Here at Revolver, we're always on the hunt for new songs to bang our heads to — indeed, it's a big part of our jobs. With that in mind, here are the tracks released this week in metal, hard rock and hardcore that have been on heavy rotation at Revolver HQ. For your listening pleasure, we've also compiled the songs in a Spotify playlist, which will grow each week.
Jinjer - "On the Top"
Fans are watching Jinjer grow and evolve right before our eyes, and on new banger "On the Top," they sound darker, more progressive and more sinister than ever in the throaty, growled passages while reaching more stratospheric elevations in the melodies. The song may warn of the dangers of climbing the heights of fame, but it'll be hard for them to slow their own ascension when they keep churning out hits like this.
Cro-Mags - "From the Grave"
Sludgy, filthy and punishing, NYHC OGs Cro-Mags show what they do best on "From the Grave." There's plenty of inspirational talk in the lyrics despite the dirty riffs and squealing guitar solo (Motörhead's Phil Campbell handles lead and slide guitar duties), and the relentlessly driving beat keeps the action chugging right along for the brief but powerful two-minute jam.
Cloak - "A Voice in the Night"
Cloak continue to be favorites around Revolver HQ, and their new straight-ahead blackened rocker of a track isn't changing that. The cut showcases them inside their musical comfort zone, but operating with depth and precision lost on many similar acts. No, they aren't reinventing the wheel with the ultra-evil "A Voice in the Night," though they are coating it with the blackest black grease and making sure it runs smoothly all the way to hell.
Zonal - "In a Cage"
Justin Broadrick and Kevin Martin's experimental ambient hip-hop project Zonal is a perfect foundation for Philly avant-rapper Moor Mother to populate with a unique warped malaise that leaves "In a Cage" somewhere between fever dream and paralytic nightmare. Lyrics inspired by old Smashing Pumpkins lines add a layer of alternative flavor, while buzzsaw electronic static reminds you frequently that Godflesh architect Broadrick is still the puppet master behind the haunting, washed-out undertones.
Machine Head - "Do or Die"
Penned in 2018 just days after the announcement that longtime Machine Head drummer Dave McClain and guitarist Phil Demmel would be leaving the band, "Do or Die" serves as both a (re)statement of intent and a raised middle finger by bandleader Robb Flynn at his haters. For fans, meanwhile, it has everything a diehard Headcase could ask for: raging, guttural vocals, thrashy riffs, dual-guitar shreddery and, of course, a bulldozing, 10-ton hammer of a breakdown.
The Body - "A Curse" (Remixed by Moss of Aura)
Nobody really knows what the Body will do next in their prolific experimentation, but "A Curse" (remixed by Moss of Aura) is a beautiful reimagining of the terror-stricken original that sees it strung lightly with gossamer thread and diffused into a dream-pop soundscape. Juxtaposition is the trick of the trade here, and it works best in the passages where Chip King's roars are audible but buried, an underpinning to the abstract whimsy in the foreground.
