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 deathcore, hardcore, rap-core and more that have been on heavy rotation at Revolver HQ. For your listening pleasure, we've also compiled the songs in an ever-evolving Spotify playlist.
No Cure - "Self-Preservation" (Feat. Orthodox)
No Cure. Their very name declares that obliteration is inevitable. Their is no antidote, and "Self-Preservation" is the sonic personification of such apocalyptic nihilism. Teaming with vocalist Adam Easterling of fellow Southern heavyweights Orthodox, the Alabama wrecking crew sound absolutely feral on this song.
Grave-digging chugs, guttural grunts and death-metal riffage played with no-fucks-given force. Nope, there isn't a goddamn cure on earth for how sick this shit sounds.
Megan Thee Stallion - "Cobra (Rock Remix)" Feat. Spiritbox
If the era-defining Judgment Night soundtrack was assembled in 2023, this song would probably be on it. Houston rap hero Megan Thee Stallion enlisted Canuck alt-metal rising stars Spiritbox for an ass-beating remix of her ass-throwing new banger "Cobra."
This is the type crossover between underground metal and mainstream pop-rap doesn't happen often, but this "rock" (see: djent metal) remix shows that when it's done right, it kicks fucking ass.
Upon Stone - "Dead Mother Moon"
Metalcore that's influenced by melodic death metal is having a resurgence right now (Dying Wish, Foreign Hands, Balmora), but L.A.'s Upon Stone are just bringing back real-deal melodeath.
"Dead Mother Moon" evokes classic At the Gates and In Flames in form, but you can tell these guys also have a soft-spot for moshier hardcore. Taylor Young's acid-washed production gives it a modern edge, and you can picture people two-stepping to some of those bridges.
Scarab - "Disposal"
Scarab released the most disgustingly heavy hardcore demo of the year back in March. Their new EP, Seeking Chaos and Revenge After Betrayal, is somehow even gnarlier, as its apoplectic closing track goes to show.
The Philly band — featuring ex-Year of the Knife vocalist Tyler Mullen, and other members of Gridiron, Seed of Pain, etc. — don't give your ear a second to breathe on this track, Mullen's pained hollers sounding like they're reaching out of the speakers to spit in your face.
Psycho-Frame - "The Plot to Nuke the Midwest"
Psycho-Frame are a deathcore band with Florida members, so whether they'll admit it or not, it's likely that they came up listening to home-state heroes A Day to Remember. That band has a song called "The Plot to Bomb the Pandhandle," and Psycho-Frame's new song is called "The Plot to Nuke the Midwest."
Nuking is more intense than bombing, and lo and behold, this is definitely more intense than ADTR's jaunty pop-core tune. Psycho-Frame are doing their part to revive the savage heaviness of MySpace-era deathcore, and "The Plot to Nuke the Midwest" continues that tradition. Get your mesh shorts and start moshing.
Infected Rain - "Never to Return"
Moldova's Infected Rain play a version of nu-core that's entirely their own. "Never to Return" spirals masterfully between enchanting clean singing over pulses of electronic drums, and stabbing blasts of down-tuned guitars meshed with ferocious screams from vocalist Lena Scissorhands.
There're passages with Eastern percussion, symphonic chants and utterly destructive djent blasts. If run-of-the-mill metalcore is a place, then Infected Rain have decided "Never to Return."
