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.
Brutus - "Cemetery"
Brutus continue to build up the much-deserved buzz around their relatively new emergence with "Cemetery," a combative yet progressively beautiful track that explores the band's commitment to blending aggression and ethereality in fine-tuned harmony. Building massive walls of sound that support the stunning vocals of drummer and singer Stefanie Mannaerts as she flows impeccably from uncompromising shouts to shimmering, lush crooning, the band creates a nice, rich bed of sound in which to disappear and meditate for four glorious minutes.
Fury - "Angels Over Berlin"
Orange County hardcore band Fury have cemented themselves as some of the smartest songwriters in their lane — their 2016 album Paramount was a particular high point of emotion and intensity. Now they've returned with "Angels Over Berlin," the first cut off of their upcoming album Failed Entertainment. Fury merge their hardcore with 90s alt-rock on the new song — without losing any of the punch of their prior material — to create a sound that's easily listenable and even more rewarding the more times you hear it.
Pig Destroyer - "The Cavalry"
Pig Destroyer return to the fold just a few months after the release of last year's full-length Head Cage with the surprise drop of the deliciously vicious cut "The Cavalry." Even more surprising is the almost catchy pacing and structure of the track that adds interest and (dare we say) accessibility while maintaining the scorching battery-acid tonality of PxDx's more extreme boundary-pushing work. A passage of eardrum-battering harsh noise ushers in the song's final notes, just to remind you not to get too comfortable.
Dub Trio (featuring King Buzzo) - "World of Inconvenience"
The inclusion of King Buzzo on any track will inevitably give it an inextricable Melvins flavor, and that remains true on Dub Trio's latest "World of Inconvenience." What transforms the track from guest-star highlight to original composition worthy of its own spot in the group's canon is a seismic shift in tone and delivery coming just 90 seconds in, where the journey down the psychedelic-sludge rabbit hole takes a dark turn into the anxious and gloomy. Horror-movie sound effects and pummeling, disorienting waves of sound circle back on each other for a truly harrowing and intriguing ride.
Scarlxrd - "HEAD GXNE"
If you don't already know, we'll lay it out clearly: Scarlxrd is a heavy as fuck rapper. Some of his songs pull in actual elements of metal songwriting (ie downtuned guitars), but even the way he carries himself on a regular track firmly positions him on the heaviest end of rap. "HEAD GXNE" shows this in action as his screamed vocals erupt like machine-gun fire over the beat's simple melodrama. Even in an era where more and more rappers are employing aggressive vocals, Scarlxrd stands out from the pack by sounding like he's a second away from gouging his throat out in his delivery.
Deafheaven - "Black Brick"
Deafheaven may liberally work in moments of overt beauty and shoegaze into their brand of black metal, but it's clear the members all have deep love for the genre's grimmest musical aspects. Newest single "Black Brick" sort of sounds like a mix between their early material and New Bermuda, but taken to a considerably heavier, darker place. Drums thunder while more traditional swarming black-metal riffs back them up, propelling the song ever forward without letting a moment of light leak in.
