute banger of an episode, and Jem’s energy and love for hardcore is utterly infectious. Check it out at the link below: